| Doug Drabek | |
|---|---|
 Doug Drabek (right) with his son,Kyle, in 2012 | |
| Pitcher | |
| Born: (1962-07-25)July 25, 1962 (age 62) Victoria, Texas, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| May 30, 1986, for the New York Yankees | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 25, 1998, for the Baltimore Orioles | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Win–loss record | 155–134 |
| Earned run average | 3.73 |
| Strikeouts | 1,594 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Douglas Dean Drabek (born July 25, 1962) is a retired American professionalbaseballpitcher, and a current minor league baseballcoach. He is the pitching coach for theReno Aces, theTriple-A affiliate of theArizona Diamondbacks ofMajor League Baseball (MLB).[1] He played in MLB for theNew York Yankees,Pittsburgh Pirates,Houston Astros,Chicago White Sox andBaltimore Orioles between 1986 and 1998. Drabek batted and threw right-handed. Known for his fluid pitching motion and sound mechanics, he won theNational LeagueCy Young Award in 1990.[2] Drabek was anMLB All-Star in 1994.
Drabek was born inVictoria, Texas.[3] He attendedSt. Joseph High School in Victoria, where he played football[4] and baseball. Drabek was drafted by theCleveland Indians in the 4th round of the June1980 MLB Draft, but did not sign. He attended theUniversity of Houston and played three seasons for theCougars baseball team.[2] Following his junior year, Drabek was drafted by theChicago White Sox in the 11th round of the June1983 MLB Draft and signed on June 11.[5]
After signing with the White Sox, Drabek was assigned to theNiagara Falls Sox in the short-season New York-Penn League where he finished 6–7 with a 3.67earned run average (ERA) in 16 games with 103 strikeouts in103+2⁄3 innings. After pitching one game for the Class AAppleton Foxes, Drabek was promoted to the AAGlens Falls White Sox and was 12–5 with a 2.24 ERA. On August 13, he was traded to theNew York Yankees along withKevin Hickey to complete an earlier deal made on July 18 forRoy Smalley.[6] Drabek then spent the rest of the 1984 season at AANashville. In 1985, Drabek returned to AA and spent the entire season atAlbany-Colonie in theEastern League and finished with a 13–7 record with a 2.99 ERA with 153 strikeouts in192+2⁄3 innings. After starting the 1986 season at AAAColumbus, Drabek made his Major League debut on May 30, coming in relief for starterJoe Niekro in a 6–3 loss to theOakland Athletics.[7] He would spend the rest of the season with the Yankees, appearing in 27 games (21 starts) and go 7–8 with a 4.10 ERA.
Following the 1986 season, the Yankees traded Drabek withLogan Easley andBrian Fisher to thePittsburgh Pirates forRick Rhoden,Cecilio Guante andPat Clements.[8] Drabek enjoyed his best years with Pittsburgh, from 1987 to 1992, during which time he regularly pitched over 230 innings and consistently finished in the top 10 in the National League ERA race[citation needed]. He went 22–6 with a 2.76 ERA in 1990 en route to winning the National LeagueCy Young Award[9] and leading the Pirates to the postseason (where they lost in theNLCS to theCincinnati Reds). His 22 wins that year were a league high; it was also 7 more wins than his previous single-season mark. On August 3, 1990, while with the Pirates, Drabek had ano-hitter broken up by aSil Campusano single with two out in the ninth. The hit was the only one Drabek would allow in defeating thePhiladelphia Phillies 11–0.[10]
Drabek signed as a free agent after the 1992 season with theHouston Astros. Despite a solid 3.79 ERA and playing for a rising team, he posted a 9–18 record and led the National League in losses. He improved in thestrike-shortened 1994 season to 12–6 with a 2.84 ERA, and was named an All-Star for the first and only time in his career.
When play resumed after the players' strike in 1995, however, he was unable to maintain his success and retired after the 1998 season, having compiled a 35–40 record over his final four seasons.
After retiring, Drabek coached his son's Little League and select league teams, often teaching them how to hit faster pitches with their personal pitching machine, giving them an advantage over other little league teams.[11] Drabek returned to professional baseball in 2010, accepting a position in theArizona Diamondbacks system as the pitching coach for theYakima Bears in the short-season Class ANorthwest League. On December 31, 2010, the D-backs announced that Drabek was promoted to the pitching coach for theVisalia Rawhide in the Class ACalifornia League.[12]
Drabek is married to wife Kristy and has three children; sons Justin (born 1986) andKyle (born 1987) and daughter Kelsey (born 1991). Justin spent time playing in independent ball.[11] Kyle was a starting pitcher who played for theArizona Diamondbacks,Chicago White Sox andToronto Blue Jays.
In February 2018, Drabek was named as thepitching coach for the AAJackson Generals. He served as the pitching coach for theAmarillo Sod Poodles in 2019.[13]
Drabek was named pitching coach of theReno Aces for the 2024 season.[14]