Gary McDonald - Goodbye Rusty

My mother use to tell me how sad she and New York felt  when Babe Ruth died.  As a kid I did not fully grasp the idea, but, as I grow older, and my own mortality comes into question, and I see the heroes of my youth all pass , I now know what my mother felt and talked about all those years ago.

Rusty Staub passed away at the age of 73 of kidney failure.

He  played 23 seasons in the major leagues,  nine with the Mets  and became an icon mostly for his play in 1973 and his pinch hitting prowess.  He was inducted into the Mets Hall of Fame in 1986, a year after he retired with the team.

Rusty was a six-time All-Star.  He  also played for Houston, Montreal, Detroit, and Texas. He ended  his career with 2,716 hits and 292 home runs. In his nine seasons with the Mets, Staub played in 942 games, had 709 hits, 75 home runs, 399 RBIs and a career batting average of .276.

My favorite memory of Rusty was a game in his last season.  I believe, he pinch hit and had to stay in the game because Davey Johnson had used  all his players. Rusty was way past his prime for playing the outfield and had not done so for sometime and Davey tried to hide him.   Rusty was in right for a right handed hitter and in left for lefty hitter running back and forth between positions for the batters.  As it turned out a righty hit a ball down the right field line and Rusty had to make a running catch in a very key point of the game. 

Rusty  retired , and went on to great philanthropic work .  He founded the New York Police and Fire Widows' and Children's Benefit Fund. The benefit fund provides money and support for the families of first responders who are killed in the line of duty, as well as worked tirelessly for many other charities. 

He was also a bon vivant, a man about town.  Rusty was a wine expert, restaurant owner and chef, and a world traveler.  Yet always remained humble and a NY Met.

R.I.P. Rusty