Stottlemyre, Pitching Coach for ‘86 Mets, Dies at 77

New York Yankees manager Joe Torre (left) and pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre head onto the field to congratulate their players after the Yankees defeated the Seattle Mariners 8-0 in New York in April 1999. Stottlemyre and Torre both coached in the Mets organization. The Yankees said Stottlemyre died Sunday, Jan. 13, 2019. AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File

The Associated Press

Mel Stottlemyre, the former ace pitcher who went onto win five World Series rings as the pitching coach for both the New York Mets and Yankees has died. He was 77.

The Yankees said Stottlemyre died Sunday. He had been living in the Seattle area and had multiple myeloma for nearly 20 years.

A five-time All-Star and three-time 20-game winner, Stottlemyre went 164-139 with a 2.97 ERA in 11 seasons, all with the Yankees. He is the last pitcher to hit an inside-the-park grand slam, accomplishing the feat in 1965.

Stottlemyre oversaw the Mets' staff that won the 1986 World Series. He served as Mets pitching coach from 1984 to 1993, grooming stars like Dwight Gooden, Ron Darling, Bob Ojeda and David Cone. He joined Yankees manager Joe Torre's staff as pitching coach from 1996 to 2005.

Stottlemyre was honored with a plaque in Monument Park at Yankee Stadium in 2015.

Stottlemyre made his major league debut in August 1964, providing a big boost in the pennant race. The 22-year-old rookie then started three times against St. Louis great Bob Gibson in the World Series, eventually losing Game 7 on two days' rest.

The Yankees went into a tailspin after that, never again reaching the postseason during his playing days. But the right-hander wound up as a key member of five teams that won the World Series as a pitching coach, again with Gooden and Cone as well as Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte.

Stottlemyre’s sons Mel Jr. and Todd both pitched in the majors, and Mel Jr. was hired last month as the Miami Marlins' pitching coach.