Boston Red Sox Legend Bill Lee Suffers Near-Fatal Health Scare

Editor's note: This article was written by a Townsquare Media Northern New England contributor and may contain the individual's views, opinions or personal experiences.

Boston Red Sox pitcher Bill Lee once said of his own legacy: “I think about the cosmic snowball theory. A few million years from now the sun will burn out and lose its gravitational pull. The earth will turn into a giant snowball and be hurled through space. When that happens it won't matter if I get this guy out.”

And thanks to the help of some quick-acting paramedics this weekend, Lee gets to shine another day.

While warming up in the bullpen for the Georgia-based Savannah Bananas, the 75-year-old Lee collapsed and stopped breathing, according to Boston.com. The Red Sox Hall of Famer was revived after being given on-the-field medical attention, then transported to a local hospital, the website's article stated.

The incident was deemed a “cardiac event,” and Lee was said to be in good spirits following the incident – even posing for a picture from his hospital bed with Bananas manager Eric Byrnes, according to Boston. com.

Nicknamed “Spaceman” due to his irreverent and unconventional approach to baseball (and life), Lee starred on the 1975 Sox team that came within one win of a World Championship. The beloved lefty later butted heads with manager Don Zimmer, costing him a start in the team’s infamous one-game playoff against the Yankees (which the Sox lost, thanks in part to Bucky Bleepin’ Dent).

After his bumpy departure from Boston, Lee spent four seasons with the Montreal Expos before retiring and making amends with the Red Sox. In his 1984 book “The Wrong Stuff,” Lee jokingly claimed that smoking marijuana made him impervious to bus fumes while jogging – a tactic Bostonians may consider until the Orange Line is again up and running.