Former Mets Coach & Scout: Sheriff Robinson (1963-1977)

Warren Grant Robinson was born April 8th 1921 in Cambridge, Maryland. The six foot right hand hitting catcher, earned the name "Sheriff" after his father had unsuccessfully ran for County Sheriff twice, in their home town in Maryland.

Robinson began a long minor league career that began playing in 1938  in the St. Louis Cardinals organization. He soon landed with the AA Rochester Red Wings by 1941. He spent two years there before going off to serve three years in the military during World War II. He was assigned to Guam on a floating dry dock for the US Navy.

In 1946 he returned to AA Rochester moving to Baltimore with the team the next year, as they were now a AAA affiliate. He spent two years there before dropping to the low levels of the minors with the Boston Red Sox organization through 1953. In 15 years the catcher, was a .251 hitter with 44 HRs & 115 RBIs.

Retirement: In 1957 he began a three year stint as manager of the AA Oklahoma City Indians & then the Memphis Chicks. In 1960 he joined Johnny Murphy in the AL New York club organization as a minor league manager winning a Texas League pennant in 1961.

In 1963 he joined Murphy now a VP in the New York Mets organization. Robinson began as manager of the A ball Quincy Gems. In his minor league managerial career he was 786-821 (.489 %) over twelve seasons.

In 1964 he became the Mets bullpen coach under Casey Stengel, in the Mets first year at Shea Stadium. In 1965 he began the year managing at AAA Buffalo but rejoined the Mets as first base & bullpen coach under Wes Westrum. He held that position through the 1967 season, until Gil Hodges arrived.

In 1968 Robinson tried to get a young Tug McGraw to concentrate on throwing a curve ball instead of his famous screwball. McGraw & his brother Hank would both have problems & get into it with Robinson. 

Robinson then became a long time Mets scout, until the late seventies. In 1969 he scouted the Baltimore Orioles home games late in the season & ALCs for the Mets, earning a World Series ring. He made another appearance as a Mets coach for 1972 Mets under  Manager Yogi Berra, after the sudden passing of Gil Hodges.

Passing: After baseball in 1977 he became the Dorchester County tax collector until 1991. Robison passed away at age 80, in 2002 at Cambridge, Maryland.