T.J. Simers, a longtime sports columnist and one of the original members of the Around the Horn cast on ESPN has died at the age of 73 after battling a brain tumor. Simers was with the LA Times from 1990 to 2013 and sued the newspaper upon his departure for age discrimination and ended up winning a $15.4 million judgement.
Simers was on the very first episode of Around the Horn, which was hosted by Max Kellerman. Simers was joined on the first show by Woody Paige, Bob Ryan and Jay Mariotti as the panel. Simers was critical of the show the following year, saying he was embarrassed to be on it, and no longer appeared.
After leaving the Times, Simers went on to work for the Orange County Register for less than a year. He wrote his final column for them on June 18, 2014.
Many who knew Simers, took to social media to express their thoughts:
