CHICAGO (STNG) - The Chicago Cubs will reach out to longtime former equipment manager Yosh Kawano after the team icon known for his floppy white hat was asked by security to leave Wrigley Field on a day the team was out of town.
The incident occurred two weeks ago when Kawano went to the park to visit members of the grounds crew. Three security guards approached him and told him he had been spotted on the concourse security cameras and had to leave.
Cubs executives did not know of the incident and said they will contact Kawano directly ''to let Yosh know he is always welcome,'' senior vice president Michael Lufrano said.
Kawano has visited Wrigley Field frequently since his retirement last season. Concerns about his well-being apparently prompted the security action, but it upset Kawano and friends of the 88-year-old.
''They [the security guards] apologized to me and said it bothered them,'' Kawano said. ''They said I'm not supposed to be there when [the team] isn't there. How do you think I felt? It's embarrassing.''
Jim Flood, an attorney who worked as a Cubs batboy in the late 1960s and has remained a close friend, said the incident ''really hurt him. Yosh means as much to the Cubs and Wrigley Field as anything. What they did to him stinks.''
Kawano was the team's equipment and clubhouse manager for 65 years before his retirement last season. He was given a day in his honor last June and a flag with his name was flown atop the stadium. A banner honoring him hangs in the main concourse alongside those of famous Cubs players and announcers, and he is part of the bricked ''walk of fame'' adjacent to the ballpark.
''Yosh was a fixture here for 65 years, and we celebrated him with a day in his honor last June 26,'' Lufrano said. ''He has a standing invitation to come to any game here and we've offered to find ways to help him and his family in any way, and we'll be in touch with him to express that again.''
The home clubhouse was named in Kawano's honor in 1984, and he worked there until 1999, when he was given emeritus status and transferred to the visitor's clubhouse. He continued working there until last season.
Kawano has been nominated for the Baseball Hall of Fame's Buck O'Neil Award for lifetime achievement in baseball, an honor initiated last season and to be voted on every three years by the Hall's board of directors.
Last June, Kawano also went to the Hall for ceremonies to present his trademark floppy hat for display in Cooperstown.
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