Bob Teitlebaum, who spent three decades as a sports writer for The Roanoke Times and The Roanoke World-News, died Thursday night at Lewis-Gale Medical Center.

Teitlebaum, 69, was hospitalized Monday after experiencing breathing problems. Since retiring from The Roanoke Times in 2000, Teitlebaum had suffered from a variety of illnesses.

In recent years Teitlebaum had battled congestive heart failure, thyroid cancer and had open heart surgery, surgery to remove a brain tumor and had a pacemaker installed, his wife, Binki, said Thursday night.

Teitlebaum served as the high school sports coordinator for The Roanoke Times from 1988 until his retirement.

Prior to that job, Teitlebaum was the beat writer for minor-league baseball teams in Salem while covering a variety of other sports.

Teitlebaum was inducted into the Salem-Roanoke Baseball Hall of Fame in 2004.

After retirement from the newspaper, Teitlebaum was a columnist for two local monthly publications: the Sports Journal from 2000-04 and Play by Play magazine from 2004 to present. Teitlebaum's last column appeared in Play by Play on July 7.

In addition to his wife, Teitlebaum is survived by a brother, Hank Teitlebaum of Adams, Tenn.