Butch Huskey, Among Final MLB Players to Wear Jackie Robinson’s No. 42, Dead at 54

Butch Huskey, a former Major League Baseball player who remained among the final athletes authorized to wear the legendary No. 42, died at age 54. The New York Mets announced his passing via social media, though additional details surrounding his death were not immediately disclosed.

Huskey debuted in the majors in 1993 wearing No. 10 for the Mets but switched to No. 42 in 1995, two years before the sport retired the number throughout the league to honor Jackie Robinson. When MLB implemented the league-wide retirement in 1997, the organization grandfathered in players already wearing the iconic number, permitting Huskey, Mo Vaughn, and Mariano Rivera to continue using it for the remainder of their careers regardless of which team employed them.

His most productive seasons came after changing his number. Playing primarily first base in 1996, Huskey recorded a .278 batting average with a .754 on-base-plus-slugging percentage. He elevated his performance further in 1997, compiling a .287 average with an .822 OPS while hitting a career-high 24 home runs and recording 81 runs batted in, his career best.

Beyond his time with New York, Huskey wore No. 42 for the Seattle Mariners and Minnesota Twins but switched to No. 44 when he joined the Boston Red Sox in 1999. The Red Sox qualified for postseason play that year as a wild card but fell to the New York Yankees in the American League Championship Series. His final stint came with the Colorado Rockies, where he wore No. 35.

Huskey holds the distinction of being the last player to don No. 42 in Mariners franchise history. Only four players have worn the number in the major leagues since his era: Vaughn, Rivera, Michael Jackson, and Jose Lima.