Ed Kranepool, the only original New York Met who also would play for the 1969 Miracle Mets and the “Ya Gotta Believe” 1973 National League champions, died Sunday after suffering cardiac arrest in Boca Raton, Fla, according to a press release from the team.
The first baseman and 1990 inductee into the Mets Hall Of Fame was 79.
Kranepool, a Bronx native, was 17 when he entered his first big league game as a defensive replacement for his future manager Gil Hodges on Sept. 22, 1962. He would get his first start and first base hit the following day. And he would play for the Mets through the 1979 season.
His 1,853 games remains a team record, 265 more than David Wright in second place. Kranepool still is among the Mets’ top 10 all time in hits, at-bats, runs, plate appearances, doubles, runs batted in and walks.
He is the fourth 1969 Met to pass this year, after Bud Harrelson, Jim McAndrew and Jerry Grote.
Team owners Steve and Alex Cohen mourned the Mets icon in a prepared statement.
“We are incredibly heartbroken to learn of Ed Kranepool’s passing,” they said. “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.”
He represented the Mets in the 1965 All-Star Game in Minnesota but did not play. As his career wound down he became a respected and feared pinch hitter, with his .486 average in 1974 still the record for substitute batsmen with a minimum of 30 appearances in a single season. He finished his career with 90 pinch hits.
Kranepool was born three months after his father was killed in World War II, on Nov. 8, 1944. In 2011 he was part of a group at Citi Field honoring Iraq and Afghanistan veterans that included active duty or military reserve veterans including Tom Seaver, Harrelson, Ralph Kiner, Ed Charles and Joe Pignitano
Kranepool hesitated when it was his turn to speak, saying he did not know why he had been asked to appear, as he had never served.
“As a sole surviving son, I was exempt,” he said, though he did visit troops overseas with the USO. The servicemen didn’t seem to mind, mingling afterward with one overheard telling Kranepool that he and his family had already paid dearly.
Kranepool had been in the headlines in recent years during his wait for a kidney transplant, which he eventually received in 2019.
Tributes poured in from former teammates. The Mets included them in their announcement.
“He battled for so long and never complained about anything,” said Ron Swoboda. “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 called him the best first baseman he ever played with.
“We knew each other so well and I could tell by his eyes if a runner was going or not,” he said. “He saved me a lot of stolen bases.”
Cleon Jones said he had spoken with Kranepool only last week about their being the last remaining 1962 signees to not come from the expansion draft.
“Eddie was a big bonus baby and I wasn’t,” Jones said. “He never had an ego and was just one of the guys. He was a wonderful person.”
Art Shamsky said he was devastated.
“I knew Krane for 56 years,” he said. “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.”
Original Mets pitchers Jay Hook and Craig Anderson also paid tribute.
“Very young but very respectful person in 1962,” Hook said. “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.”
Anderson said the teenager always tried to learn from the veterans.
“He was always picking the brains of the older guys,” he said. “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.”
