Bruce Hurst

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8+1⁄3 innings in a 2-1 road loss to the California Angels. He bounced back with a four-hit shutout of the Oakland Athletics, then was chased from his Fenway Park home opener after giving up seven runs while recording only one out. Hurst was 12–12 on the season with a 3.92 ERA, tying with Ojeda and Oil Can Boyd for the team lead in wins and losses. [11]

Getting off to a slow start in the 1985 season, Hurst was demoted to the bullpen for a portion of June and requested a trade. Hurst turned around his season with the addition of a forkball as a third pitch to his curveball and fastball. Hurst credited former Detroit Tigers coach Roger Craig for teaching him the concept of the forkball and former Baltimore Orioles pitcher Mike Boddicker for schooling him in the grip, confirmed later by Boddicker who described the pitch as a "foshball" that was essentially "a glorified changeup." [12]

Hurst said in an interview that that when his curve and forkball were fooling hitters, "I think I can get by with a mediocre fastball." [13] Hurst would later pinpoint his revival to a single moment during a July 3 game against Milwaukee when batter Paul Molitor easily fouled off a Hurst pitch, at which point Hurst recollected telling himself "no more" and bore down to get the strikeout, one of 10 that day for the first time in his career. [1] [14] With his ERA having peaked at 6.66 on June 23, Hurst would finish the season with an overall 4.51 ERA and an 11–13 record. [15]

1986: World Series

Hurst had gone 42–46 with a 4.59 ERA with the Red Sox before his breakthrough 1986 season, on a staff anchored by Cy Young Award winner Roger Clemens. Hurst posted a 2.99 ERA with 13 victories despite spending six midsummer weeks on the disabled list with a pulled groin. The Red Sox won the American League East by 5.5 games over the New York Yankees to head to the 1986 American League Championship Series against the California Angels. Hurst went 1–0 with a 2.40 ERA in two starts in the ALCS won by the Sox in seven games.

Hurst pitched brilliantly in the World Series, holding the New York Mets to just four hits in the Game 1 pitchers' duel with Ron Darling won 1–0 by the Red Sox. [16] In Game 5, Hurst pitched a complete game victory to give Boston a 3–2 lead in the Series. [17]

With Boston leading 5–3 in the 10th inning of Game 6, the Mets were down to their last out with no one on base. A Red Sox World Series victory seemed likely as the Shea Stadium scoreboard was set to display "Congratulations Boston Red Sox, 1986 World Champions." Hurst had been selected as the World Series Most Valuable Player, [18] [19] until the Mets rallied to win the game with three runs, forcing a decisive Game 7. [20]

Oil Can Boyd was originally slated to be the Game 7 starter for Boston, but when the game was delayed a day by rain, manager John McNamara turned to Hurst. [1] Hurst gave up just one hit through five innings, however, the Mets came back with three runs in the sixth to tie the game. Hurst got a no-decision as he handed the ball over to the bullpen. The Mets won the World Championship, and Ray Knight received MVP honors. [21]

1987–1988: Accolades and postseason return

Hurst had a 9–6 record and 3.81 ERA when McNamara added him to the 1987 American League All-Star team. However, he did not appear in the game. [22] He ended the season with a middling 15–13 record as the Red Sox finished the season 20 games behind the first place Detroit Tigers.

Hurst was 9–4 with a 4.60 ERA midway through the 1988 season when the Red Sox replaced McNamara at manager with Joe Morgan, who had been Pawtucket manager during Hurst's tenure there. The Sox were in fifth place, nine games back of the first place Tigers at the time of the managerial change. The team went 46-31 from that point forward to finish one game ahead of Detroit in the AL East.

Hurst went 9–2 with a 2.54 ERA under his new manager to end the season at 18–6, finishing fifth in balloting for the American League Cy Young Award that season. He pitched a complete game in Games 1 of the 1988 American League Championship Series against the Oakland Athletics, but was outmatched by Oakland's ace, Dave Stewart. [23] With Boston down three games to none, the two faced off again in Game 4 with Stewart and the A's again emerging victorious to complete the sweep. [24]

San Diego Padres

Hurst became a free agent following the 1988 season. He signed a three-year contract with the San Diego Padres worth $5.25 million. [25] Hurst indicated at the time that San Diego's relative proximity to St. George was the primary factor in his decision to leave Boston, [26] and later expressed regret in leaving the Red Sox. [27]

On April 10, 1989, he pitched a one-hitter against the Atlanta Braves for his first National League win and also collected his first MLB hit as a batter. [28] He was the first Padres pitcher to strike out 13 batters while allowing only one hit. [29] He went 15–11 with a career-best 2.69 ERA that season and led the National League with 10 complete games. [10]

On May 18, 1992, Hurst pitched a one-hit shutout over Dwight Gooden and the Mets. The only hit was a single by Chico Walker. [30] At the end of the season, Hurst began feeling pain in his left shoulder and underwent surgery to repair a torn rotator cuff and labrum. The rehabilitation was arduous, [1] and Hurst started only twice for the Padres in the first half of 1993, allowing 6 earned runs in 4+1⁄3 innings. [31]

Colorado Rockies

The Padres traded Hurst and Greg Harris to the Colorado Rockies on July 26, 1993 for Brad Ausmus, Doug Bochtler, and Andy Ashby. [32] Hurst started just three games for Colorado, never finishing the fourth inning. [31]

Texas Rangers

Hurst signed with the Texas Rangers for the 1994 season. He was 2–1 with a 7.11 ERA in eight starts through June,. With the repercussions of the surgery still lingering, he decided to retire less than three months into the season. [33] [34]

Career stats

Bruce Hurst
Pitching Coach Bruce Hurst visits the mound (2517935584) (cropped).jpg
Hurst with the China national baseball team in 2008
Pitcher
Born: (1958-03-24) March 24, 1958 (age 66)
St. George, Utah, U.S.
Batted: Left
Threw: Left
MLB debut
April 12, 1980, for the Boston Red Sox
Last MLB appearance
June 18, 1994, for the Texas Rangers
W LPCT ERA G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER R HR BB K WP HBP Fld%
145113.5623.92379359832302417.124631052114325874016895628.968

Consistently good but never overpowering hitters, Hurst was a specialist at changing speeds. His fastball was hard enough to get in on right-handed hitters, and he mixed it with an excellent curve and a slider as well. He also had a decent forkball at times. Thanks to his great control, Hurst was able to work corners well and had a profuse knowledge of each hitter.[ citation needed ] In seven postseason games, he had a 3–2 record with 37 strikeouts and a 2.29 ERA in 51 innings. [35]

Post-playing activities

Hurst was inducted to the Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame in November 2004, on the heels of the Red Sox 2004 World Series victory, the club's first since 1918. Believers of "The Curse of the Bambino" have pointed out the letters "BRUCE HURST" can be re-arranged as "B RUTH CURSE". With his mother Beth having died in December 2003 on the eve of the Red Sox World Series win in 2004, Hurst was quoted saying years later, "I'm pretty sure, knowing my mom, that she would have gone up and put her arm around Babe and said, 'Let's get this over with.'" [36]

In 2005, Hurst and Jim Lefebvre coached China to a bronze medal at the 23rd Asian Baseball Championship, the first time ever that China had defeated one of the "Big Three" Asian teams (Japan, South Korea, Chinese Taipei). In 2006, Hurst and Lefebvre also led the Chinese team in the inaugural World Baseball Classic, where they were eliminated in the first round of competition in the Asian bracket, which also featured eventual tournament champion Japan, as well as Korea and Chinese Taipei. Hurst also coached China alongside manager John McLaren in the Asian Baseball Championship in 2012 and 2013 World Baseball Classic.

Hurst returned to the Boston Red Sox during spring training in 2008 as a pitching instructor. [37] On February 26, 2008, Hurst was named as Special Assistant for Player Development with the Red Sox. [38] He worked for part of the 2015 season for the Los Angeles Dodgers, serving as a talent evaluator for players in Latin America. [1] [3]

During his 2019 Pawtucket Red Sox Hall of Fame induction ceremony, Clemens credited Hurst for giving him the nickname "Rocketman." [39] In a 2015 interview, Hurst described Clemens as "the greatest teammate ever." [3]

Personal life

Hurst met his wife Holly in 1979 during offseason studies at Dixie Junior College in St. George. They married in 1981, the year he graduated. They have four children. [1] Hurst was inducted into Dixie State's athletic hall of fame in 2011, and the school's baseball field is named for him. [40]

In 1999, Hurst and his wife moved to Gilbert, Arizona. [3]

Hurst identified himself as a Mormon. [1]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Wolf, Gregory (December 1, 2016). "Bruce Hurst". Society for American Baseball Research .
  2. ↑ ICAC Men's Basketball Statistics 1979-80. 1980 – via Internet Archive.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Shaughnessy, Dan (December 1, 2015). "Catching up with Bruce Hurst, the Series MVP who wasn't". The Boston Globe . Archived from the original on June 18, 2024.
  4. ↑ "1st Round of the 1976 MLB June Amateur Draft". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Bruce Hearst Minor League Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com.
  6. ↑ "Milwaukee Brewers 18, Boston Red Sox 1". Baseball-Reference.com. April 12, 1980.
  7. ↑ Distel, Dave (June 24, 1989). "Hurst Recalls Longest Game". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  8. ↑ "Longest game in baseball history". Pawtucket Red Sox . Archived from the original on August 4, 2002.
  9. ↑ "The longest baseball game took 33 innings to win". MLB.com. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  10. 1 2 "Bruce Hurst Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Rookie Status & More". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  11. ↑ "1984 Boston Red Sox Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  12. ↑ "Prospectus Q&A: Mike Boddicker". Baseball Prospectus. November 29, 2009.
  13. ↑ 1986 World Series Game 1 Boston Red Sox at New York Mets (TV broadcast). New York City: National Broadcasting Co. October 18, 1986.
  14. ↑ "Boston Red Sox vs Milwaukee Brewers Box Score: July 3, 1985". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  15. ↑ "Bruce Hurst 1985 Pitching Game Logs". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  16. ↑ "1986 World Series, Game One". Baseball-Reference.com. October 18, 1986.
  17. ↑ "1986 World Series, Game Five". Baseball-Reference.com. October 23, 1986.
  18. ↑ Shaughnessy, Dan (December 1, 2015). "Catching up with Bruce Hurst, the Series MVP who wasn't" . The Boston Globe . Retrieved November 2, 2024.
  19. ↑ Frank The Tank (October 25, 2021). "On This Date in Sports October 25, 1986: Game 6". barstoolsports.com. Retrieved November 2, 2024.
  20. ↑ "1986 World Series, Game Six". Baseball-Reference.com. October 25, 1986.
  21. ↑ "1986 World Series - New York Mets over Boston Red Sox (4-3)". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  22. ↑ "1987 All-Star Game". Baseball-Reference.com. July 14, 1987.
  23. ↑ "1988 American League Championship Series, Game One". Baseball-Reference.com. October 5, 1988.
  24. ↑ "1988 American League Championship Series, Game Four". Baseball-Reference.com. October 9, 1988.
  25. ↑ "Padres Sign Hurst for 3 Years". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. December 9, 1988.
  26. ↑ "San Diego Now Home to Hurst : After One Simple Change, He Signs for $5.25 Million". Los Angeles Times. December 9, 1988.
  27. ↑ "Catching up with Bruce Hurst, the Series MVP who wasn't". The Boston Globe. December 1, 2015.
  28. ↑ "San Diego Padres 5, Atlanta Braves 2". Baseball-Reference.com. April 10, 1989.
  29. ↑ "Padres Pitcher With At Least 13 Strikeouts In A Game While Allowing 1 Or Fewer Hits". StatMuse. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  30. ↑ "San Diego Padres 3, New York Mets 0". Baseball-Reference.com. May 18, 1992.
  31. 1 2 "Bruce Hurst 1993 Pitching Game Logs". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  32. ↑ "San Diego Trades Hurst, Harris to Rockies". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. July 27, 1993.
  33. ↑ Hinton, Jay (September 20, 1994). "HURST RETIRES TO BECOME FULL-TIME DAD". Deseret News. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  34. ↑ "AROUND THE MAJORS : Hurst Announces His Retirement". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. June 20, 1994. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  35. ↑ "Bruce Hurst Postseason Pitching Game Logs". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  36. ↑ Shaughnessy, Dan (2005). Reversing the Curse . New York: Houghton Mifflin. p.  11. ISBN   0-618-51748-0.
  37. ↑ Edes, Gordon (February 16, 2008). "Nonroster invitees are a varied group". Boston Globe. Retrieved February 26, 2008.
  38. ↑ Bradford, Rob (February 26, 2008). "Hurst set to pitch in: Joins team as special instructor". Boston Herald. Retrieved February 26, 2008.
  39. ↑ "Roger Clemens takes his place in PawSox Hall of Fame". June 21, 2019. Retrieved March 28, 2020.
  40. ↑ "Bruce Hurst Field". Utah Tech University Athletics .
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