Sad news out of the New York Yankees organization.
That would be the passing of former major league player and long-time pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre who passed away following a long battle with cancer at the age of 77.
“Mel’s popularity transcended generations, all of whom thought of him as their own. His plaque in Monument Park will forever serve to celebrate the significance of his legacy. We extend our deepest condolences to Mel’s wife Jean & the entire Stottlemyre family,” team owner Hal Steinbrenner said in a statement.
Stottlemyre was a standout pitcher for the Yankees during the one era of their storied history when they weren’t that good. From 1964 until 1974, Stottlemyre compiled a 164-139 record with a 2.97 ERA, spanning 360 appearances, including 356 starts. The five-time All-Star won 15 games seven times, including 20-win seasons in 1965, ’68 and ’69.
Stottlemyre went 1-1 with a 3.15 ERA in the 1964 World Series, which New York lost in seven games to St. Louis, but then didn’t pitch in the postseason again as the Yankees suffered through years of mediocrity leading into George Steinbrenner’s ownership, which began in 1973.
But that didn’t stop him from getting back to the World Series for New York.
Not. Even. Close.
Because Stottlemyre’s greatest claim to fame in baseball was his work as a pitching coach for both the New York Yankees and the New York Mets baseball teams. He was on the Mets staff during their 1986 championship season and later was with the Yankees during their dynasty years of the late 1990s and early 2000s. Working alongside manager Joe Torre, Stottlemyre was part of four World Series championship clubs between 1996 and 2005.
Source: CBS New York