Gerald Wayne Grote (born October 6, 1942) is an American former professional baseball player. He played the majority of his Major League Baseball career as a catcher for the New York Mets, catching every inning of the franchise's first two World Series appearances, and would appear in two more World Series for the Los Angeles Dodgers. He was a two-time All-Star for the National League and is regarded as one of the best defensive catchers of his era. Early life Grote was raised in San Antonio, Texas. When he was ten years old, he and his family were caught in an F-4 tornado. His mother, father and two sisters made it to safety, however, he lost his grandmother in the storm. Grote attended Douglas MacArthur High School, where he played on the baseball team as a pitcher, catcher and third baseman. As a high school pitcher, he threw a no-hitter and a one hitter. Grote played for Trinity University in 1962, and led the Tigers in batting average (.413), home runs (five), RBI (19), runs (29), and hits (31). Major League career Houston Colt .45s After one season at Trinity University, Grote was signed as an amateur free agent by the Houston Colt .45s in 1962, and was assigned to play for their minor league affiliate, the San Antonio Bullets. At the age of 20, he made his major league debut with the Colt .45s on September 21, 1963 as a late-inning defensive replacement for John Bateman, and hit a sacrifice fly to score Bob Aspromonte in his only at-bat. For the season he appeared in three games, including on September 27, when every starter in the Colts' line-up was a rookie. In 1964, Grote platooned with Bateman behind the plate; however, the Colts also experimented with young catchers Dave Adlesh and John Hoffman, as neither Grote nor Bateman hit for a very high average that season (.181 and .190, respectively). Grote was the Colts' catcher on April 23, when Ken Johnson became the first pitcher in major league history to lose a complete game no-hitter in nine innings. In 1965, the newly renamed Houston Astros remained unsettled behind the plate, with former All-Star Gus Triandos and prospect Ron Brand being added to the mix. Grote spent the entire season with Houston's Triple-A Pacific Coast League affiliate, the Oklahoma City 89ers, where he batted .265 with eleven home runs. At