Ricky Eugene Reuschel (pronounced RUSH-el) (born May 16, 1949) is an American former professional baseball player. He played as a pitcher in Major League Baseball from the early 1970s into the early 1990s.[1][2] His nickname was "Big Daddy" because of his portly physique.[3] He was known for his deceptive style of pitching, which kept hitters off balance by constantly varying the speeds of his pitches.[4]
Major League career
Reuschel was listed as 6-foot-4 and 225 pounds. Reuschel could run surprisingly well for his size (logging 4 triples in his batting career) and he was frequently used as a pinch runner on days he was not pitching. He was also a fair – though awkward-looking – hitter, batting well over .200 several times.[1] His older brother Paul Reuschel also pitched for the Cubs for a few years while Reuschel was pitching, but was not nearly as effective as his younger brother and his career was much shorter.[5] Both of them were Illinois farm boys, with strong physiques and plain-spoken ways. The two are the only siblings to combine on a shutout.[3] On August 21, 1975, Rick started and went 61⁄3 innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers, followed by Paul, who pitched the final 22⁄3 innings for the Cubs' 7-0 win.[6]
Reuschel began his Major League Baseball career when he was drafted in the third round of the 1970 Major League Baseball draft by the Chicago Cubs,[3][7] at a time when they were declining in the post-Durocher era, and provided a strong arm for the Cubs' increasingly mediocre staff. After spending two years in the minor leagues, he joined the Cubs' major league team in 1972.[2] His best season was in 1977, when the Cubs made a brief run at the pennant. Reuschel won 20 games and finished third in the Cy Young Award voting behind Steve Carlton and Tommy John.[1][8] In addition, Reuschel pitched in a memorable game for Cub fans on July 28, 1977, when making a rare relief appearance on two days rest, he entered the 13th inning of a 15-15 tie between the Cubs and the Cincinnati Reds at Wrigley Field. Reuschel retired two batters to end the top of the 13th. Then, he singled and scored the game-winning run in the bottom of the 13th, also picking up the victory in the 16-15 contest.[9]
Reuschel was traded to the New York Yankees in 1981.[7] That year, Reuschel made his first World Series appearances.[10] The 1981 World Series marked the last chapter of the Dodgers-Yankees trilogy of that era, this one won by the Dodgers. Reuschel was ineffective in that Series, and it appeared his career might be finished.[10] He returned to the Cubs and was on the roster in 1984 when they won the National League Eastern Division and made the playoffs,[11] but, somewhat controversially, he was not named to the playoff roster.
Reuschel was signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1985 as a free agent,[7] and had a 14-8 won-loss record with the last-place Pirates,[1] earning him the National League's Comeback Player of the Year award.[12][13] The Pirates traded Reuschel to the San Francisco Giants in late 1987 for Jeff Robinson and Scott Medvin.[7] Reuschel, finally back with a contender, became the ace of the Giants' staff and helped them make a late run to the National League Western Division title, their first division title since 1971. He followed that season by winning 19 games for the Giants in 1988.[1][4] In 1989 at the age of 40, Reuschel was selected as the starting pitcher for the National League in the 1989 All-Star Game, and gave up a lead off home run to Bo Jackson, followed by Wade Boggs' home run to start the game.[14] Reuschel finished the 1989 season with 17 wins for the Giants as he helped lead them to the World Series (their first since 1962).[15] In the 1989 World Series, Reuschel was the losing pitcher in Game 2 with an 11.25 ERA, five earned runs, and five hits given up against the Oakland Athletics.[16]
Career statistics
In a nineteen-year major league career, Reuschel compiled a record of 214-191 in 557 games (529 starts).[1] He had 102 career complete games and 26 of those were shutouts. He allowed 1,330 earned runs and 2,015 strike outs in 3,548 and 1/3 innings pitched.[1] Reuschel was a two-time Gold Glove Award winner and a three-time All-Star.[17] As of 2009, Reuschel was in the List of Major League Baseball career wins leaders. Reuschel won the Hutch Award in 1985,[18] and was also a winner of Sporting News Comeback Player of the Year Award.[12] Reuschel was named to the Baseball Digest 1972 Rookie All-Star team.[19]
See also
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Rick Reuschel at Baseball Reference
- 1 2 Rick Reuschel at The Baseball Cube
- 1 2 3 Rick Reuschel at The Baseball Page
- 1 2 Rick Reuschel: He Lets Batter Get Himself Out by Casey Tefertiller, Baseball Digest, December 1988, Vol. 47, No. 12, ISSN 0005-609X
- ↑ Paul Reuschel at Baseball Reference
- ↑ August 21, 1975 Dodgers-Cubs box score at Baseball Reference
- 1 2 3 4 Rick Reuschel Trades and Transactions at Baseball Almanac
- ↑ 1977 National League Cy Young Award voting results at Baseball Reference
- ↑ July 28, 1977 Reds-Cubs box score at Baseball Reference
- 1 2 1981 World Series at Baseball Reference
- ↑ 1984 Chicago Cubs Batting, Pitching, & Fielding Statistics at Baseball Reference
- 1 2 The Comeback Player of the Year Award at Baseball Almanac
- ↑ How Perseverance Paid Off for Rick Reuschel by Al Doyle, Baseball Digest, May 1986, Vol. 45, No. 5, ISSN 0005-609X
- ↑ 1989 Major League All-Star game box score at Baseball Reference
- ↑ 1989 World Series at Baseball Reference
- ↑ 1989 World Series Game 2 box score at Baseball Reference
- ↑ National League Gold Glove Award winners at Baseball Reference
- ↑ Hutch Award winners at Baseball Reference
- ↑ Baseball Digest, December 1989
External links
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube
- How Perseverance Paid Off for Rick Reuschel by Al Doyle, Baseball Digest, May 1986
- Rick Reuschel: He Lets Batter Get Himself Out by Casey Tefertiller, Baseball Digest, December 1988
- Rick Reuschel in Sports Illustrated, July 15, 1985
- Rick Reuschel in Sports Illustrated, July 10, 1989
