Very sad. For the longest time during the dark years of the Mets, Lenny was my hero and favorite Met. I had the chance to meet him and jaw a little at the 1978 (I think) Baseball Hall of Fame game between the Mets and Tigers. Doubleday field is small and we were right along the 3B rail. He was such a nice guy, especially as it was pissing down rain the while game if I recall. My scorecard and program were wiped out because of the rain. After the game I wrote Lenny a letter and sent it to him at Shea Stadium. Imagine my total joy when I got a letter in the mail with official Mets stationary. The return address, which I’ll never forget, was with raised glossy ink: “New York National League Baseball Club.” I felt like a member of the Mets. Included with his letter was a cool personalized autograph of his official Mets picture, kneeling along the baseline. I still have it to this day. Rest in peace Lenny, you were one of a kind.
Thats a cool story Chris. I really liked Lenny too. He could sure swipe a bag. I once wrote to Jon Matlack and got an autographed picture back. My son got a signed Nolan Ryan card back from a letter that he sent when he was on the Rangers.
RIP Lenny. He was a fun Met. As a 1970s kid, I also wrote Met players and got back those official letters with a real autographed black and white portrait shot. I had a bunch…don’t know what happened to them…good times.
A shame to hear about Lenny. Another classic Randle story was when he was with the Rangers and pitcher Bob Johnson threw inside on him. Later in the at bat, Randle dropped a bunt down the first base line and as Johnson went to field it, Lenny absolutely trucked him, starting a big brawl. Definitely a hard nosed player and something that wouldn’t happen today. Here’s a link to the video.
Great video Bob! First time I ever sat in good seats at Shea we were 3 rows behind Philthies on deck circle. Lenny must have been out signing autographs for 20 minutes for anyone who wanted one. He talked to us and hammed it up for a bit, really interacting with the crowd , leaving a big smile on my 8 year old face. Mets went on to win 2-0 as Espinosa(!) out-dueled Carlton. Got to see Luzinski up close, by far the largest human I’d seen to that point. Easily the most memorable and enjoyable day at Shea of my childhood. 11 days later was the midnight massacre and my two favorite players were gone. Such is the life of a Mets fan.
Very sad. For the longest time during the dark years of the Mets, Lenny was my hero and favorite Met. I had the chance to meet him and jaw a little at the 1978 (I think) Baseball Hall of Fame game between the Mets and Tigers. Doubleday field is small and we were right along the 3B rail. He was such a nice guy, especially as it was pissing down rain the while game if I recall. My scorecard and program were wiped out because of the rain. After the game I wrote Lenny a letter and sent it to him at Shea Stadium. Imagine my total joy when I got a letter in the mail with official Mets stationary. The return address, which I’ll never forget, was with raised glossy ink: “New York National League Baseball Club.” I felt like a member of the Mets. Included with his letter was a cool personalized autograph of his official Mets picture, kneeling along the baseline. I still have it to this day. Rest in peace Lenny, you were one of a kind.
Thats a cool story Chris. I really liked Lenny too. He could sure swipe a bag. I once wrote to Jon Matlack and got an autographed picture back. My son got a signed Nolan Ryan card back from a letter that he sent when he was on the Rangers.
RIP Lenny. He was a fun Met. As a 1970s kid, I also wrote Met players and got back those official letters with a real autographed black and white portrait shot. I had a bunch…don’t know what happened to them…good times.
In looking for that picture of Lenny, I found an article I wrote for Mets 360 4+ years ago. You can see the picture and my article here:
https://mets360.com/?p=40238
A shame to hear about Lenny. Another classic Randle story was when he was with the Rangers and pitcher Bob Johnson threw inside on him. Later in the at bat, Randle dropped a bunt down the first base line and as Johnson went to field it, Lenny absolutely trucked him, starting a big brawl. Definitely a hard nosed player and something that wouldn’t happen today. Here’s a link to the video.
https://youtu.be/aAQI7RTzURQ?si=VvEU3PBej3phy4im
Thanks for the video Bob. I do like a good drag bunt!
And Chris, you were the first person I thought of when I heard this sad news.
Here is a summary of that ‘78 HoF game, where not only was Randle my hero, but he had one helluva game.
https://baseballhall.org/discover-more/stories/hall-of-fame-game/1978
Great video Bob! First time I ever sat in good seats at Shea we were 3 rows behind Philthies on deck circle. Lenny must have been out signing autographs for 20 minutes for anyone who wanted one. He talked to us and hammed it up for a bit, really interacting with the crowd , leaving a big smile on my 8 year old face. Mets went on to win 2-0 as Espinosa(!) out-dueled Carlton. Got to see Luzinski up close, by far the largest human I’d seen to that point. Easily the most memorable and enjoyable day at Shea of my childhood. 11 days later was the midnight massacre and my two favorite players were gone. Such is the life of a Mets fan.
RIP Lenny.