- Joe Hesketh
Joseph Thomas Hesketh (born
February 15 ,1959 inLackawanna, New York ) is a formerpitcher inMajor League Baseball who played from 1984 through 1994 for theMontreal Expos (1984-90),Atlanta Braves (1990) andBoston Red Sox (1990-94). Listed at 6' 2", 170 lb., Hesketh battedright-handed and threwleft-handed . He was selected by the Expos in the 1980 draft out of the State University of New York at Buffalo.One of the most dominant pitchers in UB history, Hesketh compiled an overall 1.77 ERA, including a notable 0.91 during his junior season. He also had 10
complete game s for the Buffalo Bulls and picked one of the greatest wins in school history – a 4-0shutout against powerful St. John’s team and future major league starFrank Viola . Hesketh also picked up the save in a victory on the road over nationally-rankedUniversity of Miami . After that, he earned the 1980 ECAC New York-New Jersey District Player of the Year honors, as his six shutouts for the Bulls remain a school record.In 1984, Hesketh was named the American Association pitcher of the year after going 12-3 with a 3.05 ERA and 135
strikeout s in 147⅔ innings for theIndianapolis Indians . He joined the Montreal Expos late in the season and ended with a 2-2, 1.80 ERA in 11 appearances. In 1985 he was 10-5 with a 3.29 ERA in 25 starts, allowing just 125 hits in a career-high 155⅓ innings into late August, but a home plate collision broke his leg and his season was over. He was considered in the National League Rookie of the Year vote. In 1986 he was bothered by an impinged nerve in his left shoulder, then missed virtually all of 1987. While Hesketh did bounce back to some extent as a reliever, he did not recovered completely.Hesketh was released by Montreal in April 1990. At least a half-dozen teams claimed him, so he ended up in Atlanta by virtue of the Braves' poor record. Then, although he had recorded five saves, the Braves released him after 31 appearances. Once more, he was not out of work long, as the Boston Red Sox quickly signed him in late July.
in 1991 Hesketh came back of several injury-plagued seasons. He ended with a 12-4 mark in 39 games for Boston, including 17 starts and a career second-best 153⅓ innings, as his .750 won-loss % topped
American League pitchers. The next three years he divided his playing time as a starter, middle reliever, and occasional closer. He retired after the 1994 season. In an 11-season career, Hesketh posted a 60-47 record with a 4.05 ERA in 339 appearances, including 114 starts, four complete games, two shutouts, 79games finished , 21 saves, 726 strikeouts, 378 walks, and 961⅔ innings of work.Hesketh is a member of both the UB Athletic Hall of Fame (Class of ’86) as well as the Greater Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame (2002). In 2006, he was named the Bulls’ pitching coach by head coach Ron Torgalski.
ources
* [http://www.thebaseballcube.com/players/H/joe-hesketh.shtml The Baseball Cube]
* [http://www.baseball-reference.com/h/heskejo01.shtml Baseball Reference]
* [http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/H/Pheskj001.htm Retrosheet]
* [http://www.ubathletics.buffalo.edu/baseball/news/bsb07-14-2006-hesketh.shtml University at Buffalo press release]
*"The Scouting Report: 1992", STATS INC./John Dewan and Don Zminda, editors. HarperPerennial publishers, 1992.
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