Jim Coates
Encyclopedia
James Alton Coates is a former Major League Baseball
pitcher
. A right-hander, Coates pitched for the New York Yankees
(1956, 1959-62), Washington Senators
(1963), Cincinnati Reds
(1963) and California Angels
(1965-67).
Fully recovered in , Coates pitched in 37 games, all but four in relief
, winning six games against one loss, with a 2.87 earned run average
in 100 1/3 innings pitched
. The season, however, was disastrous for the Yankees as a whole—after winning seven World Series
and nine American League
pennants in ten seasons, and winning 103 games in , the one year in that stretch when they didn’t win the pennant (the Cleveland Indians
won 111), the Yankees, beset by injuries all season, finished third, 15 games behind the American League champion Chicago White Sox
. The lowlight of the Yankees’ season was falling to dead last on May 20.
’s much-maligned rotation. After winning his last five decisions in 1959 and his first nine this season, Coates finally had his winning streak broken against the Boston Red Sox
on July 9, a 6-5 loss in which Vic Wertz
drove in four of the runs. Coates was also named to the All Star team, pitching two scoreless innings in the first of two games played that year (between 1959 and 1962, Major League Baseball had two All-Star games).
Coates was a member of the Yankee team that regained the American League pennant in 1960 but lost to the Pittsburgh Pirates
in the World Series
in seven games. In Game One, Coates gave up a home run by Bill Mazeroski
for the deciding runs in the Pirates’ 6-4 victory. Before Ralph Terry
gave up Mazeroski's second home run of this Series (the walk-off home run that won Game Seven 10-9 for the Pirates and ended the Series), Coates himself was almost the scapegoat in the Yankees’ loss. With the Yankees ahead 7-5 with no outs in the eighth inning of that seventh game and Bill Virdon
on second and Dick Groat
on first, Coates relieved Bobby Shantz
and got Bob Skinner
out on a sacrifice bunt, which advanced the runners. Rocky Nelson
then flew out to Roger Maris
in right field, and Virdon declined to challenge Maris’ throwing arm. Coates then got to an 0-2 count on Roberto Clemente
and was one strike away from getting the Yankees out of trouble.
However, a lapse by Coates allowed the Pirates to keep their inning alive. Clemente eventually chopped a weak ground ball toward first base, and Coates initially ran toward the ball instead of running directly to cover first base. First baseman Moose Skowron
fielded the ball as Coates changed direction and ran to the first base bag. But the momentary delay enabled Clemente to reach the base before Coates could get there. Skowron was forced to hold onto the ball, and Virdon scored to cut the Yankee lead to 7-6. Coates then gave up a home run to Hal Smith to give the Pirates a 9-7 lead. Terry then relieved Coates and retired Don Hoak
to finally end the inning. The Yankees got Coates off the hook by scoring twice in the top of the ninth to tie the game, only to lose on Mazeroski’s home run off Terry in the bottom of the 9th. The Pirates had hit four home runs in this Series; Coates had given up two of them.
, Yogi Berra
and Elston Howard
, the infield defense of Clete Boyer
, Tony Kubek
and Bobby Richardson
, and Whitey Ford
’s 25-4 season, the now-Ralph Houk
-led Yankees (Stengel had been fired immediately after the 1960 World Series) won the World Series
over the Cincinnati Reds
in five games. Coates relieved Ford in Game Four of the Series and pitched four scoreless innings for the save in a 7-0 Yankee win; Ford had left the game with an injury, but not without first breaking Babe Ruth
’s World Series record of 29 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings.
In Coates went 7-6 for a Yankee team that repeated as World Champions
. Coates was the losing pitcher in Game Four of this Series, which the Yankees won over the San Francisco Giants
in seven games.
, “The Mummy,” came from his funereal visage on the mound, won 43 games against 22 losses, with a 4.00 ERA and 396 strikeout
s in 683 1/3 innings pitched. He was also well-known for throwing at opposing batters. Jim Bouton
, in his book, Ball Four
, said Coates, after throwing at the opposing hitters, “would not get into the fight
s that followed.” Coates now has a book entitled "Always a Yankee."
Today Coates' grandson, Aaron Pribanic, is a prospect in the Pittsburgh Pirates organization. Pribanic stated that he picked up his passion for the baseball from his grandfather.
Jim Coates played in the Dominican Republic during the 1958 season with the Licey team. He received a serious deadball playing against the Escogido team. He layed unconsious next to the home plate and did not return to play the rest of the season. The deadball came from pitcher Garabato Sackie.
In the fall of 2010, MLB Network
invited Coates to its New York studios to tape a show about the 1960 Series. Coates flatly refused. According to Pribanic, Coates stated, "Why would I want to go listen to them talk about how we lost?"
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...
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...
. A right-hander, Coates pitched for the 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...
(1956, 1959-62), 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...
(1963), Cincinnati Reds
Cincinnati Reds
The Cincinnati Reds are a Major League Baseball team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. They are members of the National League Central Division. The club was established in 1882 as a charter member of the American Association and joined the National League in 1890....
(1963) and California Angels
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are a professional baseball team based in Anaheim, California, United States. The Angels are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. The "Angels" name originates from the city in which the team started, Los Angeles...
(1965-67).
Early career
Coates was signed by the Yankees as an amateur free agent in . He spent seven years in the Yankees’ farm system with a call-up in , during which he made his major league debut. Shortly after reaching the Majors, he broke his pitching arm; the injury forced Coates to miss the and seasons.Fully recovered in , Coates pitched in 37 games, all but four in relief
Relief pitcher
A relief pitcher or reliever is a baseball or softball pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed due to injury, ineffectiveness, fatigue, ejection, or for other strategic reasons, such as being substituted by a pinch hitter...
, winning six games against one loss, with a 2.87 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...
in 100 1/3 innings pitched
Innings pitched
In baseball, innings pitched are the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of batters and baserunners that are put out while the pitcher on the pitching mound in a game. Three outs made is equal to one inning pitched. One out counts as one-third of an inning, and two...
. The season, however, was disastrous for the Yankees as a whole—after winning seven World Series
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball, played between the American League and National League champions since 1903. The winner of the World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff and awarded the Commissioner's Trophy...
and nine American League
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League , is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league based in the Great Lakes states, which eventually aspired to major...
pennants in ten seasons, and winning 103 games in , the one year in that stretch when they didn’t win the pennant (the Cleveland Indians
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Indians are a professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Since , they have played in Progressive Field. The team's spring training facility is in Goodyear, Arizona...
won 111), the Yankees, beset by injuries all season, finished third, 15 games behind the American League champion 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...
. The lowlight of the Yankees’ season was falling to dead last on May 20.
1960 World Series
In Coates went 13-3 as a spot starter in Casey StengelCasey Stengel
Charles Dillon "Casey" Stengel , nicknamed "The Old Perfessor", was an American Major League Baseball outfielder and manager. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in ....
’s much-maligned rotation. After winning his last five decisions in 1959 and his first nine this season, Coates finally had his winning streak broken against 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"...
on July 9, a 6-5 loss in which Vic Wertz
Vic Wertz
Victor Woodrow Wertz was a Major League Baseball first baseman and outfielder. He had a seventeen year career from 1947 to 1963. He was signed as a free agent by the Detroit Tigers in 1942 and played for the Tigers, St...
drove in four of the runs. Coates was also named to the All Star team, pitching two scoreless innings in the first of two games played that year (between 1959 and 1962, Major League Baseball had two All-Star games).
Coates was a member of the Yankee team that regained the American League pennant in 1960 but lost to the Pittsburgh Pirates
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series Champions...
in the World Series
1960 World Series
The 1960 World Series was played between the Pittsburgh Pirates of the National League and the New York Yankees of the American League from October 5 to October 13, 1960...
in seven games. In Game One, Coates gave up a home run by Bill Mazeroski
Bill Mazeroski
William Stanley Mazeroski , nicknamed "Maz", is a former Major League Baseball player who spent his entire career with the Pittsburgh Pirates...
for the deciding runs in the Pirates’ 6-4 victory. Before Ralph Terry
Ralph Terry
Ralph Willard Terry is a former right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the New York Yankees , Kansas City Athletics , Cleveland Indians and New York Mets...
gave up Mazeroski's second home run of this Series (the walk-off home run that won Game Seven 10-9 for the Pirates and ended the Series), Coates himself was almost the scapegoat in the Yankees’ loss. With the Yankees ahead 7-5 with no outs in the eighth inning of that seventh game and Bill Virdon
Bill Virdon
William Charles Virdon is a former outfielder, manager and coach in Major League Baseball. A premier defensive outfielder during his playing days as a center fielder for the St...
on second and Dick Groat
Dick Groat
Richard Morrow Groat is a former two-sport athlete best known as a shortstop in Major League Baseball. He played for four National League teams, mainly the Pittsburgh Pirates and St. Louis Cardinals, and was named the league's Most Valuable Player in after winning the batting title with a .325...
on first, Coates relieved Bobby Shantz
Bobby Shantz
Robert Clayton Shantz was a Major League Baseball pitcher for the Philadelphia Athletics , Kansas City Athletics , New York Yankees , Pittsburgh Pirates , Houston Colt .45's , St...
and got Bob Skinner
Bob Skinner
Robert Ralph Skinner is a scout for the Houston Astros and a former outfielder-first baseman, manager and coach in American Major League Baseball...
out on a sacrifice bunt, which advanced the runners. Rocky Nelson
Rocky Nelson
Glenn Richard "Rocky" Nelson was a first baseman for the St. Louis Cardinals , Pittsburgh Pirates , Chicago White Sox , Brooklyn Dodgers and Cleveland Indians .A native of Portsmouth, Ohio, Nelson batted and threw left-handed...
then flew out to Roger Maris
Roger Maris
Roger Eugene Maris was an American Major League Baseball right fielder. During the 1961 season, he hit a record 61 home runs for the New York Yankees, breaking Babe Ruth's single-season record of 60 home runs...
in right field, and Virdon declined to challenge Maris’ throwing arm. Coates then got to an 0-2 count on Roberto Clemente
Roberto Clemente
Roberto Clemente Walker was a Puerto Rican Major League Baseball right fielder. He was born in Carolina, Puerto Rico, the youngest of seven children. Clemente played his entire 18-year baseball career with the Pittsburgh Pirates . He was awarded the National League's Most Valuable Player Award in...
and was one strike away from getting the Yankees out of trouble.
However, a lapse by Coates allowed the Pirates to keep their inning alive. Clemente eventually chopped a weak ground ball toward first base, and Coates initially ran toward the ball instead of running directly to cover first base. First baseman Moose Skowron
Moose Skowron
William Joseph "Moose" Skowron Jr. is a former Major League Baseball player, primarily a first baseman. He is currently a Community Relations Representative for the White Sox....
fielded the ball as Coates changed direction and ran to the first base bag. But the momentary delay enabled Clemente to reach the base before Coates could get there. Skowron was forced to hold onto the ball, and Virdon scored to cut the Yankee lead to 7-6. Coates then gave up a home run to Hal Smith to give the Pirates a 9-7 lead. Terry then relieved Coates and retired Don Hoak
Don Hoak
Donald Albert Hoak was a Major League Baseball player. Nicknamed "Tiger," Hoak was a third baseman who played ten seasons in the Majors with the Brooklyn Dodgers , Chicago Cubs , Cincinnati Reds , Pittsburgh Pirates and Philadelphia Phillies...
to finally end the inning. The Yankees got Coates off the hook by scoring twice in the top of the ninth to tie the game, only to lose on Mazeroski’s home run off Terry in the bottom of the 9th. The Pirates had hit four home runs in this Series; Coates had given up two of them.
1961 & 1962 Championships
In Coates went 11-5 as a spot starter for perhaps the major leagues' greatest-ever team. Led by the hitting of Maris, Skowron, Mickey MantleMickey Mantle
Mickey Charles Mantle was an American professional baseball player. Mantle is regarded by many to be the greatest switch hitter of all time, and one of the greatest players in baseball history. Mantle was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974.Mantle was noted for his hitting...
, Yogi Berra
Yogi Berra
Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra is a former American Major League Baseball catcher, outfielder, and manager. He played almost his entire 19-year baseball career for the New York Yankees...
and Elston Howard
Elston Howard
Elston Gene Howard was an American Negro League and Major League Baseball catcher, left fielder and coach. During a 14-year baseball career, he played from 1955–1968, primarily for the New York Yankees...
, the infield defense of Clete Boyer
Clete Boyer
Cletis Leroy "Clete" Boyer was a Major League Baseball player.A third baseman who also played shortstop and second base occasionally, Boyer played for the Kansas City Athletics , New York Yankees and Atlanta Braves...
, Tony Kubek
Tony Kubek
Anthony Christopher "Tony" Kubek is a retired American professional baseball player and television broadcaster....
and Bobby Richardson
Bobby Richardson
Robert Clinton "Bobby" Richardson is a former second baseman in Major League Baseball who played for the New York Yankees from through . Batting and throwing right-handed, he was a superb defensive infielder, as well as something of a clutch hitter, who played no small role in the Yankee baseball...
, and Whitey Ford
Whitey Ford
Edward Charles "Whitey" Ford is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who spent his entire 18-year career with the New York Yankees. He was voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974.-Early life and career:...
’s 25-4 season, the now-Ralph Houk
Ralph Houk
Ralph George Houk , nicknamed The Major, was an American catcher, coach, manager, and front office executive in Major League Baseball...
-led Yankees (Stengel had been fired immediately after the 1960 World Series) won the World Series
1961 World Series
The 1961 World Series matched the New York Yankees against the Cincinnati Reds , with the Yankees winning in five games to earn their 19th championship in 39 seasons. This World Series was surrounded by Cold War political puns pitting the "Reds" against the "Yanks"...
over the Cincinnati Reds
Cincinnati Reds
The Cincinnati Reds are a Major League Baseball team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. They are members of the National League Central Division. The club was established in 1882 as a charter member of the American Association and joined the National League in 1890....
in five games. Coates relieved Ford in Game Four of the Series and pitched four scoreless innings for the save in a 7-0 Yankee win; Ford had left the game with an injury, but not without first breaking Babe Ruth
Babe Ruth
George Herman Ruth, Jr. , best known as "Babe" Ruth and nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Sultan of Swat", was an American Major League baseball player from 1914–1935...
’s World Series record of 29 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings.
In Coates went 7-6 for a Yankee team that repeated as World Champions
1962 World Series
The 1962 World Series matched the defending American League and World Series champions New York Yankees against the National League champion San Francisco Giants, who had won their first NL pennant since 1954 and first since moving from New York in 1958, defeating the Los Angeles Dodgers in a...
. Coates was the losing pitcher in Game Four of this Series, which the Yankees won over 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....
in seven games.
Legacy
In his career, Coates, whose nicknameNickname
A nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....
, “The Mummy,” came from his funereal visage on the mound, won 43 games against 22 losses, with a 4.00 ERA and 396 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 in 683 1/3 innings pitched. He was also well-known for throwing at opposing batters. Jim Bouton
Jim Bouton
James Alan "Jim" Bouton is a former American Major League Baseball pitcher. He is also the author of the controversial baseball book Ball Four, which was a combination diary of his season and memoir of his years with the New York Yankees, Seattle Pilots, and Houston Astros.-Amateur and college...
, in his book, Ball Four
Ball Four
Ball Four is a book written by former Major League Baseball pitcher Jim Bouton in . The book is a diary of Bouton's 1969 season, spent with the Seattle Pilots and then the Houston Astros following a late-season trade. In it Bouton also recounts much of his baseball career, spent mainly with the...
, said Coates, after throwing at the opposing hitters, “would not get into the fight
Bench-clearing brawl
A bench-clearing brawl, sometimes known as a basebrawl or a rhubarb, is a form of ritualistic fighting that occurs in sports, most notably baseball and ice hockey, in which every player on both teams leave their dugouts, bullpens, or benches and charge the playing area in order to fight one...
s that followed.” Coates now has a book entitled "Always a Yankee."
Today Coates' grandson, Aaron Pribanic, is a prospect in the Pittsburgh Pirates organization. Pribanic stated that he picked up his passion for the baseball from his grandfather.
Jim Coates played in the Dominican Republic during the 1958 season with the Licey team. He received a serious deadball playing against the Escogido team. He layed unconsious next to the home plate and did not return to play the rest of the season. The deadball came from pitcher Garabato Sackie.
In the fall of 2010, MLB Network
MLB Network
MLB Network is an American television specialty channel dedicated to professional baseball. It is primarily owned by Major League Baseball. Comcast, DirecTV, Time Warner Cable and Cox Communications have minority ownership of the new network, with MLB retaining a controlling two-thirds share...
invited Coates to its New York studios to tape a show about the 1960 Series. Coates flatly refused. According to Pribanic, Coates stated, "Why would I want to go listen to them talk about how we lost?"