Jerry Groat, one of the National League's premier catchers at the time and who led the pitching staff that led the New York Mets to an astonishing 1969 World Series championship, died Sunday in Austin, Texas. He was 81 years old.
Mets Vice President of Media Relations Jay Horwitz announced early Monday morning that Groat died of respiratory failure Sunday afternoon after undergoing heart surgery at the Texas Heart Arrhythmia Institute.
Grote, who played for the Mets for more than a decade, was known for his strong shoulder for picking off base stealers and his skill with pitching.
In 1969, when the Mets launched a late-season onslaught and defeated the Baltimore Orioles in five straight World Series games, they captured future Hall of Famer Tom Seaver and standout left-hander Jerry Koosman. The win was a stunning comeback for a team that had finished at or near the bottom of the National League for years since its founding in 1962.
Timeless footage of the Mets' victory shows Koosman leaping into Groat's arms on the mound at Shea Stadium seconds after left fielder Cleon Jones caught a fly ball for the final out of the series. It's reflected.
Lou Brock, who stole hundreds of bases during his career, admitted that he was often beaten by Grote. “Grote was quick out of the box, had strong shoulders, and he always seemed to know when I was stealing bases with a sixth sense,” Bullock told Sports Illustrated in 1974. “He had the ball waiting for me at second base long before I got there.”
Groat was an All-Star in 1968 and 1974, and finished among the top five National League catchers in fielding percentage seven times, including first place in 1975.
He was also remembered for his competitive behavior, which created a grumpy attitude.
Mets left-hander John Matlack once said this when he debuted in 1971. “I was scared to death that I was going to ricochet a curveball into the dirt and piss him off. I was more worried about him than I was about the batter.”
New York Times sports columnist George Vecsey wrote in 1981 that Grote was a “tough catcher who encouraged his teammates to pitch harder and who sometimes bit into reporters and official scorers.” He quoted Grote as saying, “I was red-necked.” . He turned completely red. ”
Gerald Wayne Groat was born on October 6, 1942 in San Antonio, Texas. He was the eldest of three children of Clarence Littman Grote and Leila Littman Grote.
He pitched, caught, and played third base in high school before attending nearby Trinity University. Del Baker, a former major league catcher, manager, coach, and advisor to the Trinity baseball team, coached him in catching techniques.
The Houston Colt .45s (later the Astros), the team that entered the National League with the Mets, signed Grote in his first season. He bounced back and forth between Houston and the minors until being traded to the Mets in 2016. 1965, pitcher Tom Parsons.
Midway through the 1968 season, when he was batting over .300, he became the second Mets player, after second baseman Ron Hunt, to start the All-Star Game and finished the season with a batting average of .282.
The Mets had a historic 1969 season, defeating the Chicago Cubs to win the NL East title and defeating the Atlanta Braves in three games to win the NL pennant. The Mets lost to the Orioles in Game 1 of the World Series, but won the next four games. In the 9th inning of Game 2, Grote singled, followed by Al Weiss' tying single. In Game 4, he hit a double in the bottom of the 10th inning, and pinch runner Rod Gaspar scored on a throwing error, giving the Mets the victory.
Groat continued to be a mainstay for the Mets in 1970 and 1971. Gil Hodges, who managed the Mets' 1969 World Series championship team and whom Groat credited with giving him tips for improving his hitting, died of a heart attack during spring training in 1972.
Injuries then hit Grote hard under manager Yogi Berra. In 1972, he shared catching duties with Duffy Dyer due to bone fragments, and missed two months of the 1973 season after being hit by a pitch that broke a bone in his right arm.
However, the Mets won another pennant that season and faced the Oakland Athletics in the World Series. Grote had a decent batting average of .267, but his 11 passed balls in Game 3 led to the A's victory. Oakland won the series in seven games.
Groat hit a career-high .295 in 1975. In August 1977, the Mets traded him to the Los Angeles Dodgers. He was a backup to Steve Yeager and retired after the 1978 season, but then briefly returned as a catcher with the Kansas City Royals. And the 1981 Dodgers.
In 16 seasons in the major leagues, Grote had a career batting average of .252 with 1,092 hits, 39 home runs, and 404 RBIs.
After leaving the major leagues, he worked as a manager in the minor leagues and raised cattle on a ranch in Texas.
His survivors include his third wife, Cheryl Groat, and her three children, Laurel, Joseph, and Jacob Luedecke. three children from his first marriage, Sandy Deloney, Jeff Groat, and Jennifer Jackson; He is survived by six grandchildren and three step-grandchildren, Mets spokesman Horwitz said.
Groat thrived on the enthusiasm of Mets fans, controversially contrasting their support with his disdain for Houston fans.
“One of the benefits of playing in New York is that the big crowd at Shea Stadium helps a lot,” he said in a 1971 interview with Sports Illustrated. “They always make you want to give 115 percent. In Houston, it seems like no one applauds unless the hands on the scoreboard start clapping. When those hands stop, everything else stops. It's a real passion.”
Yang Chuan Contributed to the report.
