When he left the game, he had put in 13 seasons in the big leagues with five different teams and endured a couple of significant operations: Tommy John elbow surgery and shoulder surgery. He’d earned a save in the 1986 All-Star Game and in 1979 had won the first postseason game in Angels history.

Donald William Aase was born in Orange, California, on September 8, 1954. His mother, Catherine, was Dutch-German; his father was of Norwegian ancestry. His parents divorced when Don was in second grade. His mother remarried, to Joe Laird. “My stepfather was an electronics tech — mainly TVs, and then he was a supervisor for an electronics company,” Don said in an August 2020 interview.1

Don had an older brother, an older sister, and a younger sister. He grew up about four miles from Anaheim Stadium, but he himself was a Giants fan and most of his friends favored the Dodgers.2

As a youngster, Don played Little League, Colt league, and American Legion baseball. A right-handed pitcher, he grew to stand 6-foot-3 and was listed at 190 pounds. He graduated from Savanna High School in Anaheim, and was signed by veteran Red Sox scout Joe Stephenson after being selected in the sixth round of the June 1972 amateur draft. In his senior year, he’d been 13-2 and named a second-team all-star pitcher in CIF baseball.

Aase was assigned to play short-season ball in the New York-Penn League under manager Dick Berardino. The Williamsport Red Sox team record was 22-47, but Aase’s was worse: 10 losses without a win in 12 starts.. It was Berardino’s second season; he was valued by the Red Sox and spent the next 13 years managing their Elmira Pioneers.

What had Don thought about starting his professional career 0-10? “That I couldn’t play college baseball! That was pretty bad. I had a couple of people who really helped me out. Bill Slack. Angels manager John McNamara. Dr. Lewis Yocum.”3

After the season, Aase went to the Florida Instructional League and worked under the tutelage of Mace Brown and Charlie Wagner. The year, Aase said, “wasn’t much like high school, where I’d just poured the ball though the strike zone and won.” He was understandably discouraged, but credited Berardino for sticking with him and telling him he’d be OK, and said that the instructional league coaches had “smoothed out my delivery and taught me to pitch…I didn’t have much of a curveball until Brown and Wagner got hold of me…When I started to win my confidence came back.”4

Aase’s first full season was in Class A ball, pitching for the Florida State League’s Winter Haven Red Sox. His 12 wins led the team. His 3.60 earned run average was better than the team average and a real improvement over his 5.81 in 1972. His 15 losses were the most by any pitcher in the league, three more than anyone else. He was still only 18 years old.

His 1974 season was excellent. Still in Class A, in the Carolina League, he was 17-8 for the Winston-Salem Red Sox with a 2.34 ERA. He worked 18 complete games, striking out 176 batters in 230 innings. The team only finished in third place, but his 17 wins and his ERA both led the league and he was named Pitcher of the Year.

Though he had added a curveball, a hard slider, and a changeup to his repertoire, Aase was primarily a power pitcher. “I like to challenge the hitter, because I really think I can overpower him,” he said early in 1975. “I’ve always been a big Nolan Ryan fan. I watch him pitch whenever I can and last year I saw him three times. I like power pitchers –you know, guys who throw hard but keep the ball down.”5

In 1975 Aase was jumped to the Triple A Pawtucket Red Sox (International League). Joe Morgan’s 53-87 team finished in last place, 32 1/2 games out of first place. Aase had 29 starts and finished 8-13 (3.63). “The less said about the team the better,” wrote Peter Gammons in the Boston Globe, but he quoted PawSox manager Morgan on Aase: “He was the best in the International League by far. Not a good prospect, a super prospect.”6

The team changed its name to the Rhode Island Red Sox in 1976, for just that one year. Morgan remained manager. Aase had worked out with the big league team but was, not surprisingly, assigned to Pawtucket a couple of days before the season began. Many thought the Red Sox had a pretty good shot at a repeat in the World Series. Aase won his first four games in Triple A (including a one-hitter and two two-hitters) but then developed some soreness in his pitching elbow. Veteran Globe reporter Will McDonough passed on the news that it seemed to just be tendinitis, but the team was being extra careful. He wrote, “Aase is considered the best pitching prospect to come out of the Sox system since Jim Lonborg.”7 The Sox were without a left-handed starter, though, having lost Bill Lee for a couple of months after a melee at home plate during a Yankees game left him with an injured shoulder. Aase was a likely candidate to promote, but his elbow didn’t come around satisfactorily and, to be cautious, his season ended early. He returned to California and enrolled at California State University at Fullerton. He had been signed out of high school, but in the offseasons put in a couple of semesters of college work, at Cal State Fullerton and at Cypress. That proved to be the end of his formal schooling.

It turned out there was some ligament damage as well, but by the spring of 1977 he was ready once more. Favoring his arm just a bit, he felt he developed better control.8

As the Boston team got deeper into the ’77 season, they began to give up on Reggie Cleveland in mid-July and called up Aase. He’d started 18 games and was 6-6 (5.04) with Pawtucket when he got the nod. He debuted against the Brewers, in Boston, on July 26. It was a complete-game, 4-3 win (one of the runs was unearned), with 11 strikeouts. It was a very good debut, and with Sox fans thirsting for something more in ’77, there was something like euphoria in Boston after that first start.

Aase’s second start was a day game in Anaheim, in front of friends and family on July 31 He’d always dreamed of pitching in the ballpark so close to home. He did not disappoint, pitching a three-hit shutout. The game was 0-0 through eight innings. Consecutive singles by Jim Rice, George Scott, and Carlton Fisk got Boston one run, and — after Aase induced a groundout and struck out the last two batters — he had another win, one that lifted the Red Sox into first place. Aase was named Player of the Week in the American League.

A week later, he won again, in Oakland. He worked seven innings, allowing just one run. Bill Campbell finished the game, a 2-1 win, and the ninth win in a row for the Red Sox.

Aase got hammered in his fourth outing, thrown for a loss. It proved to be his worst outing of the 13 starts he had in 1977. He later threw another shutout (a three-hitter against Toronto) and a 7-1 complete-game win. He finished the season 6-2, with a 3.12 earned run average. All this during a pennant race. The Red Sox contended all year long, finishing tied for second place just 2 1/2 games behind the Yankees, despite the fact that not one starting pitcher won more than the 12 games Luis Tiant won. Bill Campbell won 13 as a reliever.

In December, Aase joined his hometown team, traded to the California Angels for infielder Jerry Remy, who had grown up in Eastern Massachusetts and was thus himself coming to play for his own hometown team. The Angels also got enough cash from the Red Sox to enable them to sign Rick Miller.9 There is no indication that geographic considerations had anything to do with the trade. Bob Ryan of the Boston Globe said the Red Sox needed “speed {and] an everyday second baseman of stature.”10

For the years 1978 through 1980, Aase was a starter for the Angels, pitching alongside Nolan Ryan in ’78 and ’79. In 1981 and 1982, he became a very successful reliever.

Aase was the fourth starter on the team that finished second in the AL West in 1978,. He was 11-8 with a 4.03 earned run average. He was the fourth starter in the Angels rotation behind Ryan in 1978 and 1979 as the expansion franchise The Angels finally reached the postseason in 1979.Aase was still the fourth starter, but finished 9-10 (4.81). He started 28 games and relieved in 11 others. They faced the Baltimore Orioles in the American League Championship Series. He pitched a scoreless final inning in Game Two, but the Angels were short by a run. In Game Three, he worked the final four innings, in which the Orioles took a 3-2 lead before the Angels won the game with a pair of runs in the bottom of the ninth. Aase was the winning pitcher in the first postseason win in Angels history. The Orioles won the ALCS. Aase never again returned to postseason play.

In 1980 he appeared in 40 games for manager Jim Fregosi: 21 starts and 19 relief appearances. Through July 31, he was 5-13 as a starter. At that point, struggling as a starter, he was converted to a reliever. He wasn’t happy about it, later admitting that it felt like a demotion to him.11 The three decisions he had after the conversion were all wins. His final record was 8-13 (4.03). He never started another game.

He said that he enjoyed the change. It was mystifying why he had been so inconsistent as a starter. “I felt good, but I’d be out of the game almost before it started. Maybe I tend to try and pace myself when I started. Maybe I think too much. Maybe I try and make too many good pitches. I definitely know that I developed some bad mechanics and that the bullpen gave me the chance to work them out since I had a chance to do a lot more throwing than when I was starting….My fastball has improved strictly because of adrenaline. I really enjoy it.”12

Aase had a very good 1981 season, appearing in 39 games and closing 32 of them. He was 4-4 with 11 saves and an ERA of 2.34. Gene Mauch had taken over from Fregosi as manager during the course of the season.

Now fully reconciled to being a relief pitcher, Aase said, “I’ve enjoyed my career in baseball. I couldn’t think of anything I’d rather be doing. I’m in a better position to help the team than if I remained a starter.”13

In 1982, he was 3-3 (3.46) in 24 games, mostly the result of just three bad outings. A strained muscle in his right elbow put him on the 21-day DL for most of June. When warming up for the July 17 game, he had thrown so wildly in the bullpen that one pitch hit an opposing player in the Cleveland Indians bullpen. He had to leave the game, his arm hanging limply at his side. It was his last game of the season.

Rest didn’t work. On October 18, Aase underwent elbow surgery. More extensive work was needed than had been anticipated. A ligament needed to be reconstructed and his ulnar nerve transferred.14 A tendon from his left wrist was used to replace a damaged ligament in his right elbow. He was one of the first pitchers to undergo what became known as Tommy John surgery.15 He was out for almost two years.

Manager Gene Mauch lost his job, criticized by many for his overuse of his pitching staff, primarily the bullpen. Mauch had, for instance, used Andy Hassler in 54 games but had him up and warming in the bullpen some 249 times.16 In the spring of 1983, the Philadelphia Inquirer presented what was taken to be accepted wisdom: “Don Aase, tough early in the season, was a victim of overuse.”17

Ross Newhan wrote that, after having arguably contributed to Aase blowing out his elbow, “Mauch later had the gall to publicly impugn Aase’s manliness.”18 Was the criticism of Mauch fair? A year later, Newhan wrote, “The operation was Aase’s ultimate response to Mauch.”19

In July 1983, the Boston Globe reported of Aase, “He apparently has survived [the] Tommy John-type operations (muscle and nerve transplant, ligament and calcium deposits) and will throw three times a week to build up the arm. ‘I’m only allowed to throw the ball 30 feet at first,’ said Aase. ‘But that’s a lot further than I thought I could a few months ago. I’m pointing toward being back and helping the club next season.’”20

Aase harbored a glimmer of hope that he could be back by the start of the 1984 season, but his elbow needed more time. After a brief rehab stint with the Redwood Pioneers of the California League, his first game back in the big leagues was June 18.21 Once back, he was steady and superb. Manager John McNamara used him in 23 games. Only once did he give up more than one run; most of the time he gave up none. His earned run average in 39 innings was 1.62. He was 4-1 with eight saves.

The Angels came up three games short of the Royals in the AL West — and then rehired Gene Mauch. Aase was diplomatic in comments to the Los Angeles Times, simply saying it was up to his agent, but Peter Gammons in Boston may have divined something: “He planned to stay, until Gene Mauch returned as manager.”22

Aase became a free agent that fall. He was selected by 13 teams seeking to be in a position to sign him. On December 13 he signed with the Baltimore Orioles. GM Mike Port was quoted as saying he thought Aase essentially owed the Angels the chance to match any offer, given that they had paid him through nearly two years of being unable to pitch, but that his agents had not gotten back to him. Aase denied snubbing the Angels, but said that the four-year deal offered by the Orioles was the best deal submitted.23 Malcolm Allen says, “Aase was the third free agent Baltimore signed that week, following Lee Lacy and Fred Lynn, uncharacteristic for a franchise that had mostly avoided free agency. The three appeared together on the cover of the Orioles’ first 1985 scorebook and represented an attempt at a quick fix changing of the guard after the departures of long-tenured players like Jim Palmer, Ken Singleton and Al Bumbry that year. In retrospect, some Baltimoreans considered the trio of free-agent signings the beginning of the end of the ‘Oriole Way’.”24

The Orioles got a good return on their investment in the first two years of the deal. In 1985, Aase worked in 54 games, closing 43 of them. His ERA for the year was 3.78 (10-6, with 14 saves.) In ’85, Aase blew a save on Opening Day and had a 7.07 ERA when manager Joe Altobelli was fired in mid-June. Earl Weaver replaced Altobelli. “It was a tough start,” Aase said. “When Earl came, he pulled me into his office, looked at my stats, threw them away and said, ‘You’re my No. 1 [reliever].’ He went with his gut, and him showing confidence in me really changed things around.”25

In 1986, he had perhaps the best season of his career. It wasn’t reflected in wins and losses (he was 6-7), but that’s not what one looks for in a closer, which was essentially what he had become. He appeared in 66 games, closing 58, and recorded 34 saves (second in the league and notable in that the last-place Orioles only won 73 games all season long.)26 His earned run average was 2.98 — he was Pitcher of the Month in May, and he had been performing so well in the first half that he was named to the American League All-Star team. The game, played in Houston, was a 3-2 A.L. win. Aase secured the final two outs and earned a save. “In two pitches, it was over. I’m thinking, ‘Now what do I do?'” Aase said. “I had all this adrenalin going; it takes a long time to wind down from something like that.”27

Returning by taxi to the hotel that night, he turned to his wife, Judy, grasped her hand and whispered, “Nobody can ever take this away from me.”

Aase was leading major league baseball in saves until late August when he hurt his back while lifting his 4-year-old son. At season’s end, he was named the Most Valuable Oriole.

In 1987, he won on Opening Day at Memorial Stadium after taking over for Mike Boddicker in the eighth; the game was 1-1, won by a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the ninth. It was his only win of the year. He didn’t lose a game. After three appearances he was put on the 15-day DL with right shoulder tendinitis. He pitched in four games in May. After May 23, his ERA was 2.25 but his season was over. He returned to California to consult with Dr. Lewis Yocum. On July 3, it was announced that he would need season-ending shoulder surgery. The stress on the human body prompted by a power pitcher can be severe.

As with the surgery, “damage was more severe than first announced,” and he wasn’t able to start 1988 on time.28 He only missed a month, though, appearing in his first game on May 10. The Orioles lost every one of their first 21 games of the season; by the time Aase first pitched, they were 4-26. He worked the rest of the season, appearing in 35 games with neither a win nor a loss. His ERA was 4.05. It was also the first (and only) season of his career in which he walked more batters than he struck out, resulting in the worst WHIP (1.650) of his career.

His contract having been completed, he was given his release by Baltimore in October, and was invited to spring training as a non-roster player by the New York Mets, then signed to a Tidewater minor-league contract. They were looking at him as a possible setup man in the pen. He gave up only one earned run in 8 1/3 innings in spring training and looked good overall. He made the team in spring training, signed a $200,000 contract on Opening Day, got into the game, and pitched two scoreless innings, earning a save.29 Only the Mets’ closer, Randy Myers, was used in more games. His record was 1-5 in 49 games, but in only one of the five losses had he surrendered more than one run. He’d brought his ERA back under 4.00, to 3.94.

After the season, the Mets let him know they were planning to go in a different direction. A free agent once more, Aase signed with the Albuquerque Dukes, the Triple-A farm club of the Los Angeles Dodgers, just before spring training 1990. Teams at the time were allowed to carry 27 players for the first 21 days of the regular season. Aase was one of the extras, added so late that his name did not appear in either the team’s media guide or the program for the first game in which he appeared, April 9.30 He came in, pitched a scoreless inning, and earned a save. “He was probably our best relief pitcher in the spring,” said catcher Mike Scioscia. “He’s throwing the ball a lot harder than he did last year.”31

He lost a game in his second appearance, but it was the last “L” of his career. There was a 21-day DL stint with right rotator cuff soreness. By the end of the year, he had won three and saved three. His ERA was 4.97. It was his last season in baseball. He was 35 years old. There was no invitation to spring training.

He gave pitching lessons for a few years, but he received a phone call from a friend asking if he would be interested in working for him. That led to what has become a second career working for a construction company doing estimating and project management for commercial properties.

Don and his wife Judy (they married in 1981) live in Yorba Linda, California. Judy is a homemaker. They have three children — a son Kyle, a daughter Kallie, and a son Kelby. “Their actual first names all begin with “A” but they all go by their middle names,”
he said. “They’re all A.K.A.s.”32 They have seven grandchildren as well.

He doesn’t keep in touch with former players as he did earlier when he was going to charity golf tournaments and the like. He did visit Fenway Park in 2012 for the 100th anniversary of the ballpark, and enjoyed that greatly. “I do see a couple of people now and then but nothing on a regular basis.”33

Last revised: September 22, 2020

Acknowledgments

This biography was reviewed by Malcolm Allen and Norman Macht and fact-checked by Kevin Larkin.

Sources

In addition to the sources cited in the Notes, the author also accessed Baseball-Reference.com and Retrosheet.org. Thanks to the Boston Red Sox and to Rod Nelson of SABR’s Scouts Committee.

Notes

1 Author interview with Don Aase on August 6, 2020.

2 Bob Ryan, “’77 Red Sox — Don Aase,” Boston Globe, July 31, 1977: 78.

3 August 6, 2020 interview.

4 Phil Elderkin, “Rookie Throws Lightning Bolts,” Christian Science Monitor, March 10, 1975: 11.

5 Elderkin.

6 Peter Gammons, “Sox Farms: Good Arms, Little Else,” Boston Globe, September 13, 1975: 21.

7 Will McDonough, “Red Sox Get Good News, Too,” Boston Globe, May 19, 1976: 54.

8 Larry Whiteside, “Don Aase: He Could Start for Sox, But First There’s the Arm,” Boston Globe, February 27, 1977: 46.

9 Ross Newhan, “Bavasi Trades Remy to Red Sox for Aase,” Los Angeles Times, December 9, 1977: G1.

10 Bob Ryan, “Remy for Aase? A Brilliant Trade,” Boston Globe, December 11, 1977: 83.

11 Elliott Almond, “Don Aase Relived To Find that there is Life after Being A Starter,” Los Angeles Times, December 9, 1977: April 2, 1982: OC-F14.

12 Ross Newhan, “Aase Gets His Game Together in the Angel Bullpen,” Los Angeles Times, May 10, 1981: E14.

13 Elliott Almond.

14 “Elbow Surgery Will Sideline Aase in 1983,” Los Angeles Times, October 20, 1982: D3.

15 Ross Newhan, “Angels Pitcher Won’t Rush It: Aase’s Comeback So Near Completion, Yet So Far,” Los Angeles Times, April 20, 1984: D1. According to Jon Roegele’s historical database of Tommy John surgeries (accessed on September 23, 2020), Aase was among the first 10 professional pitchers after John himself to undergo the revolutionary elbow surgery.

16 Ross Newhan, “Mauch Was Let Go, But Rightfully So,” Los Angeles Times, April 1, 1983: OC A1.

17 “American League West Preview,” Philadelphia Inquirer, April 4, 1983: E20.

18 Ross Newhan, “Mauch Was Let Go, But Rightfully So.”

19 Ross Newhan, “Angels Pitcher Won’t Rush It: Aase’s Comeback So Near Completion, Yet So Far.”

20Larry Whiteside, “Red Sox Notebook,” Boston Globe, July 20, 1983: 1.

21 A good article about his rehab work and attitude during the time off is by Chris Dufresne, “A Re-Armed Aase Gears for Return,” Los Angeles Times, May 26, 1984: E1. Sarah Smith wrote an article after his comeback: Sarah Smith, “Angles Breathing Sigh of Relief Over Aase,” Los Angeles Times, September 17, 1984: OC B1.

22 Peter Gammons, “Maybe This Year, GMs Will Do More Than Talk,” Boston Globe, October 21, 1984: 48.

23 Ross Newhan, “Baltimore Signs Aase; Angels Feel Snubbed,” Los Angeles Times, December 14, 1984: G6. The deal was worth $2.4 million, per Jim Henneman, “Orioles Gave Lynn What He Wanted,” The Sporting News, December 31, 1984: 61.

24 Malcolm Allen, email to author, September 4, 2020.

25 Mike Klingaman, “Catching Up With …former Orioles Reliever Don Aase,” Baltimore Sun, July 7, 2017.

26 Also notable is that two of the losses came in one day — he lost both halves of the August 28 doubleheader in Oakland.

27 Klingaman.

28 Richard Justice, “Aase Likely Will Open on the Disabled List,” Washington Post, February 6, 1988: C1.

29 Jack Lang, “Mets’ Gamble Pays Off,” The Sporting News, April 17, 1989: 22.

30 Alan Drooz, “Aase, Saves Day for Dodgers’ Short Staff,” Los Angeles Times, April 10, 1990: C6.

31 “Bullpen Is Vulnerable for Start of Season,” The Sporting News, April 23, 1990: 15.

32 August 6, 2020 interview.

33 August 6, 2020 interview.

Joaquín Andújar was a fierce competitor and entertaining showman for 13 major-league seasons. The hard-throwing right-hander was the first starting pitcher from the Dominican Republic to earn a World Series victory, and no big leaguer won more games in the 1984 and 1985 seasons combined.

With his emotional, all-out style of play, Andújar also won a Gold Glove and homered from both sides of the plate, but his volcanic temper also led to an infamous World Series ejection that marred the four-time All-Star’s reputation. Andújar was an unpredictable athlete whose career can perhaps best be described by his own signature quote: “One word in America says it all – you never know.”1

Joaquín Andújar Sabino was born on December 21, 1952, in San Pedro de Macoris, a sugar mill town on the Dominican Republic’s southeastern coast. He was the only child of Jose Joaquín Andújar and Clara Sabino, a short-lived couple who split up before he could walk. His paternal grandparents, Saturno and Juana Garcia Andújar, raised him in their zinc-roofed home between San Pedro de Macoris’s famed Catedral San Pedro Apostol to the east, and the Iguamo River to the west.

During Andújar’s formative years, the Dominican Republic was enduring the final trimester of Rafael L. Trujillo’s three decades of dictatorship. Most of the country’s resources were firmly controlled by “El Jefe,” including the seasonal sugar industry, which was San Pedro de Macoris’s chief employer. Andújar’s grandfather worked at the Ingenio Porvenir, second oldest of the seven sugar mills dotting the city. Porvenir means “future” and, for Andújar and most of his peers, growing up to a life of labor there was indeed a probable outcome.

The 1960s were as turbulent in the Dominican Republic as they were in the United States. Andújar was 8 years old when Trujillo was assassinated in 1961. By the year he turned 13, tens of thousands of US troops occupied the country briefly to quell a Dominican civil war following a series of regime changes. “Trying to Prevent Another Cuba” was the snag line on a Time magazine cover story describing the events of 1965. Meanwhile, the first wave of Dominican ballplayers was establishing a pipeline that would soon see their country surpass Cuba as the majors’ primary source of Latin American talent.

Andújar actually preferred basketball initially but, like much of his country, he was fascinated when the 1962 San Francisco Giants surged to the National League pennant with four Dominicans on the roster. The first two big leaguers from San Pedro de Macoris – Amado Samuel of the Milwaukee Braves and Manny Jimenez of the Kansas City Athletics – debuted the same year. Baseball had been popular in the Dominican back to the late nineteenth century, but suddenly it was everywhere, and Andújar began playing as much as he could. “Without a good glove, a decent bat or a pair of cleats, because everybody is very poor,” he recalled. “We used to make a rag ball, or we bought a rubber ball and played in the streets.”2

Andújar’s first amateur club was called Jabon Hispano and, when he got older, he played for a team managed by Pedro Gonzalez, the first Dominican to play for the New York Yankees. Andújar was a switch-hitting center fielder who usually hit cleanup, an all-or-nothing free swinger with a combustible temper. Once, he destroyed his own jersey when Gonzalez took him out of a game. It was a big deal, because the incident occurred around the same time Andújar quit attending Jose Joaquín Perez High School because his family couldn’t afford to buy him pants or shoes. With his grandfather nearing retirement age, the boiler room at Ingenio Porvenir looked increasingly like the setting for Andújar’s future.

Tetelo Vargas Stadium opened in San Pedro de Macoris just before Andújar’s7th birthday. The Estrellas Orientales of the Dominican winter league played there, and Andújar spent a good chunk of his teen years shagging balls for them and studying major leaguers like Braves slugger Rico Carty up close. The facility was available to youth leagues, too, and it was there that Wilfredo Calvino noticed a particularly strong Andújar throw from center field. Calvino was a former minor-league catcher from Cuba who scouted for the Cincinnati Reds. “He asked me if I wanted to become a pitcher,” Andújar said. “I told him that I didn’t care, that the only thing I wanted was to go to the United States to make money and help my family and myself.”3

Andújar signed with the Reds in November 1969, and reported to rookie league the following summer along with two other 17-year-old Calvino signees from San Pedro. Incredibly all three of them would play in the major leagues. Santo Alcala was a tall, happy pitcher who’d room with Andújar in the minors for most of the next five years, while Arturo DeFreites was a serious, muscular third baseman who’d wallop 32 homers one year in Triple A when he filled out. On a diet of hot dogs and French fries because he didn’t know how to order anything else in English, Andújar struck out more batters than any right-handed pitcher in the Gulf Coast League in 1970, including a handful in the circuit’s all-star game. Upon returning home, he joined the legendary Leones del Escogido – winner of half of the last dozen Dominican League championships – for seven appearances before his 18th birthday.

A promotion to the Northern League Sioux Falls Packers in 1971 proved extremely challenging, however. Tougher competition, real road trips, and a manager who didn’t speak Spanish added up to a difficult season. Andújar led the team in wild pitches and was demoted to the bullpen. At the end of the season, manager Dave Pavlesic told the high-kicking Andújar , “You’re not Juan Marichal. You’d better learn how to pitch.”4

Andújar got 93⅓ innings of much-needed experience that winter for Escogido. He led the Dominican League in walks, but fashioned an impressive 2.93 ERA and the Reds noticed. While Alcala and DeFreites went to a co-op Single-A team to play for a Spanish-speaking manager, Cincinnati promoted Andújar to Double A. The Eastern League hitters were one challenge, but pitching for Les Aigles des Trois-Rivieres meant “home” games were played in the French-speaking Canadian province of Quebec. Against all odds Andújar thrived, winning seven of his first eight decisions before rolling his ankle and literally limping to a 7-6 final record.

Still hobbling in winter ball, Andújar was traded in midseason to the Estrellas Orientales. The four-player deal allowed Escogido to recover the contractual rights to Juan Marichal. Andújar was thrilled to pitch for his hometown team, which featured lots of Houston Astros through a working agreement with the National League franchise. Cesar Cedeno and J.R. Richard were two of the club’s stars that winter, but it was Estrellas manager (and Astros coach) Hub Kittle who’d have the biggest impact on Andújar’sfuture. “Everything I have, I owe to Hub Kittle,” Andújar remarked years later.5

The Reds invited Andújar to his first big-league spring training in 1973, but sent him to Triple A, where he didn’t care for Indianapolis Indians skipper Vern Rapp. “I tell (Reds farm director Chief) Bender in spring training I no like to go to Indianapolis. I told them I no like manager. He gives you hell when you lose,” Andújar explained.6

Andújar walked too many batters and in June was sent back to Trois-Rivieres, where he proceeded to show he had nothing left to prove in Double A by going 5-2 with a 1.98 ERA. He followed that up with a 2.53 mark in winter ball, where he cut down his leg kick and walk rate while learning from “El Coyote,” Hub Kittle’s nickname in the Dominican.

Back at Indianapolis in 1974, Andújar made 17 starts and 16 relief appearances as Rapp jerked him in and out of the rotation. The low point came in July when Andújar responded to an early hook by destroying a dugout water cooler, which prompted Rapp to suspend him. Andújar finished 8-8 with a 3.57 ERA and two saves as Indianapolis made it to the league finals before falling to the Tulsa Oilers. The championship series went the distance with several extra-inning contests, but Rapp used Andújar only as a pinch-runner.

Back in the Dominican, however, Kittle was more than happy to give him the ball. Andújar responded by winning six of seven decisions and the Dominican League’s native-pitcher-of-the-year honors. “They said he had a million-dollar arm and a ten-cent head. But that’s not true. He’s a very intelligent person,” Kittle observed.7

The Estrellas came up just short in their championship series as well, but Andújar was selected to accompany the triumphant Aguilas Cibaenas to Puerto Rico for the Caribbean Series. He beat Venezuela in his lone start.

Andújar arrived at spring training in 1975 with Reds manager Sparky Anderson hoping some special treatment would unlock his potential, as it had for another volatile Dominican, Pedro Borbon, a few years before. Instead, Andújar began a third straight season in Indianapolis. Before he even got into a game, Rapp told him he was going back to Double A. “Vern Rapp grabs me and says if I don’t like it I can fight him,” Andújar said. “I think to myself, Joaquín , you be making wrong move fighting with Vern Rapp.”8

Injuries limited Andújar to just 62 innings at Trois-Rivieres and, two days after the Reds won the World Series, they traded Andújar to the last-place Houston Astros for pitchers Luis Sanchez and Carlos Alfonso, neither of whom pitched a single inning for Cincinnati. Andújar went 7-2 for the Estrellas to repeat as native-pitcher-of-the-year in what proved to be his last winter with Kittle, who left the Astros organization as part of their organizational shakeup

On Opening Day 1976, Andújar made his major-league debut in – of all places – Cincinnati, walking the first two batters he faced to force in a run. He didn’t pitch much for the first two months, but beat the Reds, 2-1, with a complete-game two-hitter on June 1 for his first major-league win. He became the first Dominican ever named Player of the Week after shutting out the Cubs in his next start. By mid-July, he’d beaten the Reds twice more with complete games, and pitched back-to-back 1-0 shutouts. Pitching for a sub-.500 club, Andújar finished his rookie season 9-10 with a 3.60 ERA.

Andújar got off to a slow start in 1977, but reeled off six straight victories. With a 10-5 midseason record, he was named to Sparky Anderson’s National League All-Star squad. A pulled hamstring in his last start before the break kept him out of action, and Andújar won only once more after missing six weeks. He proved he was healthy in 14 starts that winter, rejoining the Leones del Escogido in the Dominican capital of Santo Domingo for the first time in five years. Andújar also married the former Walkiria Damaris Saez in the offseason, and expected big things from himself in 1978.

After predicting a 25-win season in spring training, Andújar pitched well early in 1978, though poor run support prevented his record from reflecting it. He hurt himself swinging for the fences during batting practice in May, however, then ticked off manager Bill Virdon by swinging too hard in his first game back and aggravating the injury. Andújar exited one game with a debilitating case of jock itch, then suffered another hamstring pull that knocked him out of action for nearly two months. After finishing a lost Astros season in the bullpen, he recovered to lead the Dominican League in complete games for Escogido and pitch in another Caribbean Series before spring training.

Andújar’santics didn’t endear him to his manager, never mind opponents, but many fans got a kick out of his gunslinger routine in which he pointed his index finger at vanquished hitters like a pistol. In his early years, he’d even pretend to blow the gunsmoke away and return the gun to his holster.

The 1979 Astros got off to a great start with Andújar excelling in a swingman role. When he finally rejoined the rotation, he won Pitcher of the Month honors in June and returned to the All-Star Game with an 11-5 first-half record. Andújar pitched in the game at the Seattle Kingdome. Over the course of the next month, he became a father when son Jesse was born, and hit his first big-league home run, an inside-the-park blast with a man aboard at the Astrodome to beat Montreal’s Bill “Spaceman” Lee, 2-1.

The Astros coughed up a 10-game division lead, however, as Andújar lost seven of eight decisions after the break and was sent back to the bullpen. Houston agreed to swap him to the World Series champion Pittsburgh Pirates for aging slugger Bill Robinson at the winter meetings, but Robinson nixed the deal by exercising his 10-5 rights. Andújar didn’t know who he’d be pitching for on Opening Day, but he enjoyed another strong winter campaign for Escogido. In February he beat Venezuela in his only start to help the Dominican Republic win the Caribbean Series on their home turf.

Andújar had his first six-figure salary heading into 1980 after winning his arbitration case, but few opportunities to start after Houston signed Nolan Ryan to a free-agent contract. One year after pitching in the All-Star Game, Andújar failed to win a single game in a first half in which he rarely got to pitch at all. The Astros kept him as insurance in case somebody got hurt, which proved to be all too prescient when ace J.R. Richard suffered a tragic stroke in July. Andújar posted a 1.19 ERA in August when the Astros turned to him in desperation, but was returned to the bullpen for a third straight year by season’s end. Houston survived a one-game tiebreaker to win the National League West. When the Astros finally won a tense NLCS Game Two in Philadelphia for the franchise’s first-ever postseason victory, Andújar got credit for a save. They lost the NLCS in five games.

Andújar’swinter season ended abruptly when he got into a dispute about complimentary tickets with Escogido’s front office. The Leones won their first title in a dozen years without him, and the Astros kept making it abundantly clear that they weren’t relying on Andújar either by acquiring two more proven starting pitchers. Andújar offered to pitch for free as he languished as the last man on the pitching staff for two months. His agents implored him to wait quietly for his impending free agency. Finally, in the first week of June, he was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals. Before he could even get into a game with his new team, major-league players walked out on strike for more than seven weeks.

When play resumed, however, Andújar won six of seven decisions for Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog and a St. Louis pitching coach he knew very well, Hub Kittle. “Before the Cardinals got me, I was like a plant that needed water,” he said. “Whitey and Hub, they poured water on me, and I grew to be a tree.”9

Andújar signed a three-year free-agent contract to return to St. Louis, and it paid immediate dividends in 1982. His control was better than ever and he was an important part of an exciting team that got off to a hot start. By the All-Star break, Andújar had the second-lowest ERA in the National League, but not enough victories to earn a spot on the team. Though he continued to pitch effectively, his record slipped to 8-10 by early August before he reeled off seven straight wins to close the regular season. His 5-0 record in September earned him NL Pitcher of the Month honors and helped the Cardinals win their division. Andújar won the pennant-clincher in Atlanta in the NLCS, then took on the high-scoring Milwaukee Brewers in the World Series.

Andújar was the only player on the field wearing short sleeves on a cold night as he carried a shutout into the seventh inning against the highest-scoring team in two decades. His evening ended abruptly when Ted Simmons hit a wicked one-hopper that caromed off Andújar’sright knee into foul territory. Writhing and screaming in obvious agony, he nevertheless became the first pitcher from the Dominican Republic to win a World Series game when reliever Bruce Sutter nailed down the final outs.

Andújar spent several days on crutches, and it appeared unlikely that he’d be able to pitch if the Series went the distance. When Game Seven of the 1982 fall classic got underway at Busch Stadium, however, Andújar was back on the mound to demonstrate why he’d been calling himself “One Tough Dominican” all season. Andújar got through seven innings with a lead, then had to be hauled off the field by several teammates after Milwaukee’s Jim Gantner profanely called him a hot dog. Six outs later, the Cardinals were World Series champions. Andújar figured his 2-0 series record and 1.35 ERA were Series MVP numbers, but the honors went to his catcher, Darrell Porter. Even one of the losing Brewers got more votes than Andújar .

In 1983 he won his first two decisions to extend his winning streak to 12 before his season unraveled due to too many overthrown, straight, high fastballs. In June the Cardinals lost leadoff hitter Lonnie Smith to drug rehab and star first baseman Keith Hernandez to a trade. Andújar was healthy enough to start 34 games, but finished the season with a miserable 6-16 record. “God is still my amigo,” he insisted. “He must be someplace else. Maybe He’s watching the American League.”10

Andújar was one of the most aggressive, and unusual, hitters in baseball history. He struck out in more than half of his at-bats, usually swinging as hard as he could. He was a switch-hitter, but not in the usual sense. “If the pitcher has good control, I will bat left-handed against a right-handed pitcher. I bat right-handed against pitchers who don’t have good control, or if I don’t know them, because I don’t want to get hit in the right arm. I bat right-handed with nobody on base because I’m a power hitter from that side. I bat left-handed with men on base so I can make better contact and drive in runs.”11

In 1984, he homered both right-handed and left-handed – including a grand slam – and won a Gold Glove. Andújar also earned National League Comeback Player of the Year honors after winning his 20th game with just two games to play in the regular season. Andújar skipped the All-Star Game to be with his ailing grandfather, and finished a distant fourth in Cy Young voting despite being the league’s only 20-game winner. After the season, he received a hero’s welcome, however, when more than 10,000 Dominicans welcomed his flight back to Santo Domingo. “I grew up here. I never moved from here. People appreciate that,” he explained. “I hope I die here, but you never know.”12

St. Louis rewarded Andújar with a three-year contract that made him just the third Dominican to average more than $1 million annually. He was the Cardinals’ Opening Day starter in 1985 and raced off to a 12-1 start that kept the Redbirds afloat in what would prove to be a season-long dogfight with the young New York Mets in the NL East. Andújar appeared on the cover of The Sporting News with his friend and fellow Dominican, Reds ace Mario Soto. Both pitchers had been involved in multiple bench-clearing incidents in recent seasons, and Andújar led the league in hit batters for the second consecutive year. In the article, titled “So Good … So Misunderstood,” Andújar said: “Nolan Ryan pitches inside, and I don’t see anybody fighting Nolan Ryan. Steve Carlton pitches inside to everybody, nobody says anything. But when Joaquín Andújar and Mario Soto pitch inside, everybody goes to the mound and fights. If they love to fight, they should go to war and fight. They should go to the Middle East.”13

Andújar’srecord was 15-4 in the first half, but San Diego Padres manager Dick Williams decided to choose his All-Star Game starting pitcher based on a one-game showdown between Andújar and San Diego’s LaMarr Hoyt. Andújar was so put off by the idea that he vowed never to attend another All-Star Game in his life. As unlikely as it was at the time, he’d never be invited back anyway. Andújar won a career-high 21 games in 1985, despite struggling through a 6-8 record in the second half. To make matters worse, in September, former Cardinals teammates Lonnie Smith and Keith Hernandez both identified him as a cocaine user in the sensational drug trial taking place in Pittsburgh.

The Cardinals went 101-61 to win the NL East and ousted the Los Angeles Dodgers in a six-game NLCS, but Andújar’sstruggles continued. He was bombed by the Kansas City Royals in Game Three of the World Series, which proved to be his last appearance in St. Louis as a Cardinal. The Redbirds nearly won their second World Series championship in four years, but blew a ninth-inning lead in Game Six following a controversial call by first-base umpire Don Denkinger. St. Louis was already trailing Game Seven, 9-0 in the fourth inning, when Whitey Herzog called on Andújar – whom he’d chosen not to start – to pitch mop-up relief with Denkinger calling balls and strikes. He gave up a single and a base on balls. The walk caused Andújar to lose his cool, charging and bumping Denkinger, and getting ejected.

Though Andújar’s41 wins over two seasons were unsurpassed in the majors, the Cardinals took the best offer they could get for him, sending him the Oakland A’s for pitcher Tim Conroy and catcher Mike Heath in December of 1985. In addition to a 10-game suspension for his World Series outburst, Andújar faced up to a one-year ban from Commissioner Peter Ueberroth in the fallout from the drug trial. Unlike the six other players – including Smith and Hernandez – facing the most severe punishment, Andújar was never called to testify.

As it turned out, Andújar missed only the first five games of 1986 before a series of injuries caused him to spend time on the disabled list for the first time in eight seasons. He talked about retirement before coming on strong to go 12-7 for an Oakland club that finished 10 games under .500.

In 1987 he arrived late for spring training, which wasn’t unusual, but injured himself going all out in his first day of drills, which was. The birth of his second son, Christopher, was about the only highlight in a season that saw him post a 6.08 ERA and average less than five innings in the 13 starts he was able to make. When Oakland general manager Sandy Alderson reflected on the trade he put together to acquire Andújar , he said, “Both teams got nothing, but our nothing was louder than theirs.”14

Andújar took a substantial pay cut to return to the Houston Astros in 1988, but endured a pulled muscle in his side and knee surgery in April alone. In his first appearance back in St. Louis since being traded by the Cardinals, he surrendered a walk-off home run to fellow Dominican Tony Peña. When he drilled Peña with a fastball a few weeks later, he was fined and suspended by NL President Chub Feeney. “There is some guy, some big guy in United States baseball, he doesn’t want me in baseball. He wants me out of the game,” Andújar said.15

Andújar’s4.00 ERA wasn’t terrible, but he couldn’t go deep enough into games to stay in the starting rotation. He kept asking for his release, but faded quietly to the end of his major-league career with a lifetime 127-118 record.

In 1989 no team would guarantee Andújar a major-league roster spot, so he stayed home in the Dominican until the Gold Coast Suns of the newly formed Senior League of Professional Baseball offered him an opportunity. Just before his 37th birthday, Andújar went 5-0 with a minuscule 1.31 ERA to earn an incentive-laden deal and invitation to spring training from the Montreal Expos. A gimpy leg and an abscessed tooth limited him to two appearances, however, and the Expos released him before Opening Day when he made it clear he wouldn’t pitch in the minors.

When Whitey Herzog became the California Angels’ senior vice president after the 1991 season, he hired Andújar as a scout, but the arrangement proved to be short-lived. The Angels weren’t willing to invest much in Latin scouting, and Andújar still wanted to pitch. Several teams expressed interest in signing him when he made a comeback attempt with the Estrellas in late 1993, but knee problems and a freak car accident convinced Andújar that he should retire once and for all after only two starts.

Andújar continued to help young players around San Pedro de Macoris, assisting the San Francisco Giants Dominican Summer Leaguers and the Estrellas, particularly when his old friend Arturo DeFreites was their skipper. The Chicago White Sox noticed his ability to help young pitchers and brought him to spring training one season, but he refused their offer of a job when he found out it would be at the expense of one of his friends. Instead Andújar coached informally, but consistently, and played softball to keep his swing in shape. Investments in a construction business, and later a trucking company, did little except drain his bank account, however. In 2003 Andújar returned to St. Louis for the first time in 15 years to throw out a ceremonial first pitch at Busch Stadium to a loud ovation. “I live in the Dominican, but my heart still is in St. Louis,” he said.16

Two years later, Major League Baseball made Andújar one of 15 finalists for a Latino Legends team that would be chosen through fan voting. He finished 10th among pitchers. Andújar’slast appearance at Busch came in 2007, for the 25th anniversary of the 1982 World Series champions. St. Louis Post-Dispatch columnist Rick Hummel described him as looking “smaller than we remembered him.”17

The Hall of Fame of San Pedro de Macoris inducted Andújar as a member in 2011, and the Caribbean Series made him a member of its Hall of Fame a year later. Andújar missed both ceremonies for undisclosed health reasons. The truth was that diabetes was taking a toll on “One Tough Dominican.” Andújar also went through a divorce, lost his big home and moved to an apartment in Santo Domingo, where he survived on his major-league pension.

Joaquín Andújar died on September 8, 2015. Many sports fans in the United States learned the news from the Instagram feed of Robinson Cano, the most prominent player from San Pedro de Macoris at the time. Cano called it a “big pain for all baseball fans, especially all Dominicans, but even more so for all of us who had the chance to know you and learn from your example.”

Just over a month before Andújar’s death, the Dominican Republic enjoyed a proud moment when Juan Marichal joined Pedro Martinez on stage at the latter’s induction ceremony at the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Two of the only three Dominicans with multiple 20-win seasons stood smiling and holding their country’s flag aloft. Precisely 15 years after Marichal’s last 20-win season, and 15 years before Martinez’s first, Andújar won 20 for the first of two consecutive years. “Andújar was in the middle of every dream I had because he was one of the best pitchers we ever had in the Dominican Republic,” remarked Martinez.18

Notes

1 Kenny Hand, “Andújar Gets Shot Against L.A. Tonight,” Houston Post, September 9, 1980: 2D.

2 Julio Gonzalez, “Joaquin: Facing the Future With a View from the Past,” Oakland A’s Magazine, Volume 6, Number 2: 14.

3 Gonzalez: 12.

4 Dave Pavlesic, interview with author, May 31, 2006.

5 The Sporting News, November 5, 1984: 49.

6 Duke De Luca, “Andújar Slows Down Phils,” Reading Eagle, June 30, 1973: 6.

7 Rick Hummel, “ Andújar’sSecret? Daddy Knows Best,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, June 3, 1982.

8 Kenny Hand, “Ayyyayyaya, Joaquin. Andújar Makes Astros Happy with Jokes, Pitching,” Houston Post, May 22, 1977.

9 Steve Wulf, “Here’s a Hot Dog You’ve Got to Relish,” Sports Illustrated, January 24, 1983: 32.

10 Rick Hummel, “Andújar : God Is Still My Amigo,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, July 22, 1983: B1.

11 Rick Hummel, “Sport Interview: Joaquin Andújar ,” Sport, September 1985: 27.

12 Rick Hummel, “Youneverknow What to Expect From Cards’ Ace,” The Sporting News 1985 Baseball Yearbook, 120.

13 Rick Hummel, “So Good … So Misunderstood,” The Sporting News, June 17, 1985: 3.

14 David H. Nathan, The McFarland Baseball Quotations Dictionary (Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland), 2000.

15 Neil Hohlfeld, “Could ‘Someone Big’ Be Out to Get Andújar ?” The Sporting News, June 27, 1988: 21.

16 Rick Hummel, “ Andújar’sHeart Remains in St. Louis,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, July 26, 2003.

17 Derek Goold, “Colorful Cardinals Ace Andújar Dies,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, September 8, 2015.

18 Joey Nowak, “Former All-Star Pitcher Joaquin Andújar Dies,” mlb.com, September 8, 2015. mlb.com/news/joaquin-Andújar -dies-at-62/c-148062060.

Tony Armas was born on July 2, 1953, in Puerto Piritu, Anzoátegui state, a town in eastern Venezuela, 235 kilometers (about 150 miles) from Caracas. His father, Jose Rafael Armas, was an electrician, while his mother, Julieta Machado de Armas, was engaged in household chores, taking care at home Antonio and his 12 brothers.

“My parents were able to keep me on track,” Armas said. “We were a very poor family, and lived on what was achieved. My dad was a farmer too.”

In a place having beautiful beaches, the Armas family also had land that they worked. “We used to plant all kinds of beans, all kinds of fruits. We were poor and planted all kinds of fruit for the sustenance of the house,” Armas said. “As the oldest I was the one who was in charge of that, to load sacks of corn, pumpkin, watermelon, everything that was harvested. I think my strength came from there.”

There was no Little League or the Criollitos of Venezuela in those days, no organized movements that help children and young people today to start polishing their skills. Armas began to imitate his idols playing baseball in the street with older people in his neighborhood.

“There were no baseball schools, no little– league baseball. You become a baseball player through hard work,” he said. “I played caimaneras (baseball in the street) with adults, as everyone did in those days. I played since I was a boy, since I was in school. It is not like today, when children are born with a uniform. Right now they have coaches, all benefits that a little boy may have from birth until (he) reaches his youth. At that time, no, at that time you had to make yourself as a player.”

At 17, Tony played for the first time on a team in an organized league, Deportivo Pachaquito, and began to develop his skills on defense. 

“I ended up not playing the tournament,” he recalled. “I started the championship, but didn’t finish it, because there was a National Youth Championship, to be played in Cumaná city and as I was 17, I was called from the Double A to the youth team to go play.”

Armas had an outstanding performance, starring as his team won the Anzoátegui state title.  He was called to the national team to play for the World Youth Championship in Maracaibo. That was where he caught the attention of the former major leaguer Pompeyo “Yo– Yo” Davalillo, a scout for the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Davalillo, brother of the former All– Star Vic Davalillo, played in the majors in 1953 with the Washington Senators, but a broken leg shortened his career and he devoted his life to trying to recruit players from Venezuela to play in the United States.

“Pompeyo Davalillo had checked me in both the national junior and youth world championships. I also went to a worldwide Double– A championship, in Cartagena, Colombia. I didn’t have much chance to play, because I was very young and we had players who were better prepared than me at that time. I did not play, but I had a pretty good time. I kept playing and in 1971 Pompeyo Davalillo arrived at my house, talked to me, said he thought I could make it to the majors, that I could go far in baseball. He spoke with my parents and that’s how I started my career.”

On January 18, 1971, Armas signed as a free agent with the Pittsburgh Pirates for $5,000. At the same time he signed for 30,000 bolivars to play Venezuelan winter ball with the Caracas Lions, a club that had previously featured two of his idols, Vic Davalillo and Cesar Tovar. Tovar played in the majors from 1965 to 1976 with the Twins, A’s, Rangers, Phillies, and Yankees, with a lifetime average of .278; Davalillo batted .279 between 1963 and 1980 with the Indians, Angels, Cardinals, Pirates, Dodgers, and Athletics.

“I was a fan of Caracas and my favorite players were Cesar Tovar and Vic Davalillo. I also admired Joe Ferguson, a power hitter who came as a foreign player.” Ferguson, who played 14 seasons in the majors with Dodgers, Cardinals, Astros, and Angels, played with the Lions in Armas’s rookie year in Venezuela and batted .294 with 15 homers and 51 RBIs, an inspiration for the young prospect.

“I think they signed me because I was a good outfielder. I was not a good hitter,” he said. “You learn to hit with constant work.”

Pittsburgh assigned Armas to play with Monroe and with Bradenton in 1971, dividing his time between rookie ball and Class A, where he combined for a .230 batting average; it was clear he had to work harder to improve his offense.

“I was a good outfielder and I realized I had to work twice (as hard as) the Americans to keep my job. That’s the way it was at that time, not like now, when someone comes to the majors with a lot of money and have to call you up. Plus there are more teams now. That is the reality of my career.”

In 1972 Armas batted .266 with 9 homers and 51 RBIs in Class– A Gastonia, and in 1973 he got the opportunity to play at Double A in an unusual way, after being a batboy for almost two weeks.

“Not that I was happy with what they were doing, but actually they had a lot of players in spring training. There were about 80 players in camp and on the field there were nine. I had no chance to play,” he said. “The manager of Class A needed a batboy and from among those 80 players they called my name. So I spent a week doing that. It bothered me a little bit, because I didn’t go up there to collect bats. I went to earn a spot. There was a Mexican named Mario Mendoza who helped me a lot; what I did was thanks to him, because I told him I wanted to go home, I was not up there to collect bats. He told me to stay calm, that I was being observed to see what kind of character I had, whether I was spoiled. I followed his advice and stayed. The next week was all the same. We arrived on Monday and started the game the same, ‘Armas, you’re the batboy.’ It turns out that on Wednesday, in a game between Double A and Triple A, the Double– A center fielder got injured. The manager shouted that they needed an outfielder and then he said, ‘Armas, get in there.’  I went in, and I stayed.”

His bat began to speak for him with Sherbrooke in the Double– A Eastern League; he hit .301 with 11 homers and 45 RBIs in 84 games, despite suffering a broken arm that had him away from action several days.

The young prospect continued his rise in the organization and, after another season in Double A in 1974, he was promoted to the Charleston (West Virginia) Charlies (Triple A) in 1975. With Charleston again the next season he showed some power, hitting 21 homers, and earned a call– up to the Pirates. Armas debuted on September 6, 1976, against the Philadelphia Phillies at Three Rivers Stadium. He replaced Richie Zisk in left field in the ninth inning. He played in four games during his call– up. On October 3, in the last game of the season (the second game of a doubleheader), Armas got his first start, in the lineup as the center fielder and batting sixth. He got his first major– league hit off Pete Falcone of the St. Louis Cardinals, a single to center field to lead off the bottom of the fifth.

Falcone was locked in a pitching duel with Jerry Reuss, and the game went into the bottom of the ninth scoreless. Armas came up with a runner on second base and two outs in the bottom of the ninth and singled to right field to give the Pirates a 1– 0 walk– off victory to end the season.

Still, Armas faced trying to break in to an outfield populated by Al Oliver, Omar Moreno, and Dave Parker.

“I had no chance to play, because the Pirates had many good players,” he said. “At the time I was in that organization was (Roberto) Clemente, Al Oliver, Willie Stargell, Dave Parker, Richie Zisk, and I had no opportunity to climb. In 1977 (I was out of options), so they had to keep me on the roster or trade me. At the last minute, they traded me to the A’s. It was there that I got the chance to show my full potential.”

Armas was sent to Oakland on March 15, 1977, along with pitchers Dave Giusti, Doc Medich, Doug Bair, and Rick Langford, and outfielder Mitchell Page, for pitcher Chris Batton and infielders Tommy Helms and Phil Garner.

Oakland, a rebuilding team, relied on the talents of Armas, who hit 13 homers and drove in 53 runs in 118 games. The next two seasons, he played in only 171 games because of injuries.

“In Oakland I obviously had to work hard, because no Latin at that time had a safety spot in the big leagues,” he said. “Thanks to Oakland I received the opportunity to play every day and I was able to prove myself.”

In 1980 Armas was healthy and able to deploy his strength to become one of the most feared sluggers in the American League. That year he hit 35 homers and drove in 109 runs, with a respectable .279 average.

The following year, in a strike– shortened season, Armas tied three other players for the American League lead in home runs with 22. (The others were Dwight Evans, Eddie Murray, and Bobby Grich. Armas drove in 76 runs, took part in his first All– Star Game, and finished fourth in the voting for the MVP award. He was chosen by The Sporting News as the Player of the Year.

Thanks to Armas and Rickey Henderson, the Athletics advanced to the playoffs and swept the Kansas City Royals in the Division Series. Armas was 6– for– 11 with two doubles and three RBIs. His bat cooled off in the ALCS against the New York Yankees (2– for– 12 with five strikeouts); Oakland was eliminated in three games.

Armas’s power caught the attention of the Boston Red Sox. He hit 28 homers for the A’s in 1982 and set an AL record for the most putouts in a game by a right fielder (11, on June 12 against the Toronto Blue Jays). After the season the Red Sox acquired Armas and catcher Jeff Newman in exchange for third baseman Carney Lansford, outfielder Garry Hancock, and Jerry King.

“They wanted a player who would protect Jim Rice and they made the deal,” said Armas, who was surprised by his departure from Oakland. For Boston, Armas played center field, although he wasn’t a particularly fast fielder, but with Rice and Dwight Evans he helped form one of the most powerful outfields in Red Sox history. 

“It was a good team,” Armas said. He hit a career– high 36 homers, with 107 RBIs, topping 100 for the second time in his career, finishing with 107. Rice led the club with 39 homers and 126 RBIs, but Evans fell short with 22 homers and 58 RBIs, playing only 126 games in the final season of future Hall of Famer Carl Yastrzemski.

“It was a real experience to play with a superstar like Carl Yastrzemski was,” Armas said. “I met Ted Williams in spring training, and it was a great experience to meet those two legends.”

Despite his power, Armas heard some boos from Red Sox fans because of his anemic .218 average and 131 strikeouts in 145 games. “At that time, Latinos and black people were not beloved in Boston. I came to Boston and they started to boo me. I spoke with my lawyer and told him to get them to trade me. I didn’t want to play in Boston anymore. There was a pressure in playing for that team. They talked with me and said, ‘Hey, you came over here to help Jim Rice and Dwight Evans.’ ‘Yes, but I can’t, this way. It is very difficult to play like this.’ At that time it was different from the way it would be now – if I had been signed to a $120 million contract, I wouldn’t have cared if they shouted at me and booed me. But at that time you had to earn your place and play hard.” 

A year later the Venezuelan, led by his power, changed those boos into ovations. Injury– free, Armas played 157 of the team’s 162 games and home runs steadily found their way into the stands. He finished as the American League leader in both home runs and RBIs (43 and 123). He dominated the circuit with 77 extra– base hits and 339 total bases.

“You never have those goals. Your goal is having a good year, but I never thought I would be the home– run king or the RBI champion when there were many superstars in the majors – Reggie Jackson, Jim Rice, Dave Kingman, Lance Parrish, Dwight Evans, many good players. That I could compete with these superstars made me proud, and that year, thank God, I was able to play an almost full season.”

Armas’s remarkable season earned him his second All– Star Game and his only Silver Slugger Award, and he placed seventh in the MVP voting. 

Injuries cropped up again in 1985 and Armas was limited to 103 games; his production declined sharply to 23 homers and 64 RBIs.

In 1986 Armas got into 121 games as the Red Sox advanced to their first World Series since 1975. And if the defeat in 1975 was painful, after the famous Carlton Fisk homer in Game Six forced a deciding seventh game, the loss to the New York Mets was even worse.

“These were frustrating days for me,” admitted Armas, who was the greatest home– run hitter in the American League from 1980 through 1985, with 187 round– trippers, but he hit only 11 in 1986. “In the ALCS I hurt and I couldn’t play anymore, because my right ankle was swollen.”

If Armas’s home runs had seemed to become a constant in Boston, so had injuries. During his career he spent 12 stints on the disabled list, but no injury was as painful as the one in the fifth game of the ALCS against the California Angels at Anaheim Stadium.

In the second inning, Armas chased down a long fly ball hit by Doug DeCinces. “Many of my leg injuries were from running, but the one in the ankle was because I was hooked in the center– field fence,” he recalled. “Now they are cushioned but back then, the walls were all concrete.” Dave Henderson took over for Armas for the rest of the playoffs. Henderson had an immediate impact.

“I tried to play, but I couldn’t anymore,” Armas said. “And that’s when Dave Henderson replaced me and he did a good job.” Henderson’s ninth– inning homer in Game Five against Anaheim spared the Red Sox a loss, and he drove in the winning run with a sacrifice fly in the 11th.  Though Armas’s ankle improved, Henderson made the most of his opportunity; Armas was sentenced to the bench.

In the World Series, Armas was limited to one pinch– hitting appearance in Game Seven, after 15 days without playing.

“The ankle still bothered me, but I could pinch– hit. I could not run at 100 percent,” he recalled. “It was difficult, but I had a strong desire to appear in the World Series. Even if it was just an at– bat, it doesn’t matter, and I appeared in the World Series, which is what anyone wants.”

Armas pinch– hit for pitcher Bruce Hurst in the seventh inning with the game tied 3– 3. The Venezuelan struck out swinging in what it was his last at– bat in a Red Sox uniform. 

About Game Six, he was philosophical. “What happened is what happens so often in baseball. We were winning an easy game. At the end we felt champions but Bill Buckner‘s error left us without the victory. Then we lost the World Series,” said Armas. “We lost by an error that cost us the Series. These are things that happen in baseball.”

“The pitching also faltered. Roger Clemens couldn’t do the job, Dennis Boyd couldn’t do the job, many players didn’t do the job,” he said. “For me it was frustrating because I was playing every day, but then I couldn’t help the team in the World Series because of an injured ankle. That’s not easy for any baseball player.”

After the season Armas became a free agent and, a likely victim of collusion, signed with the Angels but not until July 1, 1987. “The team owners got together and agreed to not sign free agents that year and I was one of those affected,” he recalled. “I had offers from Mexico, but spent all that time practicing in Caracas with Pompeyo Davalillo, who was working with the Angels at the time. That’s where I signed.”

After so much downtime, Armas was sent to Triple A for the first time in more than a decade. He played in 29 games for Edmonton before returning to the majors for the last month and a half of the season. He batted.198 in 28 games.

Armas’s days as a regular came to an end in California, where he was used primarily against left– handed pitchers by manager Cookie Rojas, with whom he had a difficult relationship in 1988. “I started to play against left– handed pitchers and that was hard,” he said. “There was a time when I began to play every day and in a week I hit like five homers – but that’s when I had the mishap with Cookie Rojas.”

“One day we went to Oakland to play and Chili Davis, who was the regular, did not want to play; people were booing him, because he’d played the year before with San Francisco. Oakland was going to start Dave Stewart and they said I was not going to play because I was playing against lefties only. Then I got a chance to start playing against some righties, and I hit two home runs in that game (August 14). Rojas didn’t put me to play anymore and there came all the controversy with the journalists, saying that if I was hitting well, why I did not play. He said it was because he was the manager, and I told them to talk to the manager, that if they did not play me, it was a matter of him.”

From July 28 to August 14, Armas hit.440 with 4 homers and 12 RBIs over a 16– game stretch, including 11 starts, so some sportswriters suggested more playing time for the Venezuelan, even against righties.

“There was this controversy with journalists and Cookie Rojas blamed me because I spoke with the press. Once a newspaper did an article and it was sent to him in Boston and I was called to his office and he asked me why I had told the newspapers that I wasn’t playing. ‘Look, Cookie, I haven’t talked to the press in a long time. They just are realizing what you’re doing to me.’ ‘So you want to play?’ And I got to play against Roger Clemens in Boston. I said, ‘Cookie, if you think you’re going to intimidate me because it is Roger Clemens, you’re wrong. If he was going to give me four strikeouts, I’ll get four strikeouts. If I’m going to hit him, I’ll hit him.’”

And Armas homered against Clemens (two days earlier he had hit one off Bruce Hurst), and then he hit another the next day, on his return to California, against the Yankees. It was Armas’s most explosive month of the year and his last major production in the majors:.386 with 8 homers and 19 RBIs in 24 games in August. Nevertheless, his differences with Rojas continued.

“It came out another article in California, after he took me out in a game for a pinch– hitter, even when I had a hit and a home run. I showered and went to the hotel. I did not talk to any journalist. When we got to California he called me to his office, and we hadn’t an argument, because I’m not used to that, but he said why I had talked again to the press. ‘No, no. I have not spoken to the press.’ But they were already realizing who he was.”

The relationship ended on September 24, when Rojas was fired as the manager of the Angels. Armas returned to the Angels the following year, his last in the major leagues.

“My third year in California was in the same role, as a pinch– hitter and playing against lefties, and because my knee was bothering me and I couldn’t take it anymore, I retired. I could have played for three more years, but unfortunately the knees did not allow it.”

Armas remained active in the Venezuelan Winter League, where he was already a legend for his power. He was the first Venezuelan to lead the majors in homers and RBIs, but his 251 career home runs led all Venezuelans. He was also the home– run king in Venezuelan winter ball, after hitting his 97th home run in the last at– bat of his career in the 1991– 1992 season. (His mark was surpassed by Robert Perez in 2008.)

Armas played a few more seasons in Venezuela, but the knee hampered him badly and he’d have to take off a week now and again. “I thought it was better to retire than continue to suffer, but I thank God for giving me the opportunity to get where I got. Thanks to baseball I am who I am.”

The home run was always Armas’s calling card; it also happened to be his farewell letter. He was an investor in the Caribes de Oriente club and he was able to fulfill another dream there, playing with his brothers Marcos and Julio, all three taking up positions as outfielders. 

“That was a great thing,” Armas said. “It’s never been written in any book. I was with the right team on the right day.”

Both brothers followed in the footsteps of his older brother, but only Marcos managed to make the majors, with the Athletics for a brief period in 1993.

Tony and his wife, Luisa de Armas, had six children. The third was their son Tony Armas Jr., who played 10 major– league seasons with the Expos, Nationals, Pirates, and Mets, between 1999 and 2008. 

“I have much to thank my dad for. Since my childhood he always took me to the stadiums. When you are a child you are like a sponge, absorbing all the information and always trying to imitate someone,” said Armas Jr. “When I decided to play baseball, he said to me, ‘I was a hitter, but if you don’t want to be a hitter, don’t do it.’ He told me, ‘Son, do what you want to do. I support you.’ That was important. My parents, at that time, supported me the most.”

After he stopped playing, Armas remained active in baseball, mainly in winter ball, as coach of the Caracas Lions. Tony Armas Jr. also played with the Lions. “That was special,” said Armas Jr. “It was one of the most special times. I grew up in the Caracas stadium of Caracas, because he always took me there when he played. He felt the same way.”

In 1998 Armas was inducted into the Caribbean Baseball Hall of Fame, thanks to his all– time home– run leadership in the Caribbean Series, with 11. In 2005 he was inducted into the Venezuelan Baseball Hall of Fame and in 2013 into the Latino Baseball Hall of Fame. In 2009 Armas was the hitting coach for the Venezuelan team in the World Baseball Classic, working next to Andres Galarraga, who eclipsed all his home– run records in the majors. (In 1996 Galarraga hit 47 homers and drove in 150 runs with the Colorado Rockies to set the single– season marks for a Venezuelan.)

“Tony was a role model for all the boys that had power,” Galarraga said. “I was fortunate to sign with the Lions and privileged to play with him in Venezuela. He taught me many things, gave me some batting tips and that kind of thing.”

“I always knew that many good players would follow, because in Venezuela we had many academies and we had many players out there,” said Armas. “After Galarraga came Bob Abreu, who was a complete player, Magglio Ordonez, and now Miguel Cabrera, who is even more complete. There is always someone who opens the doors.”

And Armas, 62 in 2015, continued to share his knowledge with the younger generation in Venezuela, as a coach of Leones del Caracas (the Caracas Lions) in winter ball. “He loves to teach, because baseball is his life,” said Armas Jr. That’s never going to change with him. He ends a winter season and during the break goes directly to become a manager in the Bolivarian League with Deportivo Anzoátegui. He is always working with the boys and never stops. He’s always traveling; he is never in one place. That is what he likes to do.”

“Baseball has given me a lot. Now I’m giving to baseball, trying to help young people,” said Armas, who still lives in his native Puerto Píritu. “I am very proud of my career, proud of baseball, and proud of what I do right now, because in my time there were no hitting coaches and I’m proud to work with so many young boys to help them become better players.”

Sources

Author interviews with Tony Armas on November 12, 2014, and August 5, 2015. All quotations attributed to Armas come from these interviews.

Author interview with Andrés Galarraga on July 30, 2015. All quotations attributed to Galarraga come from this interview.

Author interview with Tony Armas Jr. on July 28, 2015. All quotations attributed to Armas Jr. come from this interview.

articles.latimes.com/1987– 08– 19/sports/sp– 773_1_tony– armas

articles.latimes.com/1988– 08– 25/sports/sp– 1345_1_tony– armas

articles.latimes.com/1988– 09– 01/sports/sp– 4439_1_home– run

articles.latimes.com/1988– 09– 24/sports/sp– 2381_1_interim– manager

el– nacional.com/deportes/lvbp/Antonio– Armas– puesto– acepte– recogebates_0_289171243.html

vidaydeportes.com/entrevista– exclusiva– antonio– armas

Cárdenas, Augusto. “El jonronero de Venezuela,” Diario Panorama, December 18, 2005.

Cárdenas Lares, Carlos Daniel. Venezolanos en las Grandes Ligas (Fundación Cárdenas Lares, 1994).

Harold Douglas Baines was born to Linwood Jr. and Gloria Baines on March 15, 1959, in Easton, Maryland. He grew up in nearby St. Michaels, on the state’s Eastern Shore, with four siblings: Linwood III was a year older; the late Irving and Curtis were his younger brothers, with sister Bertha arriving in between. Their father was a mason. “He worked from dawn to dusk. By the time I saw him it was night,” Harold recalled.1 “He showed me what was important in life. We didn’t have those extra things, but we had what we needed.”2

Linwood Baines had played baseball for the Eastern Shore Negro League’s St. Michaels Red Sox.3 “He was my hero,” Harold said.4 “Not from a baseball aspect, it was just from the way he raised his kids.” Nevertheless, the sport helped form a strong bond between father and son. “Harold’s glove was bigger than he was, but he’d be dragging me down to the diamond,” the elder Baines recalled.5  “I think I played the game professionally for my dad, because he couldn’t,” Harold reflected.6

By the time Harold was a 12-year-old Little Leaguer, his hitting ability was undeniable. Former major-league owner Bill Veeck, who owned a home in the area, went to see him play at the suggestion of a friend, Bob Boinski.7 “[Baines] was hitting the ball 400 feet,” Veeck recalled.8 “You didn’t forget a bat that quick or a swing that compact and powerful. I didn’t.”9

Baines starred in three sports at St. Michaels High School, including soccer during his senior season. “He scored 15 goals and took us to the state final,” said coach Denver Leach.10 Baines captained the basketball squad and considered hoops his best sport. “I played forward, center and guard. I could dunk the ball and I averaged 22 points a game,” he said. “Nobody called with any scholarship offers, so I started turning my thoughts to baseball.”11

By his sophomore year, big league scouts knew about the promising first baseman/outfielder (who also occasionally pitched). The field at St. Michaels wasn’t fenced, so right field ended when the ground sloped into a drainage ditch after about 390 feet. A running track sat atop a hill another 100-feet away. One day, after the scouts’ plans to observe Harold were frustrated by an opponent’s intentional walks, they asked the teen to take postgame batting practice. “He took eight or 10 swings and hit three balls over the ditch,” recalled Coach Leach. “A couple of them bounced up onto the track.”12 They had seen enough.

Veeck, meanwhile, had repurchased the White Sox in 1975 and moved to Chicago. He continued to receive reports from Eastern Shore sources and a scout who’d seen Baines play in an American Legion tournament.13 Following a last-place finish in 1976, the White Sox held the first pick in the 1977 amateur draft, just as Baines was completing his senior season with a .532 batting average.14 Veeck had seen him only a few times, so he sent Chicago’s most trusted scouts to crosscheck: Walt Widmayer, Bennie Huffman and Paul Richards.15 “Bill wanted to be sure we were doing the right thing,” explained Roland Hemond, then the Sox’s vice president.16

“Harold wasn’t exactly playing in what you’d call a ‘class’ league,” Richards explained. “His swing was a natural, but there’s no way you could measure that against the pro pitchers until he actually hit against them.”17 Though Chicago’s need for pitching was more acute, and Bill Gullickson from nearby Joliet Catholic Academy was a local favorite, the White Sox made Baines the number-one overall pick in the country.

Veeck and Hemond traveled to Maryland the night before the draft and signed Baines minutes after the pick became official. “I doubt he’d ever been off the Eastern Shore much until the day he signed with us,” Veeck recalled. “They were a century behind there in race relations during the time Harold grew up. It was like growing up in the Deep South.”18

When the White Sox played in Baltimore that weekend, Baines took batting practice with them but didn’t show his ability. Veeck told Hemond that the new draftee was nervous but promised, “Don’t worry, he’ll be OK.”19

Baines debuted with the Appleton (Wisconsin) Foxes, batting .261 with five home runs in 69 games for the worst club in the Single-A Midwest League. Promoted to Double A in 1978, he got off to a miserable start with a sub-.200 batting average into June.20 He raised it to .275 by season’s end as the Knoxville Sox won the Southern League title. Next, in the Florida Instructional League he hit .333 with 38 RBIs in his first 32 games to help the White Sox clinch their division.21

When Baines struggled early again after advancing to the Triple-A Iowa Oaks of the American Association in 1979, teammate Rusty Kuntz recalled that the media was hard on the number-one pick. “They subjected him to a lot of abuse: ‘What are they doing sending us a 20-year-old who can’t hit?’”22

Unfazed, Baines kept improving and finished the year batting .298 with 22 homers and 87 RBIs. Two of the four-baggers came in the same inning on August 4, and he hit two more round-trippers two nights later.23 “I’ll give my best effort every day,” he explained. “The only way to do that is by eliminating the negatives and concentrating on being myself.”24

“Each time I thought I was pushing him beyond what he was capable of doing the last two years, he has responded,” remarked Tony La Russa, Baines’s manager at both Knoxville and Iowa.25 “From day one, he’s always been his own man. Nobody can lead him astray.”26

La Russa took over as the White Sox skipper that summer, and many believed Baines could join him in 1980. Orlando Cepeda likened the 21-year-old’s swing to that of Billy Williams. Jimmy Piersall compared him to Al Kaline. After working with Baines in spring training, Piersall gushed, “Give him the bat and ball and see you in 15 years. He’s not only got all the tools, but he’s got instinct. When you talk to him about baseball, you don’t have to tell him what base to throw to. He KNOWS that.”27 “This kid is going straight into the starting lineup and then straight to Cooperstown,” insisted Richards.28 Yet as Baines himself observed looking back in 2019, “I inherited athletic ability but you have to put in the work.”29

At the time, however, he recognized that he was still just a prospect. “How can people be calling me a superstar when I haven’t even made the team?” he protested.30 He worked his way into Chicago’s Opening Day lineup at Comiskey Park, batting sixth and playing right field. He went hitless against Baltimore’s Jim Palmer. “The first game I ever played in the big leagues stands out in my mind the most because my father was there to see it,” he said.31

Baines started 0-for-19 before ripping an RBI double against the Yankees’ Jim Kaat on April 17 for his first hit. Two nights later in Baltimore, he went deep against Palmer. One week after his sudden-death homer beat the Rangers’ Ferguson Jenkins on July 26, Baines was in Cooperstown…albeit it for the Hall of Fame exhibition contest against the Pirates. He stroked three extra-base hits including a home run.32 In the games that counted, he homered 13 times as a rookie and batted .255.

In 1981, Baines rarely played against left-handers after hitting only .159 against southpaws in his first year. Yet he hit .320 against them, which helped raise his average to .286 overall. After the season, he added 16 pounds of muscle to his 6-foot-2, 175-pound frame through a diet of 3,300 calories a day and a regimen of free weights.33 The White Sox hired renowned batting coach Charlie Lau, who spent two years with the team before succumbing to cancer. “Charlie taught me what pitches to look for on the particular ball-strike count,” Baines explained. “I turned my stats around immensely after that.”34 Describing his approach to hitting in 2019, he cited one thing above all: “Concentration.” He added, “I would give the pitcher a part of the zone but the other part of the zone was mine.”35

Playing every day in 1982, Baines become the youngest player in franchise history to drive in 100 runs.36 In July, he homered six times –including two grand slams—and drove in 15 runs in a six-game span. “He’s going to be the kind you’ll pay to see in a few years,” La Russa predicted. The White Sox signed him to a new contract guaranteeing $3.25 million over four seasons.37 “He’s the most unchanged player by success I’ve ever known,” marveled Veeck the following summer.38

The 1983 White Sox won 99 games – one shy of the franchise record. Baines was in the middle of a career-best, 19-game hitting streak when his game-ending sacrifice fly clinched the club’s first post-season appearance in 24 years. The RBI set off a raucous celebration at Comiskey Park in which fans flooded the field to celebrate with the players, but Chicago fell to the Orioles in the ALCS.

Baines married the former Marla Henry that fall, months after she earned her Bachelor of Education degree from Bowie State University. When they had met in high school, she’d been the scorekeeper for some of his teams.39 Their first child, daughter Toni, arrived in 1984, followed by sisters Britni and Courtney, with brother Harold, Jr. in between, over the next six years. They decided to raise their family in St. Michaels, a place Baines described as “the kind of place where you can have peace of mind.”40

In 1984, one of Baines’s bats went straight to the Hall of Fame. On May 9, he homered to end the longest game in American League history, a 25-inning marathon that took 8 hours and 6 minutes. The hit also generated one of his signature moments. When a reporter tried to elicit a comment by noting that he’d gotten all of the ball, the taciturn Baines simply replied, “Evidently”. He became “Mr. Evidently” to his teammates and, in 2019, the White Sox gave away Baines bobbleheads that played a recording of the single word.

But he had been in the worst slump of his career at the time. The historic blast was his first homer in a month, and his batting average didn’t get over .200 until Memorial Day weekend. In 81 games from May 29 through the end of August, however, he batted .364 and slugged .655, including eight four-hit contests. “The way he’s going now, he could hit a golf ball,” said teammate Rudy Law. “He had flaws when he was rushed to the majors, but he corrected them all,” Hemond observed.41 Baines insisted that he was just being more selective.

He finished the season as a .300 hitter for the first time, with personal bests in triples (10), homers (29) and a league-leading .541 slugging percentage. “To do what Harold does, his fire has got to be burning very brightly, whether anyone can see it or not,” said La Russa.42

In 1985, only nine of Baines’s 22 homers came before the end of July. “I have to go to left field. I have to take what they give me,” he explained.43 Nevertheless, he played in his first All-Star Game, raised his average to .309, and drove in a career-high 113 runs. He impressed Tom Seaver, his teammate that season. “He’s in the lineup every day and always has the same mental approach, whether he was 0-for-4 the previous day, or 4-for-4,” said Seaver. “Mental discipline is tough, but he shows it every day.”44

Chicago’s incoming GM, Ken Harrelson, remarked, “There are some teams out there that I wouldn’t take straight up for Harold.”45 The White Sox endured a disappointing 1986 that cost La Russa his job, but Baines returned to the All-Star Game, and became the first player in franchise history with at least 20 homers in five consecutive years.46 His season ended early, however, because of a right knee injury sustained on the next-to-last weekend. “A pitcher covering first base had his foot on the bag the same time I reached the base, and I stepped on his ankle,” Baines explained.47

Looking back in 2019, Baines added, “I had eight knee surgeries during my career starting from that injury.”48 He missed half of spring training in 1987 while rehabbing from an arthroscopic procedure. Yet he was in the lineup on Opening Day and banged out two hits from his customary third spot in the batting order. He left the contest early for a pinch-runner, however, and underwent another operation. In July, he became the White Sox’s all-time home run leader. As of 2024, he ranks fourth behind Frank Thomas, Paul Konerko, and José Abreu, but ahead of Carlton Fisk, who temporarily passed him in 1990.49

Throughout his career, Baines had been considered just above average as a right fielder with a strong arm. But in 1987 his knees forced him into the DH role. From then until the end of his career, he played in just 81 games in the field, and never more than 25 in any single season.

After a third operation on the same knee that winter, Baines arrived at spring training early each morning and split his days between swimming and physical therapy.50 He struggled early in 1988, but the White Sox still extended his contract that summer and made him the club’s first player with a $1 million annual salary.51 He earned a second straight Outstanding Designated Hitter award.52  “The first thing I thought about when I realized that I physically couldn’t play defense in the outfield on a regular basis was what I could do to help the team,” he explained. He studied pitchers and catchers intently, searching for clues. “I put all that concentration on offense.”53

After a down year statistically, Baines ran all winter to strengthen his knees.54 He also worked with incoming hitting coach Walt Hriniak.55 “[Hriniak] refreshed my memory of what Charlie Lau taught,” he said.56 Though Baines’s return to right field mostly ended after April, the notorious slow starter was the AL’s leading hitter into late May. For the fourth time in five seasons, he returned to the All-Star Game, which allowed designated hitters for the first time in 1989. He started for the American League and became the first DH to hit safely in a Midsummer Classic with an RBI single off the Cubs’ Rick Sutcliffe.

Less than three weeks later, however, he was traded to the Texas Rangers. The last-place White Sox acquired future All-Stars Sammy Sosa and Wilson Álvarez in the five-player deal, but many of Chicago’s fans and players were upset. “Baines comes as close to anyone as being Mr. White Sox,” acknowledged GM Larry Himes.57 “As a person, it will not be possible to replace him,” remarked club owner Jerry Reinsdorf.58

“After being in place for 10 years, you thought you could stay here your whole career, but it didn’t work out,” Baines said. “I wasn’t happy with the way [Himes] was doing things, but I was never mad at the fans or the organization itself.”59 When the Rangers visited Comiskey Park three weeks later, he received two standing ovations and went 3-for-3.60 The White Sox surprised him by retiring his uniform number 3 before the series finale.

The trade proved disappointing for both the Rangers and their new DH. The team never climbed above fourth place, and his 16 RBIs in 50 games were fewer than those tallied by Fred Manrique, the utility infielder Texas also received in the deal.

In 1990, Baines was batting .290 with 13 homers in late August, but he was sitting more frequently against left-handers. “I just wasn’t happy,” he admitted. “I didn’t feel I was being utilized the right way.”61 On August 29, Texas traded him to Oakland for two pitchers who combined to win three big-league games. The Athletics were on their way to a third straight American League pennant led by La Russa, the ex-White Sox skipper.

In Game Three of the World Series, La Russa gave Baines his first start against a southpaw in almost eight weeks. He responded with a two-run homer off Tom Browning of the Reds, but Cincinnati upset the Athletics in a four-game sweep.

Baines remained with Oakland for the next two seasons. In 1991, he walked more than he struck out for the first time in his career, batted .295 and drove in 90 runs. Seven of the RBIs came in a three-homer performance against the Orioles on May 7 in which he set an Oakland record with 14 total bases.62 On May 18, 1992 in Baltimore, his father was on hand to witness his 1,000th RBI.63 Baines hit just .253 that season, but batted .440 in Oakland’s ALCS loss to Toronto, including a game-winning, ninth-inning homer off Jack Morris in Game One.

On January 9, St. Michael’s celebrated Harold Baines Day, which grew into an annual event with a golf tournament to raise scholarship money for dozens of local high schoolers to attend college or trade schools.64 Five days later, he was traded to the Orioles for two young pitchers shortly after he’d re-signed with Oakland. The arrangement allowed Roland Hemond –who’d become Baltimore’s GM—to avoid losing a draft pick. Veeck had died in 1986 but Bob Boinski, who’d recommended Baines to him, remarked, “I guess Bill’s smiling now that Roland got him back.”65

Baines had reason to smile, too. All four of his children would still be under age 10 on Opening Day and playing in Baltimore meant he could commute from St. Michael’s, just a 90-minute drive away. “Not too many guys get a chance to play in their home state, so playing with the Orioles meant a lot to me,” he said. “I enjoyed every minute of it.”66

In 1993, he reached base in 13 straight plate appearances (eight hits and five walks) to tie a Baltimore record.67 He notched his 2,000th hit in August, and finished the season batting a career-high .313. “When I left Texas, they assumed I was done. When I left Oakland, they assumed I was done,” he said. “That has been my motivation.”68

He underwent another operation –this time on his left knee—but had two more strong years for the Orioles.69 By the end of 1995, he’d become the first big leaguer in history to appear in at least 1,000 games at both a single defensive position and as a DH.70

Baines had to find a new team in 1996 after Pat Gillick replaced Hemond as Baltimore’s GM. He signed with the White Sox as a free agent, rejoining the club that displayed his retired number at the ballpark. “I’m taking it down,” he said. “A retired number means you’re supposed to be dead and done already.”71 At 37, he was the oldest Chicago player on the roster for the entire season, but he enjoyed an excellent year, batting .311 with 22 homers and 95 RBIs. “I can’t run, but I can still see,” he quipped.72

“Harold’s amazing,” raved teammate Frank Thomas. “He hits with authority and he takes care of himself.”73

The articular cartilage in both of Baines’s knees was so worn down that bone ground against bone in spots. He spent time each day with trainer Herm Schneider, who believed the way he planted his front foot after lifting it before swinging exacerbated the stress on his knees. “I give myself a lot of credit for staying in there and fighting all the obstacles I’ve had,” Baines said. “I’ve had to work to get on the field.”74

In 1997, Baines played what proved to be his final two innings of defense in June. On July 11, he homered in Kansas City for his 2,500th hit. Three weeks later, he was batting .305 when the sub-.500 White Sox traded him back to the Orioles. He hit .364 in two rounds of playoffs as Baltimore advanced to the ALCS, but the club fell two wins short of reaching the World Series.

Baines hit .300 again in 1998 but missed nearly a month with a strained hamstring. At age 40, however, he still commanded respect. The Scouting Notebook 1999 said, “Baines remains a productive hitter with outstanding plate coverage.”75 That year, a red-hot first half gave him a .355 batting average with 21 homers in 234 at-bats by mid-July. One memorable blow came against the White Sox on May 4 — a game-ending homer (his 10th) that was also a grand slam (his 13th).76

On July 16, Baines passed Hal McRae as the all-time hit leader among designated hitters with a four-hit performance. The next day, he homered to move ahead of Don Baylor atop the position’s home run leaderboard.77 Though David Ortiz surpassed both marks in 2013, Baines’s teammate Cal Ripken noted, “Harold helped define the DH in baseball. It’s a position now. That was a discovery to a lot of people.”78

“Nobody wants to be a DH,” Baines said. “I loved playing the outfield. But with my knees, I’ve known for a long time the way I can help a baseball team is with my offense, not my defense…I’m lucky there’s still a DH in the American League. If there wasn’t, I would have been done.”79

Hopelessly out of contention, the Orioles traded him to the first-place Indians on August 27. With Cleveland, he surpassed the 100-RBI mark for the first time since 1985. His .533 slugging percentage shattered Stan Musial’s 1962 mark for 40-year-olds.80 He batted .357 with a homer in the Division Series, but the Indians fell to the Red Sox.

Baines re-signed with the Orioles for 2000, even though it wasn’t clear exactly how much he’d be utilized. “From what I know about baseball, if you’re hitting, you’ll play. If you’re not hitting, you won’t play,” he said.81 He platooned at DH again but struggled through a poor first half for a losing club. At the end of July, he was traded for the third time in four seasons, back to the White Sox, who were leading the AL Central. On a visit to Baltimore on August 15, he hit his 384th and final homer. In Chicago’s ALDS loss, he went 1-for-4 to complete his post-season career with a .324 batting average in 31 games. 

The 2001 season was Baines’ 22nd in the majors. When he lined a single off Cincinnati’s Jim Brower for his 2,686th career hit in an interleague game on June 14, his average was an awful .133. Even worse, he severely pulled a hip flexor on a checked swing.82 He returned for his 2,830th and final game on September 27 in Chicago but struck out looking in his only at bat.

Baines tried to keep playing in 2002, but he couldn’t find any takers. “I didn’t know it [2001] was going to be my last season,” he said in 2019, “but the reality is at age 42 you don’t expect the phone to ring.”83

He finished his career with a .289 batting average, 384 home runs and 1,628 RBIs. Only Al Kaline, with 399, hit more longballs among players without a single 30-homer season. When he retired, only two dozen major leaguers in history had driven in more runs.84

A word often associated with Baines is “clutch” – he had a rep for coming up big in tough situations. Yet according to one analysis, “Baines’s numbers at crucial moments were about the same as in all other situations.”85 This underscores that he was quite simply a very consistent and reliable hitter.

After his playing days ended, Baines became a roving minor league hitting instructor for the White Sox. When coach Joe Nossek retired during spring training 2004, Chicago skipper Ozzie Guillén asked his former teammate to become his bench coach, and Baines agreed. He led the club for four games when Guillén was suspended, just long enough to confirm to himself that he didn’t want to manage.

Baines finally earned a World Series ring when the 2005 White Sox became the first Chicago team in 88 years to win the Fall Classic. It meant a lot to him to accomplish a longstanding goal and to be there every day working with the players.86 He remained in uniform for another decade, as the first base coach and later the assistant hitting instructor.

In 1984, a 25-year-old Baines had said, “I want to be remembered as somebody they enjoyed watching at the ballpark, but it doesn’t have to be a superstar or anything like that.”87 Nevertheless, in 2008, the White Sox unveiled a bronze statue of him outside U.S. Cellular Field. He was inducted into the Orioles Hall of Fame the following year. As for his chances to make it to Cooperstown, he remarked in 1997, “The only thing I can control is when I’m at the plate. Other people vote for stuff. If it happens, great. If not, I’ve had a very good career.”88

Baines was considered on the National Baseball Hall of Fame ballot for five consecutive years beginning in 2007. His candidacy received support from the likes of Cal Ripken, who’d entered the Hall himself in 2007.89 Yet he never received more than 6.1% of the votes from members of the Baseball Writers Association of America – far short of the 75% required for induction. After receiving less than 5% support in 2011, he dropped off the writers’ ballot entirely. The numbers he’d compiled were deemed closer to good than great, lacking the milestone totals or league-leading figures usually achieved by the game’s immortals. To some, the fact that he’d been a platoon player for a significant part of his career neutralized the benefits of his 22-season longevity. The stigma of being primarily a DH after suffering a career-altering injury at age 27 certainly factored in as well.

After the 2015 season, Baines retired from coaching. Late in 2018, he learned that he would finally receive a plaque in Cooperstown. The Today’s Game Era Committee – including his longtime supporters Tony La Russa and Jerry Reinsdorf – gave him the 12 votes he needed out of 16 required to earn induction. Even La Russa admitted, “There were some very candid discussions” during the voting process.90 Baines himself was widely quoted as being “shocked.” It was a secret ballot and nobody else besides Reinsdorf or La Russa has gone on the record. But it’s noteworthy that eight other members of the Committee besides La Russa were also members of the Hall.

When the news broke, the other most prominent and vocal defender of Baines and his worthiness was former White Sox teammate Paul Konerko, who cited mental strength and leadership by example along with performance.

The election of Baines remains as controversial – one especially heated exchange featuring La Russa took place on MLB Network91 – as it is irreversible. Yet in his quiet and humble way, Baines expressed his gratitude to the voters and for the existence of the Committee.92

Baines became the third player picked number-one overall in the June amateur draft to enter the Hall, after Ken Griffey, Jr. and Chipper Jones – even though he was drafted a decade ahead of Griffey and 13 years ahead of Jones.

Baines’s father had died in 2014, prompting the remark, “The only thing missing when it comes to being elected to the Hall of Fame is my dad’s not here to see it.”93 On July 21, 2019, he took his place among the game’s all-time greats, closing his uncharacteristic 9 minute 54 second speech with a lesson that his father taught him when they played catch: “Words are easy, deeds are hard. Words can be empty. Deeds speak the loudest, and sometimes they echo forever.”94

In May 2021, Baines had heart replacement surgery, followed by a kidney transplant the next day.95 After recuperating, he returned to Chicago in 2022 to throw out the ceremonial first ball before the White Sox’s home opener.96 As of 2024, Baines still lived in St. Michaels and worked for the White Sox as a Community Relations Representative.

Last revised: January 30, 2024

Acknowledgments and photo credits

Special thanks to Harold Baines, who graciously granted several telephone interviews to Tim Deale, including one on his 60th birthday in 2019.

This biography was reviewed by Rory Costello and Norman Macht and fact-checked by Chris Rainey.

Photo credits: National Baseball Hall of Fame Library and Trading Card Database.

Sources

In addition to the sources cited in the Notes, the author also consulted www.baseball-reference.com, www.retrosheet.org, and www.tcdb.com.

Notes

1 Jerome Holtzman, “Low-keyed Baines Still Doing Talking with His Bat,” Chicago Tribune, June 22, 1995: E3.

2 Mike Kiley, “Baines Appears Set to Make Some Noise – On the Field,” Chicago Tribune, April 7, 1985: C1.

3 “Harold Baines,” https://libapps.salisbury.edu/nabb-online/exhibits/show/friends-rivals-baseball-delmar/national-baseball-hall-of-fame/harold-baines, (last accessed November 13, 2020).

4 Bert Lehman, “For Harold Baines, Chicago Was Always His Kind of Town,” https://sportscollectorsdigest.com/news/harold-baines-chicago-town, (last accessed November 13, 2020).

5 Peter Schmuck, “Baines’ Happy Landing,” Baltimore Sun, January 29, 1993: 1C.

6 Lehman, “For Harold Baines, Chicago Was Always His Kind of Town.”

7 Bill Veeck, “Maryland, My Maryland,” Chicago Tribune, October 4, 1983: C3.

8 Mike Kiley, “The Big RBI Goes to Baines,” Chicago Tribune, September 18, 1983: B3.

9 Veeck, “Maryland, My Maryland.”

10 Schmuck, “Baines’ Happy Landing.”

11 Dave Nightingale, “Naturally, Baines is a Success,” Chicago Tribune, April 27, 1980: C1.

12 Schmuck, “Baines’ Happy Landing.”

13 Veeck, “Maryland, My Maryland.”

14 Harold Baines, 1981 Topps Baseball Card.

15 Veeck, “Maryland, My Maryland.”

16 Kiley, “The Big RBI Goes to Baines.”

17 Nightingale, “Naturally, Baines is a Success.”

18 Kiley, “The Big RBI Goes to Baines.”

19 Ken Rosenthal, “The Beginning for Baines Was Humble One,” Baltimore Sun, October 10, 1990.

20 Bob Verdi, “Sox’s Baines Dazzles All – Except Baines,” Chicago Tribune, March 18, 1980: D1.

21 Richard Dozer, “Sox Notes,” The Sporting News, December 9, 1978: 42.

22 Nightingale, “Naturally, Baines is a Success.”

23 “Baines’ Blasts,” The Sporting News, August 25, 1979: 40.

24 Bob Logan, “Can’t Miss Baines Becomes Sox Hit,” Chicago Tribune, May 6, 1983; D2. 

25 Richard Dozer, “Bleak Outlook for Claudell,” The Sporting News, February 9, 1980: 40.

26 Jerome Holtzman, “Shell Still Perfect Fit for Baines,” Chicago Tribune, February 24, 1983: B5.

27 Verdi, “Sox’s Baines Dazzles All – Except Baines.”

28 Nightingale, “Naturally, Baines is a Success.”

29 Harold Baines, telephone interview with Tim Deale, March 15, 2019 (hereafter Baines-Deale interview).

30 Verdi, “Sox’s Baines Dazzles All – Except Baines.”

31 Lehman, “For Harold Baines, Chicago Was Always His Kind of Town.”

32 Harold Baines, 1982 Topps Baseball Card.

33 “Cubs Rough Up Gaylord,” The Sporting News, April 3, 1982: 38

34 Kiley, “Baines Appears Set to Make Some Noise – On the Field.”

35 Baines-Deale interview.

36 Another 23-year-old, Frank Thomas, was 10 weeks younger than Baines when he drove in 100 runs for Chicago in 1991.

37 Murray Chass, “55 Players Rate ‘Super Rich’ Tag,” The Sporting News, February 14, 1983: 39.

38 Kiley, “The Big RBI Goes to Baines.”

39 Veeck, “Maryland, My Maryland.”

40 Schmuck, “Baines’ Happy Landing.”

41 Joe Goddard, “Patience at Plate Pays Off for Baines,” The Sporting News, July 2, 1984: 19.

42 Dave Van Dyck, “Baines Critics Out of Ammo,” The Sporting News, August 27, 1984: 32.

43Dave Van Dyck, “Over the Long Run, Baines’ Stats Better,” The Sporting News, May 20, 1985: 17.

44 Kiley, “Baines Appears Set to Make Some Noise – On the Field.”

45 Joe Goddard, “Sox Seek to Make Baines a ‘Lifer’,” The Sporting News, March 31, 1986: 37.

46 “A.L. West,” The Sporting News, September 15, 1986: 16.

47 Baines-Deale interview.

48 Baines-Deale interview.

49 In 1990, Fisk passed Baines to become the White Sox’s all-time home run leader. By the time Baines moved back in front of Fisk in 1997, Frank Thomas had surpassed both players.

50 “White Sox,” The Sporting News, January 25, 1988: 48. 

51 “White Sox,” The Sporting News, July 4, 1988: 21.

52 Since 2004, it’s been called the Edgar Martinez Award.

53 Lehman, “For Harold Baines, Chicago Was Always His Kind of Town.”

54 “White Sox,” The Sporting News, January 16, 1989: 44.

55 “White Sox,” The Sporting News, January 2, 1989: 64.

56 “A.L. West,” The Sporting News, August 14, 1989: 23.

57 Joe Goddard, “‘Mr. White Sox’ Goes to Texas,” The Sporting News, August 7, 1989: 23.

58 Goddard, “‘Mr. White Sox’ Goes to Texas.”

59 Joe Goddard, “Chicago White Sox,” The Sporting News, August 19, 1996: 27.

60 “Rangers,” The Sporting News, August 28, 1989: 22.

61 “Gonzalez’s Progress Means Bye-Bye Baines,” The Sporting News, September 10, 1990: 14.

62 Kit Stier, “Oakland Athletics,” The Sporting News, May 20, 1991: 17. In 1932, Jimmie Foxx had a 16-total base game for the Philadelphia Athletics.

63 Harold Baines, 1993 Topps Baseball card.

64 Schmuck, “Baines’ Happy Landing.”

65 Schmuck, “Baines’ Happy Landing.”

66 Lehman, “For Harold Baines, Chicago Was Always His Kind of Town.”

67 2000 Baltimore Orioles Media Guide: 51.

68 Phil Rogers, “Baines Tips Cap to Trainer,” Chicago Tribune, March 9, 1997: 3

69 Peter Schmuck, “Baines Hurting but Should Return,” The Sporting News, October 18, 1993: 22.

70 Harold Baines, 1996 Collector’s Choice Baseball Card. Baines played 1,042 games in right field. While both Paul Molitor and Chili Davis exceeded 1,000 games played on defense, neither player saw action in 1,000 games at any single defensive position.

71 Dave Van Dyck, “Back to Future,” The Sporting News, February 19, 1996: 27.

72 Joe Goddard, “Chicago White Sox,” The Sporting News, June 3, 1996: 32.

73 Joe Goddard, “Chicago White Sox,” The Sporting News, August 19, 1996: 27.

74 Rogers, “Baines Tips Cap to Trainer.”

75 John Dewan, ‎Don Zminda, ‎and Jim Callis (editors), The Scouting Notebook 1999, Chicago: STATS Inc. (1999): 47.

76 Chris Bodig, “Harold Baines Hall of Fame Moments,” Cooperstown Cred, July 21, 2019 (https://www.cooperstowncred.com/harold-baines-hall-of-fame-moments/)

77 2000 Baltimore Orioles Media Guide: 50.

78 Bonnie DeSimone, “Pursuit of the Ring, Forget Sentiment,” Chicago Tribune, September 30, 1997: 4, 1:4.    

79 Rogers, “Baines Tips Cap to Trainer.”

80 2000 Baltimore Orioles Media Guide: 50.

81 Dave Buscema, “Baines Home, Again,” York [Pennsylvania] Daily Record, December 10, 1999: B01.

82 Scot Gregor, “Hip Injury Sidelines Baines and Might End His Career,” The Sporting News, June 25, 2001: 33.

83 Baines-Deale interview.

84 Harold Baines, 2005 Donruss Classics Stars of Summer Baseball Card.

85 Bill Deane, Baseball Myths, Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press (2012) : 145.

86 Baines-Deale interview.

87 Phil Hersh, “Baines is a Star Lost in the Shadows,” Chicago Tribune, September 9, 1984: C1.

88 Bonnie DeSimone, “Pursuit of the Ring, Forget Sentiment,” Chicago Tribune, September 30, 1997: 4.

89 Mike Klingaman, “A Classy Guy Who Could Hit,” Baltimore Sun, August 28, 2009.

90 David Schoenfeld, “Harold Baines wasn’t ‘sitting around thinking about’ Hall of Fame nod,” ESPN.com, December 10, 2018.

91 For further discussion, see the biography of Al Oliver on the SABR BioProject.

92 Baines-Deale interview.

93 Lehman, “For Harold Baines, Chicago Was Always His Kind of Town.”

94 “National Baseball Hall of Fame Weekend,” http://www.asapsports.com/show_interview.php?id=152264 (last accessed November 18, 2020).

95 Scott Merkin, “Baines Thankful for Second Chance with New Heart, Kidney,” MLB.com, April 11, 2022, https://www.mlb.com/news/harold-baines-heart-kidney-transplant (last accessed January 30, 2024).

96 Jasmine Smith, “MLB Legend Harold Baines Receives Second Chance with New Heart,” BlackDoctor.org, April 19, 2022, https://blackdoctor.org/mlb-legend-harold-baines-recieves-second-chance-with-new-heart/3/ (last accessed January 30, 2024).

Johnnie B. Baker Jr., was born on June 15, 1949, in Riverside, California. He picked up his nickname, Dusty, early in life from his mother. “We had a big backyard that my dad planted, had grass everywhere,” according to Baker. “It was like a football field, and then there was one dirt spot in the middle and that’s where I seemed to like to play. My mom didn’t want to call me ‘Dirty,’ so she called me ‘Dusty.’”1

Baker’s parents were Johnnie B. Sr., who was a defense industry worker and Christine, a professor. His father worked two jobs in order for his family to have what they needed. After the senior Baker finished his work for the Air Force, he would work as a salesman at Sears in the evenings. “He wanted better for us kids,” said Baker. “He said that I would be better than that.”2

He was the oldest of five children. Since both parents worked, Baker was often called upon to manage his unruly younger siblings. When things went wrong and his siblings misbehaved, his father would punish Baker. His mother was also important in his life. It was his mother who determined what courses Baker would take in school, especially during his high school years.

Besides his academic classes, she also insisted that he take piano lessons. “I wanted to be Little Richard or Jerry Lee Lewis. She wanted me to be Liberace. Did I have a choice? That wasn’t a word in our house. She told me that I was going to have culture whether I wanted it or not. Love is discipline. I had plenty of both.”3

Baker expressed an interest in baseball early in life. He spent many hours with his father who believed that “once you decided to do something, you have to completely finish it. [Dusty] said he wanted to play baseball so I hit him hundreds of balls. By the time that he was 12, he was a very good player.”4

Baker did have thoughts of hanging up his glove at times. “I didn’t make the Major Little League team. Then I didn’t make one of the all-star teams, and I thought that I should have. So I decided to quit and get a paper route. But thankfully my father wouldn’t let me.”5

When Baker was 14 years old, his father lost his job and the family moved to Sacramento California. He enrolled at Del Campo High School where Baker and his brother were the only Black students. He excelled in several sports and was chosen all-city in baseball and all-county in basketball, football and track during his time there.

Basketball was his best sport. Baker would play with his friends as often as possible although “pickup games in his driveway would always cease when his father came home at 4 PM.”6 When asked about playing baseball in high school, he said, “I was good in baseball but I wasn’t great in baseball. I played in the spring with the school team and, in the summer, I would play with the American Legion, Little League or Pony League. I came all the way up. I was skilled in all departments, but I just wasn’t strong.”7

Baker’s parents divorced during his senior year. His father wanted him to attend college but Baker had other plans. When the Atlanta Braves drafted him in the 26th round of the 1967 MLB June Amateur Draft, Baker had already received a basketball scholarship to UC-Santa Clara. He and his mother signed the Braves contract against his father’s wishes.

The Braves sent him to the Class AA Austin Braves (Texas League) where he played in nine games and hit .231. The following year he bounced around the Braves minor league system, playing on the Braves Class A teams in Greenwood and West Palm Beach as well as in the Arizona winter league. Baker made his major league debut that year when he pinch-hit for Phil Niekro in a game against the Astros on September 7, 1968. He came up empty in his debut but managed to get two hits in five plate appearances by the end of the season.

In 1968, the Braves asked Baker to enlist in the United States Marine Corps Reserve. “I wasn’t crazy about the idea. It turned out to be one of the best things that ever happened in my life. It helped me a lot. I came home more disciplined,” he said later.8 Baker served as an auto mechanic until his honorable discharge as a lance corporal in 1974.

Baker continued to move up through the Braves system in 1969. In between his time in the Marine reserves, he played in Class AA Shreveport and Class AAA Richmond. Baker hit .285 with 11 home runs and 61 RBIs that year. He also made an appearance with the Braves in three games near the end of the season.

The Braves were so confident in Baker that they promoted him to their Class AAA team, the Richmond Braves, in 1970. He played in 118 games for Richmond, played outfield, and batted .325. Baker also spent the 1971 season in Richmond. He continued to provide a solid bat for the team, hitting .311 that year. The Braves called him up again in September and he started in 20 games.

Baker finally made the Braves major league roster for good in 1972, becoming their starting center fielder. Baker provided punch to the Braves batting order, hitting .321, second on the team behind Ralph Garr. He even remained in contention to win the NL batting title that year. “If I had been told that a year ago, it would have really made me nervous. Now, it doesn’t bother me so much.”9

After his first full season in the majors, Baker cemented his role as the Braves center fielder for the next three seasons. Although he never batted as well, he averaged .269 and hit 60 home runs during that stretch. As Baker played alongside Hank Aaron, the press began to tout him as “the next Hank Aaron.” His manager, Eddie Matthews, said in 1974 that, “He has super tools. Maybe he doesn’t have the power that Hank has, but he has everything else. He’s a tremendous athlete.”10

Despite his solid efforts, Baker was traded on November 17, 1975 along with Ed Goodson to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Lee Lacy, Tom Paciorek, Jerry Royster and Jim Wynn. Baker had expressed a desire to be traded at the end of the 1975 season. The trade sent him back home to California where he would take over center field for the Dodgers. “He can run, throw, field and hit for power. And it’s our feeling that he has yet to reach his peak,” said Dodgers general manager Al Campanis.11

Baker played 112 games for the Dodgers in his first year before he was injured near the end of the 1976 season. He needed knee surgery to repair stretched ligaments. The surgery reduced his speed and he shifted to left field the following year. The change seemed to help Baker as he improved his batting average almost 50 points in 1977. He also hit 30 home runs, the most of his career to date. “They told me it was about time that I reached my peak,” he said at the end of the season.12

Baker was also part of the first “high five” in baseball on October 2 after he hit his 30th homer of the season. The Dodgers became the first team in history to have four players hit more than 30 home runs (Baker, Ron Cey, Steve Garvey and Reggie Smith). Glenn Burke, who was waiting on deck, thrust his hand enthusiastically over his head to greet Baker at the plate. Baker, not knowing what to do, smacked it. “His hand was up in the air, and he was arching way back,” said Baker. “So I reached up and hit his hand. It seemed like the thing to do.”13

When the Dodgers reached the playoffs, Baker batted .357 in the NLCS against Philadelphia. His play earned him the MVP award for the series. Baker continued to hit well in the World Series against the Yankees, hitting .292 with one homer, as the Dodgers fell to New York in six games.

Baker continued to improve over the next five seasons. He batted just .269 with 34 homers during the 1978-79 seasons but he once again performed well when the Dodgers returned to the playoffs in 1978. Baker batted .467 against Philadelphia to help the Dodgers return to the World Series.

Baker enhanced his numbers even further in 1980. He batted .294 and led the Dodgers with 29 home runs while his 97 RBIs were second to Garvey. His efforts earned him a Silver Slugger award. Baker became a free agent at the end of the season but eventually signed a five-year contract with the Dodgers.

He continued to improve in 1981 when he batted .320 and earned his first All-Star game nod. Shortly before he was chosen, Baker said, “Last year I had got my hopes up about making the All-Star team. I’ve been disappointed so many times that this year I don’t have my hopes up.”14 Baker replaced George Foster in the game and got one hit in two plate appearances. He also earned his second Silver Slugger award at the end of the season and his only Gold Glove award.

When the Dodgers returned to the postseason, Baker struggled in the NLDS, hitting just .167, but his bat came alive in the NLCS. He batted .316 to help the Dodgers return to the World Series where they faced the Yankees again. Baker managed four hits against New York, despite thinking that he might have broken his wrist near the end of the season when he threw a punch at a heckler in Montreal.15

Baker had another solid season in 1982. His .300 batting average, .818 slugging percentage and 23 home runs were second on the team to Pedro Guerrero. Baker’s bat led him to being chosen to the All-Star Game for the second year. Although he made two plate appearances, neither produced a hit.

Baker’s production trailed off in 1983. His batting average fell 37 points along with his other offensive statistics. When Baker resisted a trade, the Dodgers placed him on waivers after the season. He signed a contract with the San Francisco Giants on April 1,1984 but only after signing his waiver release. Baker had been the object of unsubstantiated rumors of drug use towards the end of the 1983 season and felt that signing the release was the only way to clear his name.16

“I knew the only way to clear my name and feel good with myself was to be performing out in the field. Even if I got a chance to play next year, then there always would be a shadow hanging over my head.” And when asked about the drugs, he said, “I’m afraid to do something illegal. I have a nice life. I have a nice family.”17

Baker played one season in San Francisco, dividing his time between left and right field in a part-time role. The Giants traded Baker to the Oakland Athletics for two minor league players, Ed Puikunas and Dan Winters shortly before the 1985 season. He expressed excitement about joining the A’s saying “Oakland has a good team and it’s better now with me on it.”18

Oakland said that they planned to use the veteran Baker in a number of roles including first base. He said that he had no trouble playing first base and that his former teammate Steve Garvey had sent him a glove. “I just need a little patience and practice. I can do anything I set my mind to.”19 Besides starting 58 games at first base, he also played 36 games in the outfield that season, batting .268 with 14 home runs and 52 RBIs.

Baker played a similar part-time role in 1986. His production dropped as he batted just .240 with only four home runs and 19 RBIs. The A’s wanted to send him to their Class AAA Tacoma team for the 1987 season, but Baker chose free agency instead and then decided to retire.

After retiring, Baker worked in Los Angeles as a stock broker. Campanis, now general manager of San Francisco, signed him as the Giants first base coach in the fall of 1987. Campanis also insisted that Baker get some managerial experience by managing in the Arizona Fall League. After one year in the first base coaching box, he spent the following four years (1989–1992) as the Giants hitting coach.

The Giants tried to get Baker to manage in their minor league system after hiring him but Baker resisted. “I think that minor league experience is overrated,” Baker said in an interview in 1992. “I always thought I was bright about baseball from the start. I was always told that I played older than my age. I’ve been a so-called student of the game. As a player, I managed in my mind.”20

Baker was named the Giants manager in 1993, replacing Roger Craig. His team won 103 games, the second-best record in baseball that year behind the 104–58 Atlanta Braves. It was also 31 games better than their 72–90 finish the previous year. His efforts earned him the NL Manager of the Year award. “I got cut from my dad’s Little League team when I was 8, 9, and 10. He said I had a bad attitude. And I remember being an (all-star) alternate when I was 11 and dropping a ball over the fence for a grand-slam homer in a game we lost by one run. After all that, this is the first major award I’ve ever won. I really don’t know what to say or how to react.”21

Baker remained the Giants manager through 2002. His Giants won division titles in 1997 and again in 2000. He would win Manager of the Year honors two more times, 1997 and 2000. In his 10 years at the helm of the Giants, Baker compiled an 840-715 record. Baker’s Giants gained the wild-card berth and went on to win the National League pennant in 2002. They faced the Los Angeles Angels in the World Series and eventually lost in seven games. Baker became the second Black manager to manage a World Series team after Cito Gaston, who led Toronto to the championship in 1992 and 1993.

The Giants decided not to offer Baker a new contract after the season. He departed the Giants second in wins and games managed behind John McGraw. Giants general manager Brian Sabean said at the time, “The guy’s had a great career here. He’s going to go off to greener pastures in his mind, the pot of gold. God bless him. I’m happy for him, but I also realize 10 years in one place is a lifetime.”22

Baker didn’t stay unemployed long as the Cubs signed him days later to take the helm of the Cubs. He said after his hiring that he hoped to help the Cubs, who hadn’t had back-to-back winning seasons since 1972-1973 develop into a consistent winner. He told reporters that he planned to change the attitude on the team saying “Everybody around here thinks they’re going to lose. That’s what I see. I had a lot of media tell me today that they feel sorry for me, like I’m going to the death chamber or something.“23

Baker made a major impact with the Cubs in his first season as manager. The club claimed their first division title in 14 years behind the bats of Sammy Sosa and Moisés Alou as well as a solid pitching staff. The Cubs made it to the NLCS but their championship hopes were cut short against the Florida Marlins. The series included the infamous Steve Bartman Incident in Game 6, when the Cubs were up 3-0 and five outs from their first World Series appearance in almost 60 years.24

Baker’s Cubs were involved in a heated wild card chase with the Houston Astros in 2004 but failed to make the playoffs although they finished with an 89-73 record. In 2005 the Cubs lost a number of their key players to injuries and saw its fortunes reversed as they finished with a losing 79-83 record. Baker struggled unsuccessfully to turn around the Cubs’ record in 2006 but they continued to decline and finished 66–96, last in the entire National League.

The Cubs decided not to renew Baker’s contract after the season. When he was asked for his reaction, Baker said “There’s really no answers. I guess that all things must come to an end.”25 His record in Chicago was 322-326.

Baker joined the managerial ranks again in October 2007 when the Cincinnati Reds hired him as their manager. “This was the place where I was most wanted,” he said when he was hired. “It’s a great feeling when you feel wanted and feel needed. I want to reciprocate that need and that want to the organization and the city of Cincinnati.”26

Baker’s teams struggled during his first two years, finishing with losing records both years. But he began to turn things around in 2010 and the Reds were one of the big surprises that year, winning the NL Central title and making their first playoff appearance in 15 years. Unfortunately, they lost to the Phillies in the NLDS. The Reds rewarded Baker with a two-year contract extension at the end of the season.

After the Reds struggled in 2011, Baker led the team to a 97-65 record in 2012. Near the end of the season, Baker had to be hospitalized for an irregular heartbeat. The Reds clinched the division title in his absence. Once again, the team could not get past the NLDS, losing to the Giants in five games. Baker signed another two-year contract extension as manager of the Reds after the season.

Baker’s Reds finished the 2013 season with a 90-72 record. After they lost to the Pittsburgh Pirates in the National League Wild Card Game, their sixth straight loss at the end of the season, Cincinnati fired Baker. “Maybe the time was long enough because I was starting to get quite a few jeers and some hate mail and stuff,” he said. “Maybe it was time to move on.”27 Baker finished his tenure in Cincinnati with a 509-463 record.

The Washington Nationals hired Baker on November 3, 2015. At the time of his hiring, he had the second-highest total of wins among active managers. “We were looking for a manager to help us achieve our ultimate goal of competing for a World Series championship,” said Nationals owner Ted Lerner. Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo echoed that sentiment when he said, “We are excited to bring him to Washington and put his steady demeanor, knowledge and many years in the game to work in our favor.”28

The Nationals won the NL East in Baker’s first season, but lost in the NLDS in five games against the Dodgers. The following season, Baker led the Nationals to another NL East Championship. However, their postseason was once again cut short in the NLDS, this time to the Chicago Cubs.

Despite finishing the season with a 97-65, the Nationals announced on October 20, 2017 that Baker would not return as the team’s manager. “Winning a lot of regular season games and winning divisions is not enough,” said Rizzo.29 The Nationals record was 192-132 during Baker’s two years at the helm.

Baker returned to the Giants organization as a Special Advisor to the Giants CEO, Laurence Baer, in 2018. He would help the team both on the field as well as on the business end. “We are thrilled to welcome Dusty back to the organization,” said Baer. “In addition to being one of the most beloved Giants alumni, Dusty brings a wealth of expertise, knowledge and experience to this position and I know his contributions will be felt far and wide throughout our organization.”30

Baker returned to the dugout on January 29, 2020 when the Astros announced him as their new manager. He signed a one-year contract with a club option for a second year. It was the first time that Baker would manage in the American League. The team had just been caught in a cheating scandal31 and Astros owner Jim Crane said that Baker was needed to help the team move forward. “Dusty’s a person of high integrity and he’s a respected leader,” said Crane. “He has great baseball experience, and he will earn the players’ trust.”32

The Astros, with a 29-31 record, clinched a playoff spot as the sixth seed in a COVID-shortened season, making Baker the first baseball manager to lead five teams to the postseason.

Many wondered if Baker might have been hired as a one-year stop gap to distance the club from their previous management. But the Astros picked up the 2021 option on the 71-year old Baker’s contract midway through the 2020 season. “Dusty has been a perfect fit for our ballclub,” general manager James Click said. “His knowledge of the game and experience have been invaluable to us in his first few months with the club.”33

The Astros under Baker’s leadership returned to the postseason again in 2021. Baker became the first manager to win a division title with five different teams. Houston faced the Atlanta Braves in the World Series and lost in six games. Baker was chosen as the American League Manager of the Year after the season, the fourth time that he won the award.

Baker finished the season needing just 13 more wins to reach 2,000. He signed a one-year contract to manage the Astros in 2022. Baker attained the 2,000-win milestone when the Astros beat the Seattle Mariners on May 3, 2000. He became the 12th manager and the first Black man in that club.

“I think about Hank Aaron and Jackie Robinson and Frank Robinson, who helped me a lot,“ said Baker after the win. “I’ve also got to thank my detractors for giving me the motivation to go on because there’s a lot of people that doubted me in the beginning when I first got the job with no experience.“34

After sweeping their first two playoff series, Baker’s Astros returned to the World Series again in 2022. They lost two of the first three games against Philadelphia but won the next three to bring the Commissioner’s Trophy back to Houston. Baker became the oldest manager to win the championship.

“I tried not to dwell on it, but tried to have faith and perseverance and knowing that with the right team and the right personnel and right everything that this is going to happen,“ Baker said of finally winning the title. “Had this happened years ago, I might not even be here. So maybe it wasn’t supposed to happen so that I could hopefully influence a few young men’s lives and their families and a number of people in the country through showing what perseverance and character can do for you in the long run.“35

Baker remains the oldest manager in major league baseball at present, but he signed a third one-year contract with the Houston Astros on November 9, 2022. “I always said if I win one, I wanted two,” he said. “I’m going to try to keep my word. I like to keep my word, especially like this. This was as much fun as I’ve had ever. I had forgotten about how much fun the ticker-tape parade was because it’s been 40 years since the last one I went to.“36

In between his various managing stints, Baker was an ESPN analyst. He first worked during the 2006 MLB Postseason and returned for the 2007 postseason. Baker joined TBS as a studio analyst for the final two weeks of their regular season coverage in 2015 as well as for their coverage of the National League playoffs that year.

Baker also owns Baker Family Wines. The winery was started in 2014 along with co-owner and winemaker Chik Brenneman. The small winery produces approximately 800 cases of wine a year, and sources fruit from around the Sierra Foothills and Northern California.37

Baker’s first marriage was to Alice Lee Washington and he has a daughter from that marriage, Natosha, who was born in 1979. He is presently married to Melissa. They have been married since 1994. They have one son, Darren, who was born in 1999. His son is following in his father’s footsteps by playing baseball. After graduating high school, Darren was drafted by the Nationals in the 27th round of the 2018 June amateur draft. But he chose to attend the University of California on a baseball scholarship. The Nationals followed Darren and drafted him again in June 2021 (10th round). The second baseman reached Class AA in 2022.

Baker will be remembered as one of the most successful managers in baseball history. His record after 25 seasons as a big-league manager is 2,092-1,790 – he has the ninth most wins all-time and is within striking distance of #8 (Joe McCarthy – 2,125) and #7 (Bucky Harris – 2,158). If he gets 102 wins in 2023, which is feasible, he would surpass Sparky Anderson as #6. Down the line, circumstances permitting, he could dislodge Joe Torre (2,326) from the top five.

Although Baker is by no means finished, the 2022 World Series championship may be viewed as the capstone on his career. Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson remarked, “I’m happy that he’s now going to get his due. He’s going to get some pats on the back and cross that bridge to get elected to the Hall of Fame.”38 Indeed, of the top 10 winningest managers in big-league history, Baker is the only one not yet enshrined.39

Last revised: December 1, 2022

Acknowledgments

This biography was reviewed by Paul Doutrich and Bruce Harris and fact-checked by Kevin Larkin.

Originally published in December 2020. Most recently updated in December 2022, with additional review and input from Rory Costello.

Sources

In addition to the sources cited in the Notes, the author used Baseball-Reference.com, Baseball-Almanac.com, and Retrosheet.org for player, team, and season pages, and other pertinent material.

Notes

1 Briana Tinsman, “Ever Wonder How Dusty Baker Got His Nickname?” Washington.CBSlocal.com, October 10, 2016.

2 Pedro Gomez, Baker a Giant to His Troops, Arizona Republic, March 5, 1998: C5.

3 Gomez.

4 Lance Pugmire, “On the Same Side,” Los Angeles Times, October 18, 2002: D11.

5 Wayne Minshew, “Baker is Thankful His Father Knows Best,” Atlanta Constitution, May 28, 1972: 4D.

6 Steve Rushin, “Easy Rider,” Sports Illustrated.com, August 23, 1999.

7 Cody Porter, “Dusty Baker was Four-sport Standout in High School Days,” NFHS.org, January 14: 2020.

8 Jim Dresbach, “Marines taught Nationals Manager Dusty Baker valuable life lessons,” Pentagram (DCMilitary.com), October 16, 2020.

9 Wayne Minshew, “Only Race for Braves Involves Garr, Baker,” Atlanta Constitution, September 22, 1972: 3D.

10 Wayne Minshew, “The Next Henry Aaron?” Atlanta Constitution, April 4, 1974: 26S.

11 “Dodgers Deal Jimmy Wynn for Dusty Baker,” Palm Springs Desert Sun, November 18, 1975: B4.

12 Toby Zwikel, “Baker, Dodgers…Feeling Powerful Now!” Van Nuys Valley News, October 9, 1977: 41.

13 Jon Mooallem, “The Wild, Mysterious History of Sports’ Most Enduring Gesture: The High Five,” ESPN.com, May 22, 2020.

14 David Moore, “Lopes, Baker Take All-Star Fortunes in Stride,” San Bernnardino County Sun, August 4, 1981: D1.

15 Bob Padecky, “Baker Thought His Wrist Might Have Been Broken,” Sacramento Bee, October 29, 1981: C4.

16 Bob Padecky, “Sincerity Most-Missed Member of Dodgers ‘Family’” Sacramento Bee, April 22, 1984: C2.

17 Padecky, 1984.

18 Glen Schwarz, “Giants Trade Baker to A’s,” San Francisco Examiner, March 24, 1985: C2.

19 Schwarz.

20 Nick Peters, “Humm Baker? Dusty Says He Can Manage,” Sacramento Bee, December 6, 1992: E14.

21 Jim Van Vliet, “Manager of Year Award Helps Ease Baker’s Pain,” Santa Rosa Press Democrat, October 27, 1993: C2.

22 Henry Schulman, “Tell Him Goodbye,” SFGate.com, November 7, 2002.

23 Paul Sullivan, “Baker Seeks to End Fan Club,” Chicago Tribune, November 20, 2002: C4.

24 The “Bartman Incident” occurred when Steve Bartman reached for a fly ball but deflected it, disrupting Moises Alou’s potential catch. The incident happened in the eighth inning of Game Six of the National League Championship Series, with Chicago leading 3-0 and up three games to two lead in the best-of-seven series. Florida Marlins batter Luis Castillo hit a fly ball into foul territory in left field. Chicago outfielder Moisés Alou chased the ball and leapt near the fence in an attempt to make the catch. Bartman’s interference prevented Alou from making the catch. If Alou had caught the ball, it would have been the second out in the inning, and the Cubs would have been just four outs away from winning their first National League pennant since 1945. The Cubs eventually surrendered eight runs in the inning and lost the game 8-3.The Cubs were eliminated in the seventh game the next day.

25 Mike Downey, “Baker Has No Answers,” Chicago Tribune, October 3, 2006: 4-6.

26 Dustin Dow, “Reds Persistence Was Convincing,” Cincinnati Enquirer, October 16, 2007: C4.

27 (Associated Press), “Reds Dismiss Baker After Dreadful Finish,” Akron Beacon Journal, October 5, 2013: C4.

28 Howard Fendrich, “Washington Nationals hire Dusty Baker as manager,” TheStar.com, November 3, 2015.

29 Steve Adams, “Dusty Baker Will Not Return As Nationals’ Manager In 2018,” MLBTradeRumors.com, October 20, 2017.

30 “Giants name Dusty Baker special advisor to the CEO,” MLB.com, March 26, 2018.

31 The Astros were found guilty of stealing signs by Major League Baseball in 2019. Houston’s illegal sign-stealing operation included using live video feeds and banging on a trash can to convey to batters which pitches were coming next. The Astros were fined $5 million and lost two first-round draft picks. Jeff Luhnow, Houston’s general manager, and A.J. Hinch, the team’s manager were suspended for a season. Both were fired shortly afterward by the team. Alex Cora, Houston’s bench coach at the time and later Boston’s manager, helped lead the Astros’ scheme. He was also suspended for a year and eventually fired by the Red Sox. No players were suspended since Rob Manfred, MLB commissioner, said that such an action would be ‘difficult and impractical’ and there was no clear way to evaluate whether the players actually benefitted from the operation. Neal Vigdor, “The Houston Astros’ Cheating Scandal: Sign-Stealing, Buzzer Intrigue and Tainted Pennants,” New York Times, July 16, 2020,

https://www.nytimes.com/article/astros-cheating.html.

32 “Dusty Baker Takes Over Scandal-marred Astros, Says It’s His ‘Last Hurrah’,” ESPN.com, January 30, 2020.

33 Steve Adams, “Astros Exercise Club Option On Dusty Baker, MLBTradeRumors.com, July 28, 2020.

34 Ben Morse, “Dusty Baker becomes first Black MLB manager to win 2,000 games,” CNN.com, May 4, 2022. https://www.cnn.com/2022/05/04/sport/dusty-baker-2000-wins-mlb-spt-intl

35 Brian McTaggart, “’Sheer joy’ as Baker gets 1st World Series Title as Manager, MLB.com, November 6, 2022. https://www.mlb.com/news/dusty-baker-wins-first-world-series-title-as-manager

36 Dan Lyons, “Astros Announce Dusty Baker Will Return As Manager in 2023,” SI.com, November 9, 2022. https://www.si.com/mlb/2022/11/09/dusty-baker-contract-2023-houston-astros-world-series

37 Emily Hamann, “Dusty Baker’s winery moving to West Sacramento,” Bizjournals.com, July 5, 2019.

38 Tyler Kepner, “A ‘Legend’ Finally Gets His Moment,” New York Times, November 6, 2022.

39 Of the top 15, Bruce Bochy and Gene Mauch are the others who have not been inducted.

Jesse Lee Barfield was born on October 29, 1959, in Joliet, Illinois, roughly 30 miles southwest of Chicago. His mother, Annie J. Barfield, had just turned 18. “My father abandoned us and decided to marry another woman. So that’s when my mom met a man named Jesse who stepped in, and he and my mom started dating. I was actually named after him,” Barfield explained. “Everyone in my family told me that he was my dad.”1 Annie eventually married another man and had three more children: Darryl, Melanie and Eric. Annie divorced around the time Jesse became a teen and worked as a seamstress to support Jesse and his three siblings. “We made a tough situation great,” Jesse said. “I owe my mom a lot of credit because we didn’t actually know we were poor, I don’t think we were, I mean, we didn’t miss any meals.”2

The George Werden Buck Boys Club was Jesse’s home away from home. “It was a lifesaver for me,” he said.3 He perfected his ping pong skills enough to win some events and finish second in a city tournament. Basketball, shooting pool and swimming also kept him out of trouble. Despite pressure to root for either the Cubs or White Sox, he recalled, “I had heroes on both teams.”4 White Sox’ slugger Dick Allen was one, but Ernie Banks was his favorite. He watched Mr. Cub play every day on WGN-TV and imitated his batting stance. Jesse was 12 when he joined his first baseball team at the repeated prodding of his friend Rick, who urged him to try out for the Belmont Little League. He started as a shortstop and pitcher.5 Jesse’s passion for the sport developed quickly. On a Boys Club trip to Comiskey Park when he was 13, Barfield recalled, “We used to sit up in the right-field upper deck area…I told the guys, no joke, ‘Man, one day I’m going to playing right out there. You watch.’”6 They laughed.

Jesse played Pony League and Colt League ball in Ingalls Park, and made both the basketball and baseball teams at Joliet Central High School. As a junior, he ripped a game-winning double off Joliet Catholic pitcher Bill Gullickson.”7 Since Gullickson would be the number-two overall draft pick the following year, scouts from a handful of big-league teams witnessed it, including Bobby Mattick –who joined the expansion Toronto Blue Jays a few months later. “Bobby liked the way Jesse swung the bat,” recalled scout Al LaMacchia. “The ball he hit was a double that put a hole in the wooden fence.”8 After Barfield earned first team All-American honors as a senior, the Blue Jays selected him in the ninth round of the 1977 June Amateur Draft.

Toronto offered $2,500, but Barfield had other options. He’d won a statewide drafting contest and earned a scholarship to study architectural drawing at Bradley University in Peoria.9 After the Blue Jays tripled their bonus offer, he signed with scout Bob Engle.10 Jesse bought his mother a new Ford Thunderbird.11

He debuted with Utica (New York) in the short-season, Single-A New York-Pennsylvania League in 1977. Jesse’s mom drove him to the Rawlings Adirondack factory 35 miles away in Dolgeville and loaded him up with two dozen customized bats.12 Barfield’s first professional homer was a game-winning, three-run shot, but he went deep only five times in 70 games and batted .226.13 “The first time I saw a slider in the rookie league, I couldn’t hit it,” he recalled. “I just made a half-swing.”14 That fall in the Florida Instructional League, the Blue Jays opened up his stance to help him track the ball better.”15

Barfield’s first full-length season was 1978 with Dunedin in the Single-A Florida State League, where chronic losing in front of small crowds made baseball feel more like a job.16 In 133 games, he produced only two home runs and a .206 batting average while striking out a league-high 125 times. “You’re not going to do well every day,” he reflected. “If you can’t accept this game the way it is, then you might as well get into something else.”17 Barfield’s throwing arm was already big-league, as evidenced by his circuit-best 22 outfield assists. “I believe my fielding is what kept me in the game until I learned how to hit,” he said.18

In 1979, Barfield led the Kinston (North Carolina) Eagles of the Single-A Carolina League with 37 extra-base hits and raised his average to .264 in 136 games. The Blue Jays added him to their 40-man roster. He became an offseason resident of Houston, where his mother had moved for work.19

Toronto had a Double-A affiliate for the first time in 1980, and Barfield hit the first home run in the history of the Knoxville Blue Jays.20 Despite missing the last three weeks with a broken thumb, he paced the Southern League team with 14 homers, 65 RBIs, and 63 runs scored in 124 contests.21 Barfield healed in time for winter ball in Colombia and returned wearing a gold pendant featuring the Blue Jays logo. 22 “The guys give me a lot of noise over it,” he admitted. “They say, ‘What you gonna do if you get traded?’”23

Billy Smith, Toronto’s player development director, encouraged him, saying, “You’re a can’t-miss if you keep the right attitude.”24 Barfield returned to Knoxville in 1981 and earned team MVP honors, batting .261 with 16 homers in 141 games.25 His all-around display included professional highs in triples (13), stolen bases (25), and a league-best 23 outfield assists.

The Blue Jays were on the road when they called Barfield up to the majors. He was to join the team at Comiskey Park, where his Boys Club friends had laughed at him. “After I called my mom first, you’d better believe I got on the horn to talk to those guys,” he said.26 For his debut on September 3, Barfield recalled, “I was so fresh that they had to staple my number to the uniform.27 He stroked an RBI single to center against lefty Steve Trout in his second at-bat and stole second base after reaching first base on a fielder’s choice in the seventh inning. In the series finale on September 6, Barfield blasted his first big-league homer off Britt Burns. He hit safely in his first eight contests and finished the season with a .232 average and two homers in 25 games, plus lessons from hitting coach and Hall-of-Famer Bobby Doerr. “Bobby talked to me about picking the right pitch, swinging at strikes,” Barfield recalled.28

That winter, Toronto GM Pat Gillick said he wanted Barfield to gain Triple-A experience in 1982.29 Barfield led the Venezuelan League’s Cardenales de Lara in RBIs despite coming home early after losing 18 pounds from a virus.30 He gained the weight back and more working out with a Nautilus machine.31 “He’s put on 10 pounds, and it’s all muscle,” Gillick remarked in spring training. Barfield’s Grapefruit League performance convinced manager Bobby Cox to make him Toronto’s Opening Day right fielder. “I just like everything I’ve seen about him,” Cox explained.32 “All Jesse needs is experience here. If he’s struggling with his bat, he’s still going to help you defensively.”33

Sharing outfield time with lefty Hosken Powell, Barfield batted .268 in 46 games before hyperextending his left knee diving and sliding onto Exhibition Stadium’s artificial turf to snare a line drive on June 3. After returning 10 days later, he hit .236 in 93 appearances.34 Barfield’s first homer of the season was a pinch-hit grand slam on April 24. During the final week of the season, he launched what he called “the longest hit I’ve ever had in my life” – a 450-foot blast off Minnesota’s Jack O’Connor.35 Overall, the rookie produced 18 homers in 394 at-bats to rank second on the Blue Jays.

Barfield also enjoyed a breakthrough year off the field. Though he’d never been a heavy drinker or a smoker, he described his early career priorities as “myself, money, and women” and said, “If you called me a no-good so-and-so, we were gonna throw down.” That changed when he became a committed Christian during a Bible study at the home of pitcher Roy Lee Jackson. “[Jackson] seemed to have this inner peace, whether he gave up one hit or nine runs, that I’d never seen before,”36 Barfield remarked. That summer, Jesse married Marla Travis, a Houstonian.

Their first child, Josh, was born that December in Venezuela, where Jesse slugged 12 homers in 44 games (including playoffs) for Lara.37 “I think eight of my 12 homers there were against right-handed pitchers,” he said.38 He platooned again in 1983 and kept working with hitting instructor Cito Gaston. “Cito was like a big brother to me,” Barfield said.39 “He took me from basically a pull hitter to a guy that can drive the ball to all fields.”40 Through July 21, however, Barfield was batting only .197. Jackson and centerfielder Lloyd Moseby encouraged him. “We kept [Barfield] up spiritually,” Moseby explained. “We didn’t even talk baseball because we knew he had all the ability.”41

On July 26, Barfield went deep in each game of a doubleheader against the White Sox, including his first career opposite-field homer. “That showed me something,” he said. “I can drive the ball the other way and be successful.”42 Beginning that night, Barfield batted .317 with 16 home runs in his final 56 games. Between August 29 and September 2, he went deep seven times in five days. He explained that he’d backed away from home plate slightly to give himself an extra split-second to extend his arms and drive the ball.43

By connecting for 27 homers in 388 at-bats during the Blue Jays’ first-ever winning season, he earned a two-year contract. He’d produced both a better slugging percentage and OPS against righthanders, so he wanted to play every day in 1984. “You’ve got to find a spot for me,” Barfield said. “I want to be an All-Star.”44 After a poor April, however, the 6-foot-1, 200-pounder wound up playing less frequently, starting fewer than half the games. Midway through a season in which Barfield batted .284 with 14 homers in 320 at-bats, Angels slugger Reggie Jackson said, “I’d compare Jesse Barfield to me, a guy who hits the ball a mile and strikes out a lot. The thing about Jesse, he doesn’t play enough. You’ve got to be up at that plate, learning.”45

After the Blue Jays dealt outfielder Dave Collins and shortstop Alfredo Griffin to Oakland for All-Star closer Bill Caudill that offseason, they told Barfield that right field was his to lose. “I didn’t like the sound of that, so I’ve got to go out and win it,” he said.46 On April 17, his sudden death homer against the Rangers lifted Toronto back to .500. The team moved into first place to stay during Barfield’s personal-best 16-game hitting streak in May. He finished the season batting .289 in 155 games, with 27 homers and a career-high 22 steals to become the first 20-20 player in franchise history.47 The Blue Jays made the playoffs for the first time, and the local writers voted him the club’s player of the year.48 Barfield went deep once and batted .280 in the ALCS against the Royals, but Toronto fell in seven games. It was to be his only postseason experience.

Though they’d started together the night of Barfield’s big-league debut, 1985 was the first year that George Bell, Lloyd Moseby, and Barfield were Toronto’s regular outfield trio. They soon became the AL’s top such unit. Bell, a hard-hitting Dominican, played left. Moseby, a speedy lefty, manned center. Barfield had the most power and defensive ability. “You can never play any better right field. It’s impossible,” insisted Cox.49 “There is little in baseball, there is little in any sport, to match the splendid thrill of watching Jesse Barfield make a play in right field and make one of his glorious throws to catch the runner at the plate,” wrote John Slinger in the Toronto Star.50 Barfield led all major-league outfielders with 22 assists and eight double plays in 1985.

Barfield and the Blue Jays started slowly under new manager Jimy Williams in 1986. “The pitchers try to find different ways to get you out,” Barfield observed. “They put you under a microscope looking for a weakness they can exploit.”51 Though pitching struggles doomed Toronto to a fourth-place finish, Barfield adjusted and belted 40 home runs to lead the majors. “I’m just trying to drive the ball,” he said. “And when I do that, the homers usually come on their own.”52 He played in his only All-Star Game that year at the Houston Astrodome, won the first of two straight Gold Gloves and edged Montreal Expos’ star Tim Raines to become the first Blue Jay ever honored as Canada’s Baseball Man of the Year.53

That summer, Barfield received a phone call from a woman who identified herself as his grandmother. She revealed that a neighborhood man he’d known growing up named Evell Kelly was his biological father. Jesse’s mother confirmed it. “I guess for many reasons she never wanted me to know,” Barfield said. He got to know Evell, and they shared a resemblance as well as outgoing personalities, but Jesse was already 26 when he learned the truth. “A father-son relationship is something I was deprived of,” he said.54

Barfield’s $1,525,000 salary for 1987 made him the highest paid non-pitcher in Blue Jays history at the time.55 By June 27, Toronto boasted the majors’ best record and he had gone deep 19 times. After combining with Bell to bash 71 homers the previous year, they’d hit 75 in 1987. “[Bell] hits the crowd pleasers, high and you have time to stand and cheer,” Barfield said. “Mine just jump. Usually line drives.”56 Barfield hit two-homers against the Rangers on consecutive Friday nights in early May, including a sudden-death shot off Mitch Williams. In June, he beat Baltimore with another walk-off. “The biggest thing about Jesse Barfield, as far as baseball, is his work habits. He does things with a purpose,” Jimy Williams noted. “He has no waste of physical or mental energy. And this is a young man just entering his prime.” Barfield often led the team’s Bible studies and chapel services. “Jesse is one of the greatest ball players I’ve ever played with,” said shortstop Tony Fernández. “He also has a wonderful heart, compassion.”57 Though it wasn’t publicized until fall, the Blue Jays inked Barfield to a three-year, $4.2 million contract that summer.58

The left wrist that Barfield had broken playing high school basketball was becoming increasingly troublesome, however. He needed seven cortisone shots to get through the 1987 season, making an estimated 20 since he turned pro. After the All-Star break, he managed only nine homers. “I couldn’t get on top of the ball,” he explained. Shortly after the Blue Jays lost their final seven contests to blow a three-and-a-half game lead and miss the playoffs, Barfield had wrist surgery to remove a bone chip and move a tendon. He also underwent an arthroscopic procedure on his left knee.59

On Opening Day 1988, Barfield was in the lineup, but persistent trade rumors had him heading to New York for Dave Winfield. When the Yankees visited for Toronto’s home opener, Barfield and his wife hosted Winfield for dinner, lobbying him to veto the proposed deal.60 Jesse and Marla’s baby, Jeremy, was due that summer, joining five-year-old Josh and three-year-old Jessica.

Barfield spent the second half of May on the disabled list with a swollen, inflamed wrist. “I messed up by trying to lift too many heavy weights,” he said. “I never let the tissue heal properly.”61 In the first half, he batted only .209 with seven homers. “I was trying to mend and play,” he said.62 As Toronto underperformed with a losing record into early September, trade rumors kept swirling around Barfield, including one that he started himself as a joke. “I felt like a scapegoat,” he said.63 “I wasn’t even 30, and I was being written off.”64 In July, he requested a deal, telling Toronto’s Globe and Mail, “I think the writing’s on the wall.”65 Barfield’s wrist improved enough for him to produce a .500 slugging percentage in the second half.

He was still a Blue Jay to begin 1989, but Williams platooned him with rookie Rob Ducey three weeks into the season. Barfield belted his franchise record 179th homer on Saturday night, April 29, in Anaheim. The next day, Toronto traded him to the Yankees.66 New York Vice President Syd Thrift said, “This should stop our opponents from pitching around Don Mattingly to get to somebody else.”67 With Winfield out for the season following back surgery, the Blue Jays received southpaw Al Leiter in return. While Leiter later developed into an All-Star for the Marlins and Mets, shoulder woes prevented him from winning any games for Toronto until 1993.

“I shed some tears leaving. But I know it’s the best thing for me,” Barfield said. Unlike the previous year, he was mentally ready and had decided with his wife that it was a great opportunity.68 The happiest Barfield of all was his son Josh, a big fan of Yankees left-fielder Rickey Henderson.

On May 17, Barfield suffered a mild concussion after crashing into the wall at the Oakland Coliseum.69 He missed a week and struggled through his first two-dozen games with New York. After studying old video, he realized that he was wrapping his bat too far around his head, lengthening his swing.70 Former Yankees manager Lou Piniella worked with him in June after noticing something about the Sadaharu Oh-like leg lift Barfield had adopted as a timing mechanism. “It made him turn his head off the ball,” noted Piniella.71

Barfield soon found his form, going deep twice in the last game of the first half, and lifting New York’s record over .500 with a three-run, walk-off shot in the first series after the All-Star break. “I heard a lot of negatives, but I like being a Yankee,” he said. In a 21-game span from June 13 to July 4, he gunned down 10 opposing baserunners. “I don’t mean to sound cocky, but I’ve been doing that my entire career,” he told reporters.72 Though the club finished in fifth place, Barfield’s defense and 18 homers in 129 games with New York convinced the club to sign him to a three-year contract worth $5.7 million.73

Heading into 1990, Yankees owner George Steinbrenner repeatedly called Barfield, “The best right fielder we’ve ever had,” which the press interpreted as a jab at Winfield.74 At Barfield’s suggestion, Steinbrenner hired four full-time batting practice pitchers to travel with the team.75 Winfield became a designated hitter and left fielder until he was traded to the Angels on May 11.

On April 26, Barfield achieved a milestone at Yankee Stadium. After blasting his 199th career home run in his first at-bat, he was robbed the next up by a leaping grab at the left-centerfield wall by Seattle’s Ken Griffey, Jr. After Barfield bashed a Randy Johnson pitch 20 rows into the seats for his 200th homer next time up, he told Mariners catcher Scott Bradley, “If [Griffey] catches that one, I’m checking his urine.”76

Commissioner Fay Vincent suspended Steinbrenner on July 30 after it was revealed that the owner had paid a gambler $40,000 to dig up dirt on Winfield.77 New York went on to lose more games (95) in 1990 than any club in Yankees history.78 “All the distractions really hurt us,” Barfield said. “All the news was off the field, and it was hard to concentrate on baseball.”79 Nevertheless, he led the team with 25 homers and 78 RBIs in 153 games.

As he had after the 1986 season, Barfield toured Japan with a major-league All-Star team. Based on conversations there with Oakland pitcher Dave Stewart and his own self-analysis, Barfield adjusted his workout routine to make his upper body less bulky and more flexible.80 His .291 April batting average in 1991 was the best of his career, but the Yankees continued to play losing baseball. In mid-May, he hurled a ball out of Yankee Stadium onto the nearby elevated subway tracks on River Avenue in frustration. Though Barfield’s batting average had fallen below .230 by July 13, New York had a winning record, and his defense and 17 homers prompted Yankees GM Gene Michael to insist, “Jesse is the best right fielder in baseball.” Barfield pulled a hamstring that night, however, and hurt the front of his left foot trying to play a few days later. Initially, the team thought it was a sprain, but it was diagnosed as a stress-type fracture that ended his season after only 84 games.81

Barfield began 1992 in right field but got off to a miserable start. He was batting only .141 when he slipped in the sauna on May 23 and dislocated a bone in his left wrist. He tried to play on June 17 but reinjured himself swinging. Arthroscopic surgery on June 30 didn’t help, so Barfield underwent a radical procedure in August in which two tendons were divided and woven through a hole in his ulna bone to provide stability. Doctors weren’t sure if he’d play again.82

In December, Barfield signed with the Japan Central League’s Yomiuri Giants for $1.7 million.83 His 1993 teammates included Moseby and teenage rookie Hideki Matsui. In 104 games, Barfield batted only .215 and whiffed 127 times in 344 at-bats, but his 26 home runs earned him an invitation to spring training with the Houston Astros in 1994. “I didn’t like sushi, but I liked Japan,” he said upon arriving at camp. “I gave up a long-term contract and guaranteed money over there, which should tell you how much this means to me.”84 Houston manager Terry Collins said, “If his hand is healthy, I think he will be our right fielder.”85 It wasn’t to be, however. Barfield missed the beginning of the exhibition season with a strained groin.86 Then he missed a week after an inside pitch clipped his thumb.87 The Astros released him before Opening Day, and Barfield’s 12-year major league career ended with a .256 batting average and 241 home runs in 1,428 games.

In 1995, Barfield joined the Astros as a first-base coach and outfield instructor. He spent the next two years as a hitting coordinator for Texas Rangers’ minor-leaguers. In 1998 and 1999, Barfield was the Seattle Mariners’ hitting coach under manager Lou Piniella. “I was impressed with his play on the field and his comprehension for being a total package. I’m talking about helping in the clubhouse and being an example for the rest of the kids,” Piniella said. “The enthusiasm he has, the love he shows for the game, that’s something you can’t teach.”88

Barfield retired to spend more time with his family. His oldest son, Josh, played four years in the majors as a second baseman with the Padres and Indians. Son Jeremy spent more than a decade in pro ball, peaking in Triple-A. Playing for Double-A Portland in 2017, he hit 27 homers, one of which was the first (and only one until 2021) to go over the center field wall at Hartford’s Dunkin’ Donuts Park.

In addition to appearing at fantasy camps, old-timer’s games, and baseball clinics, Barfield continues to work as a private hitting instructor and motivational speaker as of 2021. Through Sports Designs by Jesse Barfield, he creates customized furniture – desks with ballparks carved into them and lamps made out of bats, for example. He owns 21 design patents and was nominated to Who’s Who of American Inventors.89 “I could have opened a restaurant or a sports bar like a lot of players, but I wanted to do something unique,” he said.90

Since May 21, 2003, a bronze sculpture of Barfield, standing on one leg with his glove hand stretched upward, has greeted visitors to Silver Cross Field, the minor-league ballpark in Joliet, Illinois.91

Last revised: July 22, 2021

Acknowledgments

This article was reviewed by Paul Proia and David H. Lippman and fact checked by David Kritzler.

Sources

In addition to the sources cited in the Notes, the author also consulted www.ancestry.com, www.baseball-reference.com and www.retrosheet.org. The author is grateful for feedback and clarifications contributed by Jesse Barfield in a phone conversion on February 5, 2021.

Notes

1 Jesse Barfield, Twitter post, October 20, 2019, https://twitter.com/jessebarfield29/status/1186054814205140992 (last accessed January 25, 2021).

2 Barry Davis, “Jesse Barfield: Outta the Park with Barry Davis,” August 6, 2018, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQX0GEn9Ksk (last accessed January 5, 2021).

3 Davis, “Jesse Barfield: Outta the Park with Barry Davis.”

4 Davis, “Jesse Barfield: Outta the Park with Barry Davis.”

5 Dave Bidini, “An Evening with Jesse Barfield,” May 5, 2015, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mOB2P9pBJIQ, (last accessed January 5, 2021).

6 Eddie Mata, “Jesse Barfield Where are They Now in Sports Full Interview,” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYmgT2A_6SQ&t=328s (last accessed January 5, 2021).

7 Jesse Barfield, Publicity Questionnaire for William J. Weiss, February 9, 1978.

8 Trent Frayne, “Play at Plate Sparks Jays,” Globe and Mail (Toronto), September 10, 1985: S1.

9 Kelly Whiteside, “Sports Desk, Please,” Sports Illustrated, October 19, 1992: 11.

10 Mata, “Jesse Barfield Where are They Now in Sports Full Interview.”

11 Davis, “Jesse Barfield: Outta the Park with Barry Davis.”

12 Davis, “Jesse Barfield: Outta the Park with Barry Davis.”

13 Barfield, Publicity Questionnaire for William J. Weiss.

14 Larry Millson, “Barfield’s Lost Step Will Get Winter Attention,” Globe and Mail, September 4, 1982: S4.

15 “Florida No Rest for Jay Coaches,” Globe and Mail, October 25, 1977: 38.

16 Allen Abel, “There Was Fun in Jay Fantasy,” Globe and Mail, September 24, 1981: S1.

17 Abel, “There Was Fun in Jay Fantasy.”

18 Larry Milson, “Will Mo Make It? Will Barfield Do it Again?” Globe and Mail, February 28, 1983: S4.

19 Jose De Jesus Ortiz, “Barfield Sons Make Mom and Dad Proud,” Houston Chronicle, August 12, 2011, https://www.chron.com/sports/astros/article/Baseball-notebook-Barfield-sons-make-mom-and-dad-1905489.php (last accessed January 25, 2021).

20 “First for Toronto,” The Sporting News, May 10, 1980: 39.

21 Paul Patton, “Blue Jays Call Up Three Farmhands,” Globe and Mail, September 1, 1980: S5.

22 Paul Patton, “Blue Jays Open Winter Season,” Globe and Mail, October 25, 1980: S4.

23 Abel, “There Was Fun in Jay Fantasy.”

24 Tommy George, “Barfield’s Great at Making Something Out of Nothing,” Ottawa Citizen, June 25, 1987: F4.

25 Paul Patton, “Two Minor Leaguers Join Jays in Chicago,” Globe and Mail, September 3, 1981: 48.

26 Mata, “Jesse Barfield Where are They Now in Sports Full Interview.”

27 Millson, “Barfield’s Lost Step Will Get Winter Attention.”

28 Mata, “Jesse Barfield Where are They Now in Sports Full Interview.”

29 James Golla, “Players Impress Blue Jays Official,” Globe and Mail, January 12, 1982: P44.

30 “Roster de Cardenales de Lara en la Temorada 1981-82,” http://www.pelotabinaria.com.ve/beisbol/tem_equ.php?EQ=CDL&TE=1981-82 (last accessed January 25, 1982).

31 Neil MacCarl, “Hustling Barfield a Big Asset to Jays,” The Sporting News, May 3, 1982: 31.

32 “Jesse Barfield is Lone Rookie in Jay Lineup,” Globe and Mail, April 5, 1982: S3.

33 Larry Millson, “Jays Master Basics in Beating Red Sox,” Globe and Mail, April 17, 1982: S3.

34 Millson, “Barfield’s Lost Step Will Get Winter Attention.”

35 Paul Patton, “Barfield’s Long Homer Sparks Jays’ 75th Win,” Globe and Mail, October 1, 1982: P18.

36 George, “Barfield’s Great at Making Something Out of Nothing.”

37 Jesse Barfield’s Venezuelan statistics from http://www.pelotabinaria.com.ve/beisbol/mostrar.php?ID=barfjes001 (last accessed January 26, 2021).

38 Milson, “Will Mo Make It? Will Barfield Do it Again?”

39 Jack O’Donnell, “Barfield Not Surprised by Firing,” Hartford Courant, May 16, 1989: D1.

40 Mata, “Jesse Barfield Where are They Now in Sports Full Interview.”

41 Kevin Boland, “Barfield’s Emotions Mixed after Heady Honor,” Globe and Mail, September 7, 1983: S3.

42 Neil MacCarl, “Old Lefty Hoodoo Big Threat to Jays,” The Sporting News, August 8, 1983: 12.

43 Boland, “Barfield’s Emotions Mixed after Heady Honor.”

44 Kevin Boland, “Barfield Eyes 40 Hrs and a Series,” Globe and Mail, March 1, 1984: 23.

45 Trent Frayne, “Reggie’s Todays Gone Tomorrow,” Globe and Mail, July 4, 1984: S1.

46 “Barfield a Regular Slugger,” Chicago Tribune, April 18, 1985: C2.

47 Nine days after Barfield achieved the feat on September 23, George Bell became the second Blue Jays player to do it. Lloyd Moseby joined the club in 1986.

48 John Slinger, “Creating, Reporting Then Making Waves with the News,” Toronto Star, December 6, 1985: A6.

49 Neil MacCarl, “Barfield Raises Toast, Ignores Spill,” The Sporting News, December 16, 1985: 47.

50 Slinger, “Creating, Reporting Then Making Waves with the News.”

51 Neil MacCarl, “Mature Barfield Reaches a Power Peak with Jays,” The Sporting News, July 21, 1986: 21.

52 Murray Malkin, “40th HR Makes Fans’ Day,” Globe and Mail, October 4, 1986: C5.

53 “Blue Jays,” The Sporting News, March 30,1987: 32.

54 Tommy George, “Jesse Barfield Shocked That Friend is Father,” Toronto Star, June 24, 1987: C1.

55 Neil MacCarl, “Blue Jays’ Boom-Boom Boys Avoid Arbitration,” The Sporting News, March 2, 1987: 26.

56 Joe Donnelly, “Jesse Barfield’s Long Trip is Ending,” Los Angeles Times, May 13, 1989: 1.

57 George, “Barfield’s Great at Making Something Out of Nothing.”

58 “Barfield is Not a Free Agent; He Signed Three-Year Contract,” Baltimore Sun, October 10, 1987: 4B.

59 Neil MacCarl, “Jesse Barfield Suffers Agony of De Feet,” Toronto Star, February 20, 1988: B9.

60 Marty Noble, “Barfield Thrilled by New Address,” Newsday (Long Island, New York), May 2, 1989: 115.

61 Noble, “Barfield Thrilled by New Address.”

62 Mike Payne, “With Spring Comes a New Start,” St. Petersburg Times, March 4, 1989: 1C.

63 Payne, “With Spring Comes a New Start.”

64 Jim Donaghy, “Barfield Boosts Yankees’ Hopes,” Globe and Mail, June 4, 1991: D12.

65 Larry Millson, “Barfield Has Own Season of Quiet Turmoil,” Globe and Mail, August 1, 1988: C5.

66 George Bell hit his 180th home run for the Blue Jays later in the 1989 season. As of 2021, Bell and Barfield rank sixth and seventh in Toronto’s franchise history.

67 “Barfield Traded to Yanks for Leiter,” The Sporting News, May 8, 1989: 12.

68 Noble, “Barfield Thrilled by New Address.”

69 Marty Noble, “Concussion Leaves Barfield Befuddled,” Newsday, May 19, 1989: 162.

70 Donnelly, “Jesse Barfield’s Long Trip is Ending.”

71 Jack O’Connell, “Starting to Hit it Off,” Hartford Courant, June 20, 1989: C3.

72 Jim Brady, “Barfield Has Smoking Gun,” Newsday, July 5, 1989: 93.

73 “Yankees,” The Sporting News, July 24, 1989: 23.

74 “Yankees,” The Sporting News, November 13, 1989: 52.

75 “Yankees and Deion: A Parting of Ways?” The Sporting News, March 5, 1990: 20.

76 Mark Herrmann, “Ken Sr.: Mine’s Better,” Newsday, April 27, 1990: 156.

77 Kevin McCoy and Richard T. Pienciak, “The Boss Gets Benched,” Daily News (New York, New York), July 31, 1990: 4.

78 As of 2020, New York’s 95 losses in 1990 are the most in franchise history since the team became known as the Yankees in 1913. They lost 103 in 1908 and 102 in 1912 when they were known as the Highlanders.

79 “After the Storm: Kinder, Gentler Yanks,” The Sporting News, March 18, 1991: 43.

80 Jon Heyman, “Big Start for Smaller Jesse,” Newsday, May 4, 1991: 99.

81 Filip Bondy, “Injury to Barfield Leaves Yanks with Empty Feeling,” New York Times, July 30, 1991: B9.

82 Mel Antonen, “Barfield Adjusting to Ways of Japanese Ball,” USA Today, April 16, 1993: 4C.

83 “Barfield to Play in Japan,” New York Times, December 3, 1992: B20.

84 Jerry Greene, “Astros Have Hole Without Barfield,” Orlando Sentinel, March 13, 1994: C12.

85 Neil Hohlfeld, “The Right Choice,” The Sporting News, January 3, 1994: 29.

86 Neil Hohlfeld, “Barfield on Hold,” The Sporting News, March 14, 1994: 21.

87 Reid Creager, “Big Bad John,” The Sporting News, March 21, 1994: 17.

88 John McGrath, “Barfield’s Enthusiasm Still a Big Hit in Majors,” Globe and Mail, February 5, 1998: S10.

89 Bidini, “An Evening with Jesse Barfield.”

90 Kelly Whiteside, “Sports Desk, Please,” Sports Illustrated, October 19, 1992: 11.

91 As of 2020, the ballpark has been renamed DuPage Medical Group Field.

Len Barker gave that feeling to the Tribe and their fans. On a cold and misty evening at Cleveland Stadium, Barker pitched the major leagues’ 10th perfect game. The visiting Toronto Blue Jays sent 27 men to the plate, and they went down in order like a row of dominos. The key to Barker’s perfecto was a dominating curveball, one that he threw 70 percent of the time. He was so much in command that he never had a three-ball count on a batter. Barker got stronger as the game went on, and struck out 11 of the last 17 batters he faced. All 11 went down swinging.

“That was one of the most unreal days of my life,” said Barker. “I knew that I had good stuff, maybe even awesome stuff, when I began the game. But as the game went on, I had total command. I could throw anything, anywhere I wanted. My curveball was something else.”1

Although only 7,290 were in attendance that night, many more would claim to have been there. It was an uplifting moment for a city in need of a baseball identity. It was something for Indians fans to hang their collective hat on, to rally around. Of course there were others who decided to still kick dirt on Barker’s evening. A writer in Dallas asked “How can it be perfect if it happened in Cleveland?”2

“Imagine, a perfect game,” said the Indians’ Toby Harrah. “A perfect game and we’re all part of it; all of us and the entire city of Cleveland! It’s so great for everybody, especially this team.”3 Indeed it was pure perfection for one night in Cleveland Indians history.

Leonard Harold Barker II was born to Leonard and Emogene (Lockcart) Barker on July 7, 1955, in Fort Knox, Kentucky. Barker was a pitcher at a young age, starring in American Legion ball. Throwing no-hitters was not the problem, but his control was; he would walk up to a dozen players an outing.

The Barkers relocated to Pennsylvania, where Len enrolled at Neshaminy High School in Langhorne, about 26 miles north of Philadelphia. Barker was a three-sport star at Neshaminy (football, basketball, baseball), but it was his pitching that was his meal ticket. Specifically, he threw an overpowering fastball. Already 6-feet-4, “Large Lenny” was quite a presence on the mound. His control might have been lacking, but the speed he threw with could not be denied.

After his graduation from high school, the Texas Rangers drafted Barker in the third round of the 1973 amateur draft. The Rangers selected pitchers early, first picking high-school phenom David Clyde with the first pick, and then left-hander Rich Shubert in the second round. 

Barker had early success. He went 7-1 in the Gulf Coast Rookie League, registering 54 strikeouts in 59 innings pitched. He was promoted to Gastonia of the Class-A Western Carolinas League in 1974. Barker emerged as the Rangers’ top prospect, posting an 11-7 record, and led the league with five shutouts. He whiffed 140 batters in 124 innings pitched.

The big right-hander had a reputation for being a bit wild, on and off the diamond. In 1976 the Rangers brought him to spring training. Barker was not there long before he found trouble. After a few beers at the bar of the Surf Rider Hotel in Pompano Beach, Florida, Barker and bullpen coach Pat Corrales got into an altercation with some hotel guests. A fist fight broke out and Corrales was arrested. A Dallas sportswriter hid Barker in his room to avoid apprehension. The next day Barker was sent to the team’s minor-league facility in Plant City.

Barker was promoted in 1976 to Triple-A Sacramento (Pacific Coast League). His record for the Solons in 1976 (11-10, 5.55 ERA) was not his best effort, and his walks (96) outnumbered his strikeouts (92). However, Barker started two games at the end of the season for Texas. He got a no-decision in his major-league debut, against California on September 14, 1976. Barker got his first major-league victory in the last game of the season, going the distance to defeat Rich Gossage and the Chicago White Sox, 3-0. He struck out six and scattered three hits. “I’ve got to show ’em I want a job here,” said Barker. “My goal for next spring is to go down there to Florida and make that five-man rotation.”4  

During the offseason Barker played winter ball in Venezuela. His manager was the Rangers’ bullpen coach, Pat Corrales. After the winter league season, Corrales said, “When he’s throwing the ball over the plate, there ain’t nobody hittin’ him. And when he’s right, nobody wants to hit against him. He’ll scare hell out of a batter. That first pitch might be coming right at your ear then the next three are right out there on the corner of the plate.

“But is he ready now? No, I don’t think so. Maybe later in the season, who knows? But consistency is the thing. The first six games in Venezuela this winter he was something else. He had great control. Then he came apart at the end of the season. He’d throw three good innings, then maybe walk five.”5 

Corrales’ assessment was indeed correct. Barker was sent to Triple-A Tucson for the first half of the season. He was recalled by Texas and made three starts, but mostly pitched out of the bullpen. He made the most out the opportunity given him, going 4-1 with a 2.66 ERA. Barker struck out 51 in 47⅓ innings. After the season, on December 23, Barker and Bonnie Elwell were married.

The Rangers dealt closer Adrian Devine to Atlanta as part of a four-team deal. “At first, I couldn’t believe it because (Devine had) had such a good year,” Barker said. “I was trying to figure out why they would trade him. Then it finally sunk in; with Adrian gone this team was handing the job to me. When I finally did realize this was the case, it’s about the nicest feeling I’ve ever had in baseball. I never thought I’d be able to accept going to the bullpen. Of course, if they tell you to go, you’ve got to do it.”6

But the plans went awry in 1978 spring training when Barker did not see much activity. He totaled about six innings of work the entire spring. “We were in a situation where we knew what he could do because he did it for us last year,” said manager Billy Hunter. “We had a lot of new faces, and I needed to see what they could do so they got more work.”7 

In his third pitching appearance of the season, against Boston at Fenway Park on April 16, Barker raised eyebrows when he let go of a pitch that landed on the backstop screen just below the press box. “One year in the Instructional League a pitched slipped and I threw it over the press box,” said Barker.8

With mixed results early in the season, Barker was sent to Tucson to could get some work in on a regular basis. “(Hunter) told me I’ll be back in about three weeks,” said Barker. “I’ll go down, get some starts, get some work, then come back up. I need to get my arm loose, and this will help. I’ve thought about it, and I’d rather go down to Tucson rather than stay here and only pitch once every eight days.”9 

Barker went 4-0 in his abbreviated stay at Tucson, with a minuscule ERA of 1.04. But he was unable to duplicate his success when he was recalled to Texas. Reggie Cleveland took over the closer role. Although Barker earned four saves of his own, his overall record took a few steps backward (1-5, 4.82 ERA).

For a while, Texas coveted Jim Kern, Cleveland’s stellar relief pitcher. From the beginning of the 1978 season the Rangers had intermittent negotiations with Cleveland about a deal. On October 3 the deal was done; Texas shipped Barker and outfielder Bobby Bonds to the Indians for Kern and infielder Larvell Blanks.

Bonds was the main subject of the trade, with his power and speed and his refusal to play in Cleveland. Barker was almost a footnote. Cleveland manager Jeff Torborg did acknowledge that Barker threw with more mustard on the ball than Kern did. Barker is capable of “throwing a strawberry through the side of a submarine,” said Torborg.10

Barker started the 1979 season working out of the bullpen. He made his first start on June 14 against Oakland. He pitched well, giving up one earned run, but had a no-decision in the 2-1 Indians win. Steadily, he improved and he strung six wins together from July 31 through September 4. Included in that streak were two wins over Texas. Barker finished the year at 6-6.

Barker earned a spot in the Indians rotation for the 1980 season. He was given the role that he sought and he responded with his best year of his career. After the All-Star break, Barker reeled off an 11-1 record, lowering his ERA from 5.00 to 3.68. Included were two games in which he recorded double-digit strikeouts; at Chicago on August 18 (12) and at Minnesota on September 1 (11). “Lenny has the ability to be a big winner,” said Indians pitching coach Dave Duncan. “Everyone knows that. Just how much he develops down the road will depend on how much he works on all of his pitches and how much he learns about the hitters throughout the league.”11

Barker won his 19th game of the season on September 27 against Baltimore, but he was unable to get number 20 as he dropped his final two games of the season. He finished with a 19-12 record, and a 4.17 ERA. His 187 strikeouts led the league. “He’s certainly one of the best pitchers in the American League,” said Tribe skipper Dave Garcia, who had replaced Torborg the previous season.12

A month after Barker’s perfecto on May 15, the players’ strike halted the season, wiping out games for two months (June 12-August 10). Barker’s record was 5-3 when play was halted. After the strike was settled, the season resumed with the All-Star Game in Cleveland on August 9. Barker was selected to the AL team and pitched two scoreless innings. “This was great,” he said. “The fans were outstanding. It is a pleasure to play with these guys because you know they are a great bunch of ballplayers.”13 Three losses in September made Barker’s season record 8-7, but he led the league again in strikeouts (127).

Cleveland put together a pretty good pitching staff for 1982 with Barker, Bert Blyleven, John Denny, and Rick Sutcliffe. But injuries to Blyleven and Denny curtailed their 1982 season. Sutcliffe led the league with a 2.96 ERA, and Barker was second in the league with 187 strikeouts. He pitched 244⅔ innings and had a 15-11 record. But it fell apart for the big right-hander in 1983. A bone spur in his right elbow caused his fastball to lose its zip, dropping from the low 90s to the mid-80s. Barker was in the last year of his contract and odds were long that he would remain with the Indians.

The Atlanta Braves were in a fight for the top spot in the National League West. The Braves front office believed that adding another arm to their rotation might give them the edge and targeted Barker. On August 28, 1983, Atlanta acquired Barker (8-13 at the time) for three players to be named later (Rick Behenna, Brook Jacoby, and Brett Butler) and gave him a five-year, $5 million contract. “I couldn’t be happier,” said Barker. I’m going to a first-place team. I got a five-year contract. Wouldn’t you be happy to leave a last-place club?”14 The Braves medical staff believed that the bone spur was not serious. Barker went 1-3 for the Braves in six starts. The Dodgers won the division by three games.

Barker spent the 1984 and 1985 seasons in Atlanta, suffering from pain in his elbow. The bone spurs were more serious than the Atlanta doctors thought and he underwent surgery in 1984. The rehabilitation caused him to work less in spring training the following year. He was shelved with the same elbow problems in the middle of the 1985 season. His record in Atlanta was 10-20 over parts of three seasons, including 2-9 in 1985.

The Braves released Barker at the end of spring training in 1986. He signed with Montreal, but pitched all season for Triple-A Indianapolis. Released after the season, Barker signed with Milwaukee, but was once again relegated to the minors, this time with Triple-A Denver. He did make 11 starts for the Brewers in 1987, posting a 2-1 record. He was plagued with arm problems that placed him on the disabled list. Barker filed for free agency at the end of the season, but there were no takers. He retired from baseball with a career record of 74-76 and a 4.34 ERA.

Barker founded Perfect Pitch Construction, a home-remodeling business. He remained a fan favorite in Cleveland and was a popular player at the yearly Indians fantasy camp. (That was where he met his second wife, Eve.)

In 2010 Barker joined the coaching staff at Notre Dame College in South Euclid, Ohio, and in 2012 he became the head coach. Former teammates Joe Charboneau and Ron Pruitt joined his coaching staff. “When I get around these guys I feel like a kid,” said Barker.15 As of 2016 he and Eve resided in Chardon, Ohio, 30 miles east of Cleveland.

On August 18, 1980, Len Barker was pitching no-hit ball against Chicago through five innings at Comiskey Park. In the bottom of the sixth inning, Leo Sutherland led off with a bunt that rolled past Barker to second baseman Alan Bannister. But the throw was late and the White Sox had their first hit. Barker finished with a three-hitter, as the Indians were victorious, 4-2 in the first game of a doubleheader. After the game, Barker was more upset that he did not get a shutout than he was about Sutherland’s bunt. “I’ll get a no-hitter sooner or later,” said Barker. “At least I hope to be around a long time and one night I’ll have one of those special nights.”16

Perhaps Lenny Barker could add clairvoyance to his arsenal of talents.   

Last revised: February 2, 2017

This biography appears in SABR’s “No-Hitters” (2017), edited by Bill Nowlin.

Notes

1 Terry Pluto, The Curse of Rocky Colavito (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1994), 237.

2 Pluto, 238.

3 Russell Schneider, “Wife and Brother Are Among Joyous Fans,” Cleveland Plain Dealer, May 16, 1981: 6-C.

4 Randy Galloway, “Rangers End Year in Style, 3-0,” Dallas Morning News, October 4, 1976: B-2.

5 Randy Galloway, “Rangers’ Barker: He Keeps on Hummin’,” Dallas Morning News, March 3, 1977: B-3.

6 Randy Galloway, “Pressure Falls on Barker,” Dallas Morning News, February 25, 1978: 22.

7 Randy Galloway, “Reliever Barker Plans to Return,” Dallas Morning News, May 28, 1978: 64.

8 Randy Galloway, “Bosox Run Down Texas, 8-6,” Dallas Morning News, April 17, 1978: 21.

9 Randy Galloway, “Reliever Barker Plans to Return,” Dallas Morning News, May 28, 1978: 64.

10 Bob Dolgan, “Slugger Refuses to Say if He’ll Report to Tribe,” Cleveland Plain Dealer, October 4, 1978: 7-E.

11 Burt Graeff, “Large Lenny’s Head and Arm Give KayCee a Royal Blush,” Cleveland Press, August 23, 1980: C-7.

12 Bob Sudyk, “Large Lenny Barker Gets the Message,” Cleveland Press, September 2, 1980: C-3.

13 Terry Pluto, “Record Crowd Sees NL Win Again,” Cleveland Plain Dealer, August 10, 1981: 5-C.

14 Terry Pluto, “Barker Is Traded to Braves,” Cleveland Plain Dealer, September 29, 1983: 4-B.

15 Bill Lubinger, “Former Cleveland Indians Pitcher Len Barker Finds Perfect Fit at Notre Dame College,” cleveland.com, May 6, 2010.

16 Terry Pluto, “Barker’s Three-Hitter Jolts Chisox,” Cleveland Plain Dealer, August 19, 1980: 1-C.

Four years later, Bass made the All-Star team and was a key member of the 1986 NL West champion Houston Astros, hitting .311, his finest season, with 20 homers and 79 RBIs in 157 games. He made the final out in the 16th inning of Game Six of the 1986 NL playoffs, striking out against Jesse Orosco. The game sent the New York Mets to the World Series.

Bass played 14 years in the majors, 10 of them in two stints with the Astros. He played in 1,571 major-league games, winding up with a .270 lifetime batting average, 611 runs batted in, and 118 home runs.

Kevin Charles Bass was born on May 12, 1959, in Redwood City, California and raised in Menlo Park, on San Francisco Bay. Nine-year-old Kevin was a shortstop on a Menlo Park Little League team coached by his father; his older sister kept score.1 Chris Haft, a high-school teammate, remembered that Kevin spoke about his determination to be a major-league baseball player as early as his freshman year.2

The Bass family had roots in baseball and sports. Kevin’s brother, Richard, was a minor-league outfielder in 1976 and 1977, and his cousin is NFL Hall of Fame receiver James Lofton. His uncle Stan “Lefty” Johnson received the first baseball scholarship offered to an African-American at the University of San Francisco; he went on to play briefly for the 1960 Chicago White Sox and the 1961 Kansas City Athletics and played 10 years in Triple A for four major-league teams before ending his career in Japan with the Taiyo Whales. After retiring in 1970 he became a West Coast scout for the Boston Red Sox.3

In Menlo Park High School Bass was an all-league player in football and baseball, and also played basketball. His hopes of playing college football waned when baseball scouts began coming to see him play. They had reason to make the trip: At the end of the 1977 season, Bass was named a first-team All-American high-school player by the High School Division of the American College of Baseball Coaches.

The Brewers selected the high-school senior in the second round of the June 1977 free-agent draft. (They used their first-round pick to select Paul Molitor.) “He’s got a good arm, good speed, and he has an excellent instinct about going after the ball,” said Brewers scout Roland LeBlanc of the 18-year-old switch-hitting outfielder.4

After signing with the Brewers, Bass was sent to Newark (New York) of the New York-Penn League In his first 44 at-bats he hit .182. By the time he accumulated 96 at-bats his average had improved to .313.

The next season Bass was invited to major-league spring training. He later said that Cecil Cooper became a mentor to him, watching him take batting practice and offering batting tips. 5 He saw his own assets as his speed, power, and his strong arm — in addition to being a switch-hitter. After his retirement he said his faults were technical weaknesses as a left-handed hitter and a base stealer.

The 6-foot Bass, listed at 183 pounds, started as the leadoff man for Burlington of the Class A Midwest League in 1978, and after showing power he was moved to the middle of the lineup. He was named to the league all-star team, both at midseason and at yearend, after batting.265 average with 18 home runs, 69 RBIs, and 36 steals.

In 1979 Bass was promoted to Holyoke of the Double-A Eastern League and started slowly, the surged in June. “The difference is confidence,” he said. “When I get down on myself, I can’t do the job. When I’m loose and relaxed, I’m okay.”6 In 1980 he returned to Holyoke and in June, the month of his 21st birthday, he hit safely in 25 of 27 games.

Holyoke won the Eastern League title and Bass was again an all-star. He and his manager, Lee Sigman, were rewarded by promotions to Triple-A Vancouver (Pacific Coast League), where in 1981 he batted .257 in 97 games.

Bass was named in 1982 spring training as one of four rookies (along with Bob Skube, Thad Bosley, and Marshall Edwards) considered for the starting role in right field, which eventually went to Charlie Moore. He made the Opening Day roster but was sent back to Vancouver in May after going hitless in his first nine major-league at-bats. (He started only one game.) In Vancouver he hit .315 with 17 home runs, 65 RBIs, and 23 stolen bases in 102 games.

Bass was traded by the Brewers with Frank DiPino and Mike Madden to the Houston Astros on September 3, 1982, to complete a trade for pitcher Don Sutton.  Bass went 0-for-8 with the Astros in September after being added to the roster along with second baseman Bill Doran. He got his first major-league hit on September 8 — an RBI single against Atlee Hammaker of the San Francisco Giants, and said, “I’ve had trouble seeing the ball. I don’t think the pitchers I’ll face are that much better than the ones I’ve seen in Triple A, I mean consistently. I just have to get used to playing inside (the Astrodome) I guess, even in center field.”7 In July 1983 Bass married Elaine Bell on the campus of Mills College in Oakland, California. On the field that year, he was a part-time player, appearing in only 88 games with 195 at-bats. Bass played in the winter leagues that winter and throughout the early years of his major-league career. His friend Gary Haft asked him that year why he just did not relax in the offseason. Bass’s reply was, “Have you ever tried to hit off Lavelle?” referring the San Francisco relief pitcher Gary Lavelle.8  Bass began the 1984 season on the disabled list with a severely pulled right thigh muscle and then came off the bench, starting only 64 games in the outfield. He was splitting time with Terry Puhl and Tim Tolman in right field and Jerry Mumphrey in center. He was a reliable pinch-hitter, getting 13 hits in 44 attempts, and put together a 12-game hitting streak from September 14 to September 25 as he got a chance to play in the outfield every day.   The Astros moved the Astrodome’s outfield fence in before the 1985 season, Bass’s first as a starting outfielder. He batted .269 with 16 homers, 68 RBIs, and 19 stolen bases in 539 at-bats. As he did for most of his career, he hit for a higher average from the right side (.311) than the left (.241), but his power numbers were more equally distributed.   In 1986 the Astros came together as a contender under the fiery first-year manager Hal Lanier with young talent and strong pitching led by Mike Scott, Bob Knepper, and Nolan Ryan. They also added Billy Hatcher and Tony Walker, eliminating their need to use Bass in center field. Lanier saw Bass’s speed as an asset and installed him as the starter in right.  During that year Bass’s trademark consistency was highlighted by long hitting streaks including one of 20 games, and his selection to the 1986 National League All-Star team. He joked, however, that his nickname the team had become “Rodney” (for comedian Rodney Dangerfield) as he was still largely an unknown and not yet an established star. The lack of respect was so pervasive that writer Bill Conlin, in a preview of the All-Star Game, confused him with Randy Bass, a former major leaguer who won the Triple Crown in Japan.9 The 1986 season was Bass’s best. He batted .311 with a career-high 20 home runs and finished seventh in the voting for the NL Most Valuable Player Award. But he would be remembered most for his game-ending strikeout in the deciding game of the NCLS against the New York Mets. “My adrenaline was so high for the whole series, most of it was like a blur, except for that last at-bat,” he said in a 2002 interview.10 In 1987 Bass batted .284 and had 31 doubles, 19 home runs, 85 RBIs, and 21 stolen bases. During a 10-1 Astros win over the Cubs on September 2, he became the first National League player to homer from both sides of the plate twice in one season. Chili Davis of the San Francisco Giants accomplished the feat 13 days later, on September 15.  In 1988 Bass’s average dropped to .255, but he had 72 RBIs and 31 steals. On July 23 he flied out to left field against Steve Bedrosian of the Philadelphia Phillies in the eighth inning after fouling off 15 pitches, which stood for many years as the record for foul pitches in a single at-bat.  

In 1989 Bass batted .300 in 87 games for the Astros, but missed nearly half the season with a broken right shinbone after fouling a pitch from Bill Landrum of the Pittsburgh Pirates on May 27. He played for four weeks before an x-ray revealed that a stress fracture had developed. He returned to the lineup on August 11.

After the season Bass was a free agent and he signed a three-year contract with the San Francisco Giants. He received a $500,000 signing bonus and the first no-trade clause general manager Al Rosen had ever included in a player contract. The deal was worth $5.25 million and made Bass the highest-paid player on the Giants.

Bass had been involved in Astros trade rumors over several years — he had once been all but traded to the New York Yankees for Dave Winfield before Winfield refused to go to Houston. And he was perplexed by moves the Astros had made under general manager Dick Wagner, including firing manager Lanier after the 1988 season and their recent decision to let Nolan Ryan sign with the Texas Rangers as a free agent. “It was tough leaving Houston,” he said in 1990 spring training. “I had been there for so long, and they treated me pretty good. But the offer came up and it was a chance to come back home.”11

The Astros had refused to include a no-trade clause in their offer to Bass. “That ended up being the key factor,” he said in a conference call for Bay Area media from his home in Sugar Land, Texas. “I think the Astros were pretty serious about signing me, but the Giants were more serious.”12

Rosen knew Bass’s talent well. He was with the Astros in 1982, and responsible for prying him away from the Brewers.

Bass had been batting fifth with Houston and admitted he might have been trying to do too much to lead the Astros’ offense. With the Giants he was slated to bat second between Brett Butler and Will Clark.

He was especially excited about returning to the Bay area. His wife had grown up in Palo Alto, and both their parents still lived there. Bass said his agent had also received calls from Montreal, Cleveland, Detroit, and Milwaukee — along with a call from Japan. They were also attempting to gain interest from the San Diego Padres and Los Angeles Dodgers.

But an injury to his left knee on May 27, 1990, limited Bass’s impact with the Giants. Although he was able to return after surgery that September, he later admitted that it took almost three years for his injury to heal. Dogged by the creaky knee and unable to provide the solid defense and consistency he had become known for, he hit .252 and .233 in his first two seasons with San Francisco. “I didn’t realize how important (speed) was to me,” he said at spring training in March 1992. “Man, if you can’t run you can’t hit. If you can’t run you can’t play defense.”13

The Giants traded Bass to the New York Mets near the end of the 1992 season and after the season, a free agent, again, he re-signed with the Astros. He said later that it took until the 1993 season until his knee to fully heal, and by that time he had lost any legitimate chance to remain a starting outfielder in Houston.

The players strike in 1994 very much hurt Bass’s career. On July 31, 1994 the Astros obtained veteran outfielder Milt Thompson from the Phillies with the idea of platooning him with Bass, who was struggling with right-handed pitching. On August 12 the season ended with the players strike, and didn’t resume until April 1995.

During the strike-bound offseason Bass was again a free agent, and he signed with the Orioles. Baltimore released him after a season in which he hit .244 with five home runs. He spent 1996 at home in Sugar Land. He later said he was “just being a dad to my kids and husband to my wife.”14 He became a 5-handicap golfer with a powerful drive. As his own father had done, he coached the little league team for his two older sons. Just before he decided to attempt a comeback with the Angels, he had been offered a job hosting a radio talk show. The general manager agreed to hold the job open for six weeks.

Before the 1997 season Bass signed a minor-league contract with the Anaheim Angels. He had been offered a job hosting a radio talk show, and the station manager agreed to hold the job open for six weeks. Bass arrived at spring training two months short of his 38th birthday but taut and slim and hoping to make a comeback. In the Angels camp he remembered that the years with the Giants had been hard and were a turning point in the way he looked at his career. “The funny thing is that it doesn’t matter how much money you have. My wife and I, we’re financially stable. We can do whatever we want, and go wherever we want. But you realize that is not really the answer. Your financial needs are met, but you need something to care about, to care about and that you can get some fulfillment out of.”15

Bass was unable to return to the major leagues. Hampered by an Achilles’ tendon injury, he announced his retirement on May 20, 1997, after playing in four games with the Angels’ Triple-A team at Vancouver.

Bass and his wife, Elaine, have four children. In 2007 two of his sons were selected in the major-league draft. Garrett was selected by the Washington Nationals in the 42nd round from Jacksonville State University and played four minor league seasons, including the 2010 season an independent league playing for his father’s former manager Hal Lanier. Justin, a 21st-round pick by the  Angels, played for seven seasons after high school, and also ended his career in independent ball.

Bass and his wife founded a real-estate investment business in Texas in 1993, and he continued to attend events on behalf of the Astros, as well as taking part in old-timers’ games, fantasy baseball camps and other events.

“It’s a fraternity,” Bass said. “It’s a time in the players’ lives that basically is probably the best time of our lives. Ten, fifteen years, however long you played, you just meet some of the best guys ever. It’s always great to be able to come back, just get together and just reminisce, talk about the good old days and watch these [current Astros] out there do the stuff that we used to be able to do.”16

Last revised: October 29, 2023 (zp)

Sources

The addition to the works cited in the Notes, the author consulted Baseball Reference.com, Retrosheet.org, and The Sporting News, as well as the following:

Stone, Larry. “Baseball Goes Shopping,” Santa Rosa (California) Press Democrat, December 6, 1987: 37.

Krell, David. “Hal Lanier,” SABR BioProject, sabr.org/bioproj/person/2bd24617.

Briley, Ron. “The Greatest Game Ever Played? October 15. 1986,” SABR: The National Pastime, 2014. sabr.org/research/greatest-game-ever-played-october-15-1986.

Costello, Rory. “October 15, 1986: Mets Win NLCS Thriller in 16 Innings,” SABR Games Project, sabr.org/gamesproj/game/october-15-1986-mets-win-thriller-16-innings.

Notes

1 Buster Olney, “Getting Started; Remembering Roots, New O’s Look Back Fondly,” Baltimore Sun, May 1, 1995: 31, 41.

2 Chris Haft, “Motivation Stands Out Most When Recalling a Major Leaguer,” Twin Falls (Idaho) Times-News, June 26, 1984: 17.

3 Stanley Johnson Obituary, Duggan’s Serra Mortuary, Daly City, California, April 2012. duggans-serra.com/obituary/Stanley-Lucius-Johnson/Daly-City-CA/1062910.

4 Associated Press, “Molitor May Succeed Yount,” Chippewa Falls (Wisconsin) Herald Telegram, June 8, 1977: 12.

5 “Kevin Bass Career File,” Baltimore Sun, May 19,1995 p 173

6 “Eastern League,” The Sporting News, June 23, 1979: 44.

7 Terrence Moore, “Blown Out Giants Try to Regroup,” San Francisco Examiner, September 9, 1982: 63-66.

8 Steve Sneddon, “Everything Right for Bass This Spring,” Reno Gazette-Journal, March 17, 1992: 25.

9 “Voice of the Fan/Conlin Confused,” The Sporting News, August 11, 1986: 6.

10 Ray Kerby, An Interview with Kevin Bass, January 14, 2002, AstrosDaily.com. astrosdaily.com/players/interviews/Bass_Kevin.html.

11 Richard Obert, “To Improve Cast, Giants Catch Bass, Throw Him in Right,” Arizona Republic (Phoenix), April 8, 1990: 49.

12 Larry Stone, “Giants Hook Bass,” Santa Rosa (California) Press Democrat, November 17, 1989: 37.

13 Sneddon.

14 Gwen Knapp, “Bass Among Old Vets Trying to Come Back.” Daily Oklahoman (Oklahoma City), March 9, 1997: 253.

15 Ibid.

16 Alyson Footer, “Astros Host Ex-players for Legends Weekend, MLB.com, August 11, 2018. mlb.com/astros/news/astros-host-annual-legends-weekend/c-289917276.

That dictionary definition explains why “Bedrock” was an apt nickname for Steve Bedrosian. In his prime, he was a rock-solid relief pitcher and the foundation on which his teams built a bullpen.

Stephen Wayne Bedrosian was born in Methuen, Massachusetts, on December 6, 1957, to Michael (a materials and inventory specialist for Western Electric) and Jean Bedrosian (office manager for W.T. Grant Company)2 and is one of a handful of major leaguers of Armenian descent. He played baseball and soccer and wrestled for the Methuen High School Rangers, where his performance would (24 years later) earn him recognition by the North Andover Eagle-Tribune as the area’s “Top Athlete of the 20th Century.”3 After graduation in 1975, he played baseball for the Knights of  Northern Essex Community College in nearby Haverhill, Massachusetts, for two years before enrolling at the University of New Haven. In his only season there, he compiled a 13-3 record and three saves, helping Coach Frank “Porky” Viera’s 1978 Chargers to a third-place finish in the Division II College World Series.4 He was named to the Division II All-America First Team by ABCA/Rawlings and to The Sporting News’ All-American Second Team.5 He was one of only three Division II players (and the only pitcher) to be so recognized by The Sporting News.

Those All-American honors came on the heels of being selected by the Atlanta Braves in the third round of the 1978 amateur draft. He was the Braves’ third pick — after future Atlanta teammates Bob Horner and Matt Sinatro — and the 53rd overall pick. He quickly signed with the Braves and was assigned to the Kingsport (Tennessee) Braves of the Appalachian (Rookie) League. After starting six games and compiling a 2-2 record and a 3.08 ERA, Bedrosian was promoted to the Class-A Greenwood (South Carolina) Braves, for whom he started eight games, went 5-1, and lowered his ERA to 2.13.

Bedrosian progressed steadily upward through the Braves farm system. He spent the next two seasons as a starter for the Savannah (Georgia) Braves in the Double-A Southern League. Although one reporter dubbed him perhaps the hardest thrower in the league, Bedrosian himself said it was “the first league I’ve been in where I can’t just reach back and blow it by everyone.”6 He added: “I don’t have a curve or a change-up. I’m going to have to learn them if I’m going to move up.”7 In 1980 he was a Southern League All-Star8 and the workhorse of the Savannah staff, pitching 203 innings and completing nine of his 29 starts for a 14-10 record. That performance earned him a spot on Atlanta’s 40-man roster.9 After a season of winter baseball in the Dominican Republic,10 Bedrosian joined the Richmond (Virginia) Braves in the Triple-A International League, where he started 25 games and made his first relief appearance. He had a 10-10 record and a 2.69 ERA when he was called up to Atlanta.

Bedrosian made his major-league debut on August 14, 1981, at Dodger Stadium. He relieved John Montefusco in the fourth inning with one out and the bases loaded after the Dodgers had scored two runs to break a scoreless tie. Bill Russell, the first batter Bedrosian faced, drove in a run with a sacrifice fly. Bedrosian then hit opposing pitcher Dave Goltz but got Davy Lopes to pop out to end the inning. He was lifted for a pinch-hitter in the bottom of the inning, but he was in the big leagues to stay. He earned his first major-league victory the following night when he struck out two of the three Dodgers, he faced in the fifth inning to preserve a 1-1 tie before being removed for a pinch-hitter in the sixth, when the Braves scored an unearned run to take a lead they never relinquished.

One night later, the Dodgers avenged that loss with a 6-5 win, and Bedrosian was charged with the loss. He entered the game to start the seventh inning with the Braves leading 5-3 and walked two batters before yielding a two-out, two-RBI double to Steve Garvey and being replaced on the mound by Gene Garber, who allowed a RBI single that put the Dodgers ahead by the final score of 6-5.

Bedrosian’s next appearance was on August 22 at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, when he made his home debut in his first major-league start in the first game of a doubleheader against the Montreal Expos. After five innings, he had yielded two hits and three walks, and the Braves led 3-0. He did not retire a batter in the sixth inning. He gave up an unearned run followed by John Milner’s three-run homer and left the game trailing 4-3 with two runners aboard. One of those runners scored another unearned run, and when the Braves could muster only one more run, Bedrosian was charged with his second loss. After four games, his record was 1-2. He appeared in 11 more games (17 innings) in relief without another decision or another save opportunity and ended the 1981 season with an ERA of 4.44 — his highest until his final season. In December Bedrosian became the first Brave who did not have a long-term contract to agree to terms for the 1982 season ($37,000) and was dubbed one of the club’s young pitchers “most difficult to pry away from the Braves.”11

Bedrosian returned to the Dominican Republic for another season of winter baseball and was pitching well for the Estrellas12 of San Pedro de Macoris (2.83 ERA) when he suffered minor injuries in an auto accident. At the time, he was called “one of the best pitching prospects since the Braves moved to Atlanta”13 and one of eight candidates to join the Braves’ starting rotation.14 In March he exacerbated his injury-plagued offseason by breaking his finger. Fortunately for the lanky (6-feet-3, 200 pounds) right-hander, it was on his left hand. A month later, he was one of seven rookies on Atlanta’s Opening Day roster.15 He had arrived with two nicknames — Bedrock (the one that lasted throughout his career) and Mr. Smoke (later Kid Smoke)16 — that attested to his two primary characteristics as a baseball player: a “fierce competitor” who “throws hard.”17

The Braves got off to a record-breaking start in 1982, winning their first 13 games. Bedrosian was the starter on April 10 against Houston in the 3-0 Braves’ second home game. The Braves staked him to an early 5-0 lead, but he gave up a walk and a two-run homer in the third inning and two more hits and a walk in the fourth before being lifted. Six days later, in Houston, he pitched three shutout innings to protect a 5-3 lead as the Braves improved to 9-0.  Back in Atlanta on April 20, he relieved Tommy Boggs with two out in the second inning. The bases were loaded, and the Reds had a 2-0 lead. Bedrock got a quick out and followed with four more scoreless innings. When he left the game, the Braves led 4-2, and that was the final score, so Bedrosian was credited with the win in the game that gave “Hotlanta’s Hotbraves”18 their record-breaking 12th consecutive victory to start a season. The team increased that record to 13 straight wins (which was tied five years later by the AL Milwaukee Brewers). Bedrosian’s fondest memory of that streak came at its end. After the Braves finally lost in Game 14, a fan displayed a sign that said: “161-1 Isn’t Bad!”19

For the rest of that season, Bedrosian was used mainly in relief and did an “awesome” job.20  Through July 27, his 1.46 ERA was the best on the team, and he had a 5-1 record and six saves in 34 games and was averaging 7.3 strikeouts per nine innings. He was deemed “among the hardest throwers ever to pitch for the Atlanta Braves.” He acknowledged that he had loved striking batters out since his days in Little League and admitted that he didn’t “try to nick corners.”21 Braves pitching coach Bob Gibson explained that Bedrosian was better suited for his relief role because starting gave him “too much time to think.”22

Although he cooled off a bit in the latter part of the season, Bedrosian ended his first full season with a record of 8-6, 11 saves (in 17 opportunities), a 2.42 ERA, and 123 strikeouts (more than any other NL relief pitcher) in 64 games (only three starts). He did not fare well in the National League Championship Series when the Cardinals swept the Braves and went on to win the World Series. In Game One, Bedrosian replaced Pascual Perez in the sixth inning with no outs, the Braves down 2-0 and two runners aboard. He gave up a walk and three hits, allowing both inherited runners to score, and gave up two added runs, increasing the Cardinals lead to 6-0, while recording only two outs. He was also one of six pitchers the Braves used in the decisive Game Three, facing one batter (Keith Hernandez) and striking him out with the bases loaded in the eighth inning.

Postseason awards are based only on regular-season performance, and Bedrosian was named the National League Rookie Pitcher of the Year by The Sporting News. Pitching coach Gibson obviously had seen something others had missed; Steve Bedrosian, who had been a starter throughout his minor-league career (81 starts in 82 games), was now a reliever, and the Braves believed that their bullpen was set for 1983 with him paired with Gene Garber.23 That duo plus Rick Camp, who contributed five saves, had been recognized by Rolaids as the “top team bullpen” in the majors.24

The Braves showed their confidence in Bedrosian with a pay raise from $37,000 to $155,000 — the highest percentage increase on the team25 — and he became the team’s closer, finishing 52 of his 69 relief appearances. Bedrosian’s work had him leading the race for the Rolaids Relief Pitcher Award in early August, but he struggled during the latter part of the season as his ERA rose from 3.00 to 3.74. At least one observer thought that these struggles were the result of his having been “shamefully overworked”26 while Gene Garber was on the disabled list in July. His lone start that year came in the Braves’ next-to-last game, on October 1 against the Padres in San Diego. He pitched seven strong innings and left the game in the eighth inning with a 2-1 lead, but lost the win when two relievers gave up two runs and the Braves then lost in the 10th. That game, his final appearance for the season, lowered his ERA to 3.60 but did not allow him to even his 9-10 record to .500. He did increase his strikeout rate to almost one per inning and his strikeout/walk ratio to 2.24, and recorded 19 saves (in 27 opportunities).

Early in 1984, there was some speculation that Bedrosian might move into the Braves’ starting rotation because Phil Niekro had been released and Pascual Perez had been arrested in the Dominican Republic.27 However, when the season started, Perez was a regular starter, and bullpen duties were distributed among Gene Garber (62 relief appearances/11 saves/42 closures), Donnie Moore (47/16/29), Jeff Dedmon (54/4/19), and Bedrosian (36/11/28).

Bedrosian got off to a fabulous start. By June 6, he had pitched 33⅓ innings in 19 games and had a 4-1 record plus eight saves with an ERA of 0.54. Then he struggled through a steak of four consecutive losses over an eight-day period in which he blew two ninth-inning leads on the road, gave up a 12th-inning walk-off single after walking the only other two batters he faced, and yielded back-to-back doubles to the first hitters he faced in the eighth inning of a tied home game. His ERA had tripled to 1.73. Those two blown-save opportunities were Bedrosian’s first and last of the season; his overall success rate (84.8 percent) led the team.

Bedrosian was the only member of the bullpen quartet who logged any starting assignments. While his record in four starts was 3-1, he needed and received lots of run support (4.8 runs per game compared with the team’s season average of 3.9); his ERA in those games was 3.86 (vs. 1.71 in his relief efforts). His overall ERA (2.37) was still lowest on the team among those who pitched in more than three games.

Bedrosian’s fourth start, on August 15, was his last game of the 1984 season. The Braves had planned to move him into Craig McMurtry’s slot in the rotation, but he was experiencing some pain in his right bicep that required attention and caution.28 While his season ended early, there was much to be celebrated. He had improved his ERA, his winning percentage (9-6/.600), and his strikeout rate while lowering his WHIP to 1.171 (1.138 in relief). Talk of moving him into the starting rotation continued into the offseason.29

This time the talk resulted in a change. In 1985, the Braves had a new manager (Eddie Haas) and a new pitching coach (Johnny Sain). With Bruce Sutter now available as closer, Bedrock joined the starting rotation30 — for the first and only time in his major-league career. It was a less than stellar experience. He started 37 games (second only to Rick Mahler) and finished none of them — a record for most unfinished starts in a season.31 He had the same number of losses (15) as Mahler, but 10 fewer wins (seven). Yet, compared to the rest of the starters, none of whom posted a winning record, his performance was admirable. His 3.83 ERA was second only to Mahler’s, and his 5.8 strikeouts per nine innings led all starters. Not bad for a season when he pitched more innings than in his previous two seasons combined and was “supported” by a team that ranked 10th in the National League in runs scored (3.9 per game) and ninth in fielding percentage (.976), committing more errors (159) than all but one other team.

Yet, on December 10, 1985, the Braves traded Bedrosian and outfielder Milt Thompson to Philadelphia for catcher Ozzie Virgil and young pitcher Pete Smith. New general manager Bobby Cox wanted Virgil’s power to “restore thunder”32 to the Braves’ anemic offense and risked giving up Bedrosian only after the Phillies turned down his offer of Jeff Dedmon. Phillies president Bill Giles made it clear that Bedrosian was the “plum” in the deal, seeing him as “the main short reliever in a really deep bullpen.”33

After working his way through a sore arm during spring training,34 Bedrosian started the 1986 season with his new team still trying to transition back into a reliever’s role after a full year as a starter, and he struggled for a while.35 He won in his Phillies debut, but it wasn’t easy. He entered a 1-1 game in the top of the 10th in Cincinnati and got three quick outs. The Phillies scored four times in the 11th, but Bedrosian gave up two runs in the bottom of that inning before retiring a batter. The Reds had the tying runs on base before he struck out two batters to preserve the 5-3 win. His home debut was less stressful; he threw a 1-2-3 inning as the fifth of eight Philadelphia pitchers in a 9-8 win over the Mets. In his next game, he again took the mound in the 10th inning of a 1-1 tie, gave up two runs to the Pirates, and was the losing pitcher when the Phillies failed to rally.

By the end of April, Bedrosian had appeared in eight games, and his record was still 1-1. He ended the month with his first three saves, but gave up runs in two of them. His ERA was 7.27, and he had become a favorite target of the Phillies’ notoriously noisy boo-birds.36 The turnaround began in May with three solid relief appearances, and really took hold (perhaps appropriately) in Atlanta, when he earned a save on May 9 and a win two days later. Bedrosian gave Phillies pitching coach Claude Osteen credit for his improved mechanics.37

Bedrosian continued to improve and eventually earned the respect of those finicky fans, and the trade that brought him to Philadelphia was being praised as one of the best of the year as Bedrock gave the Phillies “the best right-handed relief in years.”38 His fastball was consistently timed at 95 mph and he was having one of the best seasons of any NL reliever.39 He finished the season with 29 saves, tying the Phillies’ team record. His ERA (3.39) and home-run rate (1.2 per 9 innings) were higher than in his last year as a Braves reliever, but his won-lost record (8-6) and walk and strikeout rates were remarkably similar to that year. He was back at home in the bullpen.

The reward was a two-year contract worth $1.75 million, ensuring that he would not become a free agent after the 1987 season, and Bedrosian declared himself to be “much more relaxed and ready to pitch well from the start.”40 Others expected him to be the anchor of the Philadelphia bullpen.41 That optimism seemed unwarranted and certainly premature as Bedrock got off to another rocky start. In his first six games, he allowed 10 runs on 11 hits (including four home runs) and had an ERA of 11.05. Remarkably, he also had been credited with two victories and almost became the NL’s first three-game winner on April 18 in the final game of that stretch. After Bedrosian gave up four runs to the Pirates in the eighth inning to blow a three-run lead, Mike Schmidt put the Phils ahead in the top of the ninth with his 500th career home run. The official scorer awarded the victory to Kent Tekulve, who shut down the Pirates in the bottom of that frame.

On April 26, in his eighth appearance, Bedrosian recorded his first save of the season, at home against the Pirates. On May 10 he started a streak in which he earned 19 saves in 20 appearances including a then-major-league record of 13 consecutive saves. He explained his success by saying, “I’m not aiming or trying to hit the corners. I’m just reaching back and letting it fly.”42 By the All-Star break, he had 24 saves and three wins for a team with only 42 victories, and he was named to the All-Star team for the first (and only) time in his career. In that game, he played a pivotal role with a fielding play that made him a hero instead of a potential “goat.” He entered a scoreless game in the bottom of the ninth and sandwiched two walks around a successful sacrifice bunt, putting the potential winning run on second base. He then induced a grounder to first baseman Keith Hernandez, who threw to second for the force out. Hubie Brooks’ return throw to Bedrosian, who was covering first, was wild and it looked as though the winning run would score, but he dove and snagged the errant throw, scrambled to his feet, and threw home where Ozzie Virgil (!) applied the tag that completed the double play and ended the inning.43 The NL eventually won the game 2-0 in 13 innings.

Following his All-Star Game heroics, Bedrock continued to be rock-solid in relief. He eclipsed his previous season high in saves with his 30th on July 31 — the quickest in history to reach that milestone44 — and ended the season with a league-leading 40 saves, becoming the first Phillies pitcher to lead the league in that category since the save was adopted in 1969. That magical season was capped off when the BBWAA gave Bedrosian the Cy Young Award in the closest vote in the history of the award. Bedrosian (5-3; 2.83 ERA) edged Cubs starter Rick Sutcliffe (18-10; 3.68 ERA) by two points and Rick Reuschel (13-9; 3.09 ERA), who divided the season between the Giants and the Pirates, by three. Eight pitchers received votes, and no pitcher was named on all 24 ballots.45

Bedrosian’s selection was controversial. No NL pitcher had been dominant, so each front-runner’s fans could cite statistics that supported their man. His five wins and 40 saves meant that he had played a role in more than half of his fifth-place team’s 80 victories. He observed: “I’m not going to say that I backed into it. I’m not looking at what starting pitchers did or didn’t do this year. I’m looking at what I was able to accomplish.”46 The Phillies rewarded him with bonuses totaling $225,000 for his All-Star selection, Cy Young Award, and the Rolaids Relief Man of the Year Award. The latter, like The Sporting News’s designation as NL Fireman of the Year, was not controversial, and the Philadelphia Sportswriters Association named him the Pro Athlete of the Year.

There was understandable optimism heading into the 1988 season.47 Then Bedrosian experienced chest pains while running sprints during spring training. The initial diagnosis was an acute strain,48 but a later diagnosis was “walking pneumonia”49 that put him out of action. He started the season on the 21-day disabled list after logging only one inning in spring training.50 After a brief (five  games) rehab assignment with the Triple-A Maine Phillies, Bedrock finally took the mound on May 20 in San Diego and retired the only batter he faced in the sixth inning to strand two runners and preserve a 3-2 lead. He then returned to his role as the Phillies’ closer, finishing 49 games in 57 appearances and earning 28 saves. On September 25, his 95th career save for the Phillies broke Tug McGraw’s team record.51 After the season he was the only Phillies player offered a guaranteed multiyear contract, and he signed for three years at $1.45 million per year.52 

The rumor mills went into overdrive in December when the Phillies traded for Jeff Parrett, who had appeared in 61 games for the Expos in 1988. GM Lee Thomas insisted that he had “no intention of trading” Bedrosian, whom he called “the best closer in baseball.”53 Bedrock, who had already expressed frustration over the limited number of save opportunities he had in 1988, explained: “I need work to stay sharp.”54 He had a strong spring training, allowing only six hits and a single run in nine games and started the regular season without allowing a run in his first five appearances.55 By the end of April, however, he had been in 11 games and had a record of 1-2 with only two saves. On May 15 he earned his second win despite serving up two gopher balls and acknowledged: “I’m not throwing my slider the way I want. … I have to keep on battling.”56

On June 16, Bedrosian gave up four runs in two innings and was the loser in a 15-11 slugfest won by the Mets. Two days later, he was traded to the San Francisco Giants, whose manager (Roger Craig) was sure that Bedrock would “get back on track with more work.”57 Bedrosian left the Phillies with a record of 2-3 and six more saves, raising his team record to 103 (since eclipsed). He was on the mound in Candlestick Park the day after the trade and earned a save. He then earned saves in his next four appearances, and finished the season with 17 saves and a 2.65 ERA for the Giants, who were champions of the NL West. Bedrosian appeared in four of the five NLCS games against the Cubs and got saves in the final three games, helping the Giants to win the NL pennant. He saw limited action (2⅔ innings in two appearances) in the “Earthquake” World Series that followed as Oakland swept the Giants in four games. Even though he had joined the team in midseason, Bedrock was voted a full share ($83,529.96) of the Giants’ losing World Series earnings.58

Bedrosian entered the 1990 season as San Francisco’s perceived “stopper.” Craig Lefferts, who had lost his closer role when Bedrock joined the Giants, had been granted the free agency he requested59 and had quickly signed with the Padres. Throughout spring training, Bedrosian had been worried about his 3-year-old son, Cody, who had been quite ill for several months. He reluctantly accompanied the team to Atlanta for Opening Day, but quickly went home to California when his wife, Tammy, called to say that Cody had gotten worse. The devastating diagnosis was leukemia, and Steve stayed with his son, missing the Giants’ first five games. Tammy finally persuaded him to rejoin the team, and he went to Candlestick60 on Sunday, April 15. He was sent to the mound in the ninth inning to protect a 3-2 lead over the Padres. He gave up four hits, including a two-run homer (on an 0-and-2 count) and lost the game, 4-3. He then showed his “leadership and character” by granting postgame interviews.61 At the end of the season, those traits were officially acknowledged when Bedrosian received the Willie Mac “Spirit, Ability, and Leadership”62 Award which annually recognizes the Giants’ “most inspirational” player.

Bedrosian struggled off-and-on throughout 1990, but salvaged the season by finishing well.63 In the three games after that disappointing first effort, he earned two saves. Then, on April 25, after holding the Pirates scoreless in the 10th and 11th innings, he was battered for four runs in the 12th and suffered another home loss. By June 1 he had earned seven saves, but did not get another until August 17. After earning two more August saves, he closed the season with seven saves and three wins (vs. one loss) in his last 11 appearances. His 1.46 ERA during that stretch lowered his season ERA by half a run to 4.20, still his highest since his call-up year. For the first time since that same year, Bedrosian walked more batters than he fanned. He had managed to equal his save total (17) from the previous year, and he had proved in the closing months of the season that he was still capable of closing games.

In December, the Giants traded Bedrosian to Minnesota for a player to be named later, and some pundits thought that he would become the Twins’ closer, allowing Rick Aguilera to become a starter.64 The pundits were wrong; Aguilera was still the closer, but Bedrosian got plenty of work, appearing in 56 games (but in only seven save situations). He finished the regular season with decent numbers (5-3, 4.42 ERA; six saves) and pitched briefly (1⅓ innings, two hits, no earned runs) in two ALCS games as the Twins beat the Blue Jays four games to one. Their World Series opponents were the Atlanta Braves.

Bedrosian appeared in three games against his former team — all played in Atlanta, all won by the Braves. His first two appearances were brief; he faced seven hitters and retired them all. His final appearance was less routine. He entered Game Five in the seventh inning with the Twins already trailing 7-3 and two runners on base. When he finally retired the side, he had given up two singles and a triple, allowing the two inherited runners to score, and was responsible for two more runs of his own. The Braves now led 11-3, and Bedrock was one of the five Twins pitchers whom the Braves “bent, folded, stapled, and mutilated”65 that night. The Twins rebounded, winning the last two games at home, and Steve Bedrosian finally had earned a World Series ring.

Since June of that 1991 season, Bedrosian had been undergoing multiple medical examinations, tests, and treatments (including acupuncture) in an effort to determine why he was experiencing numbness in the index and middle fingers of his right (pitching) hand.66 His once-dominant fastball now clocked only in the high 80s. He became a free agent at the end of the season and decided to take the next season off — a depressing “forced retirement” because his cold fingers had earned him a cold shoulder.67 He later said: “I really thought I was done. Just out of the game for good.”68

During his “retirement” on his 120-acre farm in Senoia, Georgia, while the 1992 season went on without him, the strange numbness subsided “suddenly and mysteriously.”69 Bedrosian contacted the Braves and was invited to spring training, where his comeback became “one of the best stories” of the spring.70 Apparently, the numbness was related to tobacco and stress, so he gave up tobacco, and son Cody’s leukemia was in remission. Bedrock was now “healthy and stress-free.”71

When the 1993 season started, Steve Bedrosian was a Brave again, and now he was the second oldest pitcher on the team. He struggled in April, losing two games that were tied when he took the mound. He acknowledged that he no longer had manager Bobby Cox’s confidence.72 His performance improved as he adjusted to not being the closer. He appeared in 49 games (pitching only 49⅔ innings, none of them save opportunities). He did not lose another game, and earned five wins. His 1.63 ERA was lowest on the team and he struck out more than twice as many batters as he walked. He was no longer “Kid Smoke,” but he could still be as solid as bedrock.

After the season the Braves avoided salary arbitration with Bedrosian by releasing him, but they signed him to a new contract two days later.73 His role in the 1994 Braves bullpen was similar to the previous year. At 36, he was now the team’s oldest pitcher. He pitched 46 innings in 46 games and was charged with two losses; he blew both of his save opportunities and earned no wins. His ERA rose to 3.33, but was second lowest on the team behind Greg Maddux’s 1.56. Once again, he became a free agent at the end of the season, but was signed to a new contract within days.

Bedrock was back with the Braves to start the 1995 season. He announced that he had rediscovered his fastball thanks to acupuncture,74 but that wasn’t enough. In August, after appearing in only 29 of the Braves’ 96 games, Bedrosian abruptly announced his retirement.75  He left with a 1-2 record and a 6.11 ERA. He had blown his only two save opportunities, and in

his final game had retired only one of the six batters he faced, giving up four hits and an intentional walk. He wasn’t there when the Braves finally won a World Series later that year, but he did receive his second World Series ring and a partial share of the winning team’s earnings.76

There was not another comeback. Steve Bedrosian’s fine major-league playing career was over after 14 seasons in which he appeared in 732 regular-season games (only 46 as a starter), pitching 1,191 innings. He won 76 games, lost 79, saved 184 (representing a 76.3 percent success rate), and “held” 38 more. He struck out 921 batters (seven per nine innings) and walked approximately half that many (443) unintentionally.  Only half of the 52 players drafted ahead of Bedrock in 1978 made it to “The Show,” and only five (and just two pitchers) matched or exceeded his 14-year major-league career. One of those five was Hall of Famer Cal Ripken, who was drafted five slots before Bedrosian.

Bedrosian wasn’t through with baseball or the Braves. He agreed to participate in 1996 spring training and then join the Appalachian (Rookie) League Danville Braves as pitching coach.77

Steve Bedrosian wasn’t through with Georgia, either. The Massachusetts native stayed on the farm in Coweta County where he had settled during his first tour with the Braves. That’s where he and Tammy raised their five children (Stephen Kyle, Cody, Carson, Cameron, and Katelyn); that was now home. Bedrosian had been a bachelor when he joined the Braves in 1981.78 After he married singer79 Tammy Raye Blackwell in 198480 and later became a father, he brought to that role the same strength and determination that he showed on the diamond. The importance of his family is reflected in Steve’s choice of “the game of [his] life.” He didn’t choose a game in which he had excelled; he chose a game in which he gave up a tape-measure grand slam. He chose the May 10, 1994, game in which the Braves honored 6-year-old Cody Bedrosian, who was still battling leukemia. Cody got to throw out the first ball, and several Braves wore their pants knee-high and their sock stirrups high (Bedrosian style). Steve served up that homer and left the mound in the seventh inning with the Braves trailing 8-1 feeling that he “had let Cody down,” but the Braves tied the game with a seven-run rally in the ninth and won 9-8 in the 15th for “a storybook ending.”81 Cody recovered (thanks in large part to a bone-marrow transplant with brother Cam as the donor)82 and as of 2020 was doing well.

All four Bedrosian sons played baseball. Cody hung up his glove when he was 12.83 Kyle, Cameron, and Carson all played for the East Coweta High Indians, where their father often served as assistant pitching coach. Kyle, a lefty, went on to play for four years at Mercer University. In 2010, Cameron (Cam), whose middle name is “Rock,” was drafted out of high school in the first round by the Los Angeles Angels and made his major-league debut in 2014. He is a right-handed relief pitcher who averages more than a strikeout per inning and his nickname is “Bedrock.” Does that sound familiar?

Steve served on the Coweta County (Georgia) Board of Education for several years and was elected to the Coweta Sports Hall of Fame in 2009. He was already enshrined in the University of New Haven’s Athletics Hall of Fame (a 1996 inductee).

Last revised: February 12, 2021

Sources

In addition to the sources cited in the Notes, the author consulted Baseball-Almanac, the Baseball Cube, Baseball-Reference.com, Retrosheet.org, and the Sports Illustrated Vault.

Notes

1 www.dictionary.com.

2 Email from Steve Bedrosian, November 11, 2019.

3 eagletribune.com/sports/local_sports/eagle-tribune-athletes-of-the-century/article_35307211-902c-5f80-b368-fe56d94d3f2a.html.

4 University of New Haven Athletics,  newhavenchargers.com/hof.aspx?hof=69.

5 Lou Pavlovich, “Horner and Gibson Stand Out in Selections,” The Sporting News, July 8, 1978: 42.

6 “Southern League Report,” The Sporting News, June 2, 1979: 43.

7 “Southern League Report,” The Sporting News, June 2, 1979: 43.

8 “Balboni Heads All-Stars,” The Sporting News, July 12, 1980: 52.

9 Ken Picking, “Braves’ Biggest Gain Was Down the Middle,” The Sporting News, November 15, 1980: 53.

10 Picking, “Dayley Atlanta’s Hill Prize,” The Sporting News, December 13, 1980: 50.

11 Tim Tucker, “Braves Willing to Deal Pitcher,” The Sporting News, December 12, 1981: 50.

12  Email from Steve Bedrosian, November 11, 2019.

13 Tucker, “Bedrosian’s Injuries Believed to be Minor,” The Sporting News, February 13, 1982: 39.

14 Tucker, “Eight Pitchers Battle for Braves Berths,” The Sporting News, March 13, 1982: 40.

15 Tucker, “Braves Are Leaning on Horner, Murphy,” The Sporting News, April 24, 1982: 21.

16 “Player Biographies: Steve Bedrosian,” Braves Illustrated: 1982 Yearbook: 47.

17 Fan: 1984 Atlanta Braves Official Program (Vol. 19, No. 4), 27.

18  George Cunningham, “12-0! Hotlanta’s Hotbraves Rewrite Record Book,” Atlanta Constitution, April 21, 1982: 1.

19  Email from Steve Bedrosian, November 11, 2019.

20 Tucker, “Bedrosian Rates ‘Awesome’ Label,” The Sporting News, August 9, 1982: 17.

21 Tucker, “Bedrosian Rates ‘Awesome’ Label.”

22 Tucker, “Bedrosian Rates ‘Awesome’ Label.”

23 Earl Lawson, “Reds Setting Sights on Atlanta Slugger,” The Sporting News, December 13, 1982: 52.

24 Chris Mortensen, “Mr. Finesse and Kid Smoke,” Braves Illustrated: 1983 Yearbook: 23.

25 Tucker, “Braves Face Huge Payroll,” The Sporting News, March 28, 1983: 36.

26 Bill Conlin, “Phils Seek a Starting Pitcher,” The Sporting News, November 14, 1983: 48.

27 Tucker, “Braves Seek Perez’s Replacement,” The Sporting News, February 6, 1984: 49, 52.

28 Gerry Fraley. “Barker. McMurtry Out of Rotation,” The Sporting News, August 20, 1984: 19-20.

29 Fraley, “Do Braves Lead Chase of Sutter?” The Sporting News, December 10, 1984: 51.

30 Sandy Keenan, “10 Atlanta Braves,” Sports Illustrated, April 15, 1985.

31 “Steve Bedrosian,” Alchetron (alchetron.com/Steve-Bedrosian).

32Fraley, “Braves Gear Up for Slugfests,” The Sporting News, December 23, 1985: 44.

33 Peter Pascarelli, “Two Trades Have Ripple Effect,” The Sporting News, December 23, 1985: 41. 

34 Bill Conlin, “NL Beat,” The Sporting News, March 10, 1986: 40.

35 Conlin, “NL East,” The Sporting News, May 26, 1986: 18.

36 Pascarelli, “A Bullpen Bounce-Back by Phillies’ Bedrosian,” The Sporting News, September 8, 1986: 17.

37 Conlin, “NL East,” The Sporting News, May 26, 1986: 18.

38 Murray Chass, “Baseball’s Best Trades,” The Sporting News, August 25, 1986: 14.

39 Pascarelli, “A Bullpen Bounce-Back.”

40 “Notebook, NL East, Phils,” The Sporting News, February 2, 1987: 42.

41 Pascarelli, “N.L. East: Phillies,” The Sporting News, April 1, 1987: 24.

42 “N.L. East: Phillies,” The Sporting News, July 13, 1987: 27.

43 Dave Nightingale, “A Relapse by the Rabbit?” The Sporting News, July 27, 1987: 45; YouTube video Alchetron.

44 “NL East,” The Sporting News, August 17, 1987: 17.

45 Murray Chass, “Phillies’ Bedrosian Cy Young Winner,” New York Times, November 11, 1987.

46 Bill Brown, “Cy Young Award a Real Bonus,” The Sporting News, November 23, 1987: 45.

47 Brown, “Bedrock Digs for Solid Start,” The Sporting News, March 27, 1988: 24.

48 “Notebook: NL East: Phillies,” The Sporting News, March 21, 1988: 37.

49 “Notebook: NL East: Phillies,” The Sporting News, March 28, 1988: 33.

50 “Notebook: NL East: Phillies,” The Sporting News, April 11, 1988: 49.

51 “Notebook: NL East: Phillies,” The Sporting News, October 10, 1988: 23.

52 Chass, “Sax & Marshall Set Free,” The Sporting News, November 14, 1988: 44.   

53 “Notebook: NL East: Phillies,” The Sporting News, March 6, 1989: 17.

54  “Notebook,” The Sporting News, March 6, 1989: 19.

55 “Notebook: NL East: Phillies,” The Sporting News, May 15, 1989: 21.

56 “Notebook: NL East: Phillies,” The Sporting News, May 29, 1989: 23.

57 Brown, “Thomas Shakes Up Phillies,” The Sporting News, June 26, 1989: 22.

58 Chass, “A’s World Series Checks Set Record,” The Sporting News, November 11, 1989: 61.

59 “Notebook: NL West: Giants,” The Sporting News, January 1, 1990: 52.

60 Jack Wilkinson, “Steve Bedrosian,” The Game of My Life (Champaign, Illinois: Sports Publishing, 2007), 64.

61 Art Spander. “Cody Bedrosian Can Be Proud of His Father,” The Sporting News, May 7, 1990: 55.

62 “Willie Mac Award,” baseball-almanac.com/awards/willie_mac_award.shtml.

63 “Bedrosian Salvages ’90 with a Strong Finish,” The Sporting News, October 15, 1990: 17.

64 “Notebook: AL West: Will Bedrosian Make Aguilera a Starter?” The Sporting News, December 17, 1990: 35.

65 Nightingale, “Twins Star in the Late Show,” The Sporting News, November 4, 1991: 10.

66 Wilkinson, 62.

67 Sean Gavitan, “Life’s Highways;” Fan (Atlanta Braves magazine), 1993: 56.

68 Wilkinson, 63.

69 Wilkinson, 63.

70 Pascarelli, “Baseball Report: Around the Bases,” The Sporting News, March 15, 1993: 16.

71 Pascarelli, “Baseball Report: Around the Bases.”

72 Bill Zach, “Baseball: NL East/West: Atlanta Braves,” The Sporting News, May 31, 1993: 20.

73 Tim Luke, “AL/NL: Atlanta Braves: Bedrock’s Back,” The Sporting News, November 22, 1993: 43.

74  Zach, “NL East: Atlanta Braves,” The Sporting News, May 8, 1995: 18.

75  Zach, “NL East: Atlanta Braves,” The Sporting News, August 21, 1995: 16.

76  Telephone conversation with Steve Bedrosian. November 5, 2019.

77 Zach, “NL: Atlanta Braves,” The Sporting News, December 18, 1995: 44.

78 “Career Statistics: Steve Bedrosian,” Braves Illustrated; 1981 Yearbook: 66.

79  Email from Steve Bedrosian, November 11, 2019.

80 “Steve Bedrosian,” Atlanta Braves 1994 Team Yearbook: 25.

81 Wilkinson, 65.

82  Telephone conversation with Steve Bedrosian, November 5, 2019.

83 Wilkinson, 66.

The Indians won the opener, 3-2. The second game was not nearly as close, as Buddy Bell’s grand slam in the second inning off Boston starter Steve Barr staked the Indians to a 6-0 lead. He added a solo home run in the fourth frame and a run-scoring double in the eighth. Bell was 3-for-5 with three runs scored and six RBIs, a career high. Indians starter Roric Harrison went the distance as the Indians coasted to a 12-2 victory. 

Bell had been the whipping boy in Cleveland, batting .232 to that point in the season. “Sure I heard them but I’m a professional and I try not to let it bother me, but it did,” Bell said of the booing fans.1 Bell was simplistic in describing his grand slam. “I never try for homers. All I wanted to do was get a hit. The bases were loaded and a single would have put us up by three. The pitch came down the middle and I just ripped, that’s all.”2 Bell continued his fine hitting for the balance of the season, batting .271 for the year. “It’s a great feeling to come back like that after the start I’ve had this season,” said Buddy of his big day.3

After the Indians split a Bat Day Doubleheader with the Bosox the following day, Cleveland had won 13 of its last 17 to pull within six games of the division-leading Red Sox. But Boston got the last laugh, winning the American League pennant in 1975. 

The Indians third baseman made headlines off the field a few days after the Boston series. The All-Star Game was to be played in Milwaukee on July 15. Bell finished second in the fan voting to the Yankees’ Graig Nettles. AL skipper Alvin Dark picked Bell as the backup to Nettles. However, Bell rejected the appointment. “I did it because in my heart, I know I don’t deserve it as much as some of the other guys who are playing better than me right now,” he explained.4

“Now that it’s final—I talked to (AL President) Lee MacPhail and Mr. Dark yesterday—I feel like a burden has been lifted off my shoulders. For two weeks, ever since the balloting was printed in the newspapers, and I was leading the third basemen. It has been eating up my insides, because I knew I didn’t deserve it.”5

“Now I feel better, so relieved, because I know I’m doing the right thing. There are other guys who deserve it more, and I know how I’d feel if I were in their shoes.”6

“I wanted Buddy because I think he could help us win the game, “said Dark. “There’s no doubt but that Buddy is one of the stars of baseball and belongs in the All-Star Game. I’d be honored to have him on the team. But I couldn’t convince him.

“Once he made his decision, and I knew it was irrevocable, I told Buddy I admire his attitude and his courage for doing what he thinks is right, no matter the consequences. And now I have even more respect for Buddy Bell.”7 

David Gus Bell was born on August 27, 1951, in Pittsburgh. He was one of seven children born to Gus and Joyce Bell. At the time, Gus Bell was in his second year as an outfielder for the Pittsburgh Pirates. His 15-year career was played entirely in the National League with Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, the New York Mets, and Milwaukee. He was a four-time All-Star, all while he was a member of the Reds. Gus started in right field for the Mets in their inaugural game, on April 11 1962, at St. Louis’s Busch Stadium. His single to center field in the second inning was the first hit in Mets history.

Gus gave Buddy his nickname to differentiate him from another family member also named David. Although David was born in Pittsburgh, it was Cincinnati where he spent his formative years. Bell was a two-sport star at Archbishop Moeller High School, excelling in basketball and of course baseball. In his three seasons on the varsity, Bell compiled a .410 batting average. He was the first real “star” to walk the halls at Moeller. Ken Griffey Jr., Barry Larkin, Adam Hyzdu, and Buddy’s sons David and Mike would all wear the Crusader blue and gold.

The assumption by many was that Buddy, being the son of a major-league star, was the beneficiary of Gus’s instruction on the finer points of playing baseball. But the opposite was true. “Most people say to me, ‘I guess you were able to help him quite a bit,’ but the fact is that I did help a little at the beginning, but not much after that,” said Gus.

“I don’t think you can push a kid. You can try to lead them but I feel that whatever they try to do, just encourage them. Tim Rose [Moeller coach] taught Buddy a lot of the fundamental things, like base running, how to play the position, and that sort. I don’t claim very much of the credit.”8

After graduation, Bell was selected in the 16th round of the June free-agent draft by the Cleveland Indians on June 5, 1969. Cleveland general manager Gabe Paul and assistant general manager Phil Seghi were both in the Cincinnati front office when Gus Bell was a member of the Reds. They had both known Buddy since he was a toddler. Bell spent three years in the Indians farm system, culminating in 1971 at Wichita of the American Association. In 129 games there, Bell hit .289, with 11 homers and 59 RBIs to go with 136 hits. He was named the league’s Rookie of the Year, as well as MVP of the Aeros.

Bell also wed the former Gloria Eysoldt in 1971. They had five children: David, Michael, Ricky, Kristi, and Traci. David and Michael both played in the major leagues, making the Bell family one of only four three-generation families in major-league history. (See also the families of my Hairston, Ray Boone, and Joe Coleman) 

At 1972 spring training prior it looked as if Bell might be ticketed to the minors again. But given the opportunity, he was able to show the Indians brass that he was needed on their big-league team. “I hadn’t played in any of the Indians exhibition games and there were only two weeks of camp left. The team had left for Yuma and the rest of us were left at Tucson. They needed an outfielder for the “B” game that morning so I was sent out there.

“I had a good day at the plate, going 3-for-4. Then the office got a phone call from Yuma, saying that they needed a replacement that afternoon for outfielder John Lowenstein, who had been hurt, and I was sent over there for the afternoon game. I played right field and went 4-for-5, had three RBIs and drove in the winning run. The next day they used me in the outfield again at Phoenix and I had two RBI singles and a three-run homer to win the game. From then on I was in the regular lineup and was signed to a Cleveland contract.”9

During his minor-league years Bell was primarily situated at third base, although he also saw time at second base. But the path to third base was blocked by Graig Nettles. However, Bell’s talent was evident, and on April 15, 1972, he was the starting right fielder for Cleveland on Opening Day.

Joining Bell in Cleveland was Ken Aspromonte, his manager at Wichita, who was also promoted to the big leagues. Bell split his time between right and center fields, batting .255. The Indians hit .234 as a team and were inept offensively. Nettles, who often clashed with Aspromonte, led the team in homers (17) and RBIs (70). But in the offseason, Nettles was traded to the New York Yankees in a six-player swap. The deal proved to be disastrous for Cleveland. Gabe Paul left the Indians shortly after the deal was announced. His departure raised more than a few eyebrows when it was learned that he had joined the ownership group that purchased the Yankees. (Paul returned to Cleveland in 1978 and subsequently made a similar deal, sending star pitcher Dennis Eckersley to Boston. Bell said at the time, “Maybe Gabe’s going to Boston in a couple of years.”)10

Bell was back in familiar territory in 1973 making a smooth transition back to third base. “The important thing to me was playing in the big leagues,” he said. ”Sure, I had some qualms about moving to the outfield, and I did again when I moved back to third base. Both required adjustments, but I think I made those adjustments satisfactorily.”11 Bell’s bat heated up in May and June, as he batted .320 and .350 in those months. He was selected to his first All-Star Game on July 13 at Kansas City. In his lone appearance at the plate, he smashed a pinch-hit triple off Claude Osteen.

Over the next several years, Bell was a model of consistency both in the field and at the plate. He missed some time in 1974 due to a right knee strain. But from 1975 to ’78, Bell hit between six and 11 homers, drove in between 59 and 64 runs, and got between 39 and 51 walks. His batting average fluctuated between .271 and .292. In the field he led the league in putouts in 1975 (146) and in assists in 1978 (355). He was considered one of the top third basemen in the American League.

But what was also consistent was the losing ways of the Cleveland Indians. By the end of the 1974 season, Aspromonte was a lame-duck manager, and was replaced by Frank Robinson. Robby knew it would be a tough road with the Tribe. He encouraged the front office to promote promising minor leaguers to the big-league team. Duane Kuiper, Rick Manning, Dennis Eckersley, and Jim Kern were added to the mix of veterans on the club. Bell was upbeat about the opportunity to play for Robinson, a teammate of his father’s in Cincinnati.  “Frank is going to be a big inspiration to us by the way he plays the game,” said Bell. “He’s always aggressive, and I know that’s how he’ll want us to be. I remember when I first played against him and I thought he was slowing up. But this one time he slid into third base and nearly took my hand off.”12   

But the losing continued and on June 15, 1977, Bell walked out on the Indians. The reason for his AWOL status was termed “personal,” but it was uncharacteristic of Bell to up and leave. “I’ve got a personal problem. I really don’t want to discuss it,” he said.”13 He missed one game, and one exhibition game in Toledo. Three days later, Robinson was fired and replaced by Jeff Torborg. 

Bell met the same fate as Eckersley at the conclusion of the 1978 season. On December 8 he was sent to Texas in a straight-up deal for Toby Harrah. Harrah provided a bit more power and run-producing ability. Bell was bringing his defense to the Rangers. “Buddy has hurt us in the past few years because he moved the ball around so well,” said Texas manager Pat Corrales. “We weren’t able to defend against him. I was impressed. I think he’ll make a good second hitter.”14

The Rangers had tied California for second place in the American League’s West Division in 1978, five games behind Kansas City. Bell was inserted to a 1979 lineup that included Richie Zisk, Al Oliver, Bump Wills, and Pat Putnam. Bell played in all 162 games, leading the league with 670 at-bats. He hit 18 home runs, and he drove in a career-high 101 runs. Bell also established career bests in doubles (42) and runs (89). He batted .299. While his offensive numbers were indeed impressive, it was his defense that was getting rave reviews. He was honored with the first of six straight (1979-1984) Gold Glove Awards as a third baseman. It is the second longest streak for an American League third baseman, behind Brooks Robinson. Bell’s streak was later equaled by Eric Chavez of Oakland (2001-2006).

“I take a lot of pride in my defense,” said Bell. “I’ve always had pretty good hands but I’ve also worked very hard at defense. But to win a Gold Glove puts you in the class of a Nettles or a Brooks Robinson. For a third baseman, that’s a big thrill for me.”15

Others began taking notice of Bell and his mastery of the hot corner. “Nobody can play third better than Buddy Bell,” said California manager Gene Mauch. “Nettles is a great one, too, but Bell amazes me. One thing about Nettles is how deep he plays at third. That makes the big play easier. What he’s doing is telling the pitcher to field the soft stuff and the bunts and he’ll take care of the hot stuff.”16

Speaking of Bell’s former Indians teammate, it was often Nettles who Bell went to for input on playing third. “I go to him for advice,” said Bell. “I ask him about different hitters and how he plays them. For a long time I never played as far off the line as I do now, but Graig told me to move over more, and I did. His explanation was that there were more balls hit in the hole than down the line. And he was right.”17

In 1980, Bell batted.329, hitting 17 home runs and driving in 83 runs. He was selected to the All-Star Game, the first of four All-Star games over the next six seasons. Bell became a star in Texas. But while his abilities were appreciated, the Rangers could not make any headway in the West Division. While the talent seemed to be there, Texas could not rise to the top. California, Chicago, Kansas City, and Oakland all took turns winning division titles during Bell’s stay with the Rangers.

After he hit .315 in 1984, Bell’s batting average plummeted to .235 at the All-Star break in 1985. He had also committed 16 errors to that point in the season, and the Rangers were mired in last place. On July 19, 1985, Bell was dealt to his hometown team, the Cincinnati Reds, for outfielder Duane Walker and pitcher Jeff Russell. Cincinnati had been using a platoon system at third base, employing Nick Esasky and Wayne Krenchicki. “Esasky and Krenchicki were doing a fine job for us,” said Reds skipper Pete Rose. “But this makes us better overall and when you have a chance to get a guy like Buddy Bell, you do it. I hope the ballclub plays the way Buddy Bell plays. He is consistent, year in and year out, and that’s what we’re looking for.”18 

Player Dave Parker had a slightly different take on the trade: “Bell is a hometown boy who can help us on and off the field. He’ll certainly help at the gate and I am sure that was taken into consideration. By getting him, it shows everybody that the front office wants to win.”19 The Reds were in third place at the time, trailing the division-leading Dodgers by five games.      

Bell stepped right in, with the red numeral 25 on the back of his white Reds uniform, the e number Gus had worn three decades earlier. But Bell did not fare well, batting .219 in 67 games. His fielding was also subpar; he made nine errors and fielded at a .946 clip. Although the Reds won 15 of 21 to close out their schedule, they could not catch the Dodgers.

Bell bounced back the following two years. He posted career highs in home runs (20) and walks (73) in 1986 while collecting 75 RBIs and batting .278. In 1987 he hit 17 homers, drove in 70 runs, and hit .284. His .979 fielding percentage was tops among third basemen in the National League. Cincinnati finished second in both years.

Bell lost his starting position to rookie Chris Sabo in 1988. He was traded to Houston on June 19 for a player to be named later. Cincinnati also made the move to clear a roster spot for outfielder Eddie Milner. Bell’s time with the Astros was short and he was released on December 21, 1988. Bell signed a one-year deal with the Rangers. But he was released after just 34 games, and retired on June 24, 1989. He announced his retirement without fanfare, no bells or whistles. “My career was pretty much a secret to begin with, I might as well keep it that way,” said Bell.20 

Buddy Bell retired from baseball with a batting average of .279, 201 home runs, 1,106 RBIs, and 2,514 hits over 18 seasons. He played in 2,405 major-league games. As of 2018 he ranked fourth all time in games played without appearing in the postseason, behind Ernie Banks, Luke Appling, and Mickey Vernon.

Bell did not stray too far from the game he loved. In 1990 he joined the Cleveland organization as a roving minor-league hitting instructor. Next he moved to Chicago, where he was the director of minor-league instruction for the White Sox from 1991 through 1993.

In 1994 Bell joined Cleveland manager Mike Hargrove’s staff as an infield coach. He stayed with the Indians for two seasons. Times had changed for the Indians, and Buddy was able to witness the rebirth of the Indians, who made it to the World Series for the first time since 1954. It was doubly nice for the Bell clan as son David was an Indians utility player for part of the 1995 season. However, it was not all good news, as Gus Bell passed away on May 7, 1995, just as the season was getting under way. 

Bell managed the Detroit Tigers from 1996 to August 31, 1998. He finished second in the Manager of the Year voting in 1997, after guiding the Tigers to a 26-game improvement over the 1996 team. He managed the Colorado Rockies from 2000 to April 25, 2002. Bell returned to Cleveland and served on manager Eric Wedge’s staff as the bench coach from 2003 through May 30, 2005. He left the Indians when he was named to replace Tony Pena as manager of Kansas City, a position he held through the 2007 season. His won-lost record as a manager was 514-715 (.418).

In 1999 Bell was at the helm of the US Baseball Team in the Pan American games in Winnipeg, Canada. They won four games to advance to the medal round, eventually losing to Cuba in the championship game. Their performance enabled the United States to qualify for the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia. 

In 2005 Bell co-wrote, with author Neal Vahle, Smart Baseball: How Professionals Play the Mental Game. In the book, Bell examines the mental makeup of players, past and present, and how they prepare themselves. If it is believed that ballplayers are in top physical condition when they take the field, often it is their mental approach to the game that will determine if they succeed or fail, he maintained.    

In 2005 Bell suffered a personal loss. His nephew Lance Cpl Timothy Bell was killed with 13 other Marines when their amphibious assault vehicle was blown up during combat operations in Iraq. He was the 165th Marine interred at Arlington National Cemetery as a result of Operation Iraq.

In 2006 Bell took a leave of absence from the Royals at the end of the season. It was discovered that he had throat cancer. He made a full recovery, returning to the Royals in 2007, and he managed the entire year.

In 2017 Bell was in his 10th season working in the front office of the Chicago White Sox. He was the vice president/assistant to general manager Rick Hahn and director of player development. In 2015 he received the Sheldon “Chief” Bender Award, given annually to someone who has been instrumental in player development. “I am incredibly humbled by this award as I had the distinct honor of working alongside Chief in the Reds organization in 1999,” Bell said. “I learned something new every day. The knowledge I gleaned has been invaluable to me ever since, and I am thrilled to be joining the impressive list of recipients who have received this award before me.”21   

After the 2017 season, Bell returned to his hometown of Cincinnati. He was named the Reds’ senior advisor to General Manager and president of baseball operations, Dick Williams.    

Last revised: July 1, 2018

Notes

1 Joe Giuliotti, “Bell Didn’t Try for HRs,” Boston Herald, July 6, 1975: 35. 

2 Ibid.

3 Chuck Heaton, “Bell’s Two HRs Nail 4th in a Row,” Cleveland Plain Dealer, July 6, 1975: 3-2.

4 Russell Schneider, “Bell Rejects All-Star Bid,” Cleveland Plain Dealer, July 11, 1975: 1-C.  

5 Ibid.                                    

6 Ibid.

7 Ibid.

8 Joe Quinn, “Buddy Bell: From Moeller to the Majors,” Greater Cincinnati Sports, September 1978 (In Bell’s Hall of Fame File).

9 Quinn.

10  Dan Coughlin, “Indians’ Bell Waiting for Other Shoe to Fall,” Cleveland Plain Dealer, March 31, 1978: 38.

11  Russell Schneider, “Bell’s Hot Stick Sounding Alarm to A.L Hurlers,” The Sporting News, June 16, 1973: 28.

12  Associated Press, Associated Press, March 4, 1975 (In Bell’s Hall of Fame file.)

13  Chuck Heaton, “Buddy Takes Night Off,” Cleveland Plain Dealer, June 16, 1977: 1-E.

14  Randy Galloway, “Bell Says Difference Is Talent,” Dallas Morning News, December 9, 1978: 2B.

15  Randy Galloway, “Bell, Sundberg Voted Gold Glove Awards,” Dallas Morning News, November 22, 1979: 2B.

16  Randy Galloway, “Nettles the Greatest? Someone Forgot Bell,” Dallas Morning News, October 25, 1981.

17  Ibid.

18  Hal McCoy, “Deposed Reds Voice Gripes,” The Sporting News, August 5, 1985: 16. 

19  Ibid.

20  T.R. Sullivan, “Bye-bye Buddy,” Fort Worth Star-Telegram, June 25, 1989: 2.

21  Rhett Bollinger and Joey Nowak, “Bell Honored with ‘Chief’ Bender Award,” milb.com, accessed November 29, 2015.