Left-hander Jerry Koosman, who helped the New York Mets to their improbable 1969 World Series title, died on Sunday after a battle with multiple illnesses. He was 83.
Koosman played the first 12 seasons of his 19-year career with the Mets before going on to pitch for the Minnesota Twins, Chicago White Sox and Philadelphia Phillies.
The Minnesota native, who passed away in Osceola, Wis., was a rookie with the Mets in 1967 and developed into an All-Star the next two seasons. That stretch included the team losing 101 games in 1967 before winning the title two years later after a 100-win regular season. He earned the win in Game 2 and Game 5 of the World Series versus the Baltimore Orioles.
In 612 career appearances (527 starts), Koosman was 222-209 with a 3.36 ERA as well as 140 complete games and 33 shutouts. He is tied for 79th on MLB’s all-time wins list and ranks 35th on the all-time strikeouts list with 2,556.
Koosman was inducted into the New York Mets Hall of Fame in 1989. His No. 36 was retired by the Mets in 2021.
–Field Level Media
