Ed Kranepool obit

Mets legend Ed Kranepool dead at 79

Kranepool spent his entire 18-year career with the Mets, starting in 1962

 

He was not on the list.

Ed Kranepool, a Mets legend who spent his entire career in Queens, died on Sunday after suffering cardiac arrest, the team announced. He was 79 years old.

Kranepool made his debut with the 1962 Mets, which was the start of an 18-year career in orange and blue that included an All-Star selection in 1964 and ended with his retirement after the 1979 season.

Kranepool is the Mets’ all-time leader in games played, with 1,853. David Wright, with 1,585 career games played, is second.

A member of the Miracle Mets of 1969 who beat the Baltimore Orioles to win the first World Series in franchise history and the 1973 club that won the National League pennant before losing to the Oakland Athletics in the World Series, Kranepool was a stalwart at first base for New York in the 1960s and '70s.

"We are incredibly heartbroken to learn of Ed Kranepool’s passing," Steve and Alex Cohen said in a statement. "He was an original Met, who debuted at age 17 in 1962. After starring at James Monroe High School in the Bronx, he would go on to play for his hometown team for the next 18 years, the longest tenured player in franchise history, appearing in 1,853 games with the Mets. Ed hit a home run in Game 3 of the 1969 World Series to help the Miracle Mets capture the title. He was inducted into the Mets Hall of Fame in 1990. Ed continued to work tirelessly in the community on behalf of the organization after his playing career ended. We cherished the time we spent with Ed during Old Timers’ Day and in the years since. Hearing Mets stories and history from Ed was an absolute joy.  We extend our thoughts and prayers to his family and friends."

For his career, Kranepool hit .261/.316/.377 with 118 home runs, 224 doubles, 614 RBI (fifth-most in franchise history), and 536 runs scored (ninth-most).

Tributes to Kranepool poured in from his former teammates, as shared by the Mets:

Ron Swoboda: "He battled for so long and never complained about anything. I thought once he got his kidney transplant things would be great. He was a wonderful guy and even better teammate. We went into the restaurant business together. I can’t believe he is gone."

Jerry Koosman: "The best first baseman I ever played with. We knew each other so well and I could tell by his eyes if a runner was going or not. He saved me a lot of stolen bases."

Cleon Jones: "I just spoke to Ed last week and we talked about how we were the last two originals who signed with the Mets. The other 1962 guys came from other organizations. Eddie was a big bonus baby and I wasn’t. He never had an ego and was just one of the guys. He was a wonderful person."

Art Shamsky: "Just devastated. I knew Krane for 56 years. We did so many appearances together. We had lunch last week and I told him I would be there next week to see him again. I’m really at a loss for words. I can’t believe he’s the fourth guy from our 1969 team to pass this year - McAndrew, Grote, Buddy and now Eddie."

Jay Hook: "Very young but very respectful person in 1962. He got a Thunderbird with his signing bonus and because we lived next to each other, he used to give me a ride to the park. He even let my wife use his car."

Craig Anderson: "He was always picking the brains of the older guys. I remember him talking to Gus Bell, Frank Thomas and Gil Hodges. I always knew he would be a great pro. He never took anything for granted."

Born in the Bronx, New York, Kranepool attended James Monroe High School, where he began playing baseball and basketball. Mets' scout Bubber Jonnard signed Kranepool in 1962 at the age of 17 as an amateur free agent. By the time he retired in 1979, he had become the last remaining Met from their inaugural 1962 season and from the Miracle Mets World Championship team of 1969.

After batting a combined .301 at three levels of the Mets' minor league system in 1962, Kranepool received a September call-up in just his first professional season. At age 17, Kranepool was six years younger than the next-youngest '62 Met, a reflection of the disastrous decision of Met management to select mostly older veterans in the expansion draft. He made his major league debut wearing number 21 on September 22, 1962, as a late inning defensive replacement for Gil Hodges at first base in a 9–2 loss to the Chicago Cubs at the Polo Grounds. He grounded out to Cubs second baseman Ken Hubbs in his only at bat. He made his first start the next day, September 23, playing first base, and went one for four with a double.

Kranepool began the 1963 season splitting playing time with "Marvelous" Marv Throneberry at first base and Duke Snider in right field. By May 5, Throneberry's ineptitude at the plate (.143 batting average and only one run batted in during the first 23 games of the season) wore thin on Met fans and management, and he was demoted to the Mets' Triple A affiliate, the Buffalo Bisons. Tim Harkness was awarded the first base job, with Snider shifting to left field and Kranepool becoming the Mets' everyday right fielder. This arrangement, however, did not last, as Kranepool was sent down to the minors in July with a .190 batting average. He resurfaced later that season as a September call-up, and went four for five with a run batted in and a run scored in his first game back.