- Larry Dierker
Infobox MLB retired
name=Larry Dierker
position=Pitcher
bats=Right
throws=Right
birthdate=birth date and age|1946|9|22Hollywood, California
debutdate=September 22
debutyear=by|1964
debutteam=Houston Colt .45s
finaldate=October 1
finalyear=by|1977
finalteam=St. Louis Cardinals
stat1label=Win-Loss record
stat1value=139-123
stat2label=Earned run average
stat2value=3.31
stat3label=Strikeouts
stat3value=1,493
teams=As Player
* Houston Colt .45s / Astros (by|1964-by|1976)
*St. Louis Cardinals (by|1977)As Manager
*Houston Astros (by|1997-by|2001)
highlights=
* 2x All-Star selection (1969, 1971)
* 1998NL Manager of the Year
* Houston Astros #49 retiredLawrence Edward Dierker (born
September 22 1946 , in Hollywood, California) is a formerpitcher and manager inMajor League Baseball who had a 14-year pitching career from by|1964 to by|1977 and a five-year career managing theHouston Astros from by|1997 to by|2001. He played for the Houston Colt .45s/Astros and theSt. Louis Cardinals , both of theNational League .Drafted by the Colts at age 17, Dierker made his major-league pitching debut on his 18th birthday — and struck out
Willie Mays in the first inning. (As of 2008, he remains the last man to play in the majors at such a young age.) In by|1969, he became the Astros' first 20-game winner, while compiling an impressive 2.33earned run average . 20complete game s and 232 strikeouts over a now-astonishing 305 innings. He was elected to the National League All-Star team in 1969 and by|1971. On July 9, 1976, Dierker pitched ano hitter against the Montreal Expos.From by|1979 to by|1996, Dierker served as a
color commentator on the Astros'radio andtelevision broadcasts, a position he returned to in by|2004.In by|1999, Dierker had a close brush with death during a game against the
San Diego Padres . The Houston manager had been plagued by severe headaches for several days. During this game against San Diego, Dierker had aseizure that rendered him unconscious. He required emergencybrain surgery and after four weeks of recovery, returned to the helm of the Astros and guided the team through the duration of the season. The Astros won 97 games and won a third consecutive National League Central Division title.Dierker was elected National League Manager of the Year in by|1998. Houston finished in first place in four of the five years Dierker managed the team, failing only in by|2000 when the Astros placed fourth. Dierker also penned a book entitled "It Ain't Brain Surgery," which detailed his baseball career as a pitcher and a manager. He later penned "My Team", in which he ruminated on the greatest players he'd been witness to in his years of baseball.
ee also
*
List of Major League Baseball leaders in career wins
*List of Major League Baseball no-hitters External links
* [http://www.baseball-reference.com/d/dierkla01.shtml Baseball-Reference.com] - career playing statistics and managing record
* [http://www.astrosdaily.com/hall/Dierker_Larry.html] - Larry Dierker Tribute Page
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