Forever known as “the Kid,” former Mets catcher Gary Carter died at 4:10 p.m. on February 16 after battling brain cancer. He was 57.
A key cog on the Mets’ 1986 championship team, the man best known for his leadership and clutch hitting was diagnosed with the disease after doctors discovered inoperable tumors on his brain in May 2011. After an MRI revealed new tumors in January 2012, his condition worsened.
The entire Mets organization expressed their condolences to Carter’s family and said that they are grieving along with his fans and former teammates.
“On behalf of everyone at the Mets, we extend our deepest and heartfelt condolences to Gary’s family – his wife Sandy, daughters Christy and Kimmy and son D.J.,” Mets chairman and CEO Fred Wilpon, president Saul Katz and COO Jeff Wilpon said in a joint statement. “His nickname ‘the Kid’ captured how Gary approached life. He did everything with enthusiasm and with gusto on and off the field. His smile was infectious. He guided our young pitching staff to the World Series title in 1986 and he devoted an equal amount of time and energy raising awareness for a multitude of charities and community causes. He was a Hall of Famer in everything he did.”
