Jay Tessmer

Jay Tessmer pitched in parts of four seasons in his major-league career. Although he won only a single game, he was a member of three World Series championship teams, playing for the New York Yankees in 1998, 1999, and 2000. Appearing in 22 games during his major-league career, Tessmer pitched 23⅓ innings and finished with a perfect won-lost record of 1-0. His only win came in his first major-league appearance, when he got the victory in relief as the Yankees won their 96th game during their record-breaking 1998 season.1

Tessmer’s story is a Hollywood-style tale about a player who was a walk-on to his college baseball team, after failing to make the cut on his first three tries. Playing for one of the all-time-great college programs at the University of Miami, Tessmer became an All-American, one of the best relief pitchers in the storied history of the Miami Hurricanes and a member of the University of Miami Hall of Fame. He was drafted by the Yankees, became a top prospect in their minor-league system, and had stints in the majors during four seasons, playing on some of the best teams of his era.

Jay Weldon Tessmer was born on December 26, 1971, in Meadville, Pennsylvania, a city in Crawford County in the northwestern part of the state, 90 miles from Pittsburgh. His parents grew up in the area and his family had longtime roots there. Some of Tessmer’s ancestors on his father’s side emigrated from Germany in the late nineteenth century, settling first in Wisconsin before ending up in Crawford County. Other paternal ancestors date back to the Revolutionary War, living in Virginia, then West Virginia, and eventually Meadville. Tessmer’s paternal grandfather, an engineer, was the county surveyor for Crawford County. His paternal grandmother taught in the Meadville school system for 30 years and was a member of the Crawford County Women’s Bowling Association Hall of Fame.2

Tessmer attended Cochranton High School in Meadville, where he was a three-time all-conference pitcher as well as a standout basketball player.3 He went to West Virginia for college where he tried out for the baseball team, but did not make the cut. In 1991, after his freshman year, Tessmer transferred to the University of Miami. Tessmer had ties to Florida and the University, as his parents had a home in Port St. Lucie and his father was a Miami alumnus. At Miami, Tessmer tried out for the baseball team, but failed to make the cut in each of his first two years.

A coaching change in Tessmer’s third year presented him with a new opportunity, one that would change his life. In 1994 Jim Morris, the legendary college baseball coach, left Georgia Tech and became the new coach at Miami.4 With a new coach in place, Tessmer decided to give it one more shot. “I love playing baseball,” he said. “As long as I was here going to school, I thought, ‘Why not give it another chance”?5 Miami’s pitching coach, Lazaro “Lazer” Collazo, saw something in Tessmer the year before, urging then-coach Brad Kelley to keep him on the team. Kelley, however, was not enamored of Tessmer’s side-arm style and didn’t think a walk-on pitcher would help the team.6 With Morris as the coach, Tessmer benefited not only from Collazo’s support but also from the fact that Morris had success at Georgia Tech with a walk-on, Kevin Brown, who went on to become a major-league All-Star.7 On what was now his fourth try to make a college baseball team, Tessmer finally made it. Excited to have finally done so, Tessmer was even more excited when Morris named him to be the set-up man for All American reliever and future major leaguer Danny Graves.8

 A 6-foot-3 right-hander with a side-arm delivery reminiscent of Kent Tekulve,9 Tessmer made the most of his opportunity, beginning his college career with a school-record 32⅔ consecutive scoreless innings to start the season. He also led the NCAA in ERA with a 1.16 mark and a record of 6-2 with three saves in 70 innings over 40 relief appearances, as the Hurricanes advanced to the 1994 College World Series.10 Tessmer was an honorable-mention All-American and played for Team USA in the 1994 Baseball World Cup tournament.11 Interviewed toward the end of Tessmer’s standout 1994 season, Collazo reflected on the improbability of a walk-on pitcher becoming an All-American. “It’s an incredible story,” said Collazo. “It shows what can happen if you keep the faith.”12 And yet the story had only just begun.

In 1995 Tessmer was named the team captain and became the closer. He was a first team All-American and led the nation with 20 saves. He had a 1.31 ERA and a 3-2 record in 70 innings over 45 appearances. He was named the MVP of the Coral Gables Regional tournament, getting a save in all four Miami wins as the Hurricanes advanced to their second consecutive College World Series.13 The holder of numerous University of Miami pitching records, Tessmer was inducted into the University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame in 2013.14

Congratulating Tessmer at the induction ceremony, Coach Morris said that when he thought of Jay Tessmer, he thought of “perseverance,” saying that “nothing was going to stop him.” Morris recounted how he told Tessmer’s story to many of those he coached since it is “a great story about a guy that had a goal and was going to do everything he could” to achieve it.15

After his college career, Tessmer was drafted by the Yankees in the 19th round of the June 1995 amateur draft.16 He promptly signed with the Yankees, who projected him as a potential major-league closer. Tessmer was not a hard thrower. As one reporter observed, his “side arm delivery produces fastballs with velocity comparable with other pitchers’ changeups.”17 Despite the lack of speed, his unusual motion and excellent control made him effective at getting hitters out, especially right-handers.18

Tessmer got off to a great start in professional baseball, debuting with a sensational 0.95 ERA and 20 saves in his rookie season with the low Class-A Oneonta Yankees. He struck out an impressive 52 batters in 38 innings. In 1996, moving up to high Class-A Tampa, Tessmer was the Florida State League MVP with a record of 12-4, exclusively as a reliever, with 35 saves in 68 games and an ERA of 1.48. He again struck out more than a batter an inning with 104 strikeouts in 97⅓ innings. When he advanced to Double-A Norwich in 1997, his career hit a bump as he struggled to a 5.31 ERA with 17 saves in 55 games.

Given his disappointing 1997 season, it was not surprising that Tessmer was still in the minors when the 1998 season began. Indeed, there was not much room on the 1998 Yankees for Tessmer in any event. Those Yankees, one of the greatest teams of all time, ended up winning 114 regular-season games. They had a powerful offense with stars like Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada, Tino Martinez, Bernie Williams, and Paul O’Neill. The starting rotation was top-notch with Andy Pettitte, David Wells, David Cone, Hideki Irabu, and “El Duque” Orlando Hernández. Mariano Rivera was the closer. There were two other established right-handed relievers on the roster in Jeff Nelson and Ramiro Mendoza, together with lefties Mike Stanton and Graeme Lloyd. Lesser-known right-handed relievers Darren Holmes and Mike Buddie were also part of the bullpen. The right-handed-throwing Tessmer gave the Yankees added bullpen depth if reinforcements were needed.

Splitting time in 1998 between Double-A Norwich and the Triple-A Columbus Clippers, Tessmer again excelled as a reliever, with a 0.93 ERA and 34 saves in 57 games. In August 1998, opportunity came his way. The first-place Yankees had suffered a four-game losing streak, ending only with a dramatic walk-off 7-6 win in the second game of a day-night doubleheader on August 26 against the Anaheim Angels. After the game, manager Joe Torre told the press: “Now all of a sudden, the questions aren’t about who we’re going to play in the World Series. … Now we’re concerned about getting there. It’s funny what a week does. W-e-a-k, weak.”19 Yankees pitcher Scott Bradley had a bad game in the opener of the doubleheader and was sent to the minors immediately after the game. To replace him, the Yankees called up Tessmer.20 Tessmer arrived at Yankee Stadium before the night portion of the doubleheader started, “eagerly” looking forward to having an opportunity to pitch in the big leagues.21

Tessmer got that opportunity the next night, August 27, 1998, when the Yankees again faced the Angels. Cone started the game but left in the sixth after walking four and allowing four runs. Trailing 4-3 after six innings, the Yankees took a 5-4 lead and left it to Mendoza, who gave up the tying run in the ninth. Stanton then pitched 1⅔ shutout innings as the game went to the 11th inning tied at 5-5. As reported in the New York Times, “the game [now] belonged to Tessmer [and] all the rookie did was retire the Angels 1-2-3 with two strikeouts.”22 Then, in the bottom of the 11th, Bernie Williams doubled off the center-field fence to score Derek Jeter and give the Yankees a thrilling 6-5 win.

Writing in the Times, Jack Curry noted the significance of the victory, commenting that the Yankees’ “usually precise starter [Cone] failed miserably, their usually reliable middle reliever [Mendoza] stumbled as a closer, but their unreliable setup man [Stanton] and a rookie [Tessmer] making his major league debut finally pitched sharply enough for the Yankees to erase some of their concerns and give them life last night.”23 As Torre explained, “We needed to win this game. We didn’t need it for the standings. But we needed this game for our psyche and our pride.”24

Tessmer had never been in Yankee Stadium until he arrived from Columbus the day before. And now he had “pitched a scoreless inning to win his first major league game on a memorable night.”25 When Williams hit his game-winning double, Tessmer could not have been more excited. “‘I’d have to say I’m the happiest guy in the Stadium,’” said Tessmer. “‘When [Williams] hit the ball, I was praying [center fielder Edmonds] didn’t catch it. I can’t explain how it felt. It was unbelievable.’”26 In the excitement of the moment, few if any would have predicted that this would be the last time that Tessmer was the winning pitcher in a major-league game.

The season ended on September 27, exactly one month after Tessmer’s winning performance. After having won the World Series in 1996, and then losing to Cleveland in the 1997 ALDS, the 1998 Yankees were returning to the postseason. They had finished the regular season with an American League-record 114 wins. Yet, as Buster Olney wrote in the New York Times, it was the “post-season [that would] define what is remembered 50 years from now.”27 Although Tessmer would not be on the postseason roster, he appreciated the role he had played, however small, in getting the Yankees there. Interviewed after the final game of the regular season, the “soft spoken and earnest” Tessmer recalled how “when he was credited with the victory [in his first major-league appearance], all of the veterans congratulated him warmly, as if he had been around the entire season.”28 With his season over, Tessmer packed his jersey, number 62. “‘I want my jersey,’ he said, laughing a bit. ‘I don’t know if I have to pay for it but I’m taking it.’”29 Olney observed that Tessmer “has thought about the days when he can hand a framed picture of the 1998 Yankees to one of his grandchildren and point to that serious-looking young man with the protruding ears standing in the second row of the team picture, between David Cone and Luis Sojo. That was me, Tessmer might say. That is me.”30

After appearing in a total of seven games for the Yankees in 1998, with a 3.12 ERA in 8⅔ innings, Tessmer was on the Yankees radar going into the 1999 season. He was considered a top 10 Yankees prospect, projected as a possible “11th man on the staff in 1999.”31 He was included in the 1999 Yankees Yearbook.32 The Sporting News remarked about how much depth the Yankees bullpen had going into the season, with Rivera, Lloyd, Nelson, Stanton, Holmes, and Mendoza, adding that “if that isn’t enough the Yankees also have a young righthanded relief prospect, Jay Tessmer, who dominated in Class AA and Class AAA last year and pitched well at the major league level in September.”33

Given the Yankees bullpen depth, Tessmer opened the 1999 season back in Columbus. When Nelson was placed on the disabled list on May 3, Tessmer was called up to replace him. Tessmer made six relief appearances between May 3 and 19, all in games the Yankees were losing. While he pitched well in three of those games, he was banged around in the other three.34 On May 21, when Nelson returned from the DL, the Yankees returned Tessmer to Columbus.35 Back in Triple A, Tessmer continued to dominate, finishing the 1999 season with 28 saves in 56⅓ innings with a 3.34 ERA. His 1999 minor-league performance was good enough that The Sporting News speculated that the Yankees should fill their need for a left-handed reliever by trading Tessmer to the Twins for Eddie Guardado, remarking that Tessmer “is a submarine pitcher who has had a lot of success in the minors and currently is the closer at AAA Columbus.”36

After repeating as World Series champions in 1999, the Yankees looked to make it three in a row in 2000. Going into the season, there was concern about their pitching depth “at the higher levels of the minor leagues.” Tessmer’s stock had fallen and he was part of the first round of spring-training cuts.37

Back in Columbus for the 2000 season, Tessmer finished second in the International League in saves with 34 and was called up to the Yankees in September. It was the first year that the Summer Olympics included professional baseball players. The US Olympic team wanted Tessmer. However, the Yankees turned down the request. Tessmer was disappointed, stating, perhaps diplomatically, “It’s tough. … It would have been nice to go to the Olympics but it’s great to be here [with the Yankees].”38 The decision by Yankees owner George Steinbrenner was surprising given that Tessmer was no longer considered one of the club’s top prospects.39 Tessmer tried to put the situation in perspective, stating that “just to be considered for the Olympics is an honor. … Hopefully it means that [the Yankees] have plans for me.”40

Whatever those plans might have been, they changed after the 2000 season. In need of right-handed relief pitching,41 they traded Tessmer to the Colorado Rockies for another righty reliever, David Lee.42 After he started the season in Triple-A Colorado Springs, the Rockies sent Tessmer to the Milwaukee Brewers as part of a conditional deal. He spent the rest of the 2001 season with Triple-A Indianapolis. 

Granted free agency after the 2001 season, Tessmer re-signed with the Yankees. Competing with Randy Choate and Adrián Hernández for the final two bullpen spots in 2002, he made the Opening Day roster.43 The Sporting News noted that Mendoza started the season on the disabled list and that Tessmer “is filling the roster spot for the moment,” adding that “Tessmer impressed the team during camp with strong movement on his fastball.”44

Tessmer pitched in relief on Opening Day in Baltimore, relieving Roger Clemens after Clemens was injured and had to leave the game. He appeared again three days later, against the Orioles. With a 4-0 lead in the ninth inning, Tessmer entered at the start of the inning. After he walked two batters, Rivera replaced him and got the save in a 4-1 win. It would be Tessmer’s last appearance in a major-league game.45 For a player who failed three times to make his college baseball team, it must be a good memory to have, that his final major-league appearance was sandwiched between two of the greatest pitchers of all time.

Back in Columbus, Tessmer pitched in 63 games, all in relief, with a 4.37 ERA and four saves.  The 2002 season was Tessmer’s last in professional baseball, at the age of 30. In his career between the majors and minors, he appeared in 455 games, all in relief. And while he won 41 games (35 losses) in the minors, he finished his major-league career with that single win and no losses.

The University of Miami was good for Tessmer in more ways than one: He met his wife there and found, in South Florida, a place that became his permanent home after retiring as a player.46  In retirement, Tessmer stayed involved with baseball, teaching youngsters how to pitch, giving private lessons47 as well as being an instructor at the Players Edge Academy in Boca Raton48 and the Legends for Youth Clinic Series in Orlando.49

In 2018 Tessmer played in the University of Miami Alumni Game, between the current Hurricanes and a team of alumni. Tessmer, then 46 years old, got to pitch one inning in relief. Jim Morris, entering his final season as Miami’s coach, said he was “really happy for Tessmer,” recalling the “great story” of how he went from a college walk-on to a major leaguer. Tessmer’s 12-year-old son, a left-handed pitcher, was at the game. “I doubt if Jay Tessmer pitches in another game,” Morris said, “but his son got to see him pitch. … I just think that’s great. I was rooting so hard for him.”50

Tessmer also became a successful businessman. Possessing a B.S. degree in chemistry, Tessmer found work with Joe Taylor Restoration, a company based in Delray Beach, Florida, that provides emergency services for water, fire, mold, and biohazard restoration. After starting as a technician, Tessmer was promoted to the position of estimator. In 2018 he became a branch manager for the Central Florida Region, based in Orlando, and he continued in that role as of 2022.51

While Tessmer had a relatively short career in professional baseball, he got to live out his childhood dream of playing in the major leagues. And even though he had only a single win in his big-league career, that win came in an unforgettable game in an unforgettable season. The words he used on the night of August 27, 1998, to describe his first (and only) major-league win could easily be used to describe his baseball career, from a college walk-on to an All-American to a member of one of the greatest major-league teams in history. “It was unbelievable.”

Sources

In addition to the sources cited in the Notes, the author relied on Baseball-reference.com and Ancestry.com.

Photo credit: Jay Tessmer, courtesy of the University of Miami.

Notes

1 The 1998 Yankees won 114 games, at the time the second-most regular-season wins in history and the most by an American League team. New York went on to win the World Series, the first of three consecutive championships for the team. As of March 2022, only the 1906 Chicago Cubs and the 2001 Seattle Mariners, who each won 116 games, had more wins in a regular season. By winning 11 postseason games, the Yankees’ total of 125 wins in a season were the most in baseball history.

2 Obituary, Wald-Coleman Funeral Home, https://www.waidcolemanfh.com/obituary/Doris-Tessmer.

3 University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame, https://www.umsportshalloffame.com/jay-tessmer.html.

4 Morris was one of the most successful coaches in college baseball history. His teams qualified for the NCAA Regionals for 32 consecutive years, nine at Georgia Tech and 23 at Miami.

5 Jorge Milan, “Canes See Era of Their Ways,” South Florida Sun-Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale), May 3, 1994.

6 Milan.

7 Milan, “Pitching Propels,” South Florida Sun-Sentinel, April 15, 1994.   

8 Tessmer spoke about this, and his career more generally, during his speech upon his induction into the University of Miami Hall of Fame, available at https://www.umsportshalloffame.com/jay-tessmer.html. In addition to Graves, whom he played with in 1994, Tessmer played with future major-league player and manager Alex Cora in 1994 and 1995. Graves was drafted by Cleveland in the fourth round of the 1994 June amateur draft and had an 11-year career in the majors. Cora was drafted by the Dodgers in the third round of the 1996 draft and had a 14-year career as a player before becoming a coach and later a manager. 

9 Tekulve pitched in the majors for 16 years, mainly with the Pirates, before retiring at age 42 after the 1989 season.

10  Miami was seeded number 1 but lost in the second round to 8th-seeded Arizona State. 

11 The 1994 World Cup tournament was the last one to exclude professional players. It was held in Nicaragua in August of that year. Team USA lost to Cuba in the quarter-final round.

12 Milan.

13 Seeded number 3, the Hurricanes advanced to the semifinal round before losing to 6th-seeded USC.

14 Website for University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame, https://www.umsportshalloffame.com/jay-tessmer.html.  The page for Tessmer includes a video about his career, a congratulatory video by Coach Morris, and Tessmer’s acceptance speech.

15 “Hurricanes Baseball Coach Jim Morris talks about Jay Tessmer,” available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qClli64Ek1s.                     

16 In the next round, the Yankees drafted infielder Mike Lowell from Florida International University. Lowell went on to have a 13-year career in the majors, including seven years with the Florida Marlins. Lowell was MVP of the 2007 World Series for the Boston Red Sox. In self-deprecating fashion, during his induction speech, Tessmer referred to his being drafted by the Yankees immediately before Lowell as his “claim to fame.”

17 Buster Olney, “Yankees Notebook,” New York Times, August 29, 1998: C3.

18 John Benson, Benson’s A to Z Baseball Player Guide 1999 (Diamond Library 1998). 

19 Jack Curry, “Jeter Applies Band-Aid to Salve Yankees’ Wounds,” New York Times, August 27, 1998: C1.

20 The Sporting News referred to it as a “surprise promotion” since Bradley had been promoted only days earlier. Jon Heyman, “New York,” The Sporting News, September 7, 1998: 67.

21 Curry, “Yankees Notebook; Tired of Team’s Funk, Joe Torre Talks Soul,” New York Times, August 27, 1998: C5.

22 Curry, “Yankees Are Now Working Harder for Their Victories,” New York Times, August 28, 1998: C1.

23 Curry, “Yankees Are Now Working Harder for Their Victories.”

24 Curry, “Yankees Are Now Working Harder for Their Victories.”

25 Curry, “Yankees Are Now Working Harder for Their Victories.”

26 Curry, “Yankees Are Now Working Harder for Their Victories.”

27 Olney, “Yankees’ Glittering Regular Season Is a Mere Prelude,” New York Times, September 28, 1998: D7.  Those words were prophetic, as the Yankees went on to win 11 postseason games, sweeping the San Diego Padres to win the World Series. The achievements of the 1998 team gained them recognition as one of the all-time greats. In contrast, when the 2001 Seattle Mariners won 116 regular season games, their loss to the Yankees in the ALCS greatly diminished their regular-season accomplishment.

28 Olney, “Yankees’ Glittering Regular Season Is a Mere Prelude.”

29 Olney, “Yankees’ Glittering Regular Season Is a Mere Prelude.”

30 Olney, “Yankees’ Glittering Regular Season Is a Mere Prelude.”

31 Benson, John Benson Presents Future Stars – The Rookies of 1999-2000 (Diamond Library 1998). Benson ranked Tessmer as the number 8 Yankees prospect. Mike Lowell, who was drafted by the Yankees immediately after their selection of Tessmer, was ranked number 3. In his scouting report, Benson wrote that, despite not having “exceptional velocity,” Tessmer “changes speeds and locations well” with a “high 80’s fastball [that] moves sharply,” and his “motion confounds righthanded hitters.”

32 The Yearbook described Tessmer as a player who “already stands out among the Yankee pitchers.” After recapping his 1998 performance, the Yearbook added “Side-arm delivery notwithstanding, Tessmer will make a direct run at breaking into the ranks of the pitching staff.” The Official 1999 New York Yankees Team Yearbook (Yankees Publications 1999). 

33 Peter Schmuck, “Insider,” The Sporting News, February 22, 1999: 53.

34 On May 8, 1999, pitching against the Mariners, Tessmer gave up a home run to Ken Griffey Jr. The homer was Griffey’s 361st, tying him with Joe DiMaggio for what was then 45th on the career list. After the game, when asked about Tessmer, Griffey did not know who Tessmer was. As Tom Verducci wrote, “[I]t wasn’t Tessmer’s pitches that fooled him. … It was only the mention of the name Tessmer,” to which Griffey replied “Who is that?” Verducci, “Joltin’ Junior,” Sports Illustrated, May 17, 1999: 32.

35 The New York Times predicted the move, stating, “The Yankees’ bullpen is due for a complete restructuring in the next week” and noting that Mendoza was likely to move back into a relief role with Clemens returning from his injury and rejoining the rotation. With Nelson about to be activated from the DL, “either Jay Tessmer or Tony Fossas could be shipped out to make room.” In fact, both were. Buster Olney, “Yankees Notebook; Torre Is Keeping His Return Date Close to the Vest,” New York Times, May 17, 1999: D3.

36 “Slap Hitters,” The Sporting News, August 2, 1999: 24. The Yankees needed a lefty reliever because they had traded Graeme Lloyd.

37 Olney, “Yanks’ Top Prospects Are, Well, Minor League,” New York Times, March 20, 2000: D7.

38 George King and Joel Sherman, “Yanks Tell Tessmer: Forget About Sydney,” New York Post, September 9, 2000.

39 King and Sherman. Steinbrenner did allow Columbus infielder Mike Coolbaugh to play for the USA Olympic team.

40 King and Sherman. Steinbrenner also refused MLB’s request to have Bernie Williams participate in an all-star team tour of Japan in November 2000.

41 The Yankees had lost veteran Jeff Nelson to Seattle in free agency and had released Jason Grimsley after two seasons with the team.

42 Lee was expected to be the Rockies closer for the 2000 season but ended up spending most of the season in the minors. He was “disgruntled” and the Rockies felt that they needed to trade him. Jack Etkin, “Lee Traded to Yankees for Two Minor League Players,” Denver Rocky Mountain News, January 4, 2001. Lee never pitched for the Yankees, who traded him before the 2021 season for another right-handed reliever, Carlos Almanzar.

43 Tessmer was not on the 40-man roster when spring training began. Choate also made the Opening Day roster. Hernandez did not.

44 Ken Davidoff, “New York Yankees,” The Sporting News, April 8, 2002: 59.

45 On April 8, 2002, Clemens returned from his injury, Mendoza was reinstated from the disabled list, and Tessmer was sent to the minors.

46 After meeting his future wife, Tamara, at the University of Miami, they married in 1997, when Tamara graduated. At Miami, Tamara was a member of the Sugarcanes, the ball and bat girls for the Miami team.

47 https://pro4mer.com/pros/jay-tessmer/.    

48 https://www.groupon.com/deals/players-edge-baseball-academy.      

49 2021 LFY Road Trip-Florida Edition https://lessonswithlegends.mlblogs.com/2021-lfy-road-trip-florida-edition-687655b78758 Tessmer wore his old Yankees number 62 at the clinic while also wearing a face mask to protect against the coronavirus.

50 Christopher Stock, “McKendry Sharp as Over 90 Former Players Attend Alumni Game,” Inside the U, February 10, 2018. https://247sports.com/college/miami/Article/Miami-Hurricanes-RHP-Evan-McKendry-Sharp-as-Over-90-Former-Players-Attend-Alumni-Game-114988870/.

51 https://www.jtrestoration.com/meet-the-team/.