‘Phillies Extra’ Q&A: Gary Matthews shares his Ryne Sandberg memories, and more

'The Sarge' was there for "The Sandberg Game" and so many other great moments. As the baseball world mourns the Hall of Famer's death, Matthews shared stories about his old friend.

by Scott Lauber

Published Aug. 9, 2025, 5:00 a.m. ET

In Philadelphia, Ryne Sandberg was the one who got away.

But in Chicago, he was an icon.

Sandberg’s legend was born on June 23, 1984, when he hit game-tying home runs in the ninth and 10th innings against Cardinals closer Bruce Sutter. It became known as the “Sandberg Game,” and it’s part of the Cubs’ lore.

Gary Matthews was there for that game and so many other great Sandberg moments, from his major league debut as a September call-up with the Phillies in 1981 to his National League MVP season for the Cubs in 1984 and his Hall of Fame induction ceremony in 2005.

As the baseball world mourns Sandberg’s death on July 28 of complications from metastatic prostate cancer, Matthews — “Sarge,” as he’s known within the sport — joined Phillies Extra, The Inquirer’s baseball show, to share his memories of his close friend.

Watch the full interview below and subscribe to the podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

Q: When I talk about Ryan Sandberg, 1984 Cubs, what comes to your mind?

A: Well, obviously, hitting [the two homers] against Sutter in the game, that same game. I mean, even after he had hit the [first] home run and tied it, I came up next and hit the ball off the wall for a [single]. But I still think even if it had gone out of the ballpark, he still would have been remembered. And I remember — I think it was NBC that was doing the game — they were actually going off the air. And regrettably so, because what a great game, and [it launched], really, Ryno’s career. Very, very special player; jokester, likes to have fun. More importantly, he wanted to win.

I can remember “Little Joe” — Joe Morgan, I always called him “Little Joe” — he came up to me and he said, ‘What do you think about this Sandberg kid and the Hall of Fame?’ And I said, ‘Excuse me? [Seven] Silver [Sluggers], [nine] Gold Gloves.’ I said, ‘What do you want a guy to do?’ MVP. I said, ‘Let me tell you, Joe … Ryno doesn’t have to take a second seat to anybody that’s ever played second base. And I mean that.’ And then Joe said, ‘Well, I never see him with his uniform dirty.’ I said, ‘Really? That’s because he was in front of everything.’ He invented that one-hop throw off the turf to first base.

But you’ve got to realize there’s different types of Hall of Fame players. … There’s different ways [to get there], and this is why it’s more of a team. Guys do different things to show how valuable they are for the team. The most important thing is to win. And Ryno wanted to do that. Joe Morgan wanted to do that and proved it — two-time MVP, and he might have been 5-[foot]-6. But what a tremendous player. Both of them are, and I feel honored to have played with both of them, in particular [a] real special friend of mine in Ryne Sandberg.

Q: The game you’re talking about — June 23, 1984, in Chicago — it’s known as the “Sandberg Game.” Ryno ties it twice in the ninth and 10th on home runs. You guys win it in the 11th. I looked it up: You were 37-31 after that game, and the Cubs take off after that, wind up making the playoffs for the first time since 1945. Can you describe for Phillies fans what the ’84 Cubs meant to that city?

A: That ’84 club resurrected Cub fans all over the country. I know it would prove it out in Chicago because if you look to see what they drew prior to ’84 and then ’84 and after, there were all kinds of sellout crowds. [Catcher] Jody Davis, and, most importantly, the pitching that we had with [Rick] Sutcliffe and Dennis Eckersley, Steve Trout. It was just tremendous. I mean, catching the city by storm. I can honestly say that year in ’84, thank you, Cub fans, I never paid for dinner that whole summer. That’s how much they loved and treated the guys — not just me, but all of the guys. They were so appreciative because they had never won before. And then to be able to win in ’84, and [it was] bitter, bittersweet, not winning the games in San Diego [in the NLCS]. But to get there in the fashion that we did, it really excited the baseball world. And it was tremendous [being] one game from the World Series. I just call it the way it is: We choked. Needed one game out of three to beat San Diego, and they swept us there. Steve Garvey really showing off. But the fact is it didn’t tarnish what we did that year and what we accomplished. [We] would have been heroes, those Cub players, if we had gone to the World Series, and I can guarantee you, it would have been a better showing than the Padres there in Detroit [in the World Series, won by the Tigers].

Q: You mentioned that Ryno was a bit of a prankster, a jokester. Tell me a little bit about Ryno, and what was the best prank he ever pulled on you?

A: … back in the day, we’d have those kind of chairs, where they were director’s chairs, if you will, and they had the little sticks, and you can pull them out, but then you could put the seat back on. Well, every single day, this guy would go in, take the sticks out, and sure enough, I’m coming in, getting my coffee, trying to get ready, and fall right down to the ground. And you could hear him over there laughing [on his way] to the washroom.

And speaking of the washroom, you could be in there, and he’d have that alcohol where he’d spray all the way down, and then he’d light it. You got a flame coming up there in the washroom. OK? I mean, there’s just so many different type jokes. He would load up your cigarette so when you took a puff, it would blow up. And he got all the stuff all over your suit. He thought that that was funny. He loved to have fun. But most of all, he loved to win.