Perranoski dies at age 84
Ron Perranoski, the left-handed ace of the Dodgers’ bullpen who helped them win a pair of World Series championships in the 1960s, has died. He was 84.
He died Friday night at his home in Vero Beach, Florida, of complications from a long illness, his sister Pat Zailo said Saturday.
Perranoski is the third former Dodgers player to die this week, along with outfielders Jay Johnstone and “Sweet” Lou Johnson.
Perranoski played in the major leagues from 1961-73 for the Dodgers, Twins, Tigers and Angels. He had a career record of 79-74 with 178 saves and a 2.79 ERA.
He signed with the Cubs out of Michigan State on June 9, 1958, and was traded to the Dodgers on April 8, 1960, for Don Zimmer. Known as “Perry,” he was the ace of the Dodgers’ bullpen from 1963-66.
He never pitched with the Cubs but spent all of 1959 with the Cubs’ Class AA Texas League affiliate, the San Antonio Missions, where he went 11-10 with a 3.12 ERA. With the Missions, he was a teammate of Ron Santo and Billy Williams.
Perranoski’s best year with the Dodgers came in 1963, when he went 16-3 as a full-time reliever and earned a save in relief of Johnny Podres in Game 2 of the World Series against the Yankees. He had 21 saves and a 1.67 ERA.
“Ron Perranoski played a major role in the success of the Dodgers as a great reliever and a mentor to many great young pitchers over his 30-year career in the organization,” team president and CEO Stan Kasten said.
Perranoski led the National League in appearances in 1962 with 70, 1963 with 69 and 1967 with 70. He also led the American League in saves with the Twins with 31 in 1969 and 34 in 1970.
Following his career, Perranoski served as the Dodgers’ minor-league pitching coordinator from 1973-80. He was their pitching coach from 1981-94 and was instrumental in the success of Orel Hershiser and Fernando Valenzuela.
Perranoski joined the Giants as minorleague pitching coordinator in 1995 and was promoted to bench coach in 1997 and then to pitching coach from 1998-99. The following year he became a special assistant to thengeneral manager Brian Sabean.
“He was a ballplayer, and he loved that life, he thrived on it,” his sister said.
He was born Ronald Peter Perranoski on April 1, 1936, in Paterson, New Jersey, and grew up in Fair Lawn. In 1983, he was inducted into the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame.
Klentak out in Philly
Phillies general manager Matt Klentak stepped down after a third straight September collapse left the team out of the postseason for the ninth consecutive season. The 40-year-old will be reassigned to another position in the organization, and Ned Rice will serve as interim GM until the Phillies hire someone to run baseball operations.
“We’ve made progress, but we haven’t made enough progress fast enough,” Phillies managing partner John Middleton said.
Klentak was hired in October 2015 by team President Andy MacPhail after serving as assistant general manager for the Angels for four seasons. The Phillies were 326-382 in five seasons under Klentak.
When Klentak took over for Ruben Amaro Jr., he inherited Pete Mackanin as manager and made a switch after the 2017 season, hiring Gabe Kapler. The Phillies went 161-163 under Kapler before Middleton overruled Klentak and MacPhail and fired him last year. First-year manager Joe Girardi was 28-32 this season.
Former White Sox player Haeger dead
Charles Haeger, 37, a former professional baseball player sought in the shooting death of his ex-girlfriend in a Phoenix suburb, was found dead Saturday of a self-inflicted gunshot wound at the Grand Canyon, police said.
Haeger, a 25th round pick of the White Sox in the 2001 draft, pitched in 15 games for the team in 2006-07 before being waived in 2008.