Fun facts about Lee Stange:
-A Chicagoan by birth, Lee attended Drake University in Des Moines before signing with the Senators in 1957.
-Pitching for the Class B Wilson Tobs in 1960, Stange was a Carolina League All-Star. He led the league in several statistical categories, going 20-13 with 20 complete games.
-Had a few cups of coffee with the Twins in 1961, earning his first career win with four strikeouts in two scoreless relief innings against the Indians on September 15.
-1963 was a career year for Lee. Starting 20 games and relieving in a dozen more, he went 12-5 with a 2.62 ERA (sixth-best in the A.L.) and seven complete games. He five-hit the Tigers on June 25 for his first major league shutout.
-On September 2, 1964, Stange struck out 10 Senators in a 9-0 win. He tied a major league record by whiffing four batters in the seventh inning. Don Lock, the subject of yesterday's post, led off with a strikeout but reached base on a passed ball.
-Also performed well in multipurpose roles for Cleveland and Boston in 1965-1966, compiling 16 wins against 13 losses with a 3.32 ERA.
-Posted a career-low 2.77 ERA for the American League Champion Red Sox in 1967 while throwing a career-high 181.2 innings. Had only an 8-10 record to show for it. Appeared in relief in Game Three of the World Series, allowing three hits and an unearned run in two innings.
-Lee led Boston with 12 saves in 1968.
-Wrapped up his career in 1970 with the Red Sox and White Sox. In parts of ten seasons he was 62-61 with a 3.56 ERA.
-Stange jumped right into coaching. He served on major league staffs in Boston (1972-1974, 1981-1984), Minnesota (1975), and Oakland (1977-1979). He also had three stints as a minor league pitching instructor for the Red Sox totaling more than a decade and managed the Athletics' AAA Tuscon club in 1976. He is now the pitching coach for the NCAA Division II Florida Tech Panthers.
He was very tough on the Orioles.
ReplyDelete"stinger" stange.
It seems like there's something strange going on behind Lee in the background
ReplyDeleteAnon #1 - You are correct! Stinger was 13-7 in his career against the Orioles with 2 saves and a 2.78 ERA. In his 21 starts, he had 8 complete games, including 3 shutouts.
ReplyDeleteAnon #2 - You've got a point. It looks like there's someone in a gray suit on the right side.