Tommie Agee 1942-2001 |
Tommie Agee - World Series hero, All-Star, Beloved outfielder, husband, father -
died on Monday January 22nd from cardiac arrest at Bellevue Hospital. Agee was
58. Tommie Lee Agee was born in Mobile, Alabama on August 9, 1942. He is survived
by his wife, Maxine and daughter Janelle. Tommie was best known for a pair of spectacular catches that helped the Mets win their miraculous World Series title in 1969. In game three, he homered in the bottom of the first inning to help stake the Mets to an early lead. He would help preserve that lead in the fourth inning when he dashed into left-center field to catch a drive by Elrod Hendricks in the webbing of his glove, stranding Orioles at first and third. He preserved the lead again in the seventh when he made a sliding catch to rob Paul Blair with two outs and the bases loaded. The Mets won that game, 5-0, and the Series, 4-1. Agee was greeted with a standing ovation by the 56,335 fans at Shea Stadium when he led off the bottom of the seventh. "Words can't describe how that made me feel," he said. "I felt like I wanted to hit two home runs in that one time at bat." The catches immediately were rated among the best in Series play, along with grabs by Al Gionfriddo off Joe DiMaggio (1947), Willie Mays (1954) off Vic Wertz and Sandy Amoros (1955) off Yogi Berra. Agee spent twelve years in the majors with the Indians, White Sox, Mets, Astros and Cardinals. Acquired from the White Sox on December 15, 1967, Agee batted .262 with 82 home runs and 265 RBI in five-seasons with the Mets. He was traded to Houston on November 27, 1972. |
