Former member of the 1969 NY Mets Worlds Champion team, Dr. Ron Taylor, died Monday after a long illness. He was 87. Taylor was a pitcher for two Worlds Champion teams, the 1964 St Louis Cardinals, and the 1969 New York Mets. A native of Toronto, Canada, Taylor enrolled at the University of Toronto after he retired from baseball and attained his degree in sports medicine. Dr. Taylor went on to serve as the team physician for the Toronto Blue Jays and was a member of their staff for both of their Worlds Champion winning teams in 1992 and 1993.
1969 World Champion Miracle Mets
Ron Taylor is perhaps best remembered as a member of the 1969 Miracle Mets. Taylor was the late inning, right handed closer out of the bullpen, serving as the compliment to the young, lefthanded Tug McGraw. The two relief pitchers were far more different than just their pitching side. Tug McGraw was known for his vibrant, enthusiastic, and playful personality, both on and off the baseball field. Taylor's reserved and quiet confidence would often help defuse a pressure filled late inning crisis before it got out of hand. He was the stoic, reliable, closer that the team could depend upon and help anchor a young New York Mets pitching squad in 1969 that was still trying to find its way.
After posting a win and a save in the Mets three game sweep of the Braves in the 1969 NLCS, Taylor went on to record a save in two appearances for the Mets in their five game World Series victory over the Baltimore Orioles. Taylor led the 1969 Mets with 59 appearances and13 saves, with a 9-4 record and a 2.72 ERA.
Taylor was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 1985, Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame in 1993, and the Ontario Sports Hall of Fame in 2010.
However, in my mind, I’ll always remember Ron Taylor as the pitcher in the 1969 World Series, who came in with two runners on base and two outs and retired the great Brooks Robinson to save game 2 and even the Series at 1-1. Rest in Peace, Dr. Taylor. Your place in Mets history is secure.