NEW YORK (AP) — Dr. Ron Taylor, a World Series champion pitcher with both the St. Louis Cardinals and New York Mets who later became the Toronto Blue Jays’ team physician, died Monday. He was 87.
Taylor died in Toronto after a long illness, the Mets said in a statement.
A native of Toronto and a member of the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame, Taylor was part of the 1964 Cardinals’ and 1969 Mets’ championship teams.
The right-hander pitched for the Mets from 1967-71. In 1969, he led the Miracle Mets with 59 appearances and 13 saves to go with a 9-4 record and 2.72 ERA.
“Ron was the only guy on our staff with postseason experience,” former Mets teammate Art Shamsky said. “He had won a championship with the Cardinals in 1964 and brought a winning mentality. We don’t win the title without Ron Taylor.”
Taylor pitched 2 1/3 scoreless innings in the 1969 World Series and saved a 2-1 victory in Game 2 against Baltimore when he retired Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson with two runners on in the bottom of the ninth.
Against Atlanta in the 1969 National League Championship Series, Taylor saved Game 1 and earned the win in Game 2.
Taylor’s big league career spanned 11 seasons, beginning with Cleveland in 1962 and ending with San Diego in 1972. He also pitched for Houston from 1965-66 and finished 45-43 with a 3.93 ERA and 74 saves in 491 games, including 17 starts.
After baseball he enrolled in medical school and spent about three decades as the Blue Jays’ team physician.
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The Associated Press
