Greatest 21 Days Baseball Profiles

Tacoma starter Pat Wernig thought he struggled over the first few innings of this June 1991 game, then settled in and cruised, he told The Richmond Times-Dispatch . By the time the last out came, a pop to right, Wernig had a no-hitter . "It was kind of shocking," Wernig told his hometown Times-Dispatch . "Everybody was going nuts. I said, 'Wow. I did it." Wernig threw that no-hitter in his fifth season as a pro and his first at AAA. He saw two more pro seasons, but he topped out there at AAA . Wernig's career began in 1987, taken by the Athletics in the 15th round of the draft out of Texas A&M University. Wernig started with the Athletics between short-season Medford and single-A Modesto. He went 2-4 between them, over 23 outings, three starts, with a 4.74 ERA. He moved to single-A Madison for 1988 and went 11-6, with a 3.02 ERA in 26 starts. He threw a complete game for a 13-3, despite having a rough three-run inning in the third, The Wisconsin Stat...

Seton Hall's Marteese Robinson had a 21-game hitting streak his junior year and powered his club to an 18-4 record by early April, The Morristown Daily Record wrote . In addition to helping his team, he also looked ahead to the possibility of turning pro, The Daily Record wrote . "It all depends on how the scouts see my individual skills," Robinson told The Daily Record . "I'm trying to play as hard as I can defensively, too, because I feel that is an underrated part of my game." Robinson did go on to turn pro that year in the draft. His pro career ended up lasting four seasons . He topped out at AA. But he ended up staying in the game, as a scout himself. Robinson's career began in 1987,  taken by the Athletics  in the sixth round of the draft out of Seton Hall University. Robinson started with the Athletics between short-season Medford and single-A Modesto. He hit .231 in 54 games. He then moved to single-A Madison for 1988. He hit .251 in 125 games....

Features on each member of the 1990 Huntsville Stars, AA affiliate of the Oakland Athletics. Interview (1) 1 - Glenn Abbott , Head On, 8/17/14 Huntsville Stars (28) 1 -  Glenn Abbott  saw bigs over decade, later turned coach 2 -  Dana Allison  made bigs with Athletics for 11 appearances 3 -  Rich Berg  played five pro seasons, made AA with Athletics 4 -  Dean Borrelli  played 8 pro seasons, turned coach, instructor 5 -  Jorge Brito  saw two majors seasons with Rockies, was awed 6 -  Scott Brosius  made name for himself in bigs over 11 seasons 7 -  Tony Brown  worked to hit hard over decade-plus in pros 8 -  James Buccheri  saw 13 minors seasons, made AAA, Italy 6 -  Ozzie Canseco  amassed experience over 15 pro seasons 7 -  Sam Chavez  assessed pitching over 5 seasons, made AA 8 -  Steve Chitren  was driven by bigs, made it in 2 seasons 9...

Steve Chitren experienced success at Stanford, enough to be considered the school's greatest reliever. So, when he moved to the pros, he worked to continue that success, according to The Stanford Daily . He continued it to the majors . "It's what drives you to keep working hard," Chitren told The Daily of that success. "(And) it makes you aware of what your limitations are." Chitren worked hard and made the majors in 1990. He returned for the full season in 1991. He pitched in a total of 64 games in the majors, all in relief. He played four more seasons, but couldn't work his way back. Chitren's pro career began in 1989, taken in the sixth round of draft out of Stanford . At Stanford, Chitren helped his team to two College World Series titles, in 1987 and 1988. He saved 13 games in 1987 and 10 in 1988, still two of the three top save totals in school history. Stanford won its second title after Chitren got out of trouble in the cha...

Daryl Green threw hard in high school, 94 mph hard, according to The Galveston Daily News . Green threw fast enough for scouts to take notice and project him just getting better, Green's coach at Nacogdoches High School Bobby Reyes told The Daily News . "The thing they all have told me is he's one of the few prospects improving," Reyes told The Daily News of Green. "The other thing they like is he's a competitor. He's able to reach back and find that little extra." The Angels liked what they saw in Green and took him late in the first round of the 1986 draft. Green, however, never lived up to those early expectations. He played six professional seasons . He never made AAA. Green's pro career started that year in 1986, taken by the Angels 28th overall in the draft out of Nacogdoches. Green started with the Angels at short-season Salem . He went just 1-6 over 14 starts, with a 5.99 ERA. He then moved to single-A Quad City for 1987...

Speaking in the summer of 2016, Ozzie Canseco explained what backed his approach to young hitters, according to The Amarillo Globe-News . The hitting coach for the Sioux Falls Canaries reached back to his playing days . "The fact that I got a lot of experience in minor league baseball helps," Canseco told The Globe-News . "I know how to develop young hitters and their minds." By 2016, Canseco had plenty of experience in the minors and in independent ball, more than three decades of it. He also had some experience in the majors, all of 24 games over three seasons. He also had the experience of being the twin brother of one of the most well-known baseball players of the late-1980s and 1990s, Jose Canseco . Canseco's career in baseball began in 1983, taken by the Yankees in the second round of the 1989 draft out of Miami-Dade College . Canseco started his pro career with the Yankees as a pitcher at single-A Greensboro. He went 3-6 over 27 outings...

The man who got Will Schock his job praised Schock's work in 2012 - after two decades on the job, according to The Marin Independent Journal . Schock's job for two decades has been as a scout for the Oakland Athletics. The man who got him that job was a fellow scout and later special assistant to Oakland GM Billy Beane, The Independent Journal wrote . "One of the things that always comes out with Will is his passion and his love for what he did," Fuson told The Independent Journal . "He really took a personal interest into the players that he evaluated, especially on the amateur side. And I can't sit here and remember one time that I asked Will Schock a question about one of his players that he didn't have what he believed was the right answer and that's a big attribute for the job." Schock started scouting for the Athletics shortly after his own playing career ended. Schock played five seasons as a pro. He made AAA, but he didn't ma...

A star at Jacksonville High School in Arkansas, Ray Harris went on to play in college and in the pros. When inducted into the high school's Hall of Fame in 2009, though, he looked back at the American Legion state championship he and his teammates won in 1984, according to The Arkansas Leader . "That was the funnest time I ever had," Harris told The Leader . "I think what really makes it special is it's the guys you grew up with, the guys you went to school with since fourth grade, the guys you played Legion with and all-stars and Babe Ruth." Harris started his pro career four years after that Legion win. His pro career lasted just three seasons. He made AA, but he didn't make it higher . Harris turned pro in 1988, taken by the Athletics in the 22nd round of the draft out of the University of Arkansas. Harris is also sometimes credited by his given name Dannie Harris. At Arkansas, Harris helped the club to two College World Series. He also ...

One of Dan Eskew 's rival high school hitters could only praise the McGavock High School product to The Nashville Tennessean . The occasion for the praise was The Tennessean naming its 1984 All-Metro team. Eskew won Player of year in his class. "Dan's ball comes in real hard, he has a fluid motion that kind of fools you," Dejuan Buford told The Tennessean of Eskew. "At first, you think all he has is a fastball but he's got a mean slider, too." Eskew went on from Nashville's McGavock High to play in college and in the pros. His pro career lasted four seasons . He made AAA, but not the bigs. Eskew's pro career began in 1988, taken by the Athletics in the sixth round of the draft out of the University of Tennessee. He also played at Indian River Community College in Florida. Eskew finished out his high school career with a state title, throwing a no-hitter along the way. At Tennessee, Eskew picked up five wins in 1987 in 65.2 inni...

Midway through perhaps his best season as a pro, Sam Chavez dissected the performance of the night's opposing pitcher to The Chicago Reader . That night's opposing pitcher had a fastball and that was it, The Reader wrote . "You can't get by on just one pitch," Chavez told The Reader , "not even at this level." Chavez spoke to The Reader in a feature on his single-A South Bend White Sox and during perhaps his best stretch as a pro. Chavez went 15-3 there, with a 1.91 ERA, winning league Pitcher of the Year honors . Chavez went on to play in a total of five pro seasons . He made AA, but he didn't make it higher. Chavez' career began in 1986, signed by the Reds as an undrafted free agent out of New Mexico State University . Chavez is also credited as Samuel Chavez. Chavez started with the Reds in the rookie Gulf Coast League. He went 3-2, with a 3.18 ERA. He moved to rookie Billings in 1987 and then single-A Cedar Rapids in 1988. ...

Going into his eighth pro season in 1983, Tack Wilson received news from two team officials, his AAA manager and the Dodgers farm director and the news was bad, according to The New York Times Magazine . Both informed the minor league veteran that they didn't see Wilson as a big league player, Wilson told The Times Magazine . "If something doesn't happen for me this season," Wilson told The Times Magazine , "that'll be it. At my age it's do or die. A person can only take so much." Wilson soon received some new life in the form of a trade. Arriving with the Twins, the club brought him up to Minnesota for his big league debut. His reprieve, though, was short-lived. He his time in the bigs that year turned out to be brief. Wilson ultimately decided to stay in the game , making another brief appearance in 1987 with the Angels. Wilson didn't stop playing until 1990, spending one final season at AA with the Athletics at the age of 34. In a...

Bob Ralston explained his approach to coaching to The San Jose Mercury News in 2013. By that point, he'd coached in the minors, high school and college. He'd also played seven seasons in the minors. In 2013, he served as head coach at Cal State East Bay . "I'm a firm believer in being a good teacher," Ralston told The Mercury News that April. "We try to teach the kids how to play the game the right way. We try to give them positive feedback." Ralston's career in baseball began in 1984, taken by the Twins in the sixth round of the 1984 draft out of the University of Arizona. Ralston is also credited as Bobby Ralston and Robert Ralston. With Arizona, Ralston led his team with a .363 average in 1984, after hitting .336 the year before. He also was named a Baseball America First Team All-American in 1984. Ralston started off the 1984 season strong for Arizona, picking up four hits in a January game, according to The Arizona Republic . ...

Jeff Newman 's Huntsville Stars took this August 1990 game on a one-out, ninth-inning single, capping a somewhat frustrating day for the team, according to The Orlando Sentinel . Huntsville out-hit Orlando 12 to 5 on the day, needing that 12th hit to seal the win, The Sentinel wrote . "Timely hitting - that's what counts in the end," the Huntsville manager Newman told The Sentinel afterward. "We left a lot of men on base but got the big hit when we needed to." Newman got a few big hits of his own in his time, having previously spent nearly a decade in the majors as a player. He's since returned to the majors as a base coach , helping direct runners around the base paths to capitalize on those big hits. Newman's long career in baseball began in 1970, taken by the Indians in the 26th round of the draft out of Texas Christian University. Newman started in the rookie Gulf Coast League. He made AA San Antonio in 1973, then AAA in 1974. Afte...

Brian Veilleux helped his Texas Christian squad in this April 1987 game, both on the mound and at the plate, according to The Oklahoman . Veilleux took the win on the mound, The Oklahoman wrote . He sealed the 14-7 victory by hitting an eighth-inning grand slam. Veilleux went on from TCU to turn pro. His pro career, however, lasted just four seasons . He made it to AA, but no higher. Veilleaux' professional career began in 1987, taken by the Athletics in the 16th round of the draft out of TCU. Veilleaux started with the Athletics at short-season Medford . He got into eight games in relief, giving up seven earned runs in 13 innings. He moved to single-A Madison for 1988, getting into 16 outings, starting 13. He went 5-6, with a 2.92 ERA. At single-A Modesto in 1989, Veilleaux picked up six wins to four losses in a return mostly to relief work. In 30 outings, eight starts, Veilleaux turned in a 3.09 ERA . Veilleaux' final season came in 1990 at AA Huntsville. H...

Pete Kuld played on into his eighth pro season in 1994 his second in independent ball. Speaking to The Los Angeles Times that September, Kuld explained why he continued. "I felt I was never given a real opportunity in minor-league ball," Kuld told The Times . "I'm wearing this uniform because I still want to play in the major leagues." Kuld played a total of six seasons in the minors, making it as high as AA. He played a total of four in independent ball. He never made the majors - or back to the minors. Kuld's career began in 1987, taken by the Indians in the 13th round of the June secondary draft out of Pepperdine. Kuld is also credited by his full name, Peter Kuld. At Pepperdine, Kuld knocked two hits in a February 1987 game. He also made the All-Conference team that year He started with the Indians at single-A Kinston . The catcher hit .185 in 35 games. He then moved to single-A Waterloo for 1988, then briefly returned to Kinston for th...

The bases loaded and nobody out in this June 1988 game, Modesto reliever Mark Stancel came up big, according to The Reno Gazette-Journal . Stancel responded by inducing a third-to-catcher-to-first double play that The Gazette-Journal wrote effectively ended the Reno threat. Stancel ended that threat in his third season as a pro . He went on to play in three more campaigns. Stancel's career - and soon his life - were soon cut short by cancer. Three years after his career ended, Stancel passed away at the age of 29. Stancel's career began in 1986, taken by the Athletics in the seventh round of the draft out of Hinds Community College in Mississippi. Stancel started with the Athletics at short-season Medford . He went 5-2 over 21 relief outings, with a 3.33 ERA. He also saved five games. He moved to single-A Madison for 1987, starting just nine games. He returned to the field in 1988 at single-A Modesto. In 35 outings, 14 starts, Stancel went 4-12, with a 4.68 ER...

Tony Brown fueled the Tidewater Tides in this May 1989 game, knocking three hits and scoring twice, according to The Newport News Daily Press . He picked up those hits after a 10-at-bat stretch where he picked up no hits, The Daily Press wrote . "I wasn't too concerned, because I had been hitting the ball hard," Brown told The Daily Press of his hitless streak. "But sometimes when you hit the ball hard it goes right at someone." Other times when Brown hit the ball, it went over the fence. On one day the previous year at AA, Brown hit the ball hard enough over a double-header to knock the ball over the fence four times . Overall, Brown hit the ball in 10 professional seasons . He never hit it hard enough to make the majors. He made it as high as AAA, but no higher. Brown's career began in 1982, signed by the Phillies out of his native North Carolina . Brown started with the Phillies at short-season Bend . The outfielder hit .312 over 51 games. H...