David Clyde
From BR Bullpen
David Eugene Clyde
- Bats Left, Throws Left
- Height 6' 1", Weight 185 lb.
- High School Westchester High School (Houston)
- Debut June 27, 1973
- Final Game August 7, 1979
- Born April 22, 1955 in Kansas City, KS USA
[edit] Biographical Information
"The correlation I felt was like going from high school to performing open-heart surgery. I felt that's how much better I had to be." - David Clyde, quoted in an August 2003 Baseball Digest article about him
Pitcher David Clyde was chosen by the Texas Rangers as the first overall selection in the 1973 amateur draft. Rushed immediately to the majors at age 18, Clyde debuted on June 27, 1973, against the Minnesota Twins. In his appearance, Clyde pitched five innings of one-hit ball to pick up the win. He was wild, however, and walked seven. After walking the first two batters he faced (Jerry Terrell and Rod Carew), Clyde then struck out Bobby Darwin, George Mitterwald, and Joe Lis. Thereafter, Clyde was inconsistent and eventually was sent down to the minors and obscurity.
The Baseball Digest article cited above indicated that Clyde may have hurt himself in the majors by linking up with some veterans who liked to party.
David pitched five years in the majors and four in the minors. He was in the majors with the Rangers from 1973 to 1975 and then the Cleveland Indians in 1978 and 1979. He had his most innings in a season with the 1978 Cleveland Indians, for whom he pitched 153 1/3 innings at age 23.
In 1981 he pitched for two teams in the Houston Astros organization, going 10-10.
