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Davidson dies of cancer

By MARY SCHLANGENSTEIN

HOUSTON -- Donald Davidson, whose more than four-decade baseball career carried him from batboy to the front office of the Houston Astros, died Wednesday of cancer.

Davidson, 64, had been in and out of hospices during the past six months, and died about 6 a.m. at the Southwest Memorial Hospice, said Astros spokesman Craig Sanders.

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Davidson initially was diagnosed with cancer in 1983, and his courageous battle against the disease inspired many other cancer patients.

'We lost an unforgettable character of the game,' Astros General Manager Bill Wood said of Davidson. 'What stands out in my mind is the far-flung reach he had. Everywhere, people were concerned about his welfare. It illustrates the impact he had as a person working in the game.

'Since 1976, Donald had been an everyday part of our lives with the Astros. He will be greatly missed.'

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Davidson worked with baseball greats from Babe Ruth to present-day standouts, and was credited with giving Hank Aaron, baseball's all-time homerun leader, his 'Hammerin' Hank' nickname.

Davidson had dreamed as a child of becoming a major league player, but a sleeping sickness at age 5 stopped his growth.

He stood less than 4 feet tall, but often joked about his height and the problems it sometimes posed. Davidson authored an autobiography entitled, 'Caught Short.'

'It was my way of telling little people that they have a place in life,' he once told an interviewer. 'That they can do things. Be somebody.'

He began his career in baseball in 1939 as a batboy for the Boston Braves and Red Sox, but was special assistant to the Astros' general manager at the time of his death.

By 1945, Davidson was a roller skater with the Roller Vanities, but was asked to join the Braves three years later to help them prepare for the World Series. In 1954, he was named the club's public relations director and worked for the organization as it moved from Boston to Milwaukee to Atlanta.

He served in various jobs for the Braves, including assistant to the president, but was fired by Ted Turner in 1976.

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Davidson then moved to the Astros as director of public relations, and later served as traveling secretary and administrative assistant to the president.

'There is not a person in the game Donald did not know and care about,' said Astros' owner John McMullen. 'In recent years, he had suffered one physical problem after another, but his mind and spirit were as strong as ever.

'He had tremendous heart. A lesser man facing the obstacles he did would have struck out a lot sooner.'

Davidson received the New York Baseball Writer's Bill Slocum Award for long and meritorious service in 1971, was honored by the Houston chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of America in 1986, and received the Robert O. Fishel Award for baseball public relations excellence in 1989.

The Astros plan a moment of silence in Davidson's honor before their Thursday night preseason game against the Kansas City Royals in Kissimmee, Fla.

The club also announced it would rename the Astrodome press dining room for Davidson.

Davidson's wife, Patti, said there will be no funeral or memorial services at her husband's request. He also asked that his body be donated to the Baylor College of Medicine for research.

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Mrs. Davidson asked that memorial donations be sent to the New Age Hospice in Houston.

Davidson also is survived by three adult children, Patrika, Margot and Deehan.

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