Bill Veeck - Life After Baseball

Life After Baseball

Finding himself no longer able to financially compete in the free agent era, Veeck sold the White Sox in January 1981. He retired to his home in St. Michaels, Maryland, where he had earlier discovered White Sox star Harold Baines while Baines was in high school there.

Although he never owned the Cubs, Veeck spent his last years as a frequent visitor of Wrigley Field, becoming a fan of the team he grew up with. Veeck had been a heavy smoker and drinker until 1980. In 1984 Veeck underwent two operations for lung cancer. Two years later he died at the age of 71 from cancer. He was elected five years later to the Baseball Hall of Fame.

When he died Veeck was survived by eight children. From his first marriage he had two children, Peter and Ellen. With his second wife, Mary Frances, he fathered six more children.