It's been a tough year for baseball legend Buck O'Neil. First, he doesn't get into the Baseball Hall of Fame in what was likely the last go-round for Negro League players (He spoke at the induction ceremony anyway). Then, he up & dies in October. So he won't be showing up in person next week to collect his Presidential Medal of Freedom:

WASHINGTON | Kansas City icon Buck O’Neil will be posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian award, the White House announced Thursday.

O’Neil, the longtime Kansas City Monarch who worked tirelessly to ensure the Negro Leagues never would be forgotten, will be among 10 awardees at a White House ceremony next week.

According to the press release, "John `Buck’ O’Neil represented excellence and determination both on and off the baseball field. He was a talented player and manager in the Negro Leagues, became Major League Baseball’s first African-American coach, and was a co-founder of and inspiration for the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, Missouri."

At least B.B. King wlll be there picking up his own much-deserved Medal.