Son: former Yankees pitcher Mel Stottlemyre, battling cancer, 'doing a lot better'

— -- Former New York Yankees pitcher Mel Stottlemyre's health has improved, and he is "looking forward to getting out of the hospital," according to his son, Todd, in a Facebook post Saturday.

A day before, Todd Stottlemyre had posted that his father was "fighting for his life."

Mel Stottlemyre announced in 2000 that he had been diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a cancer of the blood marrow.

The 75-year-old was a three-time 20-game winner for the Yankees, as well as a five-time All-Star. He played 11 seasons in the Bronx, from 1964 to 1974, and compiled a career record of?164-139.

He was the Yankees' pitching coach for four World Series titles (1996, 1998-2000). He also was the pitching coach on the Mets' 1986 world championship team.

"Our family has been overwhelmed with Joy at the amount of love and prayers for my father and family," Todd Stottlemyre wrote Saturday. "Please know that the greatest warrior I have ever known is doing a lot better. He is recovering at God speed and he is looking forward to getting out of the hospital. It's just a matter of time before he is fishing again. Please share this post so that all the people who have been praying know that their prayers have been answered and that our family is forever grateful..."

In 2015, the Yankees honored Stottlemyre with a plaque in Monument Park.

"The pinstripes, to me, they mean everything," he said during the ceremony. "It's my ballclub. This is my second home. It's been a thrill over the years to wear this uniform. I can honestly say every time I put this uniform on -- even though we weren't -- I felt unbeatable."

Todd Stottlemyre and his brother Mel Jr. were both second-generation major league pitchers. Their brother Jason died of leukemia at age 11.