Anyone whose time in the major leagues exceeds for than a season
or two should consider themselves very lucky given the number of people who
fail to even get a call up. For those who do make it but their time ends up
being relatively short, packing in as many memorable experiences is exceedingly
important. Former Boston Red Sox pitcher Pete Smith
may have only had a brief cup of coffee as a big leaguer but created memories
that could be envied by even the most grizzled veterans.
Born in Natick, Massachusetts, Smith must have been over the
moon to sign in 1961 with his home team, the Red Sox, following his career at
Colgate University. The right-hander progressed through the minor leagues
quickly, earning a spot with Boston in September, 1962. In his lone
appearance that year, he didn’t last past the fourth inning against the
Detroit Tigers; yielding eight runs and three home runs in a resounding loss.
Smith won 12 games in the minors in 1963 and earned another
promotion to the Hub late in the year. Making a total of six appearances (one
start), he posted an 0-1 record and 3.60 ERA across 15 innings.
He had no way of knowing it at the time but his final outing
was the last time he would toe a big league rubber. Incredibly, the last time
he officially touched a ball as a fielder during a major league game produced
an incredibly rare feat. On September 28th, pitching in relief of an
eventual
4-3 victory against the Los Angeles Angels, he came on in the seventh
inning to protect a slim 3-2 lead. He promptly allowed a double to Charlie Dees
and a walk to Lee Thomas.
Looking down the barrel of possibly coughing up the lead, Smith instead grabbed
a ball bunted off the bat of the next hitter, Felix Torres,
and turned it into a triple play. The Sox went on to win the game and the
hurler had his moment of a lifetime.
"I purposely misplayed a bunt attempt by the Angels’
Felix Torres with runners on first and second,” explained
Smith years later.
"Instead of catching the bunt [on a fly] I let it drop
to the playing field, quickly fielded it and turned it into a triple play —
bang-bang-bang."
Smith missed the entirety of 1964 and pitched in just two
minor league games in 1965 because of injury. Unfortunately, he was not able to
go forward any further and ended his playing career. Although his big league
career consisted of a less than modest 6.75 ERA across seven appearances, he
left with memories and stories worthy of a player with much more experience.
Pete Smith Interview:
What was the
strangest baseball play you ever saw?: When Felix Torres of the Los Angeles
Angels stood at home plate as he was trying to sacrifice runners on first and
second. His pop-up bunt was turned into a 1-6-5-4 triple play.
Who was your favorite
coach or manager?: I had two favorites; Johnny Pesky
and Mel
Parnell.
Who was your toughest
out?: My toughest out was Jose
Cardenal. He probably hit .800 off me and I was probably the reason he got
to the big leagues.
If you could do anything
about your career differently, what would that be?: I wouldn’t have thrown
curve balls so soon in January of 1964. I threw my arm out then.
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You can check me out on Facebook or follow me on Twitter @historianandrew
I was at that game, and saw that triple play live. All these years, I'v been remembering it as the last game of 1966, not '63, and telling people I saw the final games of both '66 and '67 -- outhouse to penthouse. Turns out end of '66 was on the road. My bad, but what a nice memory to clarify
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