Remembering T. J. Simers

 

He was known for his controversial and somtimes caustic takes on the local sports scene, but LA sports fans read, watched, and listened to T. J. Simers, who died over the weekend. He recently posted about his health on social media:

Got the tumor news I was expecting, so going to Vegas next week and don’t give a rip what I lose. Taking a hospital bed, wheelchair and hoyer to Vegas; what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. The whole family is coming because losing a chunk of my brain wasn’t enough, I need help on who to bet on. Please don’t say UCLA. I want you to have credibility. Come on, I need a sure-fire winner. Don’t make me read a pics column by (Bill) Plaschke. I don’t have much time but I know Plaschke isn’t gonna save the day. I wonder why he hasn’t called to do a tear jerker.

SoCal TV and radio host Steve Edwards offered the following tribute to Simers:

He was acerbic and funny. He really got under the skin of athletes and management -But if you were a sports fan, you read this guy’s column in the The Los Angeles Times. It was a daily starting ritual.  TJ Simers died yesterday after a valiant and yet often funny battle that he lost to a braim tumor.  He was 72. RIP T. J. SIMERS

Simers wrote for the LA Times for 23 years until 2013. Two years later, Simers won a $7.13 million lawsuit against the times, claiming age discrimination. The Times appealed the decision, only to award Simers more than twice the amount ($15.45 million) on the appeal. Simers later wrote for the Orange County Register for a year before accepting a buyout and retiring.

Nationally he was known for being one of the first panelists for ESPN's "Around the Horn," but was fired less than a year later for making critical comments about the show to another paper.


On the local airwaves, Simers was paired with his daughter Tracy Simers to host a Sunday morning show on all-sports KLAC. That soon evolved to a daily morning show where the pair co-hosted with then-KNBC sports anchor Fred Roggin, the show entitled "Roggin and Simers Squared" offered on AM 570 starting in 2006 for just over a year. T. J. Simers now had another medium to share his often castigatory views about Los Angeles sports teams, often calling out the Dodgers with a laser focus on team owner Frank McCourt. 

The sports columnist would make statements so disparaging of athletes and team owners, it was not uncommon for co-host Roggin to exclaim "what is wrong with you?" Nonetheless, there was great admiration shared between them. 

Roggin now hosts "The Roggin Report" on KMIR-TV in Palm Springs while continuing to co-host his daily program on AM 570 with Rodney Peete.  He offered his tribute to TJ Simers:
Wicked wit and brilliantly funny.  If you didn't know him, you thought one thing.  If you did, you thought another.  I knew him.  He was kind with a huge heart.  I was lucky to work with him and have him as a friend.

Simers was 73 years old. His survivors include his wife Ginny, daughters Lisa and Tracy, and four grandchildren.

ayodaradio@gmail.com



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