era and won consecutive World Series titles in the 1975 and 1976 campaigns. "There are a lot of coaches who have received more notoriety than Klu, but I don't think anyone's had more success," said three-time batting champion Pete Rose, one of his prized pupils. "He was just a prince. I never heard a bad word said about him. He was a nice man, a gentle man." In , largely because of health reasons, Kluszewski took on a less strenuous role as the Reds minor league hitting instructor. He served in the position until , when a massive heart attack resulted in emergency bypass surgery that prompted him to leave baseball permanently. On March 29 two years later, the 63-year-old Kluszewski was stricken by a second heart attack and died at a suburban Cincinnati hospital. MLB highlights and records Highlights NL All-Star (1953, 1954, 1955, 1956) NL leader in home runs (1954) NL leader in RBIs (1954) NL leader in hits (1955) NL leader in putouts as first baseman (1951, 1955) NL leader in fielding average as first baseman (1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1955) AL pennant team (1959) First home run in Los Angeles Angels history (1961) Records MLB: three home runs by four team members in single game in same season: 1950 Dodgers, 1956 Reds (Gus Bell, Ted Kluszewski, Ed Bailey, and Bob Thurman), and 2001 Brewers NL: five-time leader in fielding average as a first baseman (1951–1955) NL: 17 consecutive games scoring runs () Other honors and recognitions : Ted Kluszewski is inducted into the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum. 1974: Ted Kluszewski was inducted into the National Polish- American Sports Hall of Fame. 1976: Esquire magazine article by sportswriter Harry Stein featured an "ALL Time All-Star Argument Starter" consisting of five ethnic baseball teams. Kluszweski was the first baseman on Stein's Polish team. 1981: "Ted Kluszewski" is in first line of the chorus to Terry Cashman's song, "Talkin' Baseball", a musical tribute to baseball. : On July 18, Kluszewski's number 18 was retired by the Cincinnati Reds at a pregame ceremony at Cinergy Field. His widow, Elenor Guckel, threw out the ceremonial first pitch before the game between the San Diego Padres and the Cincinnati Reds. : Great American Ball Park, the home of the Cincinnati Reds, opened on March 31. Before the inaugural game, the Reds dedicated a bronze statue of Kluszewski on the