LONG ISLAND — Legendary Mets star Ed Kranepool is in good spirits and is getting back to the swing of things after his kidney transplant procedure.
Kranepool, an icon of the 1969 Miracle Mets, was in search for a new kidney for about two years.
During the search, Kranepool received a call about a donor match from Stony Brook University Hospital — Al Barbieri was in need of a new kidney and his wife, Debbie wanted to donate a kidney. She wasn’t a match for her husband, but she was a match for Kranepool.
Luckily for Al Barbieri, Brian Cooney, a Port Authority police officer added himself to a list to donate a kidney, and they matched, completing the transplant chain.
During a press conference, Kranepool, the Barbieris and Cooney were in good spirits.
Kranepool even joking with his donor, “The kidney you gave me- I think I’m getting some hot flashes at nighttime. I hope I don’t get all your symptoms.”
Doctors at Stony Brook University Hospital were able to successfully perform the procedures. Stony Brook Medicine has the longest active kidney transplant program on Long Island.
About 30% of the transplanted kidneys come from living donors. Since 1981, Stony Brook Medicine has completed nearly 2,000 adult and pediatric kidney transplants.
PIX11 video journalist Keith Lopez contributed to this report.
