Alan Knicely | |
---|---|
Catcher | |
Born: Harrisonburg, Virginia, U.S. | May 19, 1955|
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
MLB debut | |
August 12, 1979, for the Houston Astros | |
Last MLB appearance | |
October 4, 1986, for the St. Louis Cardinals | |
MLB statistics | |
Batting average | .213 |
Home runs | 12 |
Runs batted in | 61 |
Teams | |
Alan Lee Knicely (born May 19,1955) is an American former professional baseball catcher who played all or parts of eight seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB),from 1979 until 1986. He served mainly as a backup catcher for four teams during that time,while also playing some first base and outfield.
Knicely was drafted by the Houston Astros in the third round (63rd overall) of the 1974 Major League Baseball Draft as a pitcher out of Turner Ashby High School in Bridgewater,VA. He slowly moved up through their farm system as far as Double-A,reaching that level in 1977. After going 1–5 with an ERA over 5.00 with the Columbus Astros of the Southern League,his conversion to a position player commenced. The next season,back at Columbus,he played mostly shortstop,but by 1979 he was playing mostly behind the plate.
Knicely played for Columbus once again in 1979,hitting 33 home runs and batting .289. He shared the Southern League Most Valuable Player Award with fellow Astros prospect Danny Heep,and saw action in seven major league games down the stretch,mostly as a pinch hitter,but also playing parts of three games at catcher and one at third base. However,he went 0-for-6 at the plate.
Knicely was promoted a level for the 1980 season,playing for the Triple-A Tucson Toros. He continued to hit well,batting .318 with 105 RBI,but the Astros had Alan Ashby and Luis Pujols ahead of him,and Knicely's defense was not up to par. He was called up once again in September,but his action was limited to a single pinch-hitting appearance.
In 1981,it was back to the Triple-A Toros for Knicely. His defense improved,as he cut his errors in half,and he once again had a good season with the bat,hitting .306 with 96 RBI. Once again,however,Major League time would wait until September's roster expansion. On September 17,he got his first Major League hit,a single against John Urrea of the San Diego Padres. [1] Even then,he did not appear in another game until the final two games of the season. Given a chance,he went 4-for-6 in those two games,with a pair of solo home runs.
Finally,in 1982,Knicely would break camp with the big club,making the roster out of spring training as a right-handed hitter off the bench for the Astros. While Ashby and Pujols were still seeing the majority of the playing time at catcher,Knicely played 23 games there as well as 17 in the outfield. Knicely's minor league batting prowess did not translate to success in the Major Leagues,as he batted just .188 with two home runs in 133 at bats. The following spring,he was traded to the Cincinnati Reds for a pair of prospects,reliever Bill Dawley and outfielder Tony Walker.
Like 1982,Knicely spent all of 1983 in the Major Leagues. With Johnny Bench winding down his career as a third baseman,the Reds employed three catchers that season,and Knicely was the third,behind Dann Bilardello and Alex Treviño. Playing in 59 games,Knicely improved his batting average,but only up to .224. He again hit just 2 home runs in 98 at bats.
After a second disappointing season,Knicely would open the 1984 season back in the minor leagues,this time with the Wichita Aeros of the American Association. In what proved to be the Aeros' final season,Knicely showed that he still had no difficulty mastering minor league pitching. He batted .333 with 33 home runs and 126 RBI in winning the AA's Most Valuable Player award,his second such award in the minors. For his efforts,he won The Sporting News Minor League Player of the Year Award and was given another chance by the Reds that September. However,he managed just four hits in 29 at bats,although he did drive in five runs.
In 1985,Knicely got yet another chance. The Reds,tired of Bilardello's lack of hitting ability,sent the light-hitting catcher to the minors and brought Knicely back to the majors to split time behind the plate with Dave Van Gorder. Knicely responded by setting career bests in most categories,including a .253 batting average,5 home runs,and 26 RBI. All this earned him,however,was an August trade to the Philadelphia Phillies for veteran catcher Bo Díaz. The Phillies shipped Knicely back to the minors,calling him up for just 7 hitless at bats in September.
Knicely was released by the Phillies the following spring. Four days later,he joined the St. Louis Cardinals,once again starting the season in the minor leagues. He was called up to the majors in June to play first base as part of an attempt to fill in for the injured Jack Clark. In 34 games,Knicely batted just .195 with a single home run and 6 RBI. He was released on October 31,and after a season in the minor leagues with the Texas Rangers organization,Knicely retired at age 32.
Carlos Noriel Lee,nicknamed "El Caballo",is a Panamanian former professional baseball left fielder and first baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1999 to 2012 with the Chicago White Sox,Milwaukee Brewers,Texas Rangers,Houston Astros,and Miami Marlins. He had 17 career grand slams,ranking him seventh in MLB history;his seven grand slams hit with the Astros is a club record he shares with Jose Altuve and Alex Bregman.
Jason Drew Michaels,nicknamed "J-Mike",is an American retired Major League Baseball outfielder. He played for the Philadelphia Phillies,Cleveland Indians,Pittsburgh Pirates,and Houston Astros.
Koby Aaron Clemens is an American former professional baseball infielder and outfielder. He later served as a coach in the Houston Astros farm system. He is the eldest son of former Major League Baseball pitcher Roger Clemens.
Alejandro Treviño Castro is a Mexican former professional baseball catcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Mets,Cincinnati Reds,Atlanta Braves,San Francisco Giants,Los Angeles Dodgers,and Houston Astros from 1978 to 1990. Since 1996,Treviño has been a broadcaster for Astros games. He is the younger brother of MLB outfielder Bobby Treviño.
Luis Bienvenido Pujols Toribio is a Dominican former professional baseball player coach and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a catcher from 1977 to 1985,most prominently as a member of the Houston Astros where he helped the franchise win its first-ever National League Western Division title and postseason berth in 1980. He also played for the Kansas City Royals and the Texas Rangers. Although Pujols didn't produce impressive offensive statistics,he excelled defensively which enabled him to sustain a nine-year career as a back-up catcher.
Dennis Martin Walling is a former Major League Baseball player. Walling played all or parts of 18 seasons in the majors,from 1975 to 1992. His most frequent position was third base,but he also saw significant time as an outfielder and first baseman.
John Joseph Mizerock is an American former Major League Baseball backup catcher for the Houston Astros and the Atlanta Braves. He was the eighth overall pick in the 1979 Major League Baseball Draft. He later served as a coach for the Kansas City Royals and Philadelphia Phillies. He is currently the hitting coach for the Clearwater Threshers.
Alan Dean Ashby is an American former professional baseball catcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) and former radio and television sports commentator. A switch hitter,he played for the Cleveland Indians,Toronto Blue Jays,and Houston Astros between 1973 and 1989.
David Wayne Roberts is an American former professional baseball third baseman and catcher,who played all or part of ten seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the San Diego Padres,Texas Rangers,Houston Astros,and Philadelphia Phillies,between 1972 and 1982.
The St. Louis Cardinals 2004 season was the team's 123rd season in St. Louis,Missouri and the 113th season in the National League. The Cardinals went 105–57 during the season,the most wins of any Cardinals team since 1944,and the first Cardinal team to win 100 or more games since 1985,and won the National League Central by 13 games over the NL Wild-Card Champion Houston Astros. In the playoffs the Cardinals defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 3 games to 1 in the NLDS and the Astros 4 games to 3 in the NLCS to reach their first World Series since 1987. In the World Series the Cardinals faced the Boston Red Sox and were swept 4 games to 0. It was the final World Series played at Busch Memorial Stadium. Because the American League had home-field advantage as a result of winning the All-Star Game,Busch Memorial Stadium was where the Curse of the Bambino died.
The St. Louis Cardinals 2003 season was the team's 122nd season in St. Louis,Missouri and the 112th season in the National League. The Cardinals went 85–77 during the season and finished third in the National League Central,three games behind the Chicago Cubs,who won the NL Central at 88–74,and two behind the NL Central runners-up,the Houston Astros (87–75).
The St. Louis Cardinals 2001 season was the team's 120th season in St. Louis,Missouri and the 110th season in the National League. The Cardinals went 93–69 during the season and finished tied for first in the National League Central with the Houston Astros. Because the Cardinals and Astros were best two teams in the National League,both from the Central,and both finished five games ahead of the third-place Chicago Cubs,the Astros were awarded the NL Central champion and the number 1 seed in the playoffs due to winning the season series 9–7,and the Cardinals were seeded as the wild-card.
Jack E. Hiatt is an American former professional baseball player and minor league manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher from 1964 to 1972,most prominently as a member of the San Francisco Giants. After his playing career,he managed in the minor leagues before serving as the Giants' director of player development.
James Edward Beauchamp was an American Major League Baseball first baseman and outfielder who played from 1963 to 1973 for the St. Louis Cardinals,Houston Colt .45s/Astros,Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves,Cincinnati Reds,and New York Mets. He attended Grove High School in Grove,Oklahoma and Oklahoma State University before being signed by the Cardinals in 1957. He was the father of former minor league baseball player Kash Beauchamp. He was 6'2' and weighed 205 pounds.
Kevin Patrick Pasley is a retired professional baseball player whose career spanned 12 seasons. For parts of four seasons,Pasley,a catcher,played in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the Los Angeles Dodgers,and the Seattle Mariners (1977–78). Over his career in the majors,he compiled a .254 batting average with eight runs scored,31 hits,seven doubles,one home run,and nine runs batted in (RBIs). Pasley hit his only career major league home run in what would prove to be his final at-bat in the majors on October 1,1978.
The 1974 Houston Astros season was a season in American baseball. The team finished fourth in the National League West with a record of 81–81,21 games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers.
John Alan Fishel is an American former right-handed Major League Baseball left fielder who played for the Houston Astros in 1988.
Reginald Conrad Baldwin is an American former right-handed Major League Baseball catcher who played in 1978 and 1979 for the Houston Astros,although his minor league career spanned from 1976 to 1980. He was 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) tall and he weighed 195 pounds.
Christopher Ryan Herrmann is an American professional baseball catcher and outfielder who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Minnesota Twins,Arizona Diamondbacks,Seattle Mariners,and Oakland Athletics. He played college baseball at the University of Miami.
Garrett Patrick Stubbs is an American professional baseball catcher for the Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played in MLB for the Houston Astros. Stubbs attended the University of Southern California (USC),and played college baseball for the USC Trojans. While there,he won the 2015 Johnny Bench Award as the nation's best collegiate catcher.