M. Donald Grant

Michael Donald Grant (May 1, 1904 – November 28, 1998) Early on, he preferred to use his middle name, Donald; his friends almost always called him Don or Donnie. However, due to his patrician bearing, he was called "M. Donald Grant" in most official publications even though he hated the name.

"Midnight Massacre" and Grant's Tomb Grant opposed Major League Baseball's move to player free agency, a stance that particularly affected the Mets as its cross-town rival, the New York Yankees, aggressively pursued free agents under majority owner George Steinbrenner. He long believed that baseball players should be paid the same as typical workers, rather than businessmen. Seaver's anger at Grant never abated, contending years later that Grant possessed "a plantation mentality" toward his players. He changed the team's jerseys from button-down to Henley-style and added blue-orange-blue stripes to the collars, sleeves and the sides of the pants beginning with the 1978 campaign. By this time, it was obvious that Grant had mismanaged the team and failed to build for its future. After a disastrous 1978 season, the Paysons forced Grant to resign, though he remained a stockholder and board member until the Mets were sold to Doubleday & Company in 1980.

Later life After his retirement from Wall Street in 1988, Grant managed the Hobe Sound Company real estate investment firm in his new home of Hobe Sound, Florida.

Personal life Grant wed Alice Waters in 1932. Grant died in Hobe Sound on November 28, 1998. He was survived by his wife, two sons, a daughter, and nine grandchildren.