Wes Westrum

From The Met Wiki

Wes Westrum was a coach and manager for the Mets between 1964 and 1967. He served on the team’s staff before replacing Casey Stengel as manager during the 1965 season. Westrum led the Mets to 142 wins over his three years as Mets manager.

As a player, Westrum was a catcher for the New York Giants from 1947 to 1957. He was a part of the Giants’ National League Championship team of 1951 and World Series winner of 1954. Wes was an NL All-Star selection in 1952 and 1953. He had a total of 96 home runs and 315 RBIs in his career.

Between 1958 and 1963, Westrum was a Giants coach for their first six years in San Francisco. He joined the Mets’ staff the following season. In ’65, Wes was named the Mets’ second manager after a hip injury had forced Stengel into sudden retirement. His first game at the helm was an 8-1 Mets victory over the Phillies in the first game of a doubleheader on July 25 at Shea Stadium. Westrum guided the Mets to their first non-last place finish in the National League standings in 1966. He also managed the team in ’67 before resigning with 11 games left in the season.

Westrum returned to the Giants as a coach in 1968. He managed the San Francisco team over two seasons during the 1970s. Wes later spent many years as a scout for the Atlanta Braves. He passed away on May 28, 2002, just six months before his 80th birthday.