Jim McGlothlin--1969
He was an All-Star?
As surprised as I was to learn that Jim
McGlothlin was an All-Star back in 1967;
I was even more surprised to discover
that he passed away at age 32 from
leukemia--- and just miles away from
where I presently live.
In his first full season in the bigs, the
right-hander ambushed the American
League in early '67, posting an
impressive 7-2, 1.80 mark courtesy of
five shutouts before the All-Star Game.
A local high school phenom signed by
the Angels out of the San Fernando
Valley; McGlothlin would hurl two innings
of 1-hit shutout ball in the 2-1, National
League victory. While the game was won
on Tony Perez' home run off Catfish
Hunter in the fifteenth inning; the
freckled McGlothlin left the hometown
crowd a buzz with his outing that evening
at Anaheim Stadium.
The 23-year-old would allow a scratch
single to short by Hank Aaron, as his
outing included strike outs of
Philadelphia's Dick Allen and Pittsburgh
shortstop Gene Alley and four ground
balls.
Shoulder and back issues dogged
McGlothlin for the remainder of the '67
season, as he finished with a 12-8, 2.96
record, leading the American League
with six shutouts.
Moved to the Reds in 1970, he helped
Cincinnati get to the World Series with a
14-10 record as he eased some of the
speculation that the Reds pulled another
"Frank Robinson" as they shipped
disgruntled outfielder Alex Johnson to
the Angels. Johnson would lead the AL in
batting with a .329 mark in 1970, though
would never again reach .300 for a
season in his career.
McGlothlin would go 34-33 in four
seasons with the Reds, before closing
out his career with five outings for the
White Sox in 1973.
I trust that McGlothlin enjoyed his stay in
Cincinnati, as the native Californian
would make the Queen City his home
until his untimely death in 1975.
Buried in a cemetery just 10 miles from
my home, I may venture over to view
McGlothlin's tombstone. Hopefully it
says, "He was a good husband, a good
father and an All-Star."
(7/18/10)
As surprised as I was to learn that Jim
McGlothlin was an All-Star back in 1967;
I was even more surprised to discover
that he passed away at age 32 from
leukemia--- and just miles away from
where I presently live.
In his first full season in the bigs, the
right-hander ambushed the American
League in early '67, posting an
impressive 7-2, 1.80 mark courtesy of
five shutouts before the All-Star Game.
A local high school phenom signed by
the Angels out of the San Fernando
Valley; McGlothlin would hurl two innings
of 1-hit shutout ball in the 2-1, National
League victory. While the game was won
on Tony Perez' home run off Catfish
Hunter in the fifteenth inning; the
freckled McGlothlin left the hometown
crowd a buzz with his outing that evening
at Anaheim Stadium.
The 23-year-old would allow a scratch
single to short by Hank Aaron, as his
outing included strike outs of
Philadelphia's Dick Allen and Pittsburgh
shortstop Gene Alley and four ground
balls.
Shoulder and back issues dogged
McGlothlin for the remainder of the '67
season, as he finished with a 12-8, 2.96
record, leading the American League
with six shutouts.
Moved to the Reds in 1970, he helped
Cincinnati get to the World Series with a
14-10 record as he eased some of the
speculation that the Reds pulled another
"Frank Robinson" as they shipped
disgruntled outfielder Alex Johnson to
the Angels. Johnson would lead the AL in
batting with a .329 mark in 1970, though
would never again reach .300 for a
season in his career.
McGlothlin would go 34-33 in four
seasons with the Reds, before closing
out his career with five outings for the
White Sox in 1973.
I trust that McGlothlin enjoyed his stay in
Cincinnati, as the native Californian
would make the Queen City his home
until his untimely death in 1975.
Buried in a cemetery just 10 miles from
my home, I may venture over to view
McGlothlin's tombstone. Hopefully it
says, "He was a good husband, a good
father and an All-Star."
(7/18/10)
