Former Montreal Expos pitcher Wayne Granger dies at 81

March 18, 2026

By Kevin Glew 

Cooperstowners in Canada 

Former Montreal Expos reliever Wayne Granger died on February 25 at the age of 81. 

He passed away in Oviedo, Fla. 

No cause of death has been released. 

The 6-foot-2 right-hander made his final 27 big league appearances with the Expos in 1976 after capturing back-to-back National League Fireman of the Year awards with the Cincinnati Reds less than a decade earlier. 

“We are saddened to learn of the passing of Reds Hall of Famer Wayne Granger, who died peacefully on February 25,” said the Cincinnati Reds Museum in a statement.  

“We’ll remember Wayne not just for his Hall of Fame career but for his kindness and love for the Reds shown during his many appearances in Cincinnati at official functions.” 

Raised in Massachusetts 

Born on March 15, 1944 in Springfield, Mass., Granger strengthened his arm during his youth by throwing snowballs in the winter.  

“We used to have tremendous snowball fights,” Granger told the Montreal Gazette in March 1976, “and I found out I had a rubber arm. I could go on all day.” 

A multisport athlete in high school, excelling at basketball, soccer and baseball, Granger would later attend Springfield College where he studied physical education and continued his dominance on the mound. 

During two summers in his college years, he pitched in amateur leagues in Quebec. Veteran Montreal Expos author Danny Gallagher reported that Granger toed the rubber for the Jonquiere Braves, of the Saguenay Region league, in 1963 and then for the Port-Alfred Martinet in 1964. 

“I was going to school in Springfield at the time,” Granger told the Montreal Gazette about pitching in Quebec, “and I picked up a few bucks. Believe me, that’s all it was. You were allowed to make board money and we didn’t make any more.” 

Signed by Cardinals 

In March 1965, Granger was signed as an amateur free agent by the St. Louis Cardinals. He began his pro career as a starting pitcher but was converted into a reliever in 1966. 

In 1967 and 1968, he pitched for the Cardinals’ triple-A Tulsa Oilers who were managed by Warren Spahn. The legendary left-hander helped Granger hone his slider and his mental approach on the mound. 

MLB debut 

He made his MLB debut with the Cardinals on June 5, 1968. He entered the game in the ninth and tossed a scoreless inning to secure the save in a 3-1 win over the Houston Astros at the Astrodome.  

From there, Granger developed into an effective reliever for the Cardinals and helped them secure their second consecutive National League pennant. In 34 relief appearances with the Cards in 1968, Granger went 4-2 with a 2.25 ERA and had four saves.  

He also tossed two scoreless innings in the Cardinals’ loss to the Detroit Tigers in Game 6 of the World Series. 

Traded to Reds 

Right after the season, Granger was dealt to the Reds, along with Bobby Tolan, for Vada Pinson. 

In 1969, with the Reds, he became the first major league pitcher to make 90 appearances in a season. Employing a sidearm delivery, he went 9-6 with a 2.80 ERA and recorded 27 saves in 144 2/3 innings. For his efforts, he was named National League Fireman of the Year. 

He didn’t pitch in as many games (67) in 1970 but he did register a league-leading 35 saves. And for the second consecutive season, he was named NL Fireman of the Year. 

Granger had another solid season with the Reds in 1971, going 7-6 with a 3.33 ERA with 11 saves in a league-leading 70 pitching appearances. 

Traded again 

On December 3, 1971, the Reds dealt Granger to the Minnesota Twins for left-hander Tom Hall.  

The 6-foot-2 righty was solid in his sole season with the Twins, finishing with a 3.01 ERA and 19 saves in 63 games before he was swapped back to the Cardinals after the season. 

He struggled in his return to St. Louis, posting a 4.24 ERA in 33 games before being shipped to the New York Yankees on August 7. He recorded a 1.76 ERA in seven appearances for the Yankees but was released at the end of spring training the following year. 

On April 3, 1974, he was signed by the Chicago White Sox and spent the bulk of that year with the triple-A Iowa Oaks. 

The following year, he’d land with the Astros, where he revived his big league career, posting a 3.65 ERA in 55 appearances.  

Signed by Expos 

The Montreal Expos would then sign the 32-year-old right-hander to a minor league contract on February 14, 1976. 

“I saw him pitch in the Dominican Republic this winter,” Expos manager Karl Kuehl told the Montreal Gazette in March 1976. “He can pitch every day. He loosens up quickly.”  

Granger’s sinker was his bread-and-butter pitch but he had also been working on a screwball. 

The Expos were looking for Granger to provide some depth at the end of their bullpen along with right-hander Dale Murray and left-hander Fred Scherman.  

“I was impressed with the Expos’ bullpen. [Dale] Murray did a heckuva job. But Karl [Kuehl] tells me he doesn’t want to use Murray so much,” Granger told the Montreal Gazette in March 1976. “It’s better to have two or three guys in relief than only one.” 

After excelling throwing sidearm early in his career, Granger had been throwing overhand in more recent years. The Expos asked him to revert back to the submarine delivery. 

After a strong spring, Granger made the Expos’ Opening Day roster, though he wasn’t thrilled with what he’d be paid. 

“When you’re a free agent, you have to take what they give you. You can’t negotiate,” Granger told the Montreal Gazette in April 1976. “I won’t be able to put any money in the bank this year but there are other benefits. You’re in the majors and that’s the big thing. It helps towards the pension.” 

Key pitcher for Expos in April 

Granger performed well for the Expos in the season’s first month. On April 15, he pitched 2 2/3 scoreless innings against the Philadelphia Phillies to record his first save with the Expos in an 8-5 win at Jarry Park. Four days later, he notched his second save, this one in a 4-3 victory over the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. 

On April 22, he had his finest outing as an Expo. He came into the game in the fifth inning and didn’t permit a hit in 3 1/3 innings in the Expos’ 5-4 loss to the Cubs.  

Granger would record his first – and only – win with the Expos on May 25 when he recorded four outs against the Pirates in a 6-3, 11-inning victory. 

But by the end of May, his ERA had risen to 3.75 and Kuehl started using him less frequently. 

With Steve Rogers returning from the injured list, the Expos needed a roster spot and Granger was optioned to the minors. 

“Wayne gave us one good month [April 1976] but ever since he’s been shaky,” Kuehl told the Montreal Gazette for their June 30, 1976 edition. 

Granger joined the Expos’ triple-A Denver Bears and registered a 2.45 ERA in 26 games to help them to a league championship. 

Granger would pitch in the Mexican League in 1977 and 1978 and return to Denver for 24 games in 1979 before hanging up his playing spikes. 

He finished his MLB career with a 35-35 record and a 3.14 ERA in 451 appearances. 

Post baseball career 

In 1982, Granger was inducted into the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame. 

According to his SABR bio, after hanging up his spikes, Granger worked in sporting goods and shoes stores in Florida.  

He also became an excellent golfer and was a club champion at Tuscawilla, a course not far from his home in Florida.   

“The Hall of Fame remembers Wayne Granger, who passed away Wednesday at the age of 81,” wrote the National Baseball Hall of Fame in a statement on February 27.  “A reliever for the Cardinals, Reds, Twins, Yankees, White Sox, Astros and Expos, Granger became the first pitcher to appear in 90 games during a single season when he did so in 1969.”