Lenny Randle, who played 12 years in the majors, dead at 75
ByBob D'Angelo, Cox Media Group National Content Desk
Lenny Randle: The utility player, right, played for five major league teams during his 12-year career. (Bettmann Archive/Getty Images)
ByBob D'Angelo, Cox Media Group National Content Desk
Lenny Randle, a 12-year major league veteran who once punched his manager and also got down on his hands and knees on the infield grass to blow a baseball foul during a game, died Dec. 29. He was 75.
Randle broke in with the Washington Senators in 1971 and followed the franchise when it moved to become the Texas Rangers the following year, according to Baseball-Reference.com. He also played for the New York Mets (1977-78), New York Yankees (1979), Chicago Cubs (1980) and Seattle Mariners (1981-82).
The Hall of Fame remembers 12-year big league veteran Lenny Randle, who has passed away at the age of 75. (📸 Doug McWilliams) pic.twitter.com/dftQgYPJXD
— National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum ⚾ (@baseballhall) December 31, 2024
He was fluent in three languages and was working toward a master’s degree in special education.
Randle had a breakout year in 1974, batting .302 with 49 RBI and 26 stolen bases. He was a valuable utility player, with stints at third base and in the outfield. He hit .276 with 57 RBI and 16 stolen bases in 1975, but his production dropped off in 1976.
That set the stage for an incident during spring training on March 28, 1977, when Randle punched Rangers manager Frank Lucchesi in the face in a confrontation that took place during batting practice, Sports Illustrated reported.
Lucchesi was hospitalized with a fractured cheekbone and Randle was suspended 30 days and fined $10,000, according to the magazine. He was charged with battery in Florida and pleaded no contest; he eventually paid Lucchesi $20,000 as part of an out-of-court settlement.
Randle was quickly traded to the Mets, where he rebounded with a career-high .304 average.
While controversial, Randle was also inventive.
In 1981, he was playing third base for the Mariners when Kansas City’s Amos Otis topped a ball down the third base line. Randle got on his hands and knees and blew the ball foul.
“I’m going, OK, eat it, kick it, yell at it! So, I yelled at it,” Randle told MLB Network. “‘Go foul, go foul, go foul.’”
It worked, but Otis was awarded a base hit on the play.
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Lenny Randle: The utility player, right, who once punched his manager and once got down on his hands and knees to blow a baseball foul, died Dec. 29. He was 75. (Bettmann Archive/Getty Images)
