By Jay Horwitz
It hasn’t been a good couple of days. It seems that every time my phone rings now the message is that one of our Mets alumni family has passed away. First it was 1969 Met Jim McAndrew. Then came Pat Zachry last week. Yesterday, I got a call from Cheryl Grote saying that her husband Jerry had died from respiratory failure after a heart procedure at the age of 81.
Jerry Grote was the backbone of both the Miracle 1969 Mets and the 1973 club which lost to Oakland in seven games in the 1973 World Series. He was a catcher for the best of the best: Seaver, Koosman, Matlack, Ryan, McGraw and Gentry.
Cleon Jones described Jerry as “a bulldog.” Ron Swoboda said he took it personally anytime someone stole a base against him. Matlack said Jerry was the best catcher he ever threw to without a doubt. Ed Kranepool added that Johnny Bench once told him that if Jerry were on the Reds he would be moved to third base. Art Shamsky said that there wouldn’t have been a 1969 championship without Jerry and Koosman told me that no one controlled a game like Jerry did.
Jerry was in our Hall of Fame and made two All Star teams during his 12-year Mets career. For me his legacy is simple: He was the best defensive catcher to ever make his home in Flushing.
They paid their final respects to Looie today and what a sendoff it was St. Thomas Moore Church on the St. John’s University campus was packed with former players, coaches and friends of the Hall of Fame coach Lou Carnesecca, who was one of the nicest people I ever met.
Chris Mullin and Mark Jackson came in from California. Walter Berry flew in from Atlanta. Bill Wennington was there as was Ron Artest.
Former trainer Ron Linfonte drove up from Tennessee, while ex-assistant Alex Evans came all the way from Spain. Rev. James Maher, who was a Campus Minister for St. John’s in the 1990’s and is now the President of Niagara University, came down from upstate to be part of the ceremony.
NBC’s Bruce Beck, such a big party of our college and pro community, was there, too. What a wonderful tribute to a wonderful man.
Leave a Reply