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Brant Alyea Passes Away

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Former major league outfielder Brant Alyea passed away on February 4, according to an obituary from a Philadelphia funeral home. He was 83.

Alyea, a native of New Jersey, played collegiately at Hofstra. He entered the professional ranks as a signee of the Reds in 1962. Alyea played one year in the Cincinnati farm system before he was drafted by the Washington Senators. In the first few years of the draft, teams could select a player who had spent one year in the farm system of another MLB organization. The right-handed hitter spent the ’64 season in the minors before debuting with Washington on September 12, 1965.

Called to pinch hit for Don Blasingame with two runners on in the sixth inning, Alyea popped a three-run homer off Rudy May in his first career at-bat. He hit two homers in eight games as a rookie and spent the next two years in the minors. Alyea returned to the big leagues in 1968. He posted above-average power numbers in limited playing time over the next few seasons.

Alyea played for the Senators through 1969. Washington traded him to the Twins for reliever Joe Grzenda over the 1969-70 offseason. The 6’3″ Alyea connected on 16 homers with an excellent .291/.366/.531 line over a career-high 290 plate appearances for Minnesota in 1970. He slumped to a .177/.282/.241 slash the next season, though.

The A’s selected Alyea in the Rule 5 draft going into the 1972 campaign. Oakland traded him to the Cardinals that May but reacquired him two months later. That was a fortunate development for Alyea, as the A’s went on to win the World Series. He didn’t play in the majors after that, retiring following a ’73 season in Triple-A with the Red Sox. He finished his MLB career with a .247/.326/.421 slash line over parts of six seasons. Alyea hit 38 homers and drove in 148 runs in a little less than 1000 trips to the plate.

MLBTR sends our condolences to Alyea’s family, friends and loved ones.

Jim Hannan Passes Away

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Former MLB pitcher Jim Hannan has passed away at 85, according to an announcement from the Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association.

A Jersey City native, Hannan attended Notre Dame before entering the professional ranks in 1961. The right-hander spent one year in the Red Sox system. He was drafted by the Washington Senators the following winter — in the early years of the draft, teams could select a player who had spent one year in another team’s farm system — and jumped to the majors the ensuing season. The 6’3″ right-hander would spend the bulk of his career in Washington.

Working in a flexible swing role, Hannan pitched parts of nine seasons with the Senators. He posted a career-low 3.01 ERA over 140 1/3 innings in 1968 and logged a personal-high 158 1/3 frames during the ’69 campaign. While the late 60s skewed very favorably to pitching, that’s solid production. Hannan won 10 games on a Senators team that finished 65-96 in 1968.

During the 1970-71 offseason, the Senators included him as part of a four-player return to the Tigers for two-time Cy Young winner Denny McLain. Detroit flipped him to the Brewers after just seven appearances. Hannan finished his playing days with 21 appearances in Milwaukee. He hung up his spikes with a 3.88 ERA over 822 big league innings. He struck out 438 hitters and won 41 games.

Hannan remained in the game long after his 10-year playing career came to an end. He helped found the MLB Players Alumni Association in 1982 and served as the organization’s first president. He held that role until 1986. Hannan remained involved with the MLBPAA long past that stint, serving as its chairman of the board from 1996 until this year.

“Our Alumni Association owes its existence and current status to Jim Hannan and his impact,” MLBPAA CEO Dan Foster said in a statement. “Since 1982, Jim has championed former players and the MLBPAA will continue to advocate for our players and uphold the integrity of the game on behalf of Jim and our founding members. The history of our organization is inseparable from Jim and his everlasting influence. His presence will be greatly missed, and our thoughts are with his wife Carol and children Coleen, Heather, Jimmy and Erin.”

MLBTR joins the MLBPAA and others around the game in sending our condolences to Hannan’s family, friends, loved ones and former teammates and colleagues.

Al McBean Passes Away

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Former big league veteran Al McBean passed away earlier this week at age 85.  McBean holds a distinction as the first pitcher (and one of just 15 players ever) from the Virgin Islands to play in Major League Baseball, making some history when made his debut in 1961.

Most of McBean’s career was spent with the Pirates, including his first eight seasons and then a brief return in 1970 for what ended up being his final seven MLB games.  (In between those two stints in Pittsburgh, McBean pitched for the Padres and Dodgers.)  Pitching mostly as a reliever in his rookie season and then mostly as a starter in 1962, McBean then primarily worked out of the bullpen for most of his career, apart from a return to the Pirates rotation late in the 1967 season and for much of 1968.

McBean posted a 3.13 ERA and 63 saves over 409 games and 1072 1/3 career innings.  The 63 saves are a retroactive statistic given how saves weren’t officially recognized since 1969, and the idea of a true closer was still something of a rarity in the 1960’s.  However, the Pirates enjoyed great success with longtime relief ace Roy Face anchoring the bullpen, and McBean teamed with Face as a one-two punch for high leverage work.  McBean was named Reliever Of The Year by the Sporting News in 1964 for an outstanding season of 1.91 ERA ball and 21 saves over 89 2/3 innings and 58 appearances.

We at MLB Trade Rumors give our condolences to McBean’s family and friends.

Jimy Williams Passes Away

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Former player, manager and coach Jimy Williams has passed away, according to announcement from his previous clubs. He was 80 years old.

Williams was born in Santa Maria, California in 1943 and started his professional career by signing with the Red Sox. He was selected by the Cardinals in the 1965 Rule 5 draft and made his major league debut with that club. His playing career was quite modest, as he got into just 14 big league games with the Cards, 13 in 1966 and one more the following year. He made 14 plate appearances, walking once and striking out six times. His three singles in 13 at-bats gave him a batting average of .231.

He was traded to the Reds after the 1967 season and selected by the Expos in the 1968 expansion draft, but he never made it back to the big leagues. Though his playing career was limited, he managed to have brushes with greatness. His first appearance was against Sandy Koufax and his first hit came off Juan Marichal, both of whom eventually became Hall of Famers.

He transitioned to coaching and managing in the ’70s, starting in the Angels’ farm system. He got to the big leagues as the third base coach of the Blue Jays in 1980. He was promoted to the manager’s chair in 1986, with Bobby Cox vacating the role and heading to Atlanta. The Jays posted a winning record the next three seasons though didn’t make the postseason. Toronto fans of a certain vintage will remember that the 1987 club had a 3.5-game lead over the Tigers before losing their final seven contests for a heartbreaking second-place finish despite winning 96 games on the year. In 1989, the Jays got out to a slow start and Williams was fired in May, replaced by Cito Gaston.

Williams’ next gig was with Atlanta, reuniting him with Cox. Williams served as the third base coach in Atlanta from 1991 to 1996. The 1994 season wasn’t finished because of that year’s strike, but Atlanta won the National League East in every other season during that stretch, winning the World Series in 1995.

He got another managerial gig in 1997, getting hired by the Red Sox. They finished in fourth in the American League East in the first of his seasons in Boston but then got up to second place and earned the American League Wild Card spot in both 1998 and 1999. Williams won American League Manager of the Year honors in the latter of those two seasons, but the Sox didn’t make it back to the postseason in 2000 and then Williams was fired in August of 2001.

A few months later, Williams was hired to manage the Astros. They finished with winning records but shy of the postseason in 2002 and 2003, before Williams was fired midway through the 2004 campaign. That would be his last managerial gig, but he was hired to be the Phillies’ bench coach going into the 2007 season. The Phils won the National League East that year but lost to the Rockies in the NLDS. The next year, they won the division again and eventually won the 2008 World Series, a second ring for Williams as a coach. He decided not to return to the club the following year, finishing his career on a high note.

Over his career, Williams managed parts of 12 seasons with a combined record of 910-790, a .535 winning percentage. His two sons, Brady Williams and Shawn Williams, went on to become professional baseball players and minor league managers/coaches. We at MLB Trade Rumors join the rest of the baseball world in sending our condolences to the Williams family as well as Jimy’s many friends, acquaintances and fans throughout the game.

Bud Harrelson Passes Away

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The Mets announced the passing of longtime infielder Bud Harrelson last night at age 79. He had battled Alzheimer’s for an extended period, according to the team.

“We were saddened to learn of Mets Hall of Famer Buddy Harrelson’s passing. He was a skilled defender and spark plug on the 1969 Miracle Mets,” owners Steve and Alex Cohen said in a statement. “The Gold Glove shortstop played 13 years in Queens, appearing in more games at short than anyone else in team history. Buddy was the third base coach on the 1986 World Champs, becoming the only person to be in uniform on both World Series winning teams. We extend our deepest condolences to his entire family.”

Harrelson was a Bay Area native who played in college at San Francisco State. He signed with the Mets as a 19-year-old. The switch-hitting infielder got to the majors two years later, debuting with 19 games in 1965. Harrelson spent most of the 1966 campaign in Triple-A before emerging as a regular on the ’67 club.

He was an excellent defensive presence at shortstop for the next decade. Harrelson was the starter for the ’69 team that surprisingly secured the first World Series in franchise history. He made a pair of All-Star Games in 1970 and ’71, securing down-ballot MVP support in both years. Harrelson won the National League’s Gold Glove at shortstop in 1971. He finished among the top five NL shortstops in fielding percentage each year from 1969-72 and twice ranked among the top five at the position in assists.

Harrelson helped the Mets back to the Fall Classic in 1973, an eventual defeat at the hands of the A’s. While he had a solid showing in the World Series, he’s perhaps better known for his role in a bench-clearing brawl with the Reds in that’s year NLCS. After the Mets shut out Cincinnati in Game 2, Harrelson quipped that New York starter Jon Matlack had made Cincinnati’s vaunted offense “look like me hitting.” The following game, Harrelson took exception to a hard slide from Pete Rose on a double play turn, leading to the fracas.

As he self-deprecatingly noted, Harrelson wasn’t much of an offensive threat. He never hit more than one home run in a season — he had seven over his 16-year MLB career — and didn’t top a .659 OPS in any season in which he reached 250 plate appearances. That the Mets nevertheless stuck with him as their primary shortstop for over a decade speaks to how highly the team valued him as a defender. Harrelson remained in Queens through the 1977 campaign.

New York dealt him to the Phillies on the eve of the ’78 season. He played two years in Philadelphia and logged 87 contests with the 1980 Rangers to conclude his playing career. Harrelson appeared in more than 1500 games. He was a .236/.327/.288 hitter in over 5500 trips to the plate. He appeared on MVP ballots in three seasons and helped the Mets to two pennants.

He returned to the Mets in his post-playing days, managing in the farm system before taking on a role on the coaching staff. He was inducted into the team Hall of Fame in 1986 and, as the Cohens mentioned, was on staff for the franchise’s second championship. Harrelson got a brief look as manager, replacing Davey Johnson midseason in 1990. He led the team to a 70-49 record down the stretch but was fired the following season after a second half collapse put the club at 74-80.

MLBTR sends our condolences to Harrelson’s family, friends, loved ones and former teammates.

Billy Gardner Passes Away

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Former MLB infielder and manager Billy Gardner passed away last week at age 96, according to the Hall of Fame (X link). An obituary is available courtesy of The Day in Gardner’s hometown of New London, Connecticut.

Gardner, who was born in 1927, signed with the then-New York Giants out of high school. He played in their minor league ranks for almost a decade before reaching the majors in 1954. The right-handed hitter played sporadically at the MLB level from 1954-55, appearing in 121 games. He won a ring as a rookie when the Giants swept the Indians in the 1954 Fall Classic, although he didn’t make an appearance in the series. In April ’56, New York sold his contract to the Orioles. Gardner immediately stepped in as Baltimore’s starting second baseman.

He would have his greatest success as a player over the next four seasons. In 1957, Gardner led the American League in plate appearances (718) and doubles (36). While his overall .262/.325/.356 batting line was a little worse than league average, his durability and defensive reputation earned him some down-ballot MVP votes. Gardner continued to play regularly in Baltimore through 1959. The O’s flipped him across town to the Washington Senators in 1960. Gardner tallied 649 plate appearances with a .257/.313/.363 slash.

That wound up being the franchise’s final season in D.C. During the 1960-61 offseason, the organization uprooted to Minnesota and rebranded as the Twins. Gardner was briefly part of the original Twins team and was traded to the Yankees for lefty Danny McDevitt midseason. It proved a fruitful trade for him personally, as he finished the year in the Bronx and collected a second World Series title. He made one appearance in what would ultimately be a five-game triumph over the Reds.

Gardner closed his playing career in Boston after being traded yet again. He finished with a .237/.292/.327 line over parts of 10 MLB seasons. He hit 41 homers and 159 doubles in a bit under 3900 trips to the plate. Gardner played more than 8000 innings on defense, with the vast majority of that time coming at the keystone.

The end of his playing days didn’t mark the finale of his baseball career. Gardner transitioned to coaching with the Red Sox after his playing career concluded. He worked his way to an MLB staff with the Expos before rejoining the Twins as a coach in 1981.

Within a couple months, he was tabbed as manager to replace Johnny Goryl. Gardner held the managerial role in Minneapolis for parts of five seasons. The team only got to .500 once (an 81-81 record in 1984) and he was dismissed midway through the ’85 campaign. He got one more managerial opportunity, leading the 1987 Royals to a 62-64 mark before being replaced by John Wathan. His teams finished with a 330-417 record (44.2% win percentage).

MLBTR sends our condolences to Gardner’s family, friends and loved ones.

Ryan Minor Passes Away

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Former Orioles third baseman and minor league manager Ryan Minor passed away on Friday at age 49, as announced by Ryan’s brother Damon (via X): “After a courageous and hard fought battle I’m sad to say that Ryan lost his fight with cancer this afternoon.  He truly was the best twin brother you can ask for. His family and I want to thank everyone for the prayers and support during this time.  BOOMER SOONER.”

Minor played in 142 MLB games over four big league seasons, hitting .177/.228/.259 over 342 career plate appearances.  Minor appeared in 87 games with the Orioles from 1998-2000 and in 55 games with the Expos in 2001, and his time in the minor leagues and in independent baseball spanned from 2002-05, including stops in the farm systems of the Mariners, Dodgers, and Marlins.

In just his third career big league game, Minor became a unique part of baseball history.  Minor was Baltimore’s starting third baseman against the Yankees on September 20, 1998, which meant that he was technically the player who supplanted Cal Ripken Jr. in the Orioles’ lineup on the night that Ripken voluntarily ended his record consecutive-games streak.

After retiring from playing, Minor started a long second career as a coach and minor league manager.  Much of that time was spent in Baltimore’s organization, working from 2010-19 managing the Orioles’ A-ball and high-A affiliates in Delmarva and Frederick.  Minor also worked as a coach and manager in the Atlantic League in 2006-07 before beginning his long stint with the Orioles, and he managed the Tigers’ Gulf Coast West League affiliate in 2020-21.

As Damon Minor’s message indicates, the Minor brothers attended the University of Oklahoma, and Ryan was a standout in both baseball and basketball.  Minor was a second-round draft pick (selected 32nd overall) for the Philadelphia 76ers in the 1996 NBA Draft, and he spent 1996 playing in the Sixers’ preseason camp and in the Continental Basketball Association.  The Orioles controlled Minor’s baseball rights via a 33rd-round selection in the 1996 MLB draft.

We at MLB Trade Rumors send our condolences to Minor’s family, friends, and colleagues.

Ken MacKenzie Passes Away

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Former major league reliever Ken MacKenzie has passed away at age 89, according to the Associated Press.

Born in Ontario, MacKenzie attended Yale. He signed with the Braves out of school in 1956. MacKenzie reached the big leagues with the franchise, at the time based in Milwaukee, in 1960. He pitched 15 1/3 innings over parts of two seasons before joining the expansion Mets in 1962.

MacKenzie logged a career-high 80 innings for the inaugural team in Queens, posting a 4.95 ERA. As the AP notes, his 5-4 record made him the only pitcher with an above-.500 mark for a team that ultimately went 40-120. MacKenzie was traded twice the following season, going to the Cardinals and Giants. He also saw some action with the Astros in 1965.

Over parts of six campaigns, the left-hander posted a 4.80 ERA across 208 1/3 innings. He struck out 142 hitters and picked up eight wins. After his playing career, he coached baseball and hockey at his alma mater throughout the 1970s. MLBTR sends our condolences to MacKenzie’s family, friends and former teammates.

Vic Davalillo Passes Away

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Longtime major league outfielder Vic Davalillo has passed away at the age of 84, according to a Spanish-language report from El Extrabase.

A native of Venezuela, Davalillo began his pro baseball career in 1958. He signed with the Reds as a relief pitcher. After two and a half minor league seasons, he was traded to the Indians for cash. By the 1962 season, Cleveland had converted him to almost full-time outfield work. Davalillo spent that year in Triple-A before debuting in the big leagues the following season.

Listed at 5’7″ and 150 pounds, Davalillo was a high-contact hitter with a strong defensive reputation. He won a Gold Glove in his first full season in 1964. He was an All-Star selection the following year, receiving down-ballot MVP votes after hitting .301/.344/.372 and stealing 26 bases. The left-hander’s offensive numbers varied over the next few years, although he continued to play regularly in Cleveland for a while.

During the 1968 campaign, the Indians dealt Davalillo to the Angels for former All-Star Jimmie Hall. He swiped 25 bases while combining for a .277/.301/.355 batting line between the two clubs. That was the final year in which he reached 500 plate appearances, but he carved out an extended run thereafter as a depth outfielder.

Davalillo played in the big leagues through 1980. He had multi-year stints with the Cardinals, Pirates, A’s and Dodgers over that stretch. Davalillo was part of pennant-winning rosters with the latter three of those organizations.  He was part of the 1971 Pittsburgh team and ’73 Oakland clubs that won the World Series.

Over a major league career that spanned parts of 16 seasons, he hit .279/.315/.364. Davalillo picked up 36 homers, surpassed 1100 hits and swiped 125 bases. He was a Gold Glove winner, All-Star, and two-time champion. MLBTR sends our condolences to Davalillo’s family, friends and loved ones.

Ron Hodges Passes Away

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12-year major league veteran Ron Hodges passed away today at the age of 74, per an announcement from the Mets. Hodges spent his entire career as a member of the Mets.

Before ultimately landing with the Mets, several other teams attempted to draft Hodges. The Orioles selected him in the sixth round of the 1970 draft, though he did not sign with them. 1971 saw Hodges drafted in both January and June by the Royals and Braves, respectively, though he did not sign with a team until New York selected him in the second round of the secondary phase in the 1972 January draft. After signing, Hodges reached the big leagues fairly quickly, debuting with the major league club in June of 1973.

Hodges took to the role he spent much of his career in during his 1973 rookie campaign, acting as the club’s backup catcher and a pinch-hitter off the bench. After catching Hall of Fame right-hander Tom Seaver in his first career big league game, Hodges went on to make the club’s postseason roster in 1973. Though he did not appear during the NLCS against the Reds, Hodges appeared in Game 1 of the World Series against the A’s as a pinch hitter, drawing a walk in his lone appearance during the series as the Mets went on to lose to Oakland in seven games.

For the first eight season of his career, Hodges was used largely in his aforementioned role as a backup and pinch-hitter. He performed acceptably in that role, slashing .233/.320/.314 in 377 games across those seasons. Hodges broke out somewhat with the bat in 1981, however. Though he only appeared in 35 games, he impressed with a .302/.375/.419 slash line across his 48 trips to the plate that season. That offensive showing earned him some additional playing time during the 1982 season; he split time behind the plate with John Stearns, appearing in 80 games and slashing an above-average .246/.358/.373 in 276 plate appearances.

Hodges’s solid showing in a larger role in 1982 allowed him an even bigger opportunity the following year. He was the Mets’ Opening Day starter behind the plate in 1983, when he caught Seaver in the first start of his return to Queens for his age-38 season. Hodges went on to appear in 110 games with the Mets that season, slashing .260/.383/.308 in 305 trips to the plate that season. It proved to be the penultimate season of his career, as Hodges retired after the 1984 season with 666 career games and 1,683 plate appearances under his belt. A career .240/.342/.322 hitter, Hodges collected 342 hits during his career. Those of us at MLBTR extend our condolences to Hodges’s family, friends, loved ones and teammates.

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