Gary Nelson Blaylock, Sr. died Saturday, February 7, 2026 at the age of 94.

Gary died at home on the farm where he was born and the same farm his family established in rural Clarkton, Missouri more than a century before.

He was a man who wore many hats in his life: son, brother, cousin, professional baseball player, husband, brother-in-law, father, uncle, insurance agent, restauranteur, quick-shop owner, manager, scout, father-in-law, grandfather, pitching coach, retiree and great grandfather and roughly in that order.

He was preceded in death by his parents Harran Nelson Blaylock (Jack) and Bessie Blaylock and a brother who died as an infant. He is survived by two sisters: Pat Blanchfield and Sharon Blaylock.

In 1951 he married his grade-school sweetheart, Joy Watson, also of Clarkton. The wedding ceremony was on the baseball diamond in Johnson City, Tennessee before a game Gary pitched. He and Joy were married for nearly 75 years and had three children: Gary Jr., Debbie and Sheila. They were also blessed with a daughter-in-law Mary Pat (she's a great cook) and a son-in-law Jim Hensley (he can fix anything), who are both anchors within the family. They gave him two grandchildren and three great-grandchildren: Josh Blaylock (Amanda), Nichole Francis (Jack), Anna Blaylock, Dawson Francis and Denzel Francis. Gary's wife, children, grandchildren and great grandchildren all survive and grieve the loss of their hero.

Professional baseball was his life. Gary's love for baseball began at an early age and never ended. At the age of 18 he was signed by the St. Louis Cardinals to begin his professional baseball career. He spent 9 years in the Cardinal farm system before making his major league debut as a pinch runner for Stan Musial in 1959. He told of foolishly stealing a base during that first opportunity and getting the guff from his manager and teammates thereafter. He knew the difference between being lucky and having skill.

Although his major league playing career was short, he played with and for some of baseball's heros and hall of famers: Solly Hemus, Stan Musial, Ken Boyer, Curt Flood, Bob Gibson, Casey Stengel, Don Larsen, Yogi Berra and Mickey Mantle, are a few.

He found success in managing, scouting and coaching in the major and minor leagues and he took his family with him when he could. They travelled across the States and to foreign lands in pursuit of his baseball career spending time in metropolitan Missouri, New York, North & South Carolina, Montana, Tennessee, Colorado, Florida, Canada, Puerto Rico and Japan.

At the peak of his baseball career, Gary was the pitching coach for the Kansas City Royals from 1984 to 1987. It was during this time that he developed and groomed a group of young men who ultimately became the pitching staff for the 1985 Kansas City Royals and World Series Champions. These young men led their team to defeat the St. Louis Cardinals in what was designated the I-70 Series. While with the Royals in the major leagues, Gary once again worked with some amazing professional baseball players and coaches including Dick Howser, George Brett, Bret Saberhagen, Bud Black, Frank White and Willie Wilson.

Along the way he developed a love for a second sport – golf. He devoted himself to learning golf and for years you could find him honing his skills in practice at putting and chipping. From all indications, he was pretty good at that too. He had hoped to spend his retirement years on the golf course anywhere he could but his body wore out before his desire to play. Gary out-lived most of his golfing buddies but is survived by a host of extended family and friends, primarily those younger than 94.

He was a member of the First Southern Baptist Church in Malden and self-appointed caretaker of the Oak Grove Cemetery of the church in which he grew up.

Services will be conducted by Rev. Aulden LeBlanc on Friday, February 13, 2026 and include a visitation at 1:00 p.m. and funeral service at 2:00 p.m. at Landess Funeral Home in Malden. Interment in Oak Grove Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests a donation in Gary's honor to the Malden Nutrition Center or the Bootheel Youth Museum