Joe Hoerner
Encyclopedia
Joseph Walter Hoerner was a Major League Baseball
relief pitcher
. A native of Dubuque, Iowa
, the left-hander was signed by the Chicago White Sox
as an amateur free agent before the 1957 season. He played for the Houston Colt .45s (1963-1964), St. Louis Cardinals
(1966-1969), Philadelphia Phillies
(1970-72, 1975), Atlanta Braves
(1972-1973), Kansas City Royals
(1973-1974), Texas Rangers
(1976), and Cincinnati Reds
(1977).
Hoerner was used exclusively in relief during his 14-year MLB career. He appeared in 493 games, and during his first six full seasons (1966-1971) had one of the lowest combined ERAs
among all major league relief pitchers (2.16).
Hoerner was drafted by the Colt .45's from the White Sox in the 1961 minor league draft. He made his major league debut on September 27, 1963 against the New York Mets
at Colt Stadium
. In this particular game Houston manager
Harry Craft
used a starting lineup of nine rookie
s, including Jerry Grote
(20), Joe Morgan
(20), Rusty Staub
(19), and Jimmy Wynn
(21). Hoerner pitched three scoreless innings
as the Mets won, 10-3. (see box score and play-by-play at http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/B09270HOU1963.htm)
He was drafted by the Cardinals from the Houston Astros
in the 1965 rule V draft, and this led to him being part of two pennant-winning teams, including the 1967 World Series
champions. In game 3 of the 1968 World Series
he became the first player in MLB history to get a hit in a World Series without having collected a hit in the regular season. In four seasons with St. Louis (1966-1969) Hoerner pitched in 206 games with a 19-10 record and 60 saves
. He ranked in the National League
TOP TEN all four seasons for saves, and three times for games finished
. On July 22, 1966 at Wrigley Field
he hit his only major league home run, a 3-run shot, against Hall of Famer Ferguson Jenkins
. During this time he also tied a National League record for relievers with 6 consecutive strikeouts vs. the Mets on June 1, 1968 He also appeared in five World Series
games for the Cards, with a 0-1 record and one save.
Hoerner was traded to Philadelphia as part of the infamous Curt Flood
deal http://www.blackamericaweb.com/site.aspx/bawnews/flood712 on October 7, 1969. He made the National League All-Star
team in 1970, and his .643 winning percentage
ranked sixth in the league. During 1971 that year he gave up Willie Mays's
major league-leading 22nd and last career extra-inning home run at Candlestick Park. In 1971, at age 34, he finished the year with a 1.97 ERA, and his effectiveness declined after that season. However, he later gave up Willie McCovey's
N.L. record-breaking 17th grand slam
in 1977 at Riverfront Stadium. His final major league appearance was on August 5, 1977. At the age of 40, he was the second-oldest player to appear in a National League game that season.
For his career he finished with a lifetime record of 39-34, 99 saves
, 268 games finished
, and an earned run average of 2.99. He struck out 412 and walked 181 In 562.2 innings pitched
. Hoerner held All-Stars Bobby Bonds
, Johnny Callison
, Tommy Harper
, Ed Kranepool
, Joe Pepitone
, and Bill White to a .070 collective batting average
(5-for-71). He also held Hall of Famers Hank Aaron, Ernie Banks
, Reggie Jackson
, Willie Mays
, Bill Mazeroski
, Tony Perez
, Willie Stargell
, and Carl Yastrzemski
to a .101 collective batting average (9-for-89)
Hoerner died in a farming accident at the age of 59 in Hermann, Missouri
.
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...
relief pitcher
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...
. A native of Dubuque, Iowa
Dubuque, Iowa
Dubuque is a city in and the county seat of Dubuque County, Iowa, United States, located along the Mississippi River. In 2010 its population was 57,637, making it the ninth-largest city in the state and the county's population was 93,653....
, the left-hander was signed by 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...
as an amateur free agent before the 1957 season. He played for the Houston Colt .45s (1963-1964), St. Louis Cardinals
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...
(1966-1969), Philadelphia Phillies
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
(1970-72, 1975), Atlanta Braves
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....
(1972-1973), Kansas City Royals
Kansas City Royals
The Kansas City Royals are a Major League Baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals are a member of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From 1973 to the present, the Royals have played in Kauffman Stadium...
(1973-1974), Texas Rangers
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...
(1976), and 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....
(1977).
Hoerner was used exclusively in relief during his 14-year MLB career. He appeared in 493 games, and during his first six full seasons (1966-1971) had one of the lowest combined ERAs
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...
among all major league relief pitchers (2.16).
Hoerner was drafted by the Colt .45's from the White Sox in the 1961 minor league draft. He made his major league debut on September 27, 1963 against the New York Mets
New York Mets
The New York Mets are a professional baseball team based in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York. They belong to Major League Baseball's National League East Division. One of baseball's first expansion teams, the Mets were founded in 1962 to replace New York's departed National League...
at Colt Stadium
Colt Stadium
Colt Stadium was a Major League baseball stadium that formerly stood in Houston, Texas. It was the home of the Houston Colt .45s. It was their temporary home from 1962-1964 while the Astrodome was being built, just to the south of it. The stadium consisted of an uncovered grandstand stretching from...
. In this particular game Houston manager
Manager (baseball)
In baseball, the field manager is an individual who is responsible for matters of team strategy on the field and team leadership. Managers are typically assisted by between one and six assistant coaches, whose responsibilities are specialized...
Harry Craft
Harry Craft
Harry Francis Craft was an American Major League Baseball player and manager. Born in Ellisville, Mississippi, he was an center fielder for the Cincinnati Reds from 1937–1942...
used a starting lineup of nine rookie
Rookie
Rookie is a term for a person who is in his or her first year of play of their sport or has little or no professional experience. The term also has the more general meaning of anyone new to a profession, training or activity Rookie is a term for a person who is in his or her first year of play of...
s, including Jerry Grote
Jerry Grote
Gerald Wayne Grote is a former professional baseball player. He played the majority of his Major League Baseball career as a catcher for the New York Mets and was regarded as one of the best defensive catchers of his era.-Early life:...
(20), Joe Morgan
Joe Morgan
Joe Leonard Morgan is a former Major League Baseball second baseman who played for the Houston Astros, Cincinnati Reds, San Francisco Giants, Philadelphia Phillies, and Oakland Athletics from 1963 to 1984. He won two World Series championships with the Reds in 1975 and 1976 and was also named the...
(20), Rusty Staub
Rusty Staub
Daniel Joseph "Rusty" Staub is an American former Major League Baseball right fielder, designated hitter, and first baseman. He enjoyed a 23-year baseball career with 5 different teams...
(19), and Jimmy Wynn
Jimmy Wynn
James Sherman Wynn , nicknamed the "Toy Cannon," is a former Major League Baseball center fielder. During a 15-year baseball career, he played from 1963-1977 for five different teams: the Houston Colt .45s/Astros, Los Angeles Dodgers, Atlanta Braves, New York Yankees, and Milwaukee Brewers...
(21). Hoerner pitched three scoreless innings
Innings
An inning, or innings, is a fixed-length segment of a game in any of a variety of sports – most notably cricket and baseball during which one team attempts to score while the other team attempts to prevent the first from scoring. In cricket, the term innings is both singular and plural and is...
as the Mets won, 10-3. (see box score and play-by-play at http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/B09270HOU1963.htm)
He was drafted by the Cardinals from the Houston Astros
Houston Astros
The Houston Astros are a Major League Baseball team located in Houston, Texas. They are a member of the National League Central division. The Astros are expected to join the American League West division in 2013. Since , they have played their home games at Minute Maid Park, known as Enron Field...
in the 1965 rule V draft, and this led to him being part of two pennant-winning teams, including the 1967 World Series
1967 World Series
The 1967 World Series matched the St. Louis Cardinals against the Boston Red Sox in a rematch of the 1946 World Series, with the Cardinals winning in seven games for their second championship in four years and their eighth overall...
champions. In game 3 of the 1968 World Series
1968 World Series
The 1968 World Series featured the defending champion St. Louis Cardinals against the Detroit Tigers, with the Tigers winning in seven games for their first championship since 1945, and the third in their history...
he became the first player in MLB history to get a hit in a World Series without having collected a hit in the regular season. In four seasons with St. Louis (1966-1969) Hoerner pitched in 206 games with a 19-10 record and 60 saves
Save (sport)
In baseball, a save is credited to a pitcher who finishes a game for the winning team under certain prescribed circumstances. The number of saves, or percentage of save opportunities successfully converted, is an oft-cited statistic of relief pitchers...
. He ranked in the National League
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...
TOP TEN all four seasons for saves, and three times for games finished
Games finished
In baseball statistics, a relief pitcher is credited with a game finished if he is the last pitcher to pitch for his team in a game. A starting pitcher is not credited with a GF for pitching a complete game...
. On July 22, 1966 at Wrigley Field
Wrigley Field
Wrigley Field is a baseball stadium in Chicago, Illinois, United States that has served as the home ballpark of the Chicago Cubs since 1916. It was built in 1914 as Weeghman Park for the Chicago Federal League baseball team, the Chicago Whales...
he hit his only major league home run, a 3-run shot, against Hall of Famer Ferguson Jenkins
Ferguson Jenkins
Ferguson Arthur "Fergie" Jenkins, CM, is a Canadian former Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. He was a three-time All-Star and the 1971 NL Cy Young Award winner. In 1991, Jenkins was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. During a 19-year career, he pitched for four different teams,...
. During this time he also tied a National League record for relievers with 6 consecutive strikeouts vs. the Mets on June 1, 1968 He also appeared in five 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...
games for the Cards, with a 0-1 record and one save.
Hoerner was traded to Philadelphia as part of the infamous Curt Flood
Curt Flood
Curtis Charles Flood was a Major League Baseball player who spent most of his career as a center fielder for the St. Louis Cardinals. A defensive standout, he led the National League in putouts four times and in fielding percentage twice, winning Gold Glove Awards in his last seven full seasons...
deal http://www.blackamericaweb.com/site.aspx/bawnews/flood712 on October 7, 1969. He made the National League All-Star
All-star
All-star is a term designating an individual as having a high level of performance in their field. Originating in sports, it has since drifted into vernacular and been borrowed heavily by the entertainment industry...
team in 1970, and his .643 winning percentage
Winning percentage
In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. It is defined as wins divided by wins plus losses . Ties count as a ½ loss and a ½ win...
ranked sixth in the league. During 1971 that year he gave up Willie Mays's
Willie Mays
Willie Howard Mays, Jr. is a retired American professional baseball player who played the majority of his major league career with the New York and San Francisco Giants before finishing with the New York Mets. Nicknamed The Say Hey Kid, Mays was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1979, his...
major league-leading 22nd and last career extra-inning home run at Candlestick Park. In 1971, at age 34, he finished the year with a 1.97 ERA, and his effectiveness declined after that season. However, he later gave up Willie McCovey's
Willie McCovey
Willie Lee McCovey , nicknamed "Mac", "Big Mac", and "Stretch", is a former Major League Baseball first baseman. He played nineteen seasons for the San Francisco Giants, and three more for the San Diego Padres and Oakland Athletics, between and...
N.L. record-breaking 17th grand slam
Grand slam (baseball)
In the sport of baseball, a grand slam is a home run hit with all three bases occupied by baserunners , thereby scoring four runs—the most possible in one play. According to The Dickson Baseball Dictionary, the term originated in the card game of contract bridge, in which a grand slam involves...
in 1977 at Riverfront Stadium. His final major league appearance was on August 5, 1977. At the age of 40, he was the second-oldest player to appear in a National League game that season.
For his career he finished with a lifetime record of 39-34, 99 saves
Save (sport)
In baseball, a save is credited to a pitcher who finishes a game for the winning team under certain prescribed circumstances. The number of saves, or percentage of save opportunities successfully converted, is an oft-cited statistic of relief pitchers...
, 268 games finished
Games finished
In baseball statistics, a relief pitcher is credited with a game finished if he is the last pitcher to pitch for his team in a game. A starting pitcher is not credited with a GF for pitching a complete game...
, and an earned run average of 2.99. He struck out 412 and walked 181 In 562.2 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...
. Hoerner held All-Stars Bobby Bonds
Bobby Bonds
Bobby Lee Bonds was an American right fielder in Major League Baseball from to , primarily with the San Francisco Giants...
, Johnny Callison
Johnny Callison
John Wesley Callison was an American right fielder in Major League Baseball, best known for his years with the Philadelphia Phillies from 1960 to 1969...
, Tommy Harper
Tommy Harper
Tommy Harper is an American former Major League Baseball outfielder and third baseman. He played with the Cincinnati Reds , Cleveland Indians , Seattle Pilots , Milwaukee Brewers , Boston Red Sox , California Angels , Oakland Athletics , and the Baltimore Orioles .-High School...
, Ed Kranepool
Ed Kranepool
Edward Emil Kranepool is a former first baseman who spent his entire Major League Baseball career with the New York Mets....
, Joe Pepitone
Joe Pepitone
Joseph "Joe" Anthony Pepitone is a former Major League Baseball first baseman and outfielder who played the bulk of his career for the New York Yankees. He also played several seasons with the Chicago Cubs and had short stints with the Houston Astros and Atlanta Braves...
, and Bill White to a .070 collective batting average
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
(5-for-71). He also held Hall of Famers Hank Aaron, Ernie Banks
Ernie Banks
Ernest "Ernie" Banks , nicknamed "Mr. Cub", is a former Major League Baseball shortstop and first baseman. He played his entire 19-year baseball career with the Chicago Cubs . He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1977.-High school years:Banks was a letterman and standout in football,...
, Reggie Jackson
Reggie Jackson
Reginald Martinez "Reggie" Jackson , nicknamed "Mr. October" for his clutch hitting in the postseason with the New York Yankees, is a former American Major League Baseball right fielder. During a 21-year baseball career, he played from 1967-1987 for four different teams. Jackson currently serves as...
, Willie Mays
Willie Mays
Willie Howard Mays, Jr. is a retired American professional baseball player who played the majority of his major league career with the New York and San Francisco Giants before finishing with the New York Mets. Nicknamed The Say Hey Kid, Mays was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1979, his...
, 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...
, Tony Perez
Tony Pérez
Atanasio Pérez Rigal , more commonly known as Tony Pérez, is a former Major League Baseball player. He was also known by the nickname "Big Dog," "Big Doggie," and "Doggie."...
, Willie Stargell
Willie Stargell
Wilver Dornell "Willie" Stargell , nicknamed "Pops" in the later years of his career, was a Major League Baseball left fielder and first baseman. He played his entire 21-year baseball career with the Pittsburgh Pirates...
, and Carl Yastrzemski
Carl Yastrzemski
Carl Michael Yastrzemski is a former American Major League Baseball left fielder and first baseman. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1989. Yastrzemski played his entire 23-year baseball career with the Boston Red Sox . He was primarily a left fielder, with part of his later career...
to a .101 collective batting average (9-for-89)
Hoerner died in a farming accident at the age of 59 in Hermann, Missouri
Hermann, Missouri
Hermann is a city designated in 1842 as the county seat of Gasconade County, Missouri, United States. It is near the center of the Missouri Rhineland and south of the Missouri River. The population was 2,674 at the 2000 census....
.