Obituary | Bob Stagg played in glory days of Rainiers

Another link to the glory days of the Seattle Rainiers is gone.

In fact, with last Thursday's death in Seattle of Bob Stagg at age 86, there are now no living members from the Rainiers' Pacific Coast League dynasty of 1939-41, when the team won three straight PCL championships.

Mr. Stagg's death came one year and one day after the passing of Edo Vanni last year at age 89. Vanni had been the last surviving member of the original Rainiers team of 1938.

Mr. Stagg and Vanni were teammates at Queen Anne High School, along with other future Rainiers such as Mike Budnick and Joe McNamee.

It was a golden era for Seattle high-school baseball, with Fred Hutchinson, Dewey Soriano, Ray Tran and Ernie Endress at Franklin, and Earl and Chet Johnson at Ballard.

Mr. Stagg died of an aneurysm at the Queen Anne Health Care Center, where he had been living since the day after Thanksgiving.

"Baseball back then was the way he lived life," said Mr. Stagg's son, Rick Stagg. "You worked hard, played hard, and you lived good and upstanding."

Mr. Stagg was a reserve catcher on the talent-laden Rainiers teams of 1939-42. After serving in the Navy in World War II — Mr. Stagg also was on active duty in the Korean War, and was in the Naval Reserves for 27 years — he returned to the Rainiers in 1946-47. He had a .221 average during his PCL career.

"He didn't have a lengthy pro career, but he was right there in the glory era," said PCL historian Dave Eskenazi, who befriended Mr. Stagg. "He was a really nice guy. He told great stories. He had a real resonant voice, with always that hint of a smile and sparkle."

Mr. Stagg also played for Twin Falls in the Pioneer League, and Spokane and Tacoma in the Western International League — both of them feeder leagues for the PCL.

He later worked numerous years for Coca-Cola in the Puget Sound area and Portland, finishing as a plant manager in Bellevue before retiring in 1978.

Mr. Stagg is survived by his second wife, Goldie Stagg; son Rick, daughter-in-law Robin, and grandsons John and Mark. His first wife, Ladonna Stagg, died in 1986.

At Mr. Stagg's request, there will be no funeral services. His urn will be placed at the Tahoma National Cemetery in Kent.