| Dave Stewart | |
|---|---|
 Stewart in 2009 | |
| Pitcher | |
| Born: (1957-02-19)February 19, 1957 (age 68) Oakland, California, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| September 22, 1978, for the Los Angeles Dodgers | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| July 17, 1995, for the Oakland Athletics | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Win–loss record | 168–129 |
| Earned run average | 3.95 |
| Strikeouts | 1,741 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
As player
As coach | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
David Keith Stewart (born February 19, 1957), nicknamed "Smoke", is an American professionalbaseball executive,pitching coach,sports agent, and formerstarting pitcher. TheLos Angeles Dodgers' 16th-round selection in the1975 MLB draft, Stewart's MLB playing career spanned from 1978 through 1995, winning threeWorld Series championships all with different clubs while compiling a career 3.95earned run average (ERA) and a 168–129won–lost record, including winning 20 games in four consecutive seasons. He pitched for the Dodgers,Texas Rangers,Philadelphia Phillies,Oakland Athletics, andToronto Blue Jays.
Stewart was anMLB All-Star and was known for his intimidating pitching style and hispostseason performance, winning oneWorld Series Most Valuable Player Award and twoLeague Championship Series Most Valuable Player Awards. After his playing career, he served as a pitching coach for theSan Diego Padres,Milwaukee Brewers, and Blue Jays and as an assistantgeneral manager (GM). He worked under several GMs, includingSandy Alderson,Kevin Towers,Gord Ash, andDean Taylor. He later became a sports agent based inSan Diego until theArizona Diamondbacks hired him as general manager at the end of the 2014 season, a position he held until 2016.
Stewart was born inOakland, California. His father, David, was alongshoreman, and his mother, Nathalie, worked at acannery.[1] His father didn't want Stewart to play sports, because he felt nobody could make a living hitting a ball, so his older brother taught him how to play.[1] As a kid, Stewart spent many days at the East Oakland Branch of the Oakland Boys Club.
Stewart attendedSt. Elizabeth High School in Oakland, where he earnedAll-American honors in both baseball (where he playedcatcher) and in football (where he was alinebacker andtight end). He also averaged 16points per game as asmall forward on the basketball team.[2][3] He was offered 30 college scholarships to play football, but turned them all down to sign with theLos Angeles Dodgers, who selected him in the 16th round of the1975 Major League Baseball draft.[3]
The Dodgers decided to turn Stewart into apitcher because of his strong arm.[2] He made his professional debut with theBellingham Dodgers of the short-season single-ANorthwest League. He had a 0–5win–loss record with a 5.51earned run average (ERA) in 22 games pitched, five of which weregames started,[4] for a Bellingham team that set a record by losing the first 24 games of the season.[5] He was promoted to theMidwest League at the end of the 1976 season and with theClinton Dodgers in 1977 he had a breakout season: 17–4 with a 2.15 ERA in 24 starts, including 15complete games and 3shutouts.[4] Despite his impressive season, he lost out on the Midwest League MVP and Top prospect honors to future Hall of FamerPaul Molitor, then with theBurlington Bees.[6] Stewart was promoted to the AASan Antonio Dodgers of theTexas League for the 1978 season. He was 14–12 with a 3.68 ERA in 28 starts for San Antonio.[4]
Stewart made his major league debut on September 22, 1978, pitching two innings in relief against theSan Diego Padres. He allowed only one hit and no runs while striking out one batter (Jim Beswick).[7] That was his only appearance for the Dodgers that season. Stewart spent all of the 1979 and 1980 seasons in AAA with theAlbuquerque Dukes. Despite an 11–12 record and 5.24 ERA in 28 games for the Dukes in 1979,[4] Stewart felt he pitched well and was disappointed when he did not receive a September call-up.[8] In 1980, he was 15–10 with a 3.70 ERA for a Dukes team that won thePacific Coast League (PCL) Championship.[9] He led the PCL in innings pitched (202) and starts (29) and tied for the league lead in wins (15).[4][8]
Stewart went to spring training with the Dodgers in 1981. Because he was out ofoptions, the Dodgers could not send him back down to the minors without risk of losing him to another team. They initially planned to release him, but eventually cutDon Stanhouse instead.[10] He made the Dodgers opening day roster[8] and pitched in relief that season, appearing in 32 games with a 2.49 ERA and sixsaves. He got his first Major League win in his first appearance of the season, on April 13 against theSan Francisco Giants, when he worked two scoreless innings in relief ofBob Welch.[11] His first save was recorded on August 16 against theAtlanta Braves.[12] When MLB's players wenton a two-month long strike on June 12, Stewart was hard pressed financially and went to work for a Dodger fan that owned a metal fastener business and worked out with a semi-pro team along with teammateBobby Castillo.[8] The Dodgers made the split-season playoffs and Stewart saw his first taste of post-season action, being credited as the losing pitcher in the first two games of theDivision Series against theHouston Astros. He allowed a walk-off homer toAlan Ashby in game one[13] and allowing the winning runs to reach base in the 11th inning of game two.[14] He redeemed himself by not allowing a run in the two games he appeared in for the Dodgers in the1981 World Series against theNew York Yankees, which the Dodgers won in six games.[15]
He spent time as both a starter and a reliever in 1982, appearing in 45 games (starting 14 of them) and was 9–8 with a 3.81 ERA.[16] The Dodgers almost traded Stewart to theTexas Rangers after the 1982 season in a package for catcherJim Sundberg, however, Sundberg wouldn't waive his no-trade clause and the deal fell apart.[17] In 1983, he appeared in 46 games for the Dodgers, all but one as a relief pitcher, with a 5–2 record and a 2.96 ERA.[16] On July 11, he was part of a play that DodgersManagerTommy Lasorda called one of the "craziest" moments he'd ever seen, when three runs scored on awild pitch.[18]
On August 19, 1983, the Dodgers traded Stewart with aplayer to be named later (Ricky Wright) to the Rangers forRick Honeycutt. The trade was controversial at the time, with many feeling that Rangers GMJoe Klein had gotten too little in exchange for his team's best pitcher.[19] The Rangers placed Stewart in the starting rotation. He made eight starts down the stretch, going 5–2 with a 2.14 ERA.[16] In 1984, however, Stewart struggled, producing a 7–14 record and a 4.73 ERA in 27 starts before losing his rotation spot.[16][17]Tom House joined the organization in January 1985 as the team's newpitching coach. He decided that Stewart needed a new pitch and started teaching him asplit-fingered fastball.[17]
In 1985, the Rangers used Stewart as a relief pitcher, but his performances out of the bullpen were poor. On May 22 he gave up a three-run homer toJorge Orta of theKansas City Royals, giving up the lead. The home fans booed him off the field; after the game, Stewart called the fans "idiots" and challenged them to come on to the field and do his job for him.[17] The team's new general manager,Tom Grieve, fined Stewart $500 for his remarks, but that wasn't enough for Rangers ownerEddie Chiles, who demanded that Grieve trade Stewart.[17] After finding a weak market for him, the Rangers finally managed to trade Stewart to thePhiladelphia Phillies on September 13, 1985, for pitcherRick Surhoff.[17] In 42 games for the Rangers in 1985, Stewart was 0–6 with a 5.42 ERA.[16]
In the off-season, he negotiated with theYomiuri Giants ofNippon Professional Baseball,[20] but they did not agree to terms on a contract so he re-signed with the Phillies.[21]
Stewart appeared in 12 games for the team over parts of the 1985 and 1986 seasons, recording a 6.00 ERA.[16] There were rumors that Stewart had been pitching injured, but the Phillies still released him on May 9, 1986.[17] Stewart later said that the Phillies lied to him, and that they had said if he kept his nose clean he would get somewhere, but instead he was released.[22]
Stewart had a try-out with theBaltimore Orioles, but they told him they didn't even have a spot for him in Double-A.[22] He wound up signing a free agent contract with theOakland Athletics on May 23, 1986.[22] After one game with The Triple-ATacoma Tigers,[4] Stewart joined the A's roster. In a game on July 1, he punchedPat Corrales, themanager of theCleveland Indians, during a game, which initiated a bench-clearing brawl.[23] He was suspended four games and fined for his actions.[24] Also in 1986, Stewart developed aforkball to supplement hisfastball andslider.[25] He pitched in 29 games for the Athletics in 1986, with 17 starts. He was 9–5 with a 3.74 ERA.[16]
Stewart signed a two-year $500,000 contract with the Athletics prior to the 1987 season.[26] He won 20 games in 1987, while posting a 3.68 ERA andstriking out 205 batters.[16] He credited pitching coachDave Duncan with helping improve his pitches.[26] In 1988, he won his first eight games[27] and claimed theMajor League Baseball Pitcher of the Month Award.[28] He went 21–12 with a 3.23 ERA, while leading theAmerican League (AL) with 14 complete games and275+2⁄3innings pitched.[16] No MLB pitcher has thrown more innings since Stewart in 1988.[29] Stewart started two games in the A's four-game sweep of theBoston Red Sox in the1988 American League Championship Series.[30] After the series, his managerTony La Russa said he had "never met a player or person of higher quality."[31] Stewart was the starting pitcher in game one of the1988 World Series against the Dodgers. Prior to the game, he told Dodgers'second basemanSteve Sax that he was going to hit him in the neck during the game. He came close, drilling Sax in the left shoulder and glaring at him.[32] He allowed three runs in eight innings and was in line for the win beforeKirk Gibson'swalk-off homer offcloserDennis Eckersley gave the game to the Dodgers.[33] Working on three days rest, Stewart was not as good in game four, allowing four runs (only two earned) and leaving the game with one out in the sixth to pick up the loss.[34] The Dodgers finished off their championship with a win in Game five.[35]
In 1989, Stewart was 21–9 with a 3.32 ERA in 36 starts.[16] His manager, La Russa, was also the manager of the American League team at theAll-Star Game and picked Stewart to start for the AL team over fan favoriteNolan Ryan.[36] He allowed two runs to score in his one inning of work in the game.[37] He finished second in the voting for theAmerican League Cy Young Award toKansas City Royals pitcherBret Saberhagen.[38]
In the1989 American League Championship Series, Stewart won both of the games he pitched with a 2.81 ERA.[39] In theWorld Series, Stewart pitched a complete-game shutout in the first game against theSan Francisco Giants.[40] The series was interrupted when anearthquake struck theBay Area just prior to the start of Game 3.[41][42] When the series resumed, 10 days later, Stewart started game three for the A's, and picked up his second win of the series when he allowed three runs in seven innings.[43] The A's swept the series in four games and Stewart was selected as theMVP of the series going 2–0 with a 1.69 ERA.[44] Stewart signed a new two-year $7 million contract extension with the Athletics after the season. This was the largest contract ever in baseball at the time.[45]
In 1990, Stewart was 22–11 (his fourth straight 20-win season and tied for second-most in the majors) with a 2.56 ERA in 36 starts. He led the league in innings pitched (267), complete games (11) and shutouts (4) while being third in ERA and finishing third in the Cy Young voting.[16] On June 29, heno-hit theToronto Blue Jays, atSkyDome, the first no-hitter by an African American sinceJim Bibby in 1973.[46] That same day,Fernando Valenzuela of the Dodgers no-hit theSt. Louis Cardinals atDodger Stadium – the first time in Major League history that no-hitters had been thrown in both leagues on the same day.[47] The A's won their third straight pennant, beating theBoston Red Sox in theAmerican League Championship Series, and Stewart was named theALCS MVP going 2–0 with a 1.13 ERA.[48] Stewart got the start in Game one of the1990 World Series for the heavily favored A's against theCincinnati Reds. However,Eric Davis hit a two-run home run off him in the first inning and he only lasted four innings as the Reds pulled off the upset.[49] He pitched better in game four, allowing only one earned run while pitching a complete game, but the Reds won the game and finished off a sweep of the series.[50] Despite being the losing pitcher in games 1 and 4, Stewart had a 2.77 ERA in the 1990 World Series.
After the 1990 season, Stewart was part of a Major League All-Star team that played an eight-game series in Japan against a Japanese all-star team.[51] He went on the disabled list for the first time in his career in 1991 because of a strained rib muscle,[52] which caused him to miss three weeks of the season. When he returned he was not as dominant as he had been before.[53] His troubles were partly because of an inability to throw his forkball for strikes and as a result he was pitching with less confidence.[54] In 35 starts, Stewart finished 11–11 with a league-high 5.18 ERA in 1991 as the Athletics missed the playoffs for the first time since 1987.[16]
Stewart was bothered by elbow tendinitis for much of the 1992 season[55] but still made 31 starts (his fewest since 1986) and had a 12–10 record and 3.66 ERA.[16] The A's returned to the playoffs, but this time were seen as underdogs to theToronto Blue Jays in theAmerican League Championship Series.[55] Stewart started the opener of the series and pitched 7.2 innings while allowing only three runs in a game the A's won.[56] The A's lost the next three games and were on the verge of elimination, so he called a team meeting in order to give his teammates a pep talk.[57] He responded by pitching a complete game victory in game five, allowing only two runs.[58] It was the first complete game victory in an ALCS game sinceBruce Hurst of theBoston Red Sox pitched one in1986 against theCalifornia Angels.[59] However, the Blue Jays won the next game to take the series and eliminate the A's from the post-season.[60]
Stewart signed a two-year, $8.5 million contract with the Blue Jays on December 8, 1992. He said that he was sad to leave the A's, whom he had envisioned spending the rest of his career with, but he felt the Blue Jays treated him with more respect with their offer.[61] He said that A's general managerSandy Alderson was disrespectful of him and all he had done for Oakland and was insulted that he was accused of disloyalty when he signed with the Blue Jays.[62]
As a member of the Blue Jays rotation in 1993, Stewart made 26 starts and was 12–8 with a 4.44 ERA.[16] He suffered from a number of injuries during the season, but the Blue Jays stuck with him because of his heart and competitiveness, as well as the support he offered to other pitchers on the staff.[62] The Blue Jays made it to theALCS where Stewart started in Game 2. He allowed only one run in six innings of work to pick up the win.[63] The day before his next start, while the rest of his team was already in Chicago, he was in Toronto helping theSalvation Army deliver food to the homeless onThanksgiving Day in Canada.[64] He made it to the game on time, and pitched7+1⁄3 innings for his second win of the series, in the clinching Game 6 that sent the Blue Jays back to the World Series.[65] He was selected as ALCS MVP for the second time in his career.[66] In theWorld Series against thePhiladelphia Phillies, Stewart started Game 2 but struggled, allowing five runs in six innings to take a rare postseason loss.[67] Nevertheless, he was confident heading into his next start, in Game 6, saying he was pitching for respect as much as for another championship.[62] He allowed four runs in six innings, but that was enough as the Blue Jays, thanks to a three-run walk-off homer byJoe Carter, won the game 8–6 and with it took the series, 4 games to 2.[68]
Stewart remained with the Blue Jays for the 1994 season, making 22 starts for them with a 7–8 record and 5.87 ERA[16] before the1994–95 MLB strike wiped out the rest of the season in August (and delayed the start of the next season). He had planned to retire at the end of the season but was bothered by the lack of empathy on the part of the fans toward the players.[69] He would later say that he never felt the same passion for baseball after the strike.[70]
When the strike ended, Stewart re-signed with the Athletics on April 8, 1995. He was theiropening day starter on April 26, 1995. However, he could not recapture his prior form. Stewart was rocked for nine runs and was removed from the game with only one out in the second inning.[71] In 16 starts, he was 3–7 with a 6.89 ERA,[16] prompting manager La Russa to announce that Stewart would move to the bullpen for the first time since 1986 and be replaced in the rotation byTodd van Poppel.[72][73] Stewart chose to retire rather than become a reliever. He made the public announcement on July 24, 1995, saying it was a low point in his life and he just couldn't perform like he wanted to anymore.[72][74]
Over his career, he started 18 postseason games, compiling a stellar 2.84 ERA and 10–6 (10–4 as a starter) record. In the LCS, he was especially dominant, going 8–0.[75]
Stewart served as the assistant toSandy Alderson, the general manager of the Athletics, in 1996.[76] In 1997, he left that position to serve in a similar capacity underKevin Towers of theSan Diego Padres.[77] In 1998, he agreed to become the Padres'pitching coach, despite some worry that it would detract from his goal of becoming a GM and some personal conflict between him and team presidentLarry Lucchino.[77] He turned around a pitching staff that had been awful the year before and helped get the team into theWorld Series. Several of the Padres pitchers, includingAndy Ashby,Sterling Hitchcock andJoey Hamilton, credited Stewart directly with the improvement of the staff.[78] He maintained some of his front office duties, including running the Latin America scouting department, during the season and often remarked that he would leave for the right front office position.[79]
Stewart left San Diego after the season and interviewed for assistant GM positions with Oakland and theFlorida Marlins. He was a finalist to replaceFrank Wren in Florida, but his concern about the high crime rate inSouth Florida led him to turn down the position. His familiarity with the Blue Jays organization was the main reason he accepted the job there underGord Ash.[80] When the Blue Jays fired pitching coachRick Langford in the middle of the 2000 season, Stewart moved into the position on July 24.[81] After the 2001 season, when the Blue Jays had an opening at general manager, they passed on Stewart, hiringJ. P. Ricciardi instead. Stewart chose to resign from his dual role as pitching coach and assistant GM. He was outspoken about the fact that he felt minorities were being discriminated against in the front office and that the decision by team presidentPaul Godfrey was racist. Frustrated, he said, "I think the whole process is a waste of time."[82]
He joined theMilwaukee Brewers as their pitching coach for the 2002 season under managerDavey Lopes. After the team started 3–12, Lopes was fired and Stewart was a candidate to replace him, but it instead went to bench coachJerry Royster.[83] He resigned on July 29, 2002 to care for his mother and spend more time with family.[84] After leaving that position, he was the pitching coach for theUnited States national team at theOlympic qualifying tournament.[85]
Stewart started a sports agency called Sports Management Partners. His first big deal was negotiating a six-year, $66 million contract extension between the A's and third basemanEric Chavez. He also negotiated contracts forMatt Kemp andChad Billingsley.[86][87]
On September 25, 2014, theArizona Diamondbacks hired Stewart to become theirgeneral manager, replacing Towers. He was the fourth GM hired by the team since 2010. He reported to La Russa, his former manager in Oakland, who served as the Diamondbacks' chief baseball officer.[88] He transferred his sports agent company to former A's teammateDave Henderson and his wife,Lonnie Murray, when he took the Diamondbacks job.[89][90] On December 4, 2015, the Diamondbacks agreed to a six-year contract withfree agent pitcherZack Greinke worth a total of $206.5 million. At that time, it held the highest annual average value in MLB, exceeding $34.4 million per year, and was also the largest contract by total value in team history.[91] Stewart later said of the contract, "It could be franchise-changing for us, if everything goes well."[92] Five days later, Arizona traded forShelby Miller andGabe Speier, sendingDansby Swanson,Ender Inciarte, andAaron Blair to theAtlanta Braves.[93]
The Diamondbacks went 79–83 in 2015 and 69–93 in 2016 with Stewart as general manager. On October 3, 2016, team owners fired Stewart and managerChip Hale, who was hired around the same time as Stewart.[94]
Stewart was about to have his #34 jersey retired by the Oakland Athletics in 2020, but the ceremony was postponed until further notice, due to theCOVID-19 pandemic; the lack of plans in 2021 prompted questions from fans and even Stewart himself in April 2022 before it was announced that Stewart will have his jersey retired by the Athletics on September 11, 2022.[95][96] Stewart would break the A's tradition in that his number would be a re-retirement, as well as his not being in the Hall of Fame.
In 2021, following the Dodgers victory in the2020 World Series, Stewart said he would not be attending the 40th anniversary celebration of the Dodgers’ 1981 World Series championship because of how he believed the team mishandled theTrevor Bauer sexual assault allegations by waiting an entire week to put him onadministrative leave.[97]
On January 22, 2025, Stewart rejoined the Athletics front office, serving as special assistant to player development directorEd Sprague Jr.[98]
Stewart and his ex-wife, Vanessa, have two children, Adrian and Alyse.[1] Stewart is married to sports agent and business partnerLonnie Murray.[99][89] They live inPoway, California.[100]
In 1985, Stewart was arrested on suspicion oflewd conduct with aprostitute later revealed to be atrans woman.[101] After pleadingno contest to a lesser charge of soliciting a prostitute, Stewart received a fine,probation, and asuspended sentence.[102] Two days after the arrest, Stewart was honored with the Good Guys award from Dallas-Fort Worth sportswriters. Accepting the award, he admitted both his guilt and that he was ashamed.[1]
In 1994, Stewart and teammateTodd Stottlemyre stood trial for seven days inHillsborough County, Florida on charges of battery on a law enforcement officer and resisting arrest with violence. Stewart also faced charges of disorderly conduct. Stewart was accused of punching a police officer in the face at a club. The jury deliberated for 36 minutes before finding the pitchers not guilty.[103]
| Preceded by | American LeagueAll-Star Game Starting Pitcher 1989 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | No-hitter pitcher June 29, 1990 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Arizona DiamondbacksGeneral manager 2014–2016 | Succeeded by |
