Former Pittsburgh Pirates Player, Coach Dies

PITTSBURGH, PA — Don Leppert, a former Pirates player and later a coach, has died.

Leppert, 91, died April 13 in Ohio, the Pirates announced.

“We are deeply saddened to hear the news on the passing of Don Leppert,” Pirates president Travis Williams said in a statement. “He touched many lives during his more than 40 years in baseball and was a valuable part of the Pirates coaching staff during the 1971 World Series winning season. Our hearts go out to his wife, Daphine, and the entire Leppert family.”

A catcher, Leppert played from 1961 to 1964 for the Pirates and Washington Senators, making the All-Star team in 1963 with the Senators.

After his playing career ended, Leppert became a manager in the Pittsburgh's minor league system and joined the Pirates staff in 1968. He was the first base coach in 1971, when the Pirates defeated the Baltimore Orioles in seven games to win the World Series.

A year later, when outfielder Roberto Clemente collected his historic 3,000th - and final - hit, Leppert carried the ball around in his back pocket after the play.

Leppert left the Pirates after the 1976 season and went on to coach for the Toronto Blue Jays and Houston Astros.