Tommy Byrne (baseball)

: "For other people named Thomas Byrne, see Thomas Byrne (disambiguation)"Infobox MLB retired
name=Tommy Byrne


width=200
position=Pitcher
bats=Left
throws=Left
birthdate=birth date|1919|12|31
Baltimore, Maryland
deathdate=death date and age|2007|12|20|1919|12|31
Wake Forest, North Carolina
debutdate=April 27
debutyear=by|1943
debutteam=New York Yankees
finaldate=September 21
finalyear=by|1957
finalteam=New York Yankees
stat1label=Win-Loss record
stat1value=85-69
stat2label=Earned run average
stat2value=4.11
stat3label=Strikeouts
stat3value=766
teams=
* New York Yankees (by|1943, by|1946-by|1951, by|1954-by|1957)
* St. Louis Browns (by|1951-by|1952)
* Chicago White Sox (by|1953)
* Washington Senators (by|1953)
highlights=
* All-Star selection (1950)
* 2x World Series champion (1949, 1956)

Thomas Joseph Byrne (December 31 1919 – December 20 2007) was an American left-handed starting pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for four American League teams from by|1943 through by|1957, primarily the New York Yankees. He also played for the St. Louis Browns (1951-52), Chicago White Sox (1953) and Washington Senators (1953). Byrne batted and threw left-handed.

Born in Baltimore, Maryland, Byrne attended the Baltimore City College high school and Wake Forest College.

Baseball career

Byrne was a hard-thrower pitcher who never hesitated to pitch inside, but he had really struggled with his control most of his career, earning him the nickname "Wild Bill" Byrnes..cite web
url = http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071222&content_id=2336140&vkey=news_nyy&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb
title = Former Yankee Byrne dies at 87
publisher = "MLB.com"
first = Bryan
last = Hoch
accessdate = 2007-12-22] After making his debut on April 27, by|1943, he had four years with more than 130 innings pitched and more than 6 walks per nine innings, a record later tied by Nolan Ryan. Byrne led the league in hit batsmen five times and in walks three times. Despite his wildness, he won 15 games twice (1949-50) and enjoyed a career season in by|1955 with a 16-5 record and a 3.15 ERA, and led the league in winning percentage (.762).

But Byrne was a dangerous hitter. He hit well enough during his career to be called on by his managers for pinch-hitting duties. He batted .238 in his career (143-for-601) with 14 home runs and 98 RBI in 377 games, including two grand slams and 80 pinch hits.

In a 13-year career, Byrne posted an 85-69 record with a 4.11 ERA in 1362 innings. He had a disappointing 0.74 strikeout-to-walk ratio (766-to-1037). In four World Series, he went 2-2 with 11 strikeouts and a 2.53 ERA in 21.1 innings. He made the American League All-Star team in by|1950. He played his final regular-season game on September 21, by|1957 before ending his career in the World Series defeat to the Milwaukee Braves.

Later life

After the conclusion of his baseball career, Byrne returned to Wake Forest, North Carolina, where he had attended college. Prior to the 1963 season, he joined the New York Mets organization as a minor league scout. When Clyde McCullough was promoted to the Mets as a coach, Byrne took over the manager's job for the Raleigh Mets of the Carolina League. He managed the team from July 29 through the end of the season. [The Sporting News, August 10, 1963, page 41. "Tommy Byrne Takes Raleigh Reins in Managerial Debut."]

Byrne later became mayor of Wake Forest from 1973 through 1987. [http://www.nbc17.com/midatlantic/ncn/news.apx.-content-articles-NCN-2007-09-09-0018.html] . He died on December 20, 2007 at age 87 in Wake Forest, North Carolina. [cite web|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/23/sports/baseball/23byrne.html |title=Tommy Byrne, 87, a Former Yankee Pitcher, Dies |accessdate=2007-12-23 |author=Richard Goldstein |date=2007-12-23 |work=The New York Times]

ee also

*MLB All-Time Hit Batsmen List
*Chicago White Sox all-time roster

External links

*baseball-reference|id=b/byrneto01
* [http://www.baseballlibrary.com/baseballlibrary/ballplayers/B/Byrne_Tommy.stm Baseball Library] - profile and chronology
* [http://www.baseballhistorian.com/html/american_heroes.cfm?page=150 Baseball Historian] - article
* [http://www.ceciliatan.com/Entry131.html Why I Like Baseball] - article by Cecilia Tan
* [http://www.wakeweekly.com/plugins/p2001_news/printarticle.php?p2001_articleid=149 Tommy Byrne Day to honor Yankees star, former mayor (Sept. 9, 2007]
* [http://www.wral.com/sports/story/2202988/ Obituary]

Notes and references

References