1 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Phil Regan, baseball, 1937-2026
(Eric Hartline, Imagn Images)
1 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Phil Regan, baseball, 1937-2026
(Eric Hartline, Imagn Images)
2 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Kyle Calder, hockey, 1979-2026
(Jerry Lai, Imagn Images)
3 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Aldon Smith, football, 1989-2026
(Brad Penner, USA TODAY Sports)
4 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Stacey King, basketball, 1967-2026
(Jonathan Daniel, Getty Images)
5 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Cliff Fletcher, hockey, 1935-2026
(Richard Wolowicz, Getty Images)
6 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Rick Adelman, basketball, 1946-2026
(Brad Rempel, USA TODAY Sports)
7 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Raymond Berry, football, 1933-2026
(Darryl Norenberg, US PRESSWIRE)
8 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Claude Lemieux, hockey, 1965-2026
(RVR Photos,)
9 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Bob Horner, baseball, 1957-2026
(Manny Rubio, US PRESSWIRE)
10 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Manny Fernandez, football, 1946-2026
(Darryl Norenberg, US PRESSWIRE)
11 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Charlie Moore, baseball, 1953-2026
(Milwaukee Journal Sentinel files)
12 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Kyle Busch, auto racing, 1985-2026
(Matthew O’Haren, Imagn Images)
13 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Sherman Lewis, football, 1942-2026
(Geoff Burke, US PRESSWIRE)
14 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Jason Collins, basketball, 1978-2026
(Bob DeChiara, USA TODAY Sports)
15 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Brandon Clarke, basketball, 1996-2026
(Matthew Smith, Imagn Images)
16 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Charle Young, football, 1951-2026
(Kirby Lee, USA TODAY Sports)
17 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Craig Morton, football, 1943-2026
(Malcolm Emmons, USA TODAY Sports)
18 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Bobby Cox, baseball, 1941-2026
(John David Mercer, US PRESSWIRE)
19 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Ted Turner, baseball, 1938-2026
(Jamie Squire, Getty Images)
20 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Joe Senser, football, 1956-2026
(Manny Rubio, US PRESSWIRE)
21 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
John Sterling, baseball, 1938-20026
(Bob Karp, USA TODAY NETWORK)
22 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Alex Zanardi, auto racing, 1966-2026
(Fabrizio Bensch, Reuters)
23 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Josh Mauro, football, 1991-2026
(Mark J. Rebilas, USA TODAY Sports)
24 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Monte Coleman, football, 1957-2026
(Otto Greule Jr, Getty Images)
25 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Rod Martin, football, 1954-2026
(US PRESSWIRE)
26 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Jim Jabir, basketball, 1962-2026
(Joseph Cress, Iowa City Press-Citizen via Imagn Content Services, LLC)
27 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Dave McGinnis, football, 1951-2026
(Harry How, Getty Images)
28 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Phil Garner, baseball, 1949-2026
(Tim Heitman, US PRESSWIRE)
29 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Browning Nagle, football, 1968-2026
(Mike Powell, Getty Images)
30 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Davey Lopes, baseball, 1945-2026
(Jayne Kamin-Oncea, US PRESSWIRE)
31 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Tom Nieto, baseball, 1960-2026
(Stephen Dunn, Getty Images)
32 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Joey Browner, football, 1960-2026
(US PRESSWIRE)
33 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Jeff Siemon, football, 1950-2026
(Malcolm Emmons, US PRESSWIRE)
34 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Barret Robbins, football, 1973-2026
(Scott Halleran, Getty Images)
35 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Matt Snell, football, 1941-2026
(David Boss, US PRESSWIRE)
36 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Troy Murray, hockey, 1962-2026
(Mike Powell, Getty Images)
37 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Bob Harlan, football, 1936-2026
(Kyle Bursaw, Press-Gazette Media)
38 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Lou Holtz, football, 1937-2026
(US PRESSWIRE)
39 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Dominiq Ponder, football, 2002-2026
(NADIA ZOMORODIAN, NEWS-JOURNAL)
40 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Bruce Froemming, baseball, 1939-2026
(Tom Szczerbowski, US PRESSWIRE)
41 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Jeff Galloway, Olympics, 1945-2026
(Clayton Freeman, Florida Times-Union/USA TODAY NETWORK)
42 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Rondale Moore, football, 2000-2026
(Eric Schlene, For the Journal & Courier)
43 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Kara Braxton, basketball, 1983-2026
(Jennifer Stewart, US PRESSWIRE)
44 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Bill Mazeroski, baseball, 1936-2026
(File photo)
45 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Mike Wagner (right), football, 1949-2026
(Malcolm Emmons, USA TODAY Sports)
46 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Doug Moe, basketball, 1938-2026
(Damian Strohmeyer, Getty Images)
47 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Tre Johnson, football, 1971-2026
(Doug Pensinger, Getty Images)
48 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Elroy Face, baseball, 1928-2026
(Charles LeClaire, USA TODAY Sports)
49 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Tracy Scroggins, football, 1969-2026
(Danny Moloshok, Getty Images)
50 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Barry Wilburn, football, 1963-2026
(Bob Deutsch, USA TODAY Sports)
51 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Terrance Gore, baseball, 1991-2026
(Jay Biggerstaff, Imagn Images)
52 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Sonny Jurgensen, football, 1934-2026
(Malcolm Emmons, USA TODAY Sports)
53 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
John Brodie, football, 1935-2026
(Malcolm Emmons, USA TODAY Sports)
54 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Kevin Johnson, football, 1970-2026
(Otto Greule Jr, Getty Images)
55 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Wilbur Wood, baseball, 1941-2026
(Malcolm Emmons, USA TODAY Sports)
56 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Phil Goyette, hockey, 1933-2026
(Richard Wolowicz, Getty Images)
57 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Eddie McCreadie, soccer, 1940-2026
(Evening Standard, Getty Images)
58 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Dave Giusti, baseball, 1939-2026
(Malcolm Emmons, USA TODAY Sports)
59 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Martin Chivers, soccer, 1945-2026
(File photo)
60 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Billy Truax, football, 1943-2026
(Dick Raphael, US PRESSWIRE)
61 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Jawann Oldham, basketball, 1957-2026
(Ken Levine, Getty Images)
62 / 62
Sports figures we lost in 2026
Robert Pulford, hockey, 1936-2026
(Getty Images, Getty Images)
Don Cooper, who built the pitching staff that ended the Chicago White Sox’s 88-year championship drought, died Tuesday, Sept. 22 in Brentwood, Tennessee, the team confirmed. He was 70.
In the 2005 American League Championship Series, Mark Buehrle, Jon Garland, Freddy Garcia and Jose Contreras threw four straight complete games to beat the Angels. No team had done that since the 1928 Yankees. A week later, the White Sox swept the Houston Astros and won their first World Series since 1917.
Advertisement
His family announced his death on social media on Wednesday, Sept. 23 and did not give a cause.
Cooper, a New York City native, pitched parts of four seasons in the majors after debuting with the Minnesota Twins in 1981. His longer career came in coaching. He joined the White Sox as a minor-league pitching coach in 1988 and spent 14 years working with the organization’s young arms before he was named the big-league pitching coach in July 2002.
Former Chicago White Sox pitching coach Don Cooper
He kept the job for 18 years under four managers: Jerry Manuel, Ozzie Guillen, Robin Ventura and Rick Renteria. In that time he coached Buehrle through a no-hitter and a perfect game, got 21 wins out of Esteban Loaiza and helped Chris Sale become one of the best left-handers of his time. The White Sox let him go in 2020, along with Renteria, after they lost in the playoffs.
Advertisement
“My career wouldn’t have been the same without Don Cooper,” Guillen posted on X.com. “Coop was one of a kind and taught me so much about pitchers, pitching, and their mindset. Always a close friend to my kids and family. Thank you for everything, Coop. My deepest condolences to his family. Rest in peace.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Don Cooper, former White Sox pitching coach, dies at 70
Read the full article here
