Bill Plummer, backup catcher to Johnny Bench on Big Red Machine teams, dies at 76

Bill Plummer, a dependable catcher who supported Johnny Bench for seven seasons during the Big Red Machine era and went on to coach and manage in both the majors and lower leagues, has away. He was seventy-six.

According to family social media posts, Plummer passed away on Tuesday following a heart attack last Thursday at his Redding, California, home.

Between 1970 and 1977, Plummer played in 324 Reds games, including those that won the World Series in 1975 and 1976 back-to-back.

I admired Bill for both his character and the fierce rivalry he shown on the field. Bench stated in a post on X, the previous Twitter platform, on Wednesday that “he was always ready to play.”

Before being traded to the Reds in 1969, Plummer had a brief stint as a player with the Chicago Cubs. Although he had 14 career home runs and a lifetime batting average of.188, two of which came off future Hall of Famer Steve Carlton in a single game in 1974, he was a good defensive catcher.

After playing for Seattle in 1978, Plummer went on to work as a manager and coach with the Mariners. After just one poor season, he was removed from his position as manager for 1992. In the independent and minor levels, he also served as a manager and coach.