Hank Bauer, wounded World War II Marine and New York Yankees legacy, died on February 9 at the age of 84. The cause of death -- cancer.

Bauer, who managed the 1966 Baltimore Orioles to their first World Series title, was a three-time All-Star Yankees outfielder during his time with the team that won nine American League pennants and seven World Series titles in just 10 years. Bauer, a Yankees fixture from 1948-59, set the Series record with a 17-game hitting streak. His record still stands.

Yankees owner George Steinbrenner says, "Hank Bauer is an emblem of a generation that helped shape the landscape of our country. He was a natural leader and a teammate in every sense of the word, and his contributions went well beyond the baseball field. His service to the Yankees, his country, and his family shows why I have been so privileged to call him a friend."

Bauer's baseball accomplishments, which also include playing two seasons with and later managing the Kansas City Athletics and scouting for the Yankees and Royals, are not his only claims to fame. He also earned two Bronze Stars and two Purple Hearts for his courageous dedication to the United States.

Enlisting in the Marines shortly after Pearl Harbor, Bauer was wounded in Okinawa when he was hit in the leg by shrapnel just 53 days after he arrived on the island with 64 other men. "Only six of us came out," said Bauer who signed with the Yankees minor league after his discharge and sported his Marine Corps crewcut throughout the baseball career that landed him with the likes of Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra, and a young Roger Maris.

During the same week Bauer lost his life, two other players of his time also passed away -- Steve Barber, who pitched for Bauer in Baltimore and Lew Burdette, who played against the Yankees in the 1957 and 1958 World Series.

Bauer is remembered by many.

"I am truly heartbroken," says Berra. "Hank was a wonderful teammate and friend for so long. Nobody was more dedicated and proud to be a Yankee, he gave you everything he had."

New York Yankees legend and sports broadcaster Bobby Murcer will undergo surgery today at MD Anderson Hospital in Houston for a brain tumor, according to a New York Daily News published report. Murcer, who is 60, had been experiencing headaches and a lack of energy. The tumor was found during an MRI performed on Christmas eve.

Murcer is quoted by the newspaper as saying, "I'm feeling OK and we're just going to have to see what this surgery will bring. I'm hopeful that everything will turn out OK and I'm thankful to have so many friends who are rooting for me."

Murcer played professional baseball for 17 seasons. According to Wikipedia's profile, "A shortstop in the minor leagues, Murcer was slated to be the Yankees' third baseman but ended up being the center fielder following in the footsteps of Mickey Mantle and Joe DiMaggio. Almost anyone would suffer in comparison to those members of the Baseball Hall of Fame, but Murcer did well enough during the years the Yankees finished in the second division to become one of the team's most popular players of that era."

Murcer played for the New York Yankees, San Francisco Giants, and the Chicago Cubs before returning to play for the Yankees again. He retired and became a sports broadcaster for the Yankees, going on to win three Emmy Awards for live sports coverage.

As part of a cancer fundraising campaign of the Yankees Universe fund for pediatric cancer research, education and patient care at Memorial Sloan-Kettering, the New York Yankees are offering a limited-edition Yankees Universe t-shirt. Yankees owner George M. Steinbrenner III feels this is an exciting program will help many kids and their families lead a better life.

Monday, Brian Cashman, manager Joe Torre and Hall of Famer Yogi Berra delivered the announcement of the new Yankee Universe campaign at a press conference. Torre mentioned his diagnosis of prostate cancer in 1999. He called Memorial Sloan-Kettering and the Yankees the two most important teams in his life during the last 11 years. Torre said that cancer is a word that scares you, but when you find out the kind of work people are doing to discover a cure, it's very reassuring. "This is the Yankee universe," O'Reilly said. "And as far as I'm concerned, there's no better place to be."

Photo credit: Ben Couch