- Eddie Lopat
Infobox MLB retired
name=Eddie Lopat
position=Pitcher
birthdate=June 21 ,1918
city-state|New York|New York
deathdate=death date and age|1992|6|15|1918|6|21
city-state|Darien|Connecticut
bats=Left
throws=Left
debutdate=April 30
debutyear=by|1944
debutteam=Chicago White Sox
finaldate=September 23
finalyear=by|1955
finalteam=Baltimore Orioles
stat1label=Win-Loss record
stat1value=166-112
stat2label=Earned run average
stat2value=3.21
stat3label=Strikeouts
stat3value=859
teams=
*Chicago White Sox (by|1944-by|1947)
*New York Yankees (by|1948-by|1955)
*Baltimore Orioles (by|1955)
highlights=
* All-Star selection (1951)
* 5xWorld Series champion (1949, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953)Edmund Walter Lopat (originally Lopatynski) (
June 21 ,1918 –June 15 ,1992 ) was aMajor League Baseball pitcher .Lopat was born in
New York, New York . His Major League debut was on April 30, 1944, playing for theChicago White Sox .He was traded to the
New York Yankees on February 24, 1948 forAaron Robinson ,Bill Wight , and Fred Bradley. From by|1948 to by|1954 he was the third of the "Big Three" of the Yankees' pitching staff, together withAllie Reynolds andVic Raschi . Since Reynolds and Raschi were fastball pitchers, Lopat's slower "junk" pitches frustrated enemy batters. He pitched in theAll-Star Game in by|1951 for theAmerican League . In by|1953 he led the AL in bothearned-run average and won/lost percentage.On July 30, 1955, he was traded to the
Baltimore Orioles for Jim McDonald and cash, finishing out the season and retiring from Major League Baseball. Over his 12-year AL career, Lopat won 166 games, losing 112 (.597) with an ERA of 3.21.Lopat managed the AAA
Richmond Virginians for the Yankees in the late 1950s, and in by|1960 served one season as the Yanks' pitching coach before holding the same post with theMinnesota Twins in by|1961 and the Kansas City Athletics in by|1962. In by|1963 Lopat was tapped to manage the Athletics and continued in this role until June 11, 1964. His Major League managerial record was only 90-124 (.421). Lopat stayed on as a senior front office aide to tempestuous team ownerCharlie Finley until the club moved to Oakland after the by|1967 season.He was sometimes known as "The Junk Man," but better-known as "Steady Eddie."
He died at his son's home in
Darien, Connecticut , and had been a resident ofHillsdale, New Jersey until his death. [Harvin, Al. [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0CE6D71339F935A25755C0A964958260 "Eddie Lopat, 73, Yankee Pitcher On 5 Series Championship Teams"] , "The New York Times ",June 16 ,1992 . AccessedMarch 10 ,2008 . "Mr. Lopat, who lived in Hillsdale, N.J., had been battling a recurrence of pancreatic cancer, his son said."]Eddie won five World Series during his career.
References
ee also
*
List of Major League Baseball leaders in career wins
*List of Major League Baseball ERA champions External links
* [http://www.baseball-almanac.com/players/player.php?p=lopated01 Baseball Almanac]
* [http://www.baseballlibrary.com/baseballlibrary/ballplayers/L/Lopat_Ed.stm Baseball Library]
* [http://www.thebaseballpage.com/past/pp/lopateddie/ The Baseball Page]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
