Arlington Park honors late sportswriter with Mike Spellman Memorial Handicap

Arlington Park officials always provide a touch of class to special events and races, and this Saturday is no exception — with a race named in honor of the late Daily Herald sports writer Mike Spellman.

The $100,000 Mike Spellman Memorial Handicap, a 1 1/16ths-miles turf event for fillies and mares 3-year-old and up, will be the highlight of the racing program. It is the sixth race of the day, and Spellman's family will present the trophy.

“Tony (Petrillo, Arlington general manager) was probably the moving force behind (naming the race),” said Howard Sudberry, Arlington's senior director of marketing and communications.

“It was a great idea and obviously everyone was behind it. It's the least we could do for his brother, Neal, and the entire family.”

Spellman, a graduate of St. Viator High School where he was a standout catcher, worked for the Daily Herald for 23 years. He died in January.

His Scorecard column was a favorite among readers. He covered everything from preps to college to pro sports, and became the Blackhawks beat writer after the death of longtime Hawks writer Tim Sassone in March 2014.

He was also the newspaper's horse racing writer.

“Mike was always extremely positive,” said track Chairman Richard Duchossois. “He didn't take sides on anything. He was one of the great sports writers, without any bias.”

“Obviously, Mike was a great friend and fixture here,” Sudberry said.

Spellman's older sister, Maura Eggert, said there can't be a better way to honor her brother than what Saturday has in store at Arlington Park.

“Our whole family is really overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support,” Eggert said. “(Mike) loved Arlington Park. Words can't express what it meant to him. He would just be so overwhelmed.”

Spellman's brother, Neal, said he can date Mike's love of the track to one week in 1972, when the air conditioning broke at the family's home and for a few days the family decamped to the old Arlington Heights Hilton alongside Arlington Park. They visited the track one day and Mike was hooked, Neal said — a love that continued to grow as he did.

“I was not surprised Mike ended up living a block from the racetrack for 25 years,” Neal said. “(Mike) would be so pleased to know Arlington was hosting a race in his honor. It's really overwhelming in such a good way.”

The enthusiasm their brother held for the track was infectious when he showed the family around Arlington Park, including the press room, some years ago, Eggert said.

Though she's lived in California for more than four years, Eggert said she'll definitely be a part of Saturday's bittersweet event.

“I'm really looking forward to going back and seeing everyone,” she said. “We'll celebrate his life and have some fun. He'd want us to have fun in such a beautiful place.”

Calling Saturday's race will be veteran racetrack announcer John G. Dooley.

“I've called my share of memorial races within the racing industry, but Mike was not only a friend but a member of the media and someone I respected,” Dooley said. “I had the chance to spend each summer for the past 14 years with Mike.”

Dooley saw Spellman as more than just a track writer.

“Mike was not only a racing reporter but a great all-around reporter,” said Dooley, one of the top race callers in the country. “When I saw the stakes schedule come out, I thought it was wonderful of Arlington Park to have a race in honor of Mike. And it is an honor for me to call it.”

Saturday is also Blackhawks Day at Arlington, where Hawks coach Joel Quenneville and former Hall of Fame goalie Tony Esposito are scheduled to appear.

Sudberry said the Stanley Cup will be elsewhere with Patrick Kane on Saturday, but he did not rule out the trophy making an appearance at Arlington at a future date.

Friends and family have reserved the track's picnic area on Saturday. Any money left over after expenses are met will be donated to the Mike Spellman Scholarship Fund at his alma mater, St. Viator High School, Spellman's friend Bill Piet said.

Eggert said the scholarship fund is intended to help other kids have the same opportunities Spellman and his brother, Neal, had at St. Viator.