Playing career
In 1973, as a high school senior, Bannister led his Kennedy High School team in Burien, Washington to a state championship, pitching 15 wins and 0 losses with a season ERA of 0.00. [2] His performance led to him being selected in the third round (71st overall) of the 1973 Major League Baseball draft by the Oakland Athletics, but he did not sign. [3]
Bannister then attended Arizona State University, where he was named college player of the year by The Sporting News as a junior. [4] He was later inducted into the Sun Devils Hall of Fame and College Baseball Hall of Fame. [5] [6]
The Houston Astros selected Bannister as the first overall pick of the 1976 Major League Baseball draft. He signed with team, earning a $100,000 bonus. [7] [4]
After pitching just seven games in the minors in 1976, Bannister opened the 1977 season with the Astros. He appeared in 24 games (23 starts), going 8–9 with a 4.04 earned run average (ERA). He finished fourth in National League Rookie of the Year voting. [1] He spent one more season with the Astros before Houston traded him to the Seattle Mariners for shortstop Craig Reynolds on December 8, 1978. [8]
Bannister spent four years in Seattle, with his last year there being his best. Bannister finished the season 12–13 with a 3.43 ERA in 35 starts and was selected his only All-Star Game. He also led the American League with 209 strikeouts, a career best. In 1983 and 1985, he led the American League in strikeouts per nine innings with averages of 8.0 and 8.5, respectively. [1]
On December 13, 1982, Bannister signed a five-year contract with the Chicago White Sox as a free agent. [9] During his time in Chicago, he was a solid starting pitcher, averaging 13 wins per season. In his first season with the White Sox, Bannister went 16–10 with a career-low 3.35 ERA in 34 starts, helping the team earn a playoff spot. He also tossed a career-high 11 complete games in 1987, his last season with the White Sox. [1]
On December 10, 1987, Bannister and infielder Dave Cochrane were traded to the Kansas City Royals for pitchers John Davis, Mélido Pérez, Chuck Mount, and Greg Hibbard. [10] Bannister had another solid season in 1988, going 12–13 with a 4.33 ERA in 31 starts. [1] However, in June 1989, he suffered an injury which knocked him out for the rest of the year. Finding no takers as a free agent, Bannister went to Japan in 1990, playing for the Yakult Swallows. In nine starts for the Swallows, he went 3–2 with a 4.04 ERA. [11]
On December 13, 1990, Bannister signed a minor league contract with the California Angels, [12] where he was converted into a reliever. He recorded a 3.96 ERA in 16 relief appearances with the Angels before being released on August 29. After one last season with the Texas Rangers in 1992, Bannister was released in August, ending his professional career. [1]
Armed with a strong fastball and big breaking curveball, [13] [14] Bannister averaged 6.49 strikeouts per nine innings in his career but also shuffled between six different teams in 15 years in the majors. He gave up more than 30 home runs in four different seasons [1] and coaches, including Don Drysdale and Dave Duncan, questioned his mental approach to pitching. [14] Bannister later said he would have been more successful if he threw more curveballs. [4]
Bannister compiled a 134–143 record with a 4.06 ERA in 431 games (363 starts). He had 62 complete games in his career, along with 16 shutouts. He amassed 1,723 strikeouts over his career, averaging 147 a year. [1] He held several records for the nascent Mariners franchise, including career strikeouts and complete games, that have since been bested by several pitchers. [15]
