The former baseball player and Navy veteran, who died on March 6, would have turned 101 in April

Art Schallock, a former pitcher for the New York Yankees, has died at age 100. Prior to his death, he was the oldest living former major leaguer.

The retired athlete and Navy veteran, who memorably replaced Mickey Mantle on the Yankees in 1951, died on Thursday, March 6, according to the Associated Press and Major League Baseball (MLB). His family announced the news on Saturday, March 8.

“He passed away peacefully in his loving care community in Sonoma, California, at the age of 100,” his family said in a statement to the AP and MLB, noting that he would have turned 101 in April.

“A beloved father, grandfather, great-grandfather and friend, Art lived a remarkable life, from serving his country in World War II to achieving his dream of playing Major League Baseball,” the family continued. “As a pitcher for the New York Yankees, he was part of a historic era in the sport, contributing to multiple World Series championships. Beyond baseball, Art was known for his kindness, humor and deep appreciation for the people around him.”

Schallock, his family concluded, “lived a life filled with cherished friendships, family and a passion for the sport that defined much of his journey.”

Born in Mill Valley, Calif., the left-handed pitcher first achieved his dream of becoming a baseball pro when the Brooklyn Dodgers signed him in 1947 at age 23, according to the MLB.

The Dodgers later traded Schallock to the Yankees on July 12, 1951, after the team decided to bump then-rookie Mantle (who was 19 at the time) to the minor leagues, sending the now-Baseball Hall of Famer down to Triple-A Kansas City, per the AP and MLB.

Schallock previously reflected on the career-defining moment with baseball outlet This Great Game.

“To get on the Yankees’ roster, they had to send someone down and it turned out to be Mickey Mantle,” the late pitcher recalled. But there was no bad blood between the players, as Mantle “came back quickly,” he told the outlet.

Mantle later returned to the Yankees the month after he was booted, and “for many years,” the teammates “would joke about it,” Schallock said.

During his time with the Yankees, Schallock and his arm helped the New York team win three World Series titles from 1951 to 1953, though he only pitched in the third series, per the MLB.

Ahead of his 100th birthday last year, the retired pro told the AP that it was “quite a thrill playing with those guys,” referring to his fellow Yankees.

“I roomed with Yogi Berra when I got up there, and he knew all the hitters,” Schallock told the outlet. “We went over all the hitters on each team. Besides that, I had to run down to the lobby and get his funny books. Every morning. Yogi knew all the hitters, how to pitch to them, whether it’s low, high or whatever, he knew how to pitch to them. And I had to learn from him.”

Elsewhere in the same interview, the pitcher revealed that prior to his stint with the Dodgers, he “never thought” he would achieve his dream of playing in the major leagues.

“I never thought I would get back to the highest level,” Schallock told the AP. “I wanted to play baseball, yes. I did it in junior college. In those years, the Bay Area was full of baseball. When I say full of baseball, semi-pros. Every town had a team.”

After retiring from baseball in 1957, Schallock worked in sales and real estate and continued playing a different sport — golf — into his 90s, according to the MLB. He is survived by two daughters, Dianne and Nancy, whom he shared with late wife Dona Bernard.