10/8/99 Robert Leon "Butch" Huskey kisses his bat aft hitting immoderate retired of the batting cage astatine Fenway coming during practice. Staff Photo By Matt Stone photo/sat photo7 (Photo by MediaNews Group/Boston Herald via Getty Images)
MediaNews Group via Getty Images
Former Boston Red Sox subordinate Butch Huskey, whose seven-year Major League Baseball profession included a memorable relationship to 1 of baseball’s astir important numbers, has died astatine 54.
Huskey spent the mostly of his profession pinch the New York Mets aft the statement selected him successful the seventh information of the 1989 MLB Draft. He made his awesome convention debut successful 1993 and yet became a productive powerfulness action for the Mets, hitting a career-high 24 location runs successful 1997.
His playing profession besides brought him to Boston, wherever he joined a Red Sox squad that came tantalizingly adjacent to ending a historical title drought. But he is possibly champion remembered for being the penultimate Met to deterioration No. 42, followed only by Mo Vaughn, earlier the number was retired passim Major League Baseball to grant Jackie Robinson.
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The Mets announced Huskey’s death Friday connected X: “We are saddened to study astir the passing of erstwhile Met Butch Huskey.”
A origin of decease was not disclosed successful the announcement. Huskey was 54.
His relationship to Boston came aft the 1998 season, erstwhile the Mets traded him to the Seattle Mariners. Seattle subsequently dealt him to the Red Sox, giving Huskey an opportunity to subordinate a Boston nine that precocious to the American League Championship Series successful 1999 earlier losing to the eventual World Series champion New York Yankees.
Huskey appeared successful only six games for Boston, but his Red Sox tenure represented different extremity successful a profession that included clip pinch the Mets, Mariners, Minnesota Twins and Colorado Rockies. He vanished his MLB profession pinch 86 location runs, 336 RBI and a .267 batting average.
His astir important legacy, however, whitethorn person progressive a number he wore alternatively than the statistic he produced.
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Huskey was wearing No. 42 for the Mets erstwhile Major League Baseball announced successful 1997 that Jackie Robinson’s number would beryllium retired passim the sport. That made Huskey the penultimate Mets subordinate to deterioration the number earlier it became unavailable league-wide.
The value was not mislaid connected Huskey, who had developed an appreciation for Robinson agelong earlier reaching the majors.
“If I ever made it successful baseball, 42 would beryllium my number,” Huskey said, per MLB.com’s Bill Ladson. “Reading books astir him sewage the shot rolling. (I wrote a report) was astir Robinson being the first Black subordinate to play successful Major League Baseball. To me, that was an accomplishment successful itself for him to spell done what he went done — to beryllium capable to make it and play successful the awesome leagues astatine a precocious level.”
That relationship gave Huskey a unsocial spot successful Mets history beyond his on-field production. He was portion of a procreation of players who witnessed MLB formally sphere Robinson’s bequest done the status of No. 42.
For Red Sox fans, Huskey will beryllium remembered arsenic a personnel of the 1999 squad that astir collapsed the sport’s astir infamous title drought. For Mets fans, he was a longtime contributor and a subordinate tied everlastingly to 1 of baseball’s astir important numbers.
Huskey’s profession ended aft the 2000 season, but his relationship to No. 42 ensured that his spot successful shot history would widen good beyond his last game.
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