Robert Craig McClure (born April 29, 1952) is an American former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

player and

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

. He played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

as a left-handed

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

from 1975 to 1993, most notably as a member of the

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. The Brewers are named for t ...

with whom he won the 1982 American League pennant. Following his playing career, he has served as a coach for several MLB teams.

Playing career

Kansas City Royals

McClure was born in

Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...

, and attended Terra Nova High School in

Pacifica, California Pacifica ( es, Pacífica, meaning "Peaceful") is a city in San Mateo County, California, on the coast of the Pacific Ocean between San Francisco and Half Moon Bay. Overview The City of Pacifica is spread along a stretch of coastal beaches and hi ...

, and

College of San Mateo College of San Mateo (CSM) is a public community college in San Mateo, California. It is part of the San Mateo County Community College District. College of San Mateo is located at the northern corridor of Silicon Valley and situated on a 15 ...

San Mateo, California San Mateo ( ; ) is a city in San Mateo County, California, on the San Francisco Peninsula. About 20 miles (32 km) south of San Francisco, the city borders Burlingame to the north, Hillsborough to the west, San Francisco Bay and Foster C ...

. He was drafted by the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

in the third round of the January phase of the 1973 Major League Baseball draft, however chose not to sign. Instead, he signed with the

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expans ...

, who selected him in the secondary phase of the draft that June, also in the third round. The Royals used McClure as a

starting pitcher In baseball (hardball or softball), a starting pitcher or starter is the first pitcher in the game for each team. A pitcher is credited with a game started if they throw the first pitch to the opponent's first batter of a game. Starting pit ...

his first professional season in the Pioneer League in 1973. He went 10–2 with a 2.11

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

for the

Billings Mustangs The Billings Mustangs are an independent baseball team of the Pioneer League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball (MLB) but is an MLB Partner League. They are located in Billings, Montana, and have played their home games at Dehler ...

. He started in 1974 as well, and was converted to a

relief pitcher In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed because of fatigue (medical), fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection (sports), ejection, or for other strategic ...

in 1975. He made his major league debut with the Royals on August 13, 1975 against the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...

, pitching one inning, striking out one and walking one. On September 23, he entered a ballgame at

Kauffman Stadium Kauffman Stadium (), often called "The K", is a baseball stadium located in Kansas City, Missouri. It is home to the Kansas City Royals of Major League Baseball (MLB). It is part of the Truman Sports Complex together with the adjacent Arrowhe ...

against the Texas Rangers with one out and one on in the second inning. He pitched six scoreless innings to earn his first major league win. McClure spent most of with the triple A

Omaha Royals Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County, Nebraska, Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. List of ...

, appearing in only eight games and pitching only four innings with the big league club.

Milwaukee Brewers

On December 6, 1976, the

sent

catcher Catcher is a Baseball positions, position in baseball and softball. When a Batter (baseball), batter takes their at bat, turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home plate, home) Umpire (baseball), umpire, and recei ...

Darrell Porter Darrell Ray Porter (January 17, 1952 – August 5, 2002) was an American professional baseball catcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1971 to 1987 for the Milwaukee Brewers, Kansas City Royals, St. Louis Cardinals, and Texas Ran ...

and pitcher

Jim Colborn James William Colborn (born May 22, 1946) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. The right-handed Colborn pitched for the Chicago Cubs (-), Milwaukee Brewers (-), Kansas City Royals (-) and Seattle Mariners (1978). Biography After graduatin ...

to the Kansas City Royals for

Jamie Quirk James Patrick Quirk (; born October 22, 1954) is an American former professional baseball player and coach. He played as a catcher in Major League Baseball from 1975 to 1992. Quirk was a member of the world champion 1985 Kansas City Royals team. ...

, Jim Wohlford and a player to be named later. On March 15, 1977, McClure was sent to the Brewers to complete the deal. With the Brewers, McClure led his team in saves in 1978 and 1980, then spent almost all of 1981 on the

disabled list In Major League Baseball (MLB), the injured list (IL) is a method for teams to remove their injured players from the roster in order to summon healthy players. Before the 2019 season, it was known as the disabled list (DL). General guidelines ...

with arm problems. In 1982, he was moved to the starting rotation and had a 12–7 mark for the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

champion Brewers, but he returned to the

bullpen In baseball, the bullpen (or simply the pen) is the area where relief pitchers warm up before entering a game. A team's roster of relief pitchers is also metonymically referred to as "the bullpen". These pitchers usually wait in the bullpen if t ...

after incumbent closer Rollie Fingers was unavailable for the postseason. In the

1982 World Series The 1982 World Series was the World Series, championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1982 Major League Baseball season, 1982 season. The 79th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the National Leag ...

against the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

, McClure made five appearances, saving Games Four and Five, but he also had two losses, including a blown save in the decisive Game Seven. McClure came back to the Brewers starting rotation in 1983 and 1984, before returning to relief duties in .

Montreal Expos

Midseason 1986, he was traded to the

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos (french: link=no, Les Expos de Montréal) were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal, Quebec. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in t ...

, going 2–5 with a 3.02 ERA his first season in the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...

. The following season, his record improved to 6–1 out of the Montreal bullpen.

New York Mets

McClure was 1–3 with a 6.16 ERA when the Expos released him in July 1988. He signed with the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

shortly afterwards, where he was reunited with his CSM teammate

Keith Hernandez Keith Hernandez (born October 20, 1953) is an American former Major League Baseball first baseman who played the majority of his career with the St. Louis Cardinals and New York Mets. Hernandez was a five-time All-Star who shared the 1979 NL MVP ...

, with whom he also played

Little League baseball Little League Baseball and Softball (officially, Little League Baseball Inc) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization California Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team ha ...

for 1989. Despite going 8–1 in his first two seasons with the Angels, McClure pitched poorly in early 1991, and was released by the Angels in June.

St. Louis Cardinals

McClure signed with the St. Louis Cardinals for the remainder of the 1991 season, and remained with the Cards through 1992. He signed with the expansion

Florida Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park. The franc ...

for their inaugural season in , and retired after being released by the Marlins in May.

Coaching career

Colorado Rockies

Following his playing career, McClure worked as a pitching coach for the

Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors Fie ...

organization from 1999 through 2005, including four seasons at Triple-A

Colorado Springs Colorado Springs is a home rule municipality in, and the county seat of, El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is the largest city in El Paso County, with a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States Census, a 15.02% increase since ...

Kansas City Royals

For the 2006 season, new Royals manager

Buddy Bell David Gus "Buddy" Bell (born August 27, 1951) is an American former third baseman and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB) currently serving as vice president and senior advisor to the general manager for the Cincinnati Reds. After an 18-year ...

asked McClure to replace Guy Hansen as their new pitching coach. The Royals fired McClure from his pitching coach position following the 2011 season.

Boston Red Sox

In November 2011, the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

confirmed reports that they had hired McClure as a

scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement *Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement **Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom **Scouts BSA, sectio ...

, roving minor league pitching instructor, and special assistant for player development. On December 21, 2011, McClure was promoted to pitching coach for Boston's major league team. He was fired from this position on August 20, 2012.

Philadelphia Phillies

On November 21, 2013, he was named to

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...

Ryne Sandberg Ryne Dee Sandberg (born September 18, 1959), nicknamed "Ryno", is an American former professional baseball player, coach, and manager. He played sixteen seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a second baseman for the Philadelphia Phillies (19 ...

's staff as the 2014 pitching coach of the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

, succeeding

Rich Dubee Richard Peter Dubee, Jr. (born October 19, 1957) is a former Major League Baseball (MLB) coach. He has previously coached at the Major League level for the Florida Marlins (now Miami Marlins), Philadelphia Phillies, and Detroit Tigers. Playin ...

Minnesota Twins

In January 2020, McClure was hired by the Twins to serve as their bullpen coach. However, it was subsequently announced that he was not cleared to join the Twins, following an evaluation of "the health histories of all staff members" during the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

References

External links

Baseball AlmanacBaseball Library
{{DEFAULTSORT:McClure, Bob 1952 births Living people American expatriate baseball players in Canada Baseball coaches from California Baseball players from Oakland, California Billings Mustangs players Boston Red Sox coaches Burlington Bees players California Angels players Florida Marlins coaches Florida Marlins players Jacksonville Suns players Kansas City Royals coaches Kansas City Royals players Major League Baseball bullpen coaches Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball pitching coaches Milwaukee Brewers players Montreal Expos players New York Mets players Omaha Royals players Palm Springs Angels players Philadelphia Phillies coaches Quad Cities Cubs players San Mateo Bulldogs baseball players St. Louis Cardinals players