Fran healy mets announcers 1970
Fran Healy
“I realized that this was a short-lived career, and I did something to prepare myself for what was to come later. I never spent a winter without doing something constructive. I never played winter ball. I went to school or I took courses in advertising, radio and TV production. I even took books on the road.”1 That foresight paid off for Fran Healy.
In Healy, who in went straight from the playing field to the broadcast booth, was one of the Mets play-by-play announcers as they put together their best season in many years and won the World Series.
Healy had a good baseball pedigree: His uncle Francis had played with the New York Giants and St. Louis Cardinals, and was a member of the Gas House Gang that won the World Series in His father, Bernard, had played minor-league ball in the Cardinals organization.
Francis Xavier Healy was born on September 6, , in Holyoke, Massachusetts, one of five children. His mother, Marina, worked in the purchasing department at Providence Hospital.
Fran attended Holyoke High School, batting in his sophomore year and starring on the basketball team, before transferring to the private Tabor Academy in January of his junior year. He starred in American Legion ball for Holyoke Post , and was selected to represent the Boston area in the Hearst Sandlot Classic in He returned to Holyoke High School in , and after graduation was signed by Cleveland Indians scout Hoot Evers for a $40, bonus. He was in the Cleveland farm system from through
Healy’s minor-league travels began in Dubuque, Iowa of the Class-A Midwest League. After batting only in 49 games in , he was batting in 48 games in when he was called up to Pawtucket of the Double-A Eastern League. He was in the Eastern League through In and , he batted and , respectively, at Pawtucket, making the league’s All-Star team in When the Indians switched their Double-A affiliation to Waterbury in , he batted and was in the pool of players for the American League’s postseas
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Many of his honors include an emmy award for life achievement; election to the Mets hall of fame (with Murphy and Kiner in ); and election to the Baseball Hall of Fame in He died at the age of 76,
A Night to Remember, NY Post Article Kiner's Korner article from NY Times Ralph Kiner stats courtesy of
Bob Murphy: The Voice of Summer Bob Murphy Tribute on .
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SNY Sportsnet New York Offical Site WFAN 66 AM - Official Website The Unauthorized Fan Website | ||||
From MLB to TV interviews, Holyoke’s Fran Healy remains pride of the Paper City
When Francis Xavier Healy was 14 years old, he had a spurt of growth that turned him into a 6-foot, 5-inch athlete of much promise.
Holyoke High School baseball coach Jinx O’Connor saw that promise and gave him a spot on his varsity team even though Healy was just a freshman.
That happened in , and it proved to be the first big step for Healy into what would become a sometimes-dizzying life as a Major League Baseball player and, later, an award-winning broadcaster.
“When Jinx gave me a spot on his team as a catcher, that was a huge confidence builder,” Healy says. “And guess what, the first high school game I ever caught, at Springdale Park, Billy O’Connell threw a no-hitter against Holyoke Catholic, my sister’s school.”
Healy left Holyoke High as a junior to attend Tabor Academy, a prep school in Marion. As a Tabor star, he earned the opportunity to play in Hearst-sponsored all-star games at Yankee Stadium, the Polo Grounds and Fenway Park.
“Tabor was great for me. Their coach, Julius Luchini, was a peach, but I decided to go back to Holyoke because I wanted to graduate with my original class,” Healy said.
On a recent visit to his hometown, he ran into Jim Athas, Joey Griffin and Dan Reid, his teammates on a Pat’s Supermarket Pee Wee baseball team back in the day. Now 73, Healy has a countless treasure of memories from growing up in the Paper City and many more from a career that is still going strong.
As the Houston Astros and the Washington Nationals headed into Game 4 of the World Series last night, Healy had high praise for both teams, noting “Washington looks like a surprise as the wild card, but had a better record () than the division-winning (St. Louis) Cardinals ().” “They’re both really good clubs with the pitching.”
Healy played nine seasons in the big leagues, including two with the “Bronx Zoo” New York Yankees of and , before going directly into the broadcasting Former Mets Broadcaster: Fran Healy ( )
In he was drafted as the 56th pick in the expansion draft, chosen by the Kansas City Royals. He would make his MLB debut playing six games there in & spending the next year in the minors. In October of , he was traded to the San Francisco Giants for Bob Garibaldi.
Healy played in 47 games for the Western Division Champion Giants, as the backup catcher to Dick Dietz. He hit with two HRs & 11 RBIs. He did not play in the NLCS & after hitting just the next year in 45 games, he was traded back to Kansas City.
He became the Royals main catcher in playing solid behind the plate, throwing out 44% of would be base stealers. That year he had the distinction of catching Steve Busby&#;s no hitter, the first no hit game in Royals history. At the plate he hit with 15 doubles, 6 HRs & 34 RBIs.
In he lad all A.L. backstops with games played behind the plate & caught another no hitter, this one thrown by Steve Busby. With all those games behind the plate, he would also lead the league in passed balls (21). Healy was fourth in assists, fifth in put outs, and caught 45 base runners trying to steal (third most in the league). He also had 95 runners steal successfully, on him, which was the most in the AL. In he lost his starting catcher job to future ESPN announcer, Buck Martinez.
Midway through the season he was sent to the A.L. New York club for pitcher Larry Gura. Healy spent the next two seasons backing up Thurman Munson seeing limited action, mostly being used for his defense.
He became very friendly with Reggie Jackson, and served as a peacemaker between Jackson, Billy Martin & Thurman Munson as the three con