| Orel Hershiser | |
|---|---|
.JPG) Hershiser in 2014 | |
| Pitcher | |
| Born: (1958-09-16)September 16, 1958 (age 67) Buffalo, New York, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| September 1, 1983, for the Los Angeles Dodgers | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| June 26, 2000, for the Los Angeles Dodgers | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Win–loss record | 204–150 |
| Earned run average | 3.48 |
| Strikeouts | 2,014 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Orel Leonard Hershiser IV (born September 16, 1958) is an American formerbaseballpitcher who played 18 seasons inMajor League Baseball (MLB) from 1983 to 2000. He later became a pitchingcoach for theTexas Rangers from 2002 to 2005 and a broadcastcolor analyst for the Dodgers. He is also a professionalpoker player.
After playing baseball in high school atCherry Hill High School East and atBowling Green State University, Hershiser was drafted by theLos Angeles Dodgers in1979. After several years in the minor leagues, he made his major league debut with the Dodgers in 1983. During his tenure with the team, Hershiser was a three-timeAll-Star, finishing in the top five in Cy Young voting four times in his first six full seasons. Hershiser's most successful season came in 1988, when he set a major league record bypitching 59 consecutive innings without allowing a run. He helped lead the Dodgers to a championship in the1988 World Series, and was named theNational League (NL) Championship Series Most Valuable Player (MVP) and theWorld Series MVP. That season, he won the NLCy Young Award and an NLGold Glove Award. He later pitched in two more World Series and earned the American League Championship Series MVP Award. After 12 seasons with the Dodgers, Hershiser spent time with theCleveland Indians,San Francisco Giants, andNew York Mets before returning to Los Angeles for his final season. After retirement as a player, he briefly worked as a coach and team executive for theTexas Rangers before serving as a color analyst forESPN and then the Dodgers.
Known for his slight frame and fierce competitive spirit, Hershiser was nicknamed "Bulldog" by former Dodgers managerTommy Lasorda, who managed Hershiser during his time with the Dodgers.
Hershiser was born inBuffalo, New York, to Orel Leonard III and Mildred Hershiser. The family moved toDetroit, Michigan, when he was six and toToronto, Ontario, when he was 12.[1] At age eight, Hershiser was the third-place finisher in a national hit, run, and throw competition.[2] Hershiser played inLittle League Baseball until he was 12. His father was a coach and league administrator and his mother ran the snackbar.[3] During his family's time in Canada, he participated inice hockey with the Don Mills Flyers in theGreater Toronto Hockey League.[4]
His family moved again and he attendedCherry Hill High School East inCherry Hill, New Jersey. He did not make thevarsity team until hisjunior year as he spent his first year on thefreshman team and his second year on thejunior varsity.[5] He set the single-gamestrikeout record for his high school in 1976 when he retired 15 batters in a game againstDeptford, a record that stood for 21 years. He also remains on the school's leaderboards in careerwinning percentage, strikeouts andearned run average (ERA).[6] He was an all-conference selection hissenior year.[7]
Hershiser received only a partial scholarship fromBowling Green State University. As a freshman he played little baseball and was academically ineligible as a sophomore. He left school and hitchhiked home, where his parents convinced him to return to school.[8] He enrolled in summer school to bring his grades up and worked at his father's paper company during the summer. He grew and gained 15 pounds (6.8 kg) that summer, which added 5 miles per hour (8.0 km/h) to hisfastball and got him more playing time.[1] He made the all-Mid-American Conference All-Star team his junior year, during which he pitched ano-hitter againstKent State on May 4, 1979.[9] He won that game 2–0 despite only striking out two batters.[10] In his only full-time season with the baseball team, in 1979, he was 6–2 with a 2.26 ERA.[11]
Hershiser was also a member of theSigma Phi Epsilon fraternity.[4] One of his fraternity brothers played a joke on him on draft day, pretending to be a scout from theSan Diego Padres calling to tell him he was drafted in the first round. After getting excited and starting to call his friends, he realized it was a hoax.[12]
TheLos Angeles Dodgers selected Hershiser in the 17th round of the1979 Major League Baseball draft. The original scouting report on him for the draft said that he had poor control, a weakfastball, and threw thecurveball incorrectly. It went on to state that he rattled easily and had questionable makeup.[13]
The Dodgers assigned him to theirClass Afarm team in theMidwest League, theClinton Dodgers. Hestarted four games for Clinton in 1979, and appeared in 11 more out of thebullpen to finish with a 4–0record with a 2.09 ERA.[14]
Hershiser spent the next two seasons inAA with theSan Antonio Dodgers of theTexas League. He worked primarily as areliever at San Antonio. He was leading the league insaves at one point but then gave up 20runs in seveninnings on a road trip. He called this point the lowest of his career. He wanted to quit but themanager andpitching coach talked him out of it.[4]
Hershiser was promoted to theTriple-AAlbuquerque Dukes of thePacific Coast League in 1982. He was 9–6 with a 3.71 ERA in 47 games, with seven starts.[15] He was almost included in a trade with theTexas Rangers that season, butcatcherJim Sundberg wanted his contract re-written before agreeing to the deal and the Dodgers backed out of the transaction.[4]
Hershiser won the Mulvey Award as the Dodgers toprookie inspring training in 1983 and expected to make the club but was sent back to Albuquerque where he was briefly reunited with pitching coach Rocky Giordani.[4] He was 10–8 with a 4.09 ERA for the Dukes in 1983 in 49 games, with 10 starts and 16 saves.[16]
The Dodgers promoted Hershiser to the major leagues for the first time on September 1, 1983. He made his debut the same day, against theMontreal Expos. He came into the game in the seventh inning and retired all three batters he faced on two ground outs and a strikeout (ofTim Wallach). However, in his second inning of work he allowed a double and a single for a run and was promptly taken out of the game.[17] In eight appearances that month, he had an ERA of 3.38.[18]
Hershiser playedwinter ball in the Dominican Republic after the season and worked with pitching coachDave Wallace on his delivery. He was almost arrested when some fireworks his friends were setting off for a New Year's party hit a Dominican General's house, but Dodger coachManny Mota intervened on his behalf.[4]
Hershiser made the DodgersOpening Day roster for the1984 season as the last man in the bullpen and was mostly used as a long reliever early on. His first win was in a 12-inning game against theSt. Louis Cardinals on April 5.[19] After getting pounded in one game, he received such a loud, verbal lashing from Dodger managerTommy Lasorda that his teammates took to calling it the "sermon on the mound".[1] Lasorda told Hershiser that he was too timid on the mound, giving hitters too much respect. He gave him the nickname "Bulldog" so that he would have a tougher attitude in games.[20]
Hershiser made his first start on May 26 against theNew York Mets because of an injury toJerry Reuss. He pitched six innings and allowed only one run.[1] He became a full-fledged starter in the Dodger rotation in July and responded by pitching four complete gameshutouts that month, which was good enough to tie for the most in the Majors that season (withJoaquín Andújar and teammateAlejandro Peña). He finished the season with a record of 11–8 and a 2.66 ERA in 45 games (20 starts).[21]
In the1985 season he led theNational League (NL) in winning percentage, compiling a 19–3 record with a 2.03 ERA. The Dodgers won theNL West, and Hershiser finished third inCy Young Award voting. He also saw his first postseason action, pitching in two games in the1985 National League Championship Series.[18] In the1986 season, Hershiser went 14–14 with a 3.85 ERA. The nextseason he was selected to his firstAll-Star Game while compiling a 16–16 record with a 3.06 ERA.[18]
Hershiser started to feel sick playing golf a week before pitchers and catchers reported, and it was discovered he needed an emergency appendectomy. The Dodgers planned to hold him back in spring training, but instead let him go through it normally after he was fine during workouts on day one.
Hershiser in 1988 led the league inwins (23), innings (267), shutouts (8) and complete games (15). He was third in ERA at 2.26.[18] He finished the season with arecord 59 consecutive scoreless innings pitched, breaking the mark of58+2⁄3 innings, held by former DodgerDon Drysdale. The streak began on August 30, when he pitched four scoreless innings to conclude a game and the record was broken when he pitched 10 shutout innings, on 116 pitches, in the final game of the season.[22][23][24] He was selected to hissecond all-star game and was a unanimous selection for theNational League Cy Young Award.[25] He also won theGold Glove Award for the best fielding pitcher in the National League.[18]
In the1988 National League Championship Series between Hershiser's Dodgers and theNew York Mets, Hershiser not only started Games 1 and 3, but recorded the final out in Game 4 in relief for asave. He then pitched a complete-gameshutout in Game 7 and was selected as theNLCS MVP.[26] He then pitched a shutout in Game 2 of theWorld Series (a game which he also had three hits himself) and allowed only two runs in a complete game in the clinching victory in Game 5, winning theWorld Series MVP Award.[27]
Hershiser is the only player to receive the Cy Young Award, the Championship Series MVP Award, and the World Series MVP Award in the same season.[28] He later received bothThe Sporting News Pitcher of the Year[18] andSports Illustrated magazine'sSportsman of the Year award[4] for his accomplishments in 1988.
Hershiser signed a new $7.9 million three-year contract with the Dodgers prior to the 1989 season that was the richest three-year contract ever signed to that point.[29]
That season, he made histhird straight All-Star team and he had another good year with an ERA of 2.31 in 35 games.[18] However, the Dodgers weren't as good and he suffered from a lack of offensive support. He went 0–7 over one nine-game stretch because the team only scored nine runs total in that period.[30] He had a 15–15 record that season but only evened it out because he pitched 11 innings in the last game of the season and threw 169 pitches.[31] He was determined to stay in until his team took the lead, no matter what the manager wanted.[32]
After just four starts in 1990, it was discovered that Hershiser had a tornlabrum in the shoulder of his pitching arm. Dr.Frank Jobe performed shoulder reconstruction surgery on Hershiser on April 27, 1990,[33] the first time the procedure had been performed on a major league player. He did not rejoin the Dodgers until May 29, 1991, a return that he called "a miracle."[34] Two games later, he picked up his 100th career win against theChicago Cubs on June 9, 1991.[35] In 21 starts, he was 7–2 with a 3.46 ERA.[18] He won his last six decisions and was selected as the UPI Comeback Player of the Year.[36]
There were still questions about his recovery heading into 1992,[37] but he managed to pitch 33 games in both 1992 and 1993. His numbers were not what they were before the surgery, but he was still effective. He was 10–15 with a 3.67 ERA in 1992 and 12–14 with a 3.59 ERA in 1993.[18] Notably in 1993, Hershiser hit .356 in 83 plate appearances, earning a Silver Slugger Award.[18]
In his final start of 1994, on August 7, Hershiser took a no-hit bid into the sixth inning before it was broken up.[38] The1994–95 Major League Baseball strike ended the season on August 11.[39] Hershiser was involved in the negotiations as part of theMajor League Baseball Players Association[40] but the strike signaled the end of his time with the Dodgers and he became a free agent.[18]
Hershiser signed a three-year contract with theCleveland Indians on April 8, 1995.[18][41] Indians General ManagerJohn Hart said that the team was looking for a veteran with "character and competitiveness" to show the young players how to play the right way.[42] He went 16–6 with a 3.87 ERA in 26 starts for the Indians in 1995[18] to lead the young team to their first post-season appearance in 41 years.[41]
Hershiser won the two games he pitched in the1995 American League Championship Series (ALCS) against theSeattle Mariners and was selected as theALCS MVP,[43] the first player to have won the LCS MVP Award in both leagues. He also pitched effectively in the1995 World Series against theAtlanta Braves, though the Indians would lose the series in six games.[44][45]
He pitched two more seasons for the Indians, and was 14–6 for the 1997 team, including pitching seven shutout innings in Game 3 of the1997 ALCS. After the game, Orioles managerDavey Johnson accused him of putting water on the back of his neck in order to modify the ball to sink. When asked about it, teammateChad Ogea stated, "I've been around Orel three years. He cheats. But everyone else does, too. He showed me how to cheat. But he said I couldn't use it until I was about 35. So if I stay around that long, I get the privilege to cheat."[41][46][47] In his final World Series appearance in1997 he gave up 13 runs in 10 innings and lost 2 games to theFlorida Marlins.[48]
Though he pitched for the Indians for only three seasons, Hershiser became something of a folk hero in Cleveland. One memorable image from his tenure is of Hershiser screaming "Take that!" at the Braves dugout after starting a 1–3 double play late in game five of the 1995 World Series.[49]
Hershiser signed a one-year $3.45 million contract with theSan Francisco Giants on December 7, 1997, but his age was beginning to catch up to him. He made 34 starts and was 11–10 with a 4.41 ERA in 1998.[18] The contract contained an option for 1999 but the Giants declined the option after the season. At the time they said they might come to terms on a new deal.[50] Instead he signed a minor league contract with the Indians on February 20, 1999.[51]
The Indians released him during spring training and he signed with theNew York Mets on March 25, 1999. Hershiser made 32 starts with the Mets and was 13–12 with a 4.58 ERA.[18] He served as a mentor to the young pitchers on the Mets staff and helped them make the playoffs by allowing just one run in5+1⁄3 innings in a 2–1 win over thePittsburgh Pirates in the last game of the season.[52] He pitched out of the bullpen in the playoffs as the Mets lost to the Braves in the1999 National League Championship Series.[53]
Hershiser signed a one-year contract to return to the Dodgers on December 17, 1999.[18] He started the home opener on April 14, 2000, against the Reds and allowed only one run in six strong innings.[54] He struggled after that, allowing 36 runs on 42 hits, 14 walks and 11 hit batters. His 13.14 ERA in 2000 is the worst ERA by any pitcher with 20 or more innings.[30] One day after allowing eight runs in1+2⁄3 innings on June 26, he was released by the Dodgers.[55]
Hershiser was not an overpoweringpitcher, but he developed a variety of pitches and outthought hitters.[56] Hershiser explained his pitch repertoire in 1989 as follows:
By 1999, he noted that his pitches were not as sharp, so he added aslider to the mix. He also emphasized locating his pitches in good spots: "You'll hear pitchers say, 'I had great stuff and got shelled,' but you never hear them say, 'I had great location and got shelled.'"[58]
Hershiser was also a good hitter for a pitcher. In 1993 he batted .356 (26 for 73), which is the MLB record for highest batting average for a pitcher in a season in theDH era (minimum 50 at bats).[citation needed] His career batting average was .201.
Hershiser remained with the Dodgers briefly as a player-personnel consultant. He went to AAA Albuquerque and filed one report but there wasn't much for him to do, so he left the position.[59]
He was subsequently hired to work on broadcasts of theLittle League World Series forABC andESPN in 2000–2001.[60] He also worked onWednesday Night Baseball for ESPN during the 2001 season.[61]
Hershiser left that position to join theTexas Rangers as a special assistant to General ManagerJohn Hart in fall of 2001 and was named as the Rangerspitching coach on June 22, 2002.[62] In October 2005 Hershiser was mentioned as a candidate to replaceJim Tracy as manager of the Dodgers, but the position went toGrady Little.[63] He was also mentioned as a possible replacement forKen Macha of theOakland Athletics; however, he was ultimately passed over forBob Geren.[64] He left his position of Rangers pitching coach after the 2005 season to become an executive director of the Rangers, reporting to Club President Jeff Cogen.[65] He did not last long in that position as he quit on February 3, 2006.[66]
On February 13, 2006, Hershiser rejoined ESPN as an analyst forBaseball Tonight,Sunday Night Baseball, and theLittle League World Series.[67]
Through a group that included fellow former DodgerSteve Garvey, Hershiser became involved in the bidding process for the Dodgers when theteam was up for sale in 2011–12.[68] His group did not make it past the first round of the bidding.[69]
In 2014, Hershiser left ESPN and rejoined the Dodgers as a television analyst for their new regional sports networkSportsNet LA.[70] At the time, he teamed withCharley Steiner andNomar Garciaparra to call Dodger road games not played in California whenVin Scully reduced his travel. Since 2017, he has worked withJoe Davis as the primary broadcast team for Dodger baseball following Scully's retirement at the end of the 2016 season.
Hershiser started playing poker competitively in 2006. After retirement from baseball, he moved toSummerlin, Nevada, and befriended a poker instructor. He became a regular atRed Rock's poker room in Summerlin, playing $2–$5No Limit Hold'em.[71]
Hershiser signed with Poker Royalty to represent his poker career.[72] He was invited to participate in the 2008NBC National Heads-Up Poker Championship. Playing under thePokerStars banner, Hershiser stunned the poker world by making the quarterfinals, defeating 2006 event championTed Forrest,Allen Cunningham, andFreddy Deeb[73]—players who had won a total of 12World Series of Poker bracelets heading into the event.Andy Bloch defeated him in the quarterfinals.[74]
Hershiser has played in a number of events, including the2008 World Series of Poker and the 2009PokerStars Caribbean Adventure. Hershiser won $54,570 on September 7, 2008, by taking ninth place in the $10,000 PokerStarsWorld Championship of Online Poker Event 5.[75] Hershiser also has made a tradition of giving an autographed baseball to the poker player who eliminates him.[76]
Hershiser is descended from aHessian soldier who came to North America to fight in theAmerican Revolutionary War. There have been people namedOrel in his family "for longer than anyone can remember" and he was teased for the name as a child. He did not know until he was informed byMartina Navratilova during the filming of a commercial that it meanteagle in Czech.[77]
Hershiser and his first wife, Jamie Byars, divorced in 2005.[78] They have two sons, Orel Leonard V (known as Quinton) and Jordan.[78] In 2010, Hershiser married his second wife, Dana Deaver.[79] Jordan graduated fromSt. Mark's School of Texas in 2007, where he earned all-conference honors in baseball and basketball, and played college baseball at theUniversity of Southern California as a pitcher and first baseman. Despite his college career being hampered by injuries, Jordan was drafted by the Dodgers in the 34th round of the2012 MLB draft.[80][81] Hershiser and Deaver live in Las Vegas with Deaver's two children.[82]
Hershiser is an activeChristian.[83][84] He was a guest star on the 1992 episode of the Christian children's video seriesMcGee and Me! "Take Me Out of the Ball Game".[85] On an appearance onThe Tonight Show after the 1988 World Series,Johnny Carson talked him into singing hymns for the audience.[86]
| Awards and achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Los Angeles DodgersOpening Day Starting pitcher 1987 1990 1993–1994 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
