Ed Bressoud obit

MLB All-Star Ed Bressoud — who played for NY Giants and Mets before Willie Mays did it — dead at 91

 

He was not on the list.

Infielder Ed Bressoud, one of only two men to play for the New York Giants and Mets — baseball legend Willie Mays was the other — died last week at 91.

Bressoud died from cerebellar ataxia — an inability to coordinate muscle movement due to disease or injury to the cerebellum, according to the Times-Herald Record.

He played with the Giants from 1956 to 1961, starting his career at the Polo Grounds and going West when the team moved to San Francisco following the 1957 season.

Coach Tom Henrich #2, infielder Ed Bressoud #15, and outfielder Willie Mays stand along the dirt edge of the infield during batting practice prior to a Spring Training game in March, 1957 against the Cleveland Indians in Tucson, Arizona.

Ed Bressoud #16 of the San Francisco Giants gets Richie Ashburn #1 of the Chicago Cubs at second base as he tries to get Lou Johnson #24 as first during an MLB game on May 30, 1960 at Candlestick Park in San Francisco, California.

“I remember seeing signs from the fans that said ‘Please Don’t Go.’ I never thought we’d move to the West Coast, but we did,” Bressoud told This Great Game. “It was kind of sad.”

Following the 1961 season, he was selected by Houston in the MLB expansion draft but was traded to the Red Sox before even playing for the Colt 45s.

He had his best years in Boston, where spent four seasons.

Bressoud tallied a career-high 20 home runs in 1963 and was selected to the All-Star Game at Shea Stadium in 1964.

“And I didn’t play, which has always irritated me—particularly after seeing that All-Star Game a few seasons ago [2002] when they ran out of players,” he told This Great Game, adding, “I think the manager decided that he was going to stay with his best lineup and try to win that game. And I think that’s fine, even though it was disheartening that I didn’t get a chance to participate.”

Boston Red Sox players Eddie Bressoud, left, and Rico Petrocelli are pictured together at Fenway Park in Boston on Sep. 21, 1963, the day of a game against the Minnesota Twins. Boston Globe via Getty Images

In 1964, Bressoud set career-highs in batting average, hits, runs and doubles.

He played with the Mets in 1966, the first former New York Giant to wear the orange and blue.

Bressoud hit 10 home runs in his lone season as a Met — then a team record for a shortstop — which was later tied by Kevin Elster in 1989 and passed by Jose Reyes in 2006.

Members of the original 1958 San Francisco Giants (l-r) Willie Mays, Jim Davenport, Felipe Alou and Ed Bressoud throw out the first pitch before Game 5 of the National League Championship Series between the San Francisco Giants and the Philadelphia Phillies Thursday October 21, 2010 at AT&T Park in San Francisco, California.

Bressoud’s career ended with a title, winning the 1967 World Series with the Cardinals and appearing in two games against the Red Sox.

Following his playing days, he coached and scouted in the Angels organization and was a faculty member and coach at De Anza College in California.

“When he walked into a room he was a commanding presence,” his son Steve told the Times-Herald Record. “He always spoke his mind and would strike up a conversation and give encouragement. He joked around with everyone he liked.”

In 1956, Bill Rigney became the manager of the Giants. Bressoud had played shortstop for Rigney in the minor leagues, and Alvin Dark, the regular Giants' shortstop, had been injured in August 1955. During spring training, Rigney made plans to move Dark to third base and make Bressoud the starting shortstop. However, Bressoud started slowly and was sent back to Minneapolis at the beginning of the year. Dark was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals on June 14, and Bressoud was immediately recalled to take his place.

Bressoud spent two years with the MLB club in New York City, then four years after its 1958 transfer to San Francisco. He was the Giants' regular shortstop in both 1959 and 1960, hitting .251 and .225. Bressoud was the first selection of the Houston Colt .45s in the 1961 expansion draft in October, then was traded to the Red Sox in exchange for their regular shortstop, Don Buddin, in November 1961.

Bressoud played four seasons for Boston, hitting 40 doubles, nine triples, 14 home runs, 79 runs and a career-high 68 runs batted in (RBIs) in 1962, and 59 extra-bases in 1963, including a career-high 20 home runs and four two-HR games. In 1964, Bressoud was named to the American League roster for the 1964 MLB All-Star Game as an injury replacement for Luis Aparicio. Bressoud posted career-high numbers in batting average (.293), hits (166), runs (86) and doubles (41).

After the 1965 season, the Red Sox traded Bressoud to the New York Mets for Joe Christopher. The Mets traded Bressoud, Danny Napoleon, and cash to the St. Louis Cardinals for Jerry Buchek, Art Mahaffey and Tony Martínez on April 1, 1967. In the 1967 World Series, Bressoud appeared in Games 2 and 5 as a late-inning replacement for light-hitting Cardinal shortstop Dal Maxvill, but did not record a plate appearance.