| Frank Viola | |
|---|---|
 Viola with the Minnesota Twins in 1987 | |
| High Point Rockers | |
| Pitcher /Coach | |
| Born: (1960-04-19)April 19, 1960 (age 65) East Meadow, New York, U.S. | |
Batted: Left Threw: Left | |
| MLB debut | |
| June 6, 1982, for the Minnesota Twins | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| May 28, 1996, for the Toronto Blue Jays | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Win–loss record | 176–150 |
| Earned run average | 3.73 |
| Strikeouts | 1,844 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Frank John Viola Jr. (born April 19, 1960) is an American formerstarting pitcher inMajor League Baseball who played for theMinnesota Twins (1982–1989),New York Mets (1989–1991),Boston Red Sox (1992–1994),Cincinnati Reds (1995), andToronto Blue Jays (1996). A three-timeAll-Star, he was namedWorld Series MVP with the Twins in 1987 and won theAL Cy Young Award in 1988. He is the pitching coach of theHigh Point Rockers.
He batted and threw left-handed, and he was nicknamed "Sweet Music" – a nickname he picked up after a Minnesota sports writer declared that when Viola pitched, there was "Sweet Music" in theHubert H. Humphrey Metrodome. The nickname was a play on the fact that his last name is also a name of amusical instrument, although pronounced differently. A fan began displaying a banner bearing the phrase in the outfield's upper deck whenever Viola pitched. Twins fans considered the banner to be a good luck charm. The banner is now the property of the Minnesota Historical Society. It was again displayed when Viola was inducted into the Twins Hall of Fame. He was honored as a member of the Twins' "All Dome" team in 2009.
Viola was born and grew up inEast Meadow, New York, with his brother John and sister Nancy, and he went on to attend and play baseball forEast Meadow High School before playing at the collegiate level forSt. John's University. On May 21, 1981, Viola faced future Mets teammateRon Darling, then playing forYale University. The game, often considered to be the best in college baseball history, saw Darling pitch 11 innings of no-hit ball before surrendering his only hit, a leadoff single in the 12th, leading to the game's only run. Viola himself threw 11 innings of shutout ball.[1][2] Viola was drafted following his senior year in the 16th round of the1979 Major League Baseball draft by theKansas City Royals,[3] but he did not sign.
Viola signed with theMinnesota Twins after the team drafted him in the second round of the1981 Major League Baseball draft. After spending less than a full season in the minor leagues, Viola made his major league debut on June 6, 1982. Although hisstatistics were fairly disappointing—he finished 11–25 with a 5.37 ERA in the1982 and1983 seasons—Viola became a permanent fixture of the Twins' starting staff for the next 7 seasons, picking up 112 of his 176 career wins.
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Viola helped pitch the Twins to their second World Series appearance and first World Series win in 1987; he finished the season with a 17–10 record, a 2.90 ERA, and 197 strikeouts in251+2⁄3 innings. Viola would then sparkle in the post-season, going a combined 3–1 with 25 strikeouts in31+1⁄3 innings despite a 4.31 ERA. Following the Twins' Game 7 series–clinching win—a game which Viola won 4–2—he was named the1987 World SeriesMost Valuable Player.
Most baseball enthusiasts agree that Viola's best year was1988, his last full year with the Twins. That year, he threw his signaturecircle change with skill, compiling an impressive 24–7 record with 7 complete games and 2 shutouts in 255 innings pitched with a career-low ERA of 2.64. He also gave up only 20 home runs and 54walks. Viola led the league in wins and would go on to win theAL Cy Young Award in a landslide, finishing with 27 of the 28 first-place votes and beating out second-placeDennis Eckersley by 86 total votes.
At thetrade deadline in July1989—two years after Viola had led the Twins to a World Series title—the Twins traded him to theNew York Mets for four pitchers and a player to be named later. Viola was not having a strong year and was 8–12 when he was traded, but he managed a 5–5 record with the Mets and finished the year at 13–17. Meanwhile, two of the pitchers the Twins acquired in the deal went on to become key members of the team:Kevin Tapani was one of the front-line starters for the Twins in their1991 World Series run, whileRick Aguilera eventually became the team's closer and one of the best relievers in the major leagues.
Viola had a much better year in 1990, winning 20 games for the second time in his career. He would finish third in the Cy Young Award voting behind Pittsburgh'sDoug Drabek and Los Angeles'Ramón Martínez, and he was named to the National League's All-Star Team.
In1991, Viola made theAll-Star Game for a third time after posting an 11–5 record in the first half of the season. However, as the Mets collapsed in the second half of the year to finish with a 78–84 record, Viola collapsed with them and went 2–10 in his final 12 decisions. His last win came in his second-to-last start with the Mets on September 29 at Shea Stadium against thePhiladelphia Phillies. He became a free agent after the 1991 season when the Mets opted not to resign Viola.
He signed with theRed Sox in January1992. In a spring training game on April 2,1993, Viola andCory Bailey combined on a no-hitter as the Red Sox defeated the Phillies 10–0 atJack Russell Memorial Stadium inClearwater, Florida.[4] He was injured while with the Red Sox and underwentTommy John surgery. He finished his career with theReds andBlue Jays, ending his career on May 28, 1996. He finished his career with 1844strikeouts.
He only got one chance in thepostseason, and he certainly made the most of it when his Twins faced theSt. Louis Cardinals in theWorld Series. After getting past theDetroit Tigers in the1987 American League Championship Series, Viola and the Twins had to face the favored Cardinals. Viola pitched Game 1 and led the Twins to a 10–1 rout of the Cards. Viola's second start came in Game 4, and the Twins went on to lose 7–2. After the Twins tied the series in Game 6 with an 11–5 win thanks to aKent Hrbek grand slam, it was up to Viola in Game 7. He pitched a gem, shutting the Cardinals out after giving up two runs in the second inning.Jeff Reardon pitched the ninth inning, and the Twins won 4–2 on the way to a 4–3 series win. Viola was named World Series MVP.
In retirement, Viola coached baseball forLake Highland Preparatory School for a time inOrlando, Florida. He also coached with the Florida College Summer League's Leesburg Lightning. In 2009, Viola assisted theCleveland Indians as a coach in spring training. Frank was also a part-time, substitute game broadcast announcer forNESN, network of the Boston Red Sox. On January 26, 2011, Viola was hired as pitching coach of theBrooklyn Cyclones, the Mets' Single-A (Short Season) team.[5] Viola spent 2012–2013 as the Single-A AffiliateSavannah Sand Gnats pitching coach, winning Coach of the Year in 2013. Following the season, Viola was named the pitching coach for theLas Vegas 51s (now the Las Vegas Aviators), the Mets' Triple-A affiliate in thePacific Coast League.[6] During a 2014 spring training physical, Viola was diagnosed with a heart condition that required open-heart surgery on April 2.[7] After surgery he signed with the 51s.[8][9]He continued as the pitching coach for the 51s through the 2017 season.[10] For the 2018 season, Frank served as the pitching coach for the Mets Double-ABinghamton Rumble Ponies.[11][12] He joined theHigh Point Rockers of theAtlantic League of Professional Baseball as the pitching coach in 2019,[13] a position he continues to hold in 2024. At that time, he was living inMooresville, North Carolina.[2]
DaughterBrittany was adiver at theUniversity of Miami, becoming the 2008 and 2011 platform diving NCAA National Champion. Brittany narrowly missed making the 2004United States Olympic diving team, but later competed at the2012 London Olympics.[14]
Brittany made Viola a grandfather in August 2014.[6] Daughter Kaley played volleyball atWinthrop University and is now an assistant coach atDavidson College.[15][16]
SonFrank III attendedFlorida College and was drafted by theChicago White Sox in the 29th round of the2004 MLB draft. Frank III struggled with injuries (including needingTommy John surgery) and only pitched in 24 games at rookie levelBristol White Sox before being released following the 2007 season.[17] In 2010, he pitched for the independent leagueSt. Paul Saints and was 1–2 with a 4.58 ERA in 21 games before retiring from professional baseball.[18] He now serves as analyst for Bright House Sports Network on their studio show and for their Florida State League broadcasts. Starting in 2012, Frank III has worked withR. A. Dickey and Hall of Fame pitcherPhil Niekro on developing aknuckleball to resurrect his baseball career.[17] In December 2012, he appeared as himself on theHow I Met Your Mother episode "The Final Page", where he is on the phone with Marshall, one of the main characters.[19] On March 5, 2014, he was signed by theToronto Blue Jays to a minor league contract and currently pitches for theDunedin Blue Jays in the Advanced Single AFlorida State League.[20]
 | This article needs to beupdated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(February 2019) |
One of the fansCurry was able to spend a few moments with was former Cy Young Award winner Frank Viola, whose daughter, Kaley, is an assistant volleyball coach at Davidson.
· Baseball Almanac