Eddie Fisher (baseball)

Infobox MLB retired
bgcolor1=silver
bgcolor2=black
textcolor1=black
textcolor2=silver
name=Eddie Fisher


position=Pitcher
bats=Right
throws=Right
birthdate=birth date and age|1936|7|16
debutdate=June 22
debutyear=by|1959
debutteam=San Francisco Giants
finaldate=September 19
finalyear=by|1973
finalteam=St. Louis Cardinals
stat1label=Win-Loss
stat1value=85-70
stat2label=ERA
stat2value=3.41
stat3label=Strikeouts
stat3value=812
teams=
*San Francisco Giants (by|1959-by|1961)
*Chicago White Sox (by|1962-by|1966, by|1972-by|1973)
*Baltimore Orioles (by|1966-by|1967)
*Cleveland Indians (by|1968)
*California Angels (by|1969-by|1972)
*St. Louis Cardinals (by|1973)
highlights=
*All star in 1965
*Led AL in games pitched in 1965 with 82 and 1966 with 67

Eddie Gene Fisher (born July 16, 1936 in Shreveport, Louisiana) was a Major League Baseball relief pitcher for the San Francisco Giants (1959-61), Chicago White Sox (1962-66 and 1972-73), Baltimore Orioles (1966-67), Cleveland Indians (1968), California Angels (1969-72) and St. Louis Cardinals (1973).

Pitching career

Fisher led Pacific Coast League pitchers with 239 innings while playing for the Tacoma Giants in 1960. His minor league record from 1958 to 1961 was 47-28 (.627) with a 3.23 ERA in 93 games (632 innings pitched).

Fisher's best pitch was the knuckleball, and in 1963-1966 he worked out the White Sox bullpen with fellow flutterball specialist Hoyt Wilhelm.

Fisher started just 63 out of the 690 games he appeared in, and completed 7 of those, two for shutouts. He is better-known, however, for his effective relief work.

In Fisher's 15-year career, 1965 stands out as his best season. He was named to the American League All-Star team and finished 4th in the MVP voting. He led the league in WHIP (0.974), games pitched (82), and games finished (60), and was second in earned run average (2.40) and saves (24). His 15-7 record gave him a winning percentage of .682, which ranked fourth. The White Sox finished in second place that year with a record of 95-67.

He was traded to the Baltimore Orioles on June 13, 1966 and helped them win the American League pennant. In 44 appearances for the O's he was 5-3 with 13 saves and a 2.64 ERA in 71.2 innings. Baltimore won the 1966 World Series, but Fisher did not appear in any of the four games against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Jim Palmer, Wally Bunker, and Dave McNally all pitched complete games, and the team needed only one relief appearance, provided in record fashion by Moe Drabowsky. (see box score and play-by-play at [http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/B10050LAN1966.htm] )

Career totals include a record of 85-70 with 81 saves. In 1538.2 innings pitched he had 812 strikeouts, an ERA of 3.41, and a low 1.193 WHIP. He had a lifetime batting average of just .122 (30-for-246), but did once have three hits in a game...September 19, 1960 vs. the Chicago Cubs. He currently ranks 92nd on the MLB All-Time Games Pitched List (690) and 72nd on the MLB All-Time Games Finished List (344).

References

* [http://www.baseball-reference.com/f/fisheed02.shtml Baseball Reference]
* [http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/Pfishe102.htm Retrosheet]
* [http://www.baseballlibrary.com/baseballlibrary/ballplayers/F/Fisher_Eddie.stm Baseball Library]