Jerry Koosman, who got the final out of the 1969 World Series for the Miracle Mets, dies at 83

Jerry Koosman, the left-hander who threw the pitch that ended the 1969 World Series and set off one of the most famous celebrations in baseball, died Sunday. He was 83.

Mets spokesman Jay Horwitz said Koosman had been sick for about a year and died of multiple illnesses in Osceola, Wisconsin, with his children around him, according to the Associated Press. The Mets announced his death Sunday afternoon.

Koosman was the No. 2 starter behind Tom Seaver on the 1969 team, an expansion franchise that had never finished above .500 and then won 100 games. He went 17-9 with a 2.28 ERA that season. In the World Series against Baltimore, he allowed one run over 8 2/3 innings to win Game 2, 2-1, and then threw a five-hitter in Game 5. Davey Johnson flied out to Cleon Jones in left for the final out, and Koosman leaped into catcher Jerry Grote's arms as fans poured onto the field at Shea Stadium.

He later described the moment to Mets broadcaster Howie Rose. "I turn around and look at Cleon and I see Cleon going back and, uh, the first thing is the heart stops," Koosman said. "Well, then you see him slow down. Oh, God, now you know it's OK. Now the only other thing is: Don't drop the ball."

The Mets signed Koosman for $1,600 in 1964 after a tip from his Army catcher at Fort Bragg. He finished second to Johnny Bench for NL Rookie of the Year in 1968, going 19-12 with a 2.08 ERA, and struck out Carl Yastrzemski for the final out of that year's All-Star Game. Over 19 seasons he went 222-209 with a 3.36 ERA, 140 complete games and 33 shutouts, and he won 20 games twice. He was 140-137 with the Mets from 1967 to 1978, then pitched for three more teams, including Minnesota and Philadelphia. MLB noted that Koosman and Seaver made their big-league debuts on back-to-back days in 1967.

The Mets retired his No. 36 in 2021. "Good pitching gets out good hitting," Koosman said that day. "So that's what happened and our pitching kind of took over."