Former Cardinals third baseman Ken Reitz, a defensive whiz nicknamed the “Zamboni” for the manner in which he scooped balls off the Busch Stadium artificial turf for nearly a decade, was found dead Wednesday at his home in St. Charles, Missouri. He was 69. No cause of death yet has been determined, pending an autopsy, but foul play was not involved, according to his son, Brett Reitz.
Reitz, product of a tough neighborhood in Daly City, California, had two tours with the Cardinals, from 1972-75 and 1977-80, also playing with the San Francisco Giants in 1975, the Chicago Cubs (1981) and Pittsburgh briefly in 1982.