Jerry Koosman

The quiet arm who held the Orioles hitless until the seventh inning and secured Game Five to complete baseball's greatest miracle.

Jerome Martin Koosman, born December 23, 1942, is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played for the New York Mets, Minnesota Twins, Chicago White Sox, and Philadelphia Phillies between 1967 and 1985. He is best known as a pivotal member of the 'Miracle Mets' team that won the 1969 World Series. Discovered while pitching in the United States Army at Fort Bliss, Texas, by John Lucchese, Koosman joined the Mets after his military discharge. After nearly being cut in 1966 due to a debt owed from a car repair, he was retained and went on to break multiple franchise records during his rookie season of 1968.

Quick Facts

Position: Pitcher
Bats: Right
Throws: Left
Born: 23 December 1942
Birthplace: Appleton, Minnesota, U.S.
Debut league: MLB
Debut date: April 14
Debut year: 1967

Lore & Background

Koosman's journey began in unlikely fashion; he was discovered by John Lucchese, the son of a Shea Stadium usher, while serving in the Army. His path to the majors faced an early hurdle when assistant farm director Joe McDonald had to request his retention in 1966 because Koosman owed the team money wired for car repairs en route to spring training. In 1968, he shattered franchise records with a 19–12 record, seven shutouts, and a 2.08 ERA, breaking marks set by teammate Tom Seaver. That same year, the National League All-Star Game ended in a rare 1–0 score, with Koosman pitching a scoreless ninth inning and striking out Carl Yastrzemski for the final out, though saves were not an official MLB statistic until 1969 and are not retroactively applied. He finished as the runner-up to Johnny Bench for the National League Rookie of the Year and earned his first of two All-Star selections.

Reader's Guide

Koosman remained a cornerstone of Mets pitching through the turbulent early 1970s. In 1973, despite a losing record, he set a franchise mark with 31⅔ consecutive scoreless innings and helped the team overtake the Cubs again to win the NL East. He was the winning pitcher in Game Five of that year's World Series against Oakland, holding them scoreless for 6⅓ innings before the A's completed their repeat championship. His final years in New York saw a sharp decline; after a career-best 21-win season in 1976, he slumped to 8–20 in 1977 and 3–15 in 1978 as the team deteriorated following Tom Seaver's trade. At his request, he was traded to the Minnesota Twins in December 1978, with Jesse Orosco eventually completing that deal. Koosman retired after the 1985 season with a 222–209 record and 3.36 ERA. The Mets retired his number 36 on August 28, 2021.

Did You Know?

Al Weis hit a tying home run in Game Five of the 1969 World Series despite having only six career homers at that point, though he had previously hit home runs at Shea Stadium.
Koosman sold his Game 5 World Series ball (given to him by Cleon Jones) in the early 1990s, and its current whereabouts are unknown.
He was sentenced to six months in federal prison in September 2009 for misdemeanor tax evasion related to unpaid taxes from 2002–2004.