Dennis Eckersley
Dennis Lee Eckersley (born October 3, 1954), nicknamed "Eck", is an American former professional baseball pitcher and color commentator. Between 1975 and 1998, he pitched in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cleveland Indians, Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, Oakland Athletics, and St. Louis Cardinals. Eckersley had success as a starter, but gained his greatest fame as a closer, becoming the first of two pitchers in major league history to have both a 20-win season and a 50-save season in a career.
Dennis Eckersley
Eckersley was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2004, his first year of eligibility. He previously worked with NESN as a part-time color commentator for Red Sox broadcasts, and has also worked for Turner Sports as a game analyst for their Sunday MLB Games and MLB postseason coverage on TBS. He retired from NESN in 2022.
Early life[edit]
Eckersley grew up in Fremont, California, rooting for both the San Francisco Giants and the Oakland Athletics of Major League Baseball (MLB). Two of his boyhood heroes were the Giants' Willie Mays and Juan Marichal, and he later adopted Marichal's high leg kick pitching delivery.[1]
Eckersley attended Washington High School in Fremont, California. He played for the football team as a quarterback until his senior year, when he gave up football to protect his throwing arm from injury.[2] He won 29 games as a pitcher at Washington, throwing a 90-mile-per-hour (140 km/h) fastball and a screwball.[3]
Baseball career[edit]
Cleveland Indians (1975–1977)[edit]
The Cleveland Indians selected Eckersley in the third round of the 1972 MLB draft; he was disappointed that he was not drafted by the Giants. He made his major league debut on April 12, 1975. He was the American League Rookie Pitcher of the Year in 1975, compiling a 13–7 win–loss record and 2.60 earned run average (ERA). His unstyled long hair, moustache, and live fastball made him an instant and identifiable fan favorite. Eckersley pitched reliably over three seasons with the Indians.
Pitching style[edit]
Eckersley's unusual delivery utilized a high leg kick along with a long, pronounced sidearm throwing motion. He had pinpoint accuracy, and fellow Hall of Famer Goose Gossage said of him, "He could hit a gnat in the butt with a pitch if he wanted to.” Eckersley was aggressive and animated on the mound, and he was known for his intimidating stare and pumping his fist after a strikeout.[17] As a starter, Eckersley was able to throw four pitches for strikes, but as a reliever he narrowed his repertoire to two pitches; a sinker and a backdoor slider.[18]
Personal life[edit]
Eckersley married his first wife Denise in 1973 and they had a daughter, Mandee Eckersley. Denise left him for Rick Manning, his then–Cleveland Indians teammate, in 1978; the affair precipitated Eckersley's trade to the Red Sox that year.[33] Two years later, Eckersley married model Nancy O'Neil.[6] They adopted two children together, a son Jake and a daughter Alexandra.[34] They divorced shortly after his retirement from baseball.[35] His third wife, Jennifer, is a former lobbyist and manages Eckersley's business and charitable affairs.[36]
During the first half of his career, Eckersley had problems with alcohol; he became sober in January 1987.[37]
An MLB Network documentary about Eckersley, titled Eck: A Story of Saving, premiered on December 13, 2018.[38]
In December 2022, Eckersley's adopted daughter Alexandra, a homeless person, was arrested on suspicion of abandoning her newborn in a wooded area in 18 degree weather and misleading authorities as to the infant's whereabouts.[39] Alexandra had been homeless since 2018 and suffering from addiction and mental health issues.[40]