Matt Keough

Matt Keough
Pitcher
Born: July 3, 1955 (1955-07-03) (age 56) Pomona, California
Batted: Right	Threw: Right
MLB debut
September 3, 1977 for the Oakland Athletics
Last MLB appearance
October 2, 1986 for the Houston Astros
Career statistics
Win–Loss record	58–84
Earned run average	4.17
Strikeouts	590
Teams
Oakland Athletics (1977–1983) New York Yankees (1983) St. Louis Cardinals (1985) Chicago Cubs (1986) Houston Astros (1986) Hanshin Tigers (1987–1990)
Career highlights and awards
All-Star selection (1978) 1980 AL Comeback Player of the Year

Matthew Lon Keough (born July 3, 1955 in Pomona, California) Drafted by the Oakland A's out of Corona del Mar High School in 1973. Keough is a former Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher who played from 1977 through 1986 for the Oakland Athletics (1977–1983), New York Yankees (1983–1984), St. Louis Cardinals (1985), Chicago Cubs (1986) and Houston Astros (1986). Keough batted and threw right-handed.

Career

In a nine-season career, Keough posted a 54-84 record with 590 strikeouts and a 4.17 ERA in 1190 innings pitched, including seven shutouts and 57 complete games.

Keough was signed by Oakland as an infielder. He was supposed to replace departed Sal Bando at third base, but after hitting a disappointing .210 in Double-A in 1976, he was converted to a pitcher. Keough joined Oakland a year later. He was selected to the All-Star Game in his rookie season for the 1978 Athletics, recording a 3.24 ERA despite his 8-15 mark. In 1979, he tied a major league record by losing his first 14 decisions and finished with a 2-17 record. His winning percentage of .105 was the worst recorded by a major league pitcher since 1916, which was shared between Jack Nabors and Tom Sheehan. From 1978–79, Keough made 28 consecutive starts without a victory, tying Cliff Curtis (1910–11) for the longest streak in MLB history according to the Elias Sports Bureau.^[1] The streak was later tied by Jo-Jo Reyes (2008–11).^[2]

But Keough resurged in 1980 with a 16-13 mark, earning AL Comeback Player of the Year honors. In the 1981 strike-shortened season he finished 10-6, helping Oakland to clinch the AL Division Series. He pitched well in a losing effort in Game Three of the AL Championship Series, giving up one earned run in 8-1/3 innings in a game won by the New York Yankees 4–0. Keough slumped again in 1982, tying for the AL lead with 18 losses against 11 wins in 34 starts. He also walked more batters than he struck out (101-to-75) and led the league in home runs (38) and earned runs (133) allowed.

In the 1983 mid-season Keough was traded to the New York Yankees. Nursing a sore arm, he spent parts of two seasons in the minors and returned to the majors with the St. Louis Cardinals late in 1985. The next year, he divided his playing time between Triple-A, the Houston Astros and Chicago Cubs. In 1987 he joined the Hanshin Tigers in Japan and pitched for them until 1990. He attempted a comeback to the major leagues with the Anaheim Angels in 1991 spring training but did not make the roster. The next year, he tried again with the Angels, but while sitting in the dugout during an exhibition game he was hit in the right temple by a foul ball off the bat of San Francisco Giants' John Patterson, nearly killing him and ending his playing career.

Following his playing career, Keough worked for the Angels both as a minor league coach and executive from 1992 to 1999. After that, he scouted for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays and is currently an executive for the Oakland Athletics.

Keough would occasionally throw a spitball. One time, however, his spitball backfired on him. Keough threw a spitball that Boston Red Sox second baseman Jerry Remy missed completely and had seemingly struck out. The umpire, seeing the tremendous break on the pitch, assumed Remy had fouled off the pitch and so he remained at bat with two strikes. On the next pitch, Remy hit a home run, the last of his career.

Personal life

Keough is son of Marty Keough and nephew of Joe Keough, who also played in the majors. His son, Shane Keough, currently is a minor league prospect for the Oakland Athletics organization.

Keough appeared, along with his family consisting of his three children, wife, and long time friend who was his batboy while playing in the MLB, in the reality TV-show The Real Housewives of Orange County, with his wife, former Playboy Playmate Jeana Tomasino being one of the 'housewives'. As of Season 3 of the show, Tomasino announced the couple had separated.

In 2005, Keough pleaded guilty to felony charges associated with driving under the influence of alcohol, during which he rear-ended a car at a red light in Orange County which, in turn, rolled into a pedestrian walking his bicycle across the street who was briefly hospitalized with a knee injury. The incident occurred following a family squabble. Making matters worse, Keough wandered away after the accident. He said he did not flee the scene, as some reports indicated, but he was so disoriented, he walked toward some nearby shops where he was tracked down by police officers. His blood-alcohol level was twice the legal limit, according to the Orange County Sheriff's Department.

While his case was going through the court system, he was receiving help for binge drinking. He voluntarily checked himself into the Betty Ford Clinic for a month, and followed that with five months in a private outpatient program in Newport Beach, where he also served three months in jail following his conviction.^[3]

On December 18, 2007, Keough was arrested for violating his probation when he was found drinking at a bar. Under terms of his probation, he was to not consume alcohol.^[4] He was then sentenced to 180 days in an Orange County jail on January 11, 2008.^[5]

Keough was arrested August 15, 2009 for DUI with 3 times the legal blood alcohol content. Deputies say they saw him make a "rolling stop" at a stop sign in the gated community and tried to pull him over. Armomino says Keough ran into his home, but deputies followed him inside and arrested him. On September 19, 2009, Keough was charged with two felonies following his DUI arrest on August 15.^[6]

See also

• List of second-generation Major League Baseball players

References

1. ^ Kepner, Tyler (May 25, 2011). "Hapless but Not Hopeless, Blue Jays’ Reyes Carries On". The New York Times: p. B11. Archived from the original on May 25, 2011. http://www.webcitation.org/5ywrZ3Czn. 
2. ^ "Jo-Jo Reyes equals winless start record". ESPN.com. May 25, 2011. Archived from the original on May 25, 2011. http://www.webcitation.org/5yxHV5KrH. 
3. ^ Slusser, Susan (January 8, 2011). "MATT KEOUGH / A's special assistant to the GM / Life-changing moment leads to jail, rehab, perspective". The San Francisco Chronicle. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2006/02/14/SPGQ8H86DV1.DTL. 
4. ^ "Real Housewives" Husband Really Arrested - TMZ.com - Entertainment News, Celebrity Gossip and Hollywood Rumors
5. ^ "Real" Husband Gets 180 Days - TMZ.com - Entertainment News, Celebrity Gossip and Hollywood Rumors
6. ^ 'Real' Husband Charged with Felony DUI - TMZ.com - Entertainment News, Celebrity Gossip and Hollywood Rumors

External links

• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube
• Baseball Library
• BR Bullpen
• Retrosheet
• The Real Housewives of Orange County at the Internet Movie Database

Preceded by Willie Horton

AL Comeback Player of the Year 1980

Succeeded by Richie Zisk

Persondata
Name	Keough, Matt
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	July 3, 1955
Place of birth	Pomona, California
Date of death
Place of death