Former major leaguer Rennie Stennett, the San Francisco Giants’ first high-priced signing of baseball’s free agent era, died in Coconut, Fla. after a battle with cancer. He was 72.
Stennett was best known as a two-time World Series champion second baseman for the Pittsburgh Pirates who in 1975 became the first player in modern baseball history to go 7-for-7 in a game. The Panama native was also part of baseball history as a rookie, along with Hall of Famers Willie Stargell and Roberto Clemente, when the Pirates fielded MLB’s first All-Black and Latino lineup during a 1971 game.
Stennett’s death was announced Tuesday by the Pirates, for whom he spent nine of his 11 big league seasons.
“We are saddened by the loss of such a beloved member of the Pirates family,” Pittsburgh president Travis Williams said in a statement. “Rennie was a great player on the field and an even better person off it.”
A broken ankle suffered in 1977 derailed Stennett’s career, but it didn’t prevent him from earning a five-year, $3 million contract with the Giants in 1980. At the time, Stennett’s deal was considered a large one — the Yankees had signed Reggie Jackson to the largest free-agent deal (five years, $3.5 million) — four years earlier.
Unfortunately, Stennett’s time with San Francisco was forgettable. Still limited by his ankle injury, he batted just .242 with a below-average OPS of .578 during his two years with the Giants after hitting .278 during his time in Pittsburgh.
His large contract and subsequent struggles led to him being the target of boos at Candlestick Park.
“It was the worst experience of my life,” Stennett told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette after the Giants released him in 1982 when the team acquired Duane Kuiper from the Cleveland Indians. “I don’t regret it, because it gave security to my family.
“I’m just sorry it turned out the way it did.”
Stennett, however, did make time to meet and pose for pictures with Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford in 2016 after San Francisco’s current shortstop went 7-for-8 in an extra-inning game. Stennett remains the only player to go 7-for-7 in a nine-inning game.