Bill Monbouquette
Encyclopedia
William Charles Monbouquette (born August 11, 1936 in Medford, Massachusetts
Medford, Massachusetts
Medford is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, in the United States, on the Mystic River, five miles northwest of downtown Boston. In the 2010 U.S. Census, Medford's population was 56,173...

) is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 former Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...

 right-handed pitcher
Pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...

. He played for the Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...

 (1958–1965), Detroit Tigers
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are a Major League Baseball team located in Detroit, Michigan. One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Detroit in as part of the Western League. The Tigers have won four World Series championships and have won the American League pennant...

 (1966–1967), New York Yankees
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...

 (1967–1968), and the San Francisco Giants
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....

 (1968).

Professional playing career

During an 11-year career, Monbouquette compiled 114 wins
Win (baseball)
In professional baseball, there are two types of decisions: a win and a loss . In each game, one pitcher on the winning team is awarded a win and one pitcher on the losing team is given a loss in their respective statistics. These pitchers are collectively known as the pitchers of record. Only...

, 1,122 strikeout
Strikeout
In baseball or softball, a strikeout or strike-out occurs when a batter receives three strikes during his time at bat. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters....

s, and a 3.68 earned run average
Earned run average
In baseball statistics, earned run average is the mean of earned runs given up by a pitcher per nine innings pitched. It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number of innings pitched and multiplying by nine...

.

A finesse pitcher who relied on changing speeds
Changeup
A changeup is a type of pitch in baseball. Other names include change-of-pace, Bugs Bunny change-up, the dreaded equalizer, and simply change. The changeup is sometimes called an off-speed pitch, although that term can also be used simply to mean any pitch that is slower than a fastball...

 and a superb control, Monbouquette was signed by the Boston Red Sox as an amateur free agent
Free agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player whose contract with a team has expired and who is thus eligible to sign with another club or franchise....

 in 1955 and started his majors career on July 18, 1958. He became the ace of a weak Boston pitching rotation in the early 1960s, winning at least 14 games from 1960–63, with a career-high 20 victories in 1963. A four-time All-Star
Major League Baseball All-Star Game
The Major League Baseball All-Star Game, also known as the "Midsummer Classic", is an annual baseball game between players from the National League and the American League, currently selected by a combination of fans, players, coaches, and managers...

, he pitched a no-hitter
No-hitter
A no-hitter is a baseball game in which one team has no hits. In Major League Baseball, the team must be without hits during the entire game, and the game must be at least nine innings. A pitcher who prevents the opposing team from achieving a hit is said to have "thrown a no-hitter"...

 in 1962 against the Chicago White Sox
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are a Major League Baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois.The White Sox play in the American League's Central Division. Since , the White Sox have played in U.S. Cellular Field, which was originally called New Comiskey Park and nicknamed The Cell by local fans...

; collected three one-hit games, and set a club record with a 17 strikeout-game against the Washington Senators
Texas Rangers (baseball)
The Texas Rangers are a professional baseball team in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, based in Arlington, Texas. The Rangers are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League, and are the reigning A.L. Western Division and A.L. Champions. Since , the Rangers have...

 in 1961.

After going 96-91 with Boston, Monbouquette was sent to the Detroit Tigers before the 1966 season. He also pitched for the Yankees and finished his career with the Giants on September 3, 1968. He never made the postseason.

Monbouquette was inducted into the Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame
Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame
The Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame was instituted in 1995 to recognize the careers of former Boston Red Sox baseball players. A 15-member selection committee of Red Sox broadcasters and executives, past and present media personnel, and representatives from The Sports Museum of New England and the...

 in . He was a pitching coach
Coach (baseball)
In baseball, a number of coaches assist in the smooth functioning of a team. They are assistants to the manager, or head coach, who determines the lineup and decides how to substitute players during the game...

 for Detroit Single-A affiliate team, Oneonta Tigers
Oneonta Tigers
The Oneonta Tigers were a minor league baseball team located in Oneonta, New York. They were members of the New York - Penn League. The Tigers were the Short-Season A classification affiliate of the Detroit Tigers, and played their home games at Damaschke Field...

. Bill was also once Wayne Muloin's
Wayne Muloin
John Wayne Muloin is a retired professional ice hockey player who played 258 games in the World Hockey Association and 141 games in the National Hockey League. He played for the Detroit Red Wings, California Golden Seals, Minnesota North Stars, Cleveland Crusaders, and Edmonton Oilers.-External...

 (Pro Hockey) brother-in-law.

Illness

In May 2008, the Boston Globe reported that Monbouquette was suffering from acute myelogenous leukemia. The chemotherapy
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy is the treatment of cancer with an antineoplastic drug or with a combination of such drugs into a standardized treatment regimen....

 and drug treatment he has received has the disease currently in remission, but he needs a bone marrow and stem cell transplant for a cure to be possible. To date no suitable match has been found for a transplant. The Red Sox in conjunction with Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Dana–Farber Cancer Institute is part of a Comprehensive Cancer Center designated by the National Cancer Institute. It is a major affiliate of Harvard Medical School and is located in the Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts.-Overview:...

 encouraged fans to participate in a National Marrow Donor Registry on June 7, 2008 at Tufts University
Tufts University
Tufts University is a private research university located in Medford/Somerville, near Boston, Massachusetts. It is organized into ten schools, including two undergraduate programs and eight graduate divisions, on four campuses in Massachusetts and on the eastern border of France...

 in hopes of finding a suitable donor for Monbouquette and others suffering from the disease.

In 2010, the Boston rock band, The Remains, released a song, "Monbo Time," as a tribute to Bill Monbouquette. The Remains pledged to donate 50% of the revenues they receive from sales of the song to cancer research. (06880danwoog.com, April 23, 2010; Boston Herald, April 22, 2010; nesn.com, April 14, 2010)

Quotes

  • "I got there when I was 21 years old and it was the greatest experience I've ever had. My big league debut was against the Tigers and I remember Billy Martin
    Billy Martin
    Alfred Manuel "Billy" Martin, Jr. was an American Major League Baseball second baseman and manager. He is best known as the manager of the New York Yankees, a position he held five different times...

     stole
    Stolen base
    In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a baserunner successfully advances to the next base while the pitcher is delivering the ball to home plate...

     home on me."
  • After his no-hitter: "That was something very special because I hadn't won a game in close to two months. I was struggling."
  • "Those were my most enjoyable years. I loved pitching at Fenway
    Fenway Park
    Fenway Park is a baseball park near Kenmore Square in Boston, Massachusetts. Located at 4 Yawkey Way, it has served as the home ballpark of the Boston Red Sox baseball club since it opened in 1912, and is the oldest Major League Baseball stadium currently in use. It is one of two "classic"...

     and loved pitching for the Red Sox."

See also


External links

  • MLB historical statistics
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