Tommie Sisk

Tommie Wayne Sisk

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 3", Weight 195 lb.
• High School Long Beach Polytechnic High School
• Debut July 19, 1962
• Final Game June 14, 1970
• Born April 12, 1942 in Ardmore, OK USA

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Biographical Information

Tommie Sisk played nine years in the major leagues, primarily with the Pittsburgh Pirates. He was 20 when he broke in.

On July 19, 1962, he made his major league debut, but did not fare too well. Although he started the game, he did not even last two innings. After 1 1/3 innings pitched, three walks, two hits and three runs surrendered, he was out of the game, which was against the hapless New York Mets. He was replaced by Earl Francis but did not figure in the decision as Pittsburgh eventually won, 8-7.

He threw a two-hitter on September 20, 1965 as a member of the Pirates against the Mets. The two hits were a 2nd-inning single by John Stephenson and a 9th-inning triple by Johnny Lewis. His best season was 1967 when he went 13-13, 3.34 and pitched 207 2/3 innings. He was a finesse pitcher who did not strike out many opponents: he reached his highest total that season, but it was only 85.

On March 28, 1969, Sisk was traded with Chris Cannizzaro to the San Diego Padres for Ron Davis and Bobby Klaus. With the expansion Padres, he posted a 2-13 record in 53 games, 13 of which he started. His ERA was 4.78. The Padres as a whole struggled that year - they finished the season with a 52-110 record. Fellow reliever Gary Ross went 3-12, while starters Clay Kirby and Joe Niekro went 7-20 and 8-17, respectively.

Interestingly, the day after he played his final big league game for the Chicago Cubs in 1970, he was traded with Buddy Bradford to the Cleveland Indians for Barry Moore and Bob Miller. He finished that season with the Wichita Aeros of the American Association and was with the Winnipeg Whips of the International League in 1971, but in both stints his ERA was over 5.00 and he never got another shot at the majors.

Statistically, the player most similar to him is contemporary pitcher Jim Hannan, according to the Baseball-Reference.com similarity scores.

Notable Achievements

• 200 Innings Pitched Seasons: 1 (1967)