Remembering Ronnie Roundup: Reviewing the Ron Santo Book

This past week I have been reading the book Ron Santo: A Perfect Ten, which I finished today. I don't want to spoil the book but I definitely recommend it for any Cubs fans. Author Rich Wolfe teamed up with Ron's partner Pat Hughes to write the book, which was action a collection of stories from those that knew Santo best. Family members, fellow broadcasters and childhood friends are among those that wrote sections of the novel.

On a scale of 1-10, I'd give a perfect ten. There were over 20 people that were interviewed who did not make the book. Wolfe is going to try to include their memories of Ronnie in his next book, For Cub Fans Only, Volume 3. Former teammates such as Ernie Banks, Randy Hundley, Glenn Beckert, Fergie Jenkins and Don Kessinger were among those cut. Fans are encouraged to send their interesting Ron Santo stories to printedpage@cox.net.

Pat Hughes shared his memories during the first chapter of the book. He retold all of his favorite stories and added a few new ones in. Kerry Wood wrote the second section, followed by Ronnie's family members. My favorite section was probably the one written by producer engineer Matt Boltz, who spent ten years with Ronnie in the WGN Radio booth. Boltzy, who looked at Santo as a father figure, had a very unique perspective that previously went untold.

Santo's sister, ex-wife, men's softball teammate and childhood friend all told unique stories as well. John McDonough of the Blackhawks and David Kaplan of WGN Radio described some of the pranks that they would play on Ronnie in the mid-'90s. Other former booth mates such as Bob Brenly, Thom Brennamen, Cory Provus, Judd Sirott and Andy Masur had great tales to tell as well.

The forward was written by Ron Santo, Jr. and titled Namesakes are People Two. The book can be ordered at ronsantobook.com or by visiting a Chicagoland Jewel or Binny's Beverage Depot. I was sad to finish it, but there are still several more Remembering Ronnie dates on our calender to keep in mind:
August 10, 2011- the statue goes up at Wrigley
This Fall- Jeff Santo releases an updated version of This Old Cub.
This Winter- Baseball Voices CD of Ronnie released by Pat Hughes

That's it for now, I will continue to provide Remembering Ronnie Roundups every month or so.

Remembering Ronnie Roundup: Book Set to Come Out

Pat Hughes and Rich Wolfe have finished writing their book Ron Santo: A Perfect Ten in honor of the late Cubs legend. It is now available for pre-order on santofilms.com. Preordered copies of the book will be shipped out on Thursday, June 2. The price is $25. Hughes and Wolfe spoke with many people who were touched by Santo and new Ron closely and published their thoughts. Contributors to the book include:

• Ron Santo Jr., Ronnie's son


• Pat Hughes, co-author and Santo's partner on WGN Radio for 15 years


• Kerry Wood, Cubs pitcher from '98 to '08 while Ronnie was in the booth. Santo's favorite current Cub.


• Vicki Santo, Ron's wife


• Jeff Santo, Ron's son


• Linda Santo-Brown, Ron's daughter


• Judy Santo, Ronnie's ex-wife


• Frank Sevelli and Bill Chatalas, childhood friends of Ron Santo


• Bud Selig, MLB commissioner


• Tom Ricketts, the chairman of the Cubs


• Ned Colletti, Dodgers GM and friend of Ron


• Crane Kenney, Cubs President


• John McDonough, former Cubs front office man, now with the Blackhawks


• Mike Murphy, radio personality


• David Kaplan, WGN Radio and Comcast Sports Net host


• Bruce Miles, Cubs beat writer for the Daily Herald


• Fred Mitchell, writer for the Chicago Tribune


• Matt Boltz, producer engineer of Cubs baseball on WGN Radio since 2000


• Judd Sirott, worked with Ron for two years on Cubs radio, current pre/post host


• Cory Provus, worked with Ron for two years on WGN Radio for 1 inning of play-by-play and pregame show


• Andy Masur, was the first to work as the third member of the booth with Pat and Ron, did so far seven seasons


• Thom Brennaman, Ron's only other broadcast partner besides Pat

I cannot wait until I have my hands on a copy of the book!