Mets pitcher Jerry Koosman, 1969 champion, dies at 83

Jerry Koosman, the left-handed pitcher who helped lead the New York Mets to their first World Series championship in 1969, has died at 83, the team announced Sunday. Koosman was the winning pitcher in Game 5 against the Baltimore Orioles, securing the title for the Mets. He also won Game 2 of the Series. In the clinching game, he pitched nine innings, completing the victory that capped the franchise’s championship run. Jay Horwitz, the Mets’ vice president of alumni relations, said Koosman had been battling multiple illnesses. The team announced his death; the reports did not provide further details about the circumstances. Koosman joined the Mets’ major league rotation in 1968 after making his debut the previous year. He earned All-Star selections in both 1968 and 1969. In his first full season, he recorded a 2.08 earned-run average over 263⅔ innings and finished second in National League Rookie of the Year voting behind Johnny Bench. In 1969, he posted a 2.28 ERA across 241 innings, behind Tom Seaver among Mets starters. The Mets signed Koosman in 1964 after discovering him while he was pitching for the U.S. Army. He spent 12 of his 19 major league seasons with New York,...