| Dave Duncan | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Catcher | |
| Born: (1945-09-26)September 26, 1945 (age 79) Dallas, Texas, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| May 6, 1964, for the Kansas City Athletics | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| October 1, 1976, for the Baltimore Orioles | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .214 |
| Home runs | 109 |
| Runs batted in | 341 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
As player
As coach | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
David Edwin Duncan (born September 26, 1945) is an American former professionalbaseballcatcher and pitchingcoach who is currently apitching consultant for theChicago White Sox ofMajor League Baseball (MLB). He began his MLB playing career in 1964 and played again consecutively from 1967 to 1976 for theKansas City/Oakland Athletics,Cleveland Indians, andBaltimore Orioles.[1]
After retiring as a player, Duncan served as the pitching coach for the Indians,Seattle Mariners,Chicago White Sox, Athletics, andSt. Louis Cardinals. Four pitchers he coached won theCy Young Award in1983,1990,1992, and2005. He was also a member of fourWorld Serieschampion teams in 1972, 1989, 2006, and 2011. Each year from 1983 to 2011, Duncan worked with formermanagerTony La Russa on the White Sox, Athletics, and Cardinals. Following the 2013 season, he became a pitching consultant for the Diamondbacks.
Duncan was signed as an amateurfree agent by theKansas City Athletics in1963, as a 17-year-old out ofCrawford High School inSan Diego.[2] In his first at-bat as a professionalbaseball player, he hit ahome run for theDaytona Beach Islanders of theFlorida State League.[3] Duncan made his major league debut on May 6,1964 at the age of 18, becoming the youngest player in theAmerican League at the time.[4] He was kept in the majors to protect him from being drafted by another team under baseball rules.[5]
Duncan returned to theminor leagues for the next two seasons, first with theLewiston Broncs in the Single-ANorthwest League inLewiston, Idaho. Midway through the 1965 season,Rick Monday joined the team. A 19-year-old sophomore center fielder withArizona State, Monday had led the Sun Devils to the1965 College World Series title on June 12 and was the first pick in thefirst major league draft four days earlier. After the season, Duncan and Monday enteredboot camp with theU.S. Marine Corps inSan Diego in September.[6][7]
The following year in 1966, Duncan led theCalifornia League with 46 home runs in 121 games for theModesto Reds, the A's affiliate.[8][9] The second pick in the1966 MLB draft was another Arizona State center fielder, 20-year-oldReggie Jackson. He played two weeks in Lewiston then joined Duncan in Modesto in early July, and kept pace with 21 homers in 56 games.
Duncan began the1967 season with theBirmingham A's but, was brought back up to the major leagues in early June.[10] When his batting average dropped to a .194 in early July, he was returned to Birmingham to work on his hitting.[11][12] When his hitting showed signs of improvement, Duncan returned to the major leagues in September, along with Jackson andJoe Rudi.[13]
Athletics' teamownerCharlie Finley moved the franchise west toOakland for the1968 season, but Duncan started the season with theVancouver Mounties of theTriple-APacific Coast League.[8] He was called up to the majors in June when catcherJim Pagliaroni suffered a broken arm and went on thedisabled list.[14] Duncan went on to catch the majority of the team's games in 1968.[15] While he possessed good defensive skills, he only managed tohit for a .191batting average.[1] His batting average fell further to .126 in1969 andPhil Roof took over as the Athletic's main catcher.[16] Duncan's hitting improved in1970 to a career-high .259 batting average along with 10 home runs and 29runs batted in as, he shared catching duties withFrank Fernández andGene Tenace, who was called up to the major leagues late in the season.[17] He also missed time due to his commitment to the military reserves.[18] When Duncan made adverse comments about Finley during the season, the owner fired Athletics managerJohn McNamara in October for failing to control his players, despite the team's second-place finish in the American League Western Division.[19]
The1971 season saw Duncan become the Athletics main catcher, as he guided theirpitching staff to finish second in the league inearned run average as well as instrikeouts.[20][21] Duncan was the catcher for two 20-game winners in 1971, asVida Blue won 24 games andCatfish Hunter won 21 games.[20] His offense continued to improve, hitting 10 home runs by mid-season and, was selected as a reserve on the 1971American League All-Star team, replacingRay Fosse who missed the game due to an injury.[1][22][23] Duncan finished the season with a .253 average with 15 home runs, 40 runs batted in while leading American League catchers inrange factor.[1][24] The Athletics would win theAmerican League Western Division but, were defeated by theBaltimore Orioles in the1971 American League Championship Series.[25]
1972 would be Duncan's best season offensively as he hit 19 home runs with 59 runs batted in, although his batting average slipped to .218.[1] He committed only fiveerrors in 113games played for a career-high .993fielding percentage, second only toJohnny Oates among American League catchers.[26] With Duncancalling the pitches, the Athletics' pitching staff led the league inwinning percentage and inshutouts and, once again finished second in earned run average as, the team captured their second consecutive Western Division title.[27] Despite Duncan's production, Athletics managerDick Williams, a proponent of the platoon system, began using Gene Tenace as the starting catcher during the last month of the season.[28] The Athletics defeated theDetroit Tigers in the1972 American League Championship Series and then theCincinnati Reds in theWorld Series.[29][30]
Although Duncan joined the Athletics inspring training, he became embroiled in a contract dispute with Finley. He was traded along withGeorge Hendrick to theCleveland Indians forRay Fosse andJack Heidemann on March 24, 1973.[31] Duncan became the Indians' starting catcher in1973 however, he broke his wrist on June 28 and missed two months of the season.[32] He finished the season hitting for a .233 average with 17 home runs and 43 runs batted in while leading American League catchers in range factor.[1] He played in a career-high 136 games in the1974 season but, the heavy workload caused his batting average to fall to .200.[1] Duncan was acquired along with minor league outfielder Alvin McGrew by theBaltimore Orioles from the Indians forBoog Powell andDon Hood on February 25 1975.[33] With the Orioles, Duncan shared catching duties withElrod Hendricks during the1975 season beforeRick Dempsey took over as the Orioles starting catcher in1976.[34][35] Duncan was dealt from the Orioles to the Chicago White Sox forPat Kelly on November 18, 1976.[36] When the White Sox released him in March1977, he retired as a player at the age of 32.[1]
In an eleven-year major league career, Duncan played in 929games, accumulating 617hits in 2,885at-bats for a .214 career batting average along with 109 home runs, 341 runs batted in and anon-base percentage of .279.[1] While he was a light-hitting player, he excelled as a defensive catcher, ending his career with a .984fielding percentage.[1][37] He was respected during his playing career for his defensive skills and for his knowledge of the game of baseball.[38] In spite of his low average he hit 109home runs, one for every 26.5at-bats. During his time with the Athletics, he first met futuremanagerTony La Russa, then autilityinfielder with the club.
Duncan began his coaching career in1978 with the Cleveland Indians. After a stint as a pitching coach for theSeattle Mariners in1982, he joined former teammate La Russa, then themanager of theChicago White Sox.[39] From that time they worked in tandem as manager and pitching coach, joining Oakland in1986 and then the Cardinals in1996. Beginning in 1986, first base coachDave McKay also began a long tenure of working with Duncan and La Russa. The three men continued to work together until theCardinals won the2011 World Series. La Russa retired immediately after that World Series and Duncan retired from coaching less than three months later.[40] McKay also moved on, accepting the first base coaching role with theChicago Cubs.
Pitchers on Duncan's staffs won fourCy Young Awards:LaMarr Hoyt in1983;Bob Welch in1990;Dennis Eckersley in1992; andChris Carpenter in2005.[41]Dave Stewart, who had not found consistent success before signing with Oakland as afree agent in 1986, won 20 or more games and pitched 250 or moreinnings four straight seasons from1987 to 1990.[42] From1988 through 1990, Oakland pitchers had the lowestearned run average (ERA) in the American League, and the 2005 St. Louis staff had the lowest ERA in the majors. La Russa regularly credits Duncan as being a key factor in the success of the teams he managed for over 25 years.[41][43]
In October2010, Duncan signed a two-year contract extension, keeping him with the Cardinals through 2012 with an option for2013.[44] He took an indeterminate leave of absence from the Cardinals on January 5, 2012, to spend time with his wife, Jeanine, who was dealing with cancer.[45] Duncan's semi-retirement effectively ended his tenure with the Cardinals. During his sixteen seasons as the Cardinals' pitching coach, the pitching staff had the third-lowest overall ERA in MLB as well as the third-loweststarters' ERA.[46]
On November 13, 2013, theArizona Diamondbacks announced they had hired Duncan to be a special assistant togeneral managerKevin Towers as a pitching consultant. "With Dave, he's going to set his own schedule and it will depend on what he wants to do and what he's capable of doing", Towers commented of his role. "Duringspring training, be available to work with pitchers, catchers and pitching coaches as they're preparing for a game. Breaking down video of pitchers we might be considering for thedraft. Plus, targeting guys in our system and getting his input – who he likes, who is close."[46]
Duncan lives inKimberling City, Missouri. He resided with his wife, Jeanine, until her death on June 6, 2013, after a battle againstglioblastoma, a type of brain cancer.[47]
His younger son,Chris, was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals and made his major league debut in 2005.[48] Chris died on September 6, 2019, from glioblastoma. His older son,Shelley, was selected in the second round of the2001 draft by theNew York Yankees and debuted in the Major Leagues on July 20,2007.[49]
Duncan has two daughters from his first marriage, Tiffany Duncan and Devannie Duncan, who both reside in Orange County, California.
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Cleveland Indianspitching coach 1980–1981 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Seattle Marinerspitching coach 1982 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Chicago White Soxpitching coach 1983–1986 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Oakland Athleticspitching coach 1986–1995 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | St. Louis Cardinalspitching coach 1996–2011 | Succeeded by |