Pitcher, Los Angeles Dodgers
Age: 30 (Sept. 16)
5th season
with Dodgers
Bats – Right,
Throws – Right
Height: 6’3” Weight: 190
Prior to 1988:
Born in
Buffalo, New York, Hershiser moved with his family to Toronto, Canada and
Cherry Hill, New Jersey. Following his graduation from Cherry Hill East High
School, where he was an All-Conference pitcher as a senior, Hershiser moved on
to Bowling Green State University. As a junior in 1979, he pitched a no-hitter
on his way to a 6-2 record. Selected by the Dodgers in the June amateur draft,
he signed and was assigned to Clinton of the Class A Midwest League where he
went 4-0 with a 2.09 ERA and 33 strikeouts over 43 innings pitched. Hershiser
spent 1980 and ’81 with San Antonio of the Class AA Texas League where he was
utilized primarily as a reliever and posted a 5-9 tally with a 3.55 ERA and 14
saves in 1980 and 7-6 with a 4.68 ERA, 15 saves, and 95 strikeouts in 1981.
Still a reliever with the Albuquerque Dukes of the Class AAA Pacific Coast
League in 1982, Hershiser appeared in 47 games (7 of them starts) and was 9-6
with a 3.71 ERA and 93 strikeouts. With Albuquerque again in 1983, he appeared
in 49 games (10 starts) and posted a 10-8 mark with a 4.09 ERA and 16 saves.
Receiving a September call-up to the Dodgers, Hershiser appeared in eight games
and had no decisions and a 3.38 ERA. He stuck with the Dodgers in 1984 as a
long reliever who was moved into the rotation in June due to injuries and
compiled an 11-8 tally with a 2.66 ERA and four shutouts among his 8 complete
games, as well as a string of 33.2 consecutive scoreless innings. He placed
third in NL Rookie of the Year voting. The Dodgers won the NL West in 1985 and
Hershiser improved to 19-3 with a 2.03 ERA and 157 strikeouts while completing
9 games, 5 of them shutouts, to establish himself as LA’s new ace. He also
placed third in league Cy Young balloting. The mild-mannered, but tenacious,
pitcher was nicknamed “Bulldog” by manager Tommy Lasorda, who wanted to encourage
his toughness on the mound. The Dodgers dropped in the standings in 1986 and
Hershiser posted a 14-14 record with a 3.85 ERA and 153 strikeouts. He was a
.500 pitcher again in 1987 at 16-16 with a 3.06 ERA and 190 strikeouts while
accumulating a league-leading 264.2 innings. He was also an All-Star for the
first time. With a sinker, fastball, curve, and changeup, Hershiser maintained
his effectiveness in the rotation.
1988 Season Summary
Appeared in 36 games
P – 35, PH – 1
[Bracketed
numbers indicate NL rank in Top 20]
Pitching
Games – 35
Games Started –
34 [4, tied with eight others]
Complete Games
– 15 [1, tied with Danny Jackson]
Wins – 23 [1,
tied with Danny Jackson]
Losses – 8
PCT - .742 [3,
tied with Danny Jackson]
Saves – 1
Shutouts – 8 [1]
Innings Pitched
– 267 [1]
Hits – 208 [12]
Runs – 73
Earned Runs – 67
Home Runs – 18
[12, tied with Rick Sutcliffe, Kevin Gross & Nolan Ryan]
Bases on Balls
– 73 [12]
Strikeouts – 178
[7]
ERA – 2.26 [3]
Hit Batters – 4
Balks – 5 [20,
tied with six others]
Wild Pitches – 6
League-leading shutouts
were +2 ahead of runners-up Danny Jackson & Tim Leary]
League-leading
innings pitched were +6.1 ahead of runner-up Danny Jackson
Midseason
Snapshot: 13-4, ERA - 2.62, SO - 92 in 140.2 IP
---
Most
strikeouts, game – 9 (in 9 IP) at Montreal 8/30
10+ strikeout
games – 0
Fewest hits
allowed, game (min. 7 IP) – 2 (in 9 IP) at Houston 6/29
Batting
PA – 105, AB – 85,
R – 1, H – 11, 2B – 2, 3B – 1, HR – 0, RBI – 6, BB – 1, SO – 18, SB – 0, CS – 0,
AVG - .129, GDP – 1, HBP – 0, SH – 19 [1], SF – 0
Fielding
Chances – 98
Put Outs – 32
Assists – 60
Errors – 6
DP – 6
Pct. - .939
Postseason
Pitching:
G – 6 (NLCS vs.
NY Mets – 4 G; World Series vs. Oakland – 2 G)
GS – 5, CG – 3,
Record – 3-0, PCT – 1.000, SV – 1, ShO – 2, IP – 42.2, H – 25, R – 7, ER – 5,
HR – 0, BB – 13, SO – 32, HB – 2, BLK – 0, WP – 3, ERA – 1.05
MVP: NLCS &
World Series
Awards & Honors:
NL Cy Young
Award: BBWAA
MLB Player of
the Year: Sporting News
Gold Glove
All-Star
6th in
NL MVP voting (111 points, 33% share)
NL Cy Young
voting:
Orel Hershiser,
LAD: 120 pts. – 24 of 24 first place votes, 100% share
Danny Jackson,
Cin.: 54 pts. – 45% share
David Cone NYM:
42 pts. – 35% share
---
Dodgers went 94-67
to finish first in the NL Western Division by 7 games over the Cincinnati Reds.
The pitching staff led the league in complete games (32), shutouts (24), and
saves (49). The revamped Dodgers, benefiting from the presence of strong
pitching, led by Hershiser who finished off the regular season with a record 59
consecutive shutout innings, and a deep bench, won with regularity and took
control of the NL West race in August and September. Won NLCS over the New York
Mets, 4 games to 3. The series turned on LF Kirk Gibson’s 12th
inning home run that capped a dramatic Game 4 win in which Hershiser relieved
and recorded a save. Hershiser also started the climactic Game 7 and pitched a
shutout. Won World Series over the Oakland Athletics, 4 games to 1. The injured
Kirk Gibson sparked the underdog Dodgers with a dramatic pinch home run that
won Game 1. Hershiser started and won Games 2 and 5, which proved to be
climactic, to receive Series MVP honors.
Aftermath of ‘88:
Despite a fine
2.31 ERA in 1989, Hershiser’s record dropped to 15-15 with the offensively
challenged Dodgers, who scored only 17 runs in his 15 losses. He was still an
All-Star and led the NL in innings pitched for the third consecutive year with
256.2. His heavy workload resulted in a shoulder injury that required
reconstructive surgery in 1990, limiting him to just four starts. He returned
to action in May of 1991 and over the course of 21 starts compiled a 7-2 mark
with a 3.46 ERA. He was back up over 200 innings in 1992 and went 10-15 with a
3.67 ERA. In 1993 Hershiser registered a 12-14 tally with a 3.59 ERA and 141
strikeouts over 215.2 innings pitched. In the strike shortened 1994 season, he
was 6-6 with a 3.79 ERA. A free agent in the offseason, the Dodgers wanted him
to retire at age 36 and become a non-playing member of the organization.
Feeling he could still pitch effectively, he signed with the Cleveland Indians.
Cleveland topped the AL Central and advanced to the World Series in 1995 while
Hershiser put together an 11-2 second half run on the way to a 16-6 overall
record with a 3.87 ERA. He was the MVP of the ALCS triumph over Seattle thanks
to a 2-0 mark and 1.29 ERA and was 1-1 with a 2.57 ERA in the World Series loss
to Atlanta. The Indians were division champs again in 1996 and Hershiser went
15-9 with a 4.24 ERA. He was 14-6 with a 4.47 ERA for pennant-winning Cleveland
in 1997 despite spending time on the disabled list due to a stiff back. He was
badly roughed up in the World Series loss to the Florida Marlins. A free agent
in the offseason, he signed with the San Francisco Giants for 1998 and produced
an 11-10 record with a 4.41 ERA. Moving on to the New York Mets in 1999, he
compiled a 13-12 tally with a 4.58 ERA as the Mets made it to the postseason as
a Wild Card entry. Hershiser returned to the Dodgers in 2000 at age 41 and was
1-5 with a 13.14 ERA when he was let go in late June, thus ending his career.
For his major league career, he posted a 204-150 record with a 3.48 ERA, 68
complete games, 25 shutouts, and 2014 strikeouts over 3130.1 innings. With the
Dodgers he was 135-107 with a 3.12 ERA, 65 complete games, 24 shutouts, and
1456 strikeouts over 2180.2 innings. Appearing in 22 postseason games,
Hershiser went 8-3 with a 2.59 ERA and 97 strikeouts over 132 innings. A
three-time All-Star, he received votes in Cy Young Award voting four times,
including the one win. A decent hitting pitcher, he was awarded a Silver
Slugger in 1993. He also received one Gold Glove for his fielding prowess. Following
his playing career, he went into broadcasting and was also pitching coach for
the Texas Rangers from 2002-05. He has also been successful at playing poker in
major competitions.
--
Cy Young Profiles feature pitchers who were recipients of
the Cy Young Award by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (1956 to
present). The award was presented to a single major league winner from its
inception through 1966 and from 1967 on to one recipient from each major
league.
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