Lenny Randle, Dubbed ‘Most Interesting Man in Baseball,’ Dies

Lenny Randle, whose colorful career in baseball on and off the field endeared him to fans on two continents, passed away at age 75.

An infielder and outfielder, Randle batted .257 with 27 home runs and 322 RBIs in a 12-year major league career (1971-82) with the Washington Senators, Texas Rangers, New York Mets, New York Yankees, Chicago Cubs and Seattle Mariners.

After the 1982 season, Randle headed overseas to play in Italy, becoming the first major league player to compete in the country’s top baseball league. He would go back to Italy often to teach baseball to youth. He was also involved in the Urban Youth Academy in Compton, California, where he was born and raised.

Randle’s talent for baseball was exceeded only by his talent for intersecting with interesting moments and characters in the game’s history — and in the process became “the most interesting man in baseball” as christened by Rolling Stone magazine and a 2015 MLB Network documentary of the same name.

More news: Former Major League Pitcher, 35, Reportedly Dies in Car Accident

In Washington and Texas, Randle was managed by Ted Williams. In Chicago, he “rubbed elbows with the Belushi brothers and did stand-up routines at local comedy clubs after Cubs games,” wrote Rolling Stone. Randle spoke five languages, earned an MBA, met with presidents, hobnobbed with Bill Gates and Jesse Jackson among other celebrities he met through his Screen Actors Guild membership, and recorded a disco/funk song about The Kingdome, the Mariners’ original ballpark.

Randle was also involved in some colorful incidents on the field.

In 1977, his trade from the Rangers was precipitated by an incident in the clubhouse in which he assaulted his manager, Frank Lucchesi. In a May 1974 game against Cleveland, he intentionally bunted a ball down the first-base line so he could level the pitcher (Bob Johnson) who threw a baseball behind his back.

In Seattle, Randle famously tried to blow a ball over the third-base line into foul territory. Recalling the 1981 play, he once said, “I start yelling, ‘Go foul! Go foul!’ I’m yelling, ‘Go! Go! Go foul! Go foul!’ And my breath stinks. I’m sure the ball didn’t like the smell of my breath.”

Randle was a member of Arizona State’s Sun Devil Athletics Hall of Fame. As an undergrad he helped lead Arizona State’s baseball team to an NCAA championship in 1969 and also played football.

Randle’s son, Bradley, played football professionally in the NFL and CFL.

For more MLB news, visit Newsweek Sports.