Edward F. Kenney Sr., who as director of the Red Sox minor league system had a key role in the development of such Sox icons as Fred Lynn, Jim Rice, Carlton Fisk, Wade Boggs, and Roger Clemens, died Wednesday of complications from diabetes. He was 85.
In all, Mr. Kenney spent 41 years with the Sox. Each of his career milestones came during halcyon periods of Sox history: He joined the organization as a minor league pitcher during the team's run to the World Series in 1946; was named director of the farm system before the 1967 season, when the Sox returned to the Series; and retired as farm director as the team took on the New York Mets in the 1986 World Series.
Many of the cornerstones of that 1986 team came through the farm system. Mr. Kenney, however, declined to take any credit .
"I just happened to be here and we had some tremendous scouts," he told The Boston Globe in a story about his retirement that year.
For Mr. Kenney, who watched as Ted Williams developed into the game's premier hitter and who helped oversee the development of Carl Yastrzemski and Jim Lonborg, the greatest satisfaction was seeing a young farmhand make the most of his talents.
Of all the players who came through the Sox system, Mr. Kenney singled out shortstop Rick Burleson as the epitome of such grit and determination.
"When Rick first came to us," Mr. Kenney said, "he wasn't a good runner or a good hitter. And he wasn't that strong a thrower. But he really wanted to become a ballplayer, and he did."
Nicknamed the Rooster, Burleson went on to become the heart of the Sox teams in the 1970s and was a four-time All-Star.
A native of Medford, Mr. Kenney grew up in Winchester and spent much of his youth in the shadows of Fenway Park, where his father, Thomas, worked as a groundskeeper and handyman. "From the time I was 13, I worked out with the second infield unit when the Red Sox took to the practice field," he said.
After graduating from Boston College, Mr. Kenney joined the Sox organization as a pitcher but a sore arm ended his pro playing career almost as soon as it began. With his ties to the organization, Mr. Kenney stuck with the club as a ticket seller at Fenway Park.
When Joe Cronin took over as Sox general manager in 1948, he asked Mr. Kenney to help run baseball clinics and to serve as an advance scout.
He became assistant farm director the following year.
After retiring as head of the minor league system, Mr. Kenney returned as vice president of baseball development. He retired from that position in 1991.
A resident of Braintree, Mr. Kenney leaves his wife, Anna; three daughters, Anne Marie Kelley, Katie, and Helen McGann; and son, Edward Kenney Jr., who worked in baseball operations for both the Red Sox and Orioles.
A funeral Mass will be said at 10 a.m. tomorrow at St. Claire Church in Braintree.
