Merv Rettenmund won championships with the Orioles and Reds before joining the Padres and Angels, then serving as a hitting coach for five different MLB clubs.
Merv Rettenmund, who won World Series rings with the Baltimore Orioles, Cincinnati Reds, and Oakland Athletics, died at the age of 81 on Saturday.
Rettenmund made his MLB debut with the Orioles in 1968 and remained with the team until the end of the 1973 season. During that time, Baltimore reached the playoffs five times and won three American League pennants, including the World Series in 1970.
While Rettenmund was not the most prominent player on those Orioles teams, he did hit.320 with an.898 OPS and 10.6 WAR between 1970 and 1971. He also hit a home run in Game 5 of the 1970 World Series, which helped Baltimore win the championship over the Reds.
Injuries and slumps limited Rettenmund to 95 games in 1973, but he still had a 4.2 WAR. Regardless, the Orioles dealt him to the Reds in December.
Rettenmund went on to win another championship with Cincinnati in 1975, despite being a part-time player and pinch-hitter at the time. After that, Rettenmund played two seasons with the San Diego Padres and three with the California Angels before retiring in 1980.
Rettenmund finished his career with 693 hits, 66 home runs, 329 RBI, 68 stolen bases, and a WAR of 20.0. He lived a lifetime.271 hitter with a.786 OPS.
Rettenmund began teaching shortly after his playing career ended, serving as the Texas Rangers’ hitting coach from 1983 to 1985. He then worked the same job for the A’s in 1989 and 1990, winning the World Series in his first season on the team.
Rettenmund returned to the Padres as hitting instructor in 1991, where he remained until 1999. Following stints with the Atlanta Braves and Detroit Tigers, Rettenmund returned to San Diego in June 2006 and coached his final game in July 2007.
Rettenmund, a Michigan native, retired to San Diego. He died there this past weekend.
