Bob Welch
From BR Bullpen
Robert Lynn Welch
- Bats Right, Throws Right
- Height 6' 3", Weight 190 lb.
- School Eastern Michigan University
- Debut June 20, 1978
- Final Game August 11, 1994
- Born November 3, 1956 in Detroit, MI USA
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[edit] Biographical Information
Bob Welch divided his 17-year big-league career between two teams: the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Oakland Athletics. The slender right-hander with the violent leg kick gained instant notoriety as a 21-year-old rookie in 1978, striking out Reggie Jackson to put the capper on Game Two of the World Series and preserving a 4-3 Dodger victory.
In fact, in Welch's rookie season, he had performed in every capacity: he started 13 games, relieved in 10, notching three saves as a result of his relief work. His second season was very much the same. In 1980, he won a job in the starting rotation and was a solid number five starter behind Jerry Reuss, Burt Hooton, Dave Goltz and Don Sutton.
Welch made key relief appearances in all three Dodger wins in the 1981 NLCS, including recording the final out and earning the save in the last. He also made a start in that year's World Series, but was yanked from the game after facing four hitters, retiring none. He authored a book about his alcohol struggles, Five O'Clock Comes Early: A Young Man's Battle With Alcoholism, released in 1982.
Despite the horrible Series outing (the Dodgers wound up winning it in six games, anyway), Welch would remain a very dependable starter for the Dodgers, winning 15 games twice and even posting a remarkable 2.31 Earned Run Average in 1985, fifth best in the National League.
On December 11, 1987, he was sent to the Oakland A's as part of a three-team (the New York Mets were also included), eight-player trade. He responded with the best season of his career, posting a 17-9 record for the 1988 American League champions. He backed it up with another 17-victory season, along with a 3.00 ERA as the Athletics won the World Series in 1989. He was slated to pitch the third game of that Series, but was skipped due the 10-day layoff forced by the Loma Prieta earthquake. In 1990, he captured the AL Cy Young Award, winning 27 games against six losses, and posting a 2.95 ERA. No pitcher has won as many games since.
Welch slipped to 12-13 in 1991, as the A's found themselves mired in a sub-par season. It was also the sixth straight season of 200 or more innings for Welch, and the toll it took began to show the following season. Welch missed significant time with injuries, and made just 20 starts in 1992. He made his final appearance on August 11, 1994, in relief. Baseball went on strike the next day. The 37-year-old Welch called it quits right after that.
In 2006, Welch was the pitching coach for the Ogden Raptors in the Dodgers' chain.
The most similar pitcher to Welch is his Dodger teammate Orel Hershiser, based on similarity scores. The two were on opposing sides in the 1988 World Series but did not match up against each other. In their first year of eligibility for the Hall of Fame, Hershiser got 11% of the vote, while Welch got less than 1%.
[edit] Miscellaneous
Welch holds the obscure all-time record for "most career games won, saved by the same closer". Dennis Eckersley saved 57 wins for him. Second are Andy Pettitte and Mariano Rivera with 45 before 2007, and third Dave Stewart and Eckersley with 43.
Welch did not miss any time in 1981 due to rehabbing for alcoholism. In fact, he won 9 games and lost five for LA in a strike-shortened season, making 23 starts. Since about a third of the season was wiped out because of the work stoppage, he basically made every start he was slated to make. In an earlier version of this page it was claimed that he missed significant time because of his stint in a substance abuse center. In fact, he did seek treatment and this is detailed in his autobiography, but this all occurred in the off-season between 1979 and 1980.
[edit] Notable Achievements
- 2-time All-Star (1980 & 1990)
- AL Cy Young Award Winner (1990)
- AL Wins Leader (1990)
- AL Winning Percentage Leader (1990)
- NL Shutouts Leader (1987)
- 15 Wins Seasons: 6 (1982, 1983 & 1987-1990)
- 20 Wins Seasons: 1 (1990)
- 25 Wins Seasons: 1 (1990)
- 200 Innings Pitched Seasons: 9 (1980, 1982, 1983 & 1986-1991)
- Won two World Series with the Los Angeles Dodgers (1981) and the Oakland Athletics (1989) (he did not play in the 1989 World Series)
| AL Cy Young Award | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1989 | 1990 | 1991 |
| Bret Saberhagen | Bob Welch | Roger Clemens |
[edit] Further Reading
- Bob Welch and George Vecsey: Five O'Clock Comes Early, William Morrow and Co., New York, NY, 1982
