Catcher Gary Carter Dies of Brain Cancer | Cancer Kick

(NewsCore) ? Everybody, including the man himself, called Gary Carter ?The Kid? for his exuberant personality and intense play on the baseball diamond.

Carter, who died Thursday at age 57 nearly nine months after being diagnosed with brain cancer, was a hard-hitting catcher who helped the New York Mets win the 1986 World Series, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Carter?s daughter, Kimmy Carter Bloemers, announced her father?s death on a website where she has provided updates on his condition since his diagnosis last May.

?I am deeply saddened to tell you all that my precious dad went to be with Jesus today at 4:10 pm. This is the most difficult thing I have ever had to write in my entire life but I wanted you all to know,? she wrote Thursday.

?He is in heaven and has reunited with his mom and dad. I believe with all my heart that dad had a STANDING OVATION as he walked through the gates of heaven to be with Jesus ? He is now in God?s Hall of Fame.?

Bloemers revealed last month that her father?s health had severely worsened, with doctors diagnosing new tumors on his brain. In the fall, she had written optimistically about Carter?s treatment, saying some of the tumors were shrinking.

Carter made a splash during his first full season in the majors, 1975, when he hit for a .270 average for the Montreal Expos, finished second in the Rookie of the Year voting and played in the All-Star Game, the first of 11 appearances.

But it was his image as a happy warrior and skills as a field general as much as his offense that made Carter a major sports celebrity of the era, The Journal reported.

His love of cameras and microphones sometimes alienated teammates, who also may have resented his salary ? among the highest in baseball during the 1980s ? as well as his celebrity endorsements for products like Polaroid and Ivory Soap. He had a squeaky-clean family life, professed born-again Christianity, trained as hard as anybody on the team ? and made sure everybody knew it.

?Gimme a Coke, some fries and a Gary Carter,? a fan who thought him guilty of hot-dogging once told the Toronto Globe and Mail.

But if he had high self-regard, Carter had the numbers to justify it, hitting 324 homers, and driving in 1,225 in his 19 professional seasons.

?It used to be the Era of Johnny Bench,? an Expos coach said in 1981. ?Now it?s Carter?s era.?

Gary Edmund Carter grew up in Fullerton, Calif., and when he was seven years old was a national champion in the NFL?s punt, pass and kick contest. He went on to quarterback his high school football team and was captain of the baseball and basketball teams.

Carter was heavily recruited to play college football, but ended up signing with the Expos in 1972. He played a few major-league games in 1974, having by then been converted to catcher from shortstop.

He built a home in Canada and was so popular among fans that Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau once said, ?I am certainly happy that I don?t have to run for election against Gary Carter.? With Carter as backstop, the Expos posted five winning seasons starting in 1979. In 1982 they rewarded him with a $15 million, seven-year contract ? big money for a baseball player in those days.

The Mets were on the rise when, in the 1984 off-season, they executed a blockbuster deal for the player generally recognized as the best catcher in baseball.

Although the Mets failed to make the playoffs in 1985, they took the World Series in 1986 with a team of high-visibility stars including Darryl Strawberry, Dwight Gooden and Keith Hernandez. To many fans, Carter was the capstone that put the team over the top.

But 1986 was to prove Carter?s last strong season as his body began to fail him, the result of catching more than 100 games most years.

The Mets declined to renew his contract after the 1989 season. Carter played for the San Francisco Giants and the Los Angeles Dodgers before returning to Montreal for his final season.

?My body cries out,? a tearful Carter said at a 1992 news conference at Olympic Stadium, where he announced his retirement.

In later years, Carter worked as a baseball broadcaster with the Florida Marlins, now known as the Miami Marlins, and coached minor-league baseball. He openly campaigned for the Mets manager job, attracting criticism.

He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2003. There was a question at the time whether he should go in as an Expo or a Met. Carter joked that he should receive a bisected plaque, but in the end the hall?s president, Dale Petroskey, decided on the Expos.

Read more: The Wall Street Journal

Article source: http://www.myfoxny.com/dpps/sports/gary-carter-hall-of-fame-catcher-dies-dpgonc-20120217-fc_18022258

Source: http://cancerkick.com/2012/02/20/catcher-gary-carter-dies-of-brain-cancer/

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