Bobby Gene Tiefenauer (October 10, 1929 – June 13, 2000) was an American

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professional ...

player Player may refer to: Role or adjective * Player (game), a participant in a game or sport ** Gamer, a player in video and tabletop games ** Athlete, a player in sports ** Player character, a character in a video game or role playing game who ...

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 ...

. A

knuckleball A knuckleball or knuckler is a baseball pitch thrown to minimize the spin of the ball in flight, causing an erratic, unpredictable motion. The air flow over a seam of the ball causes the ball to change from laminar to turbulent flow. This cha ...

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, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection, or for other strategic reasons, such as inclement weat ...

, he pitched for six Major League teams during a ten-year MLB career that stretched between and : 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 ...

(1952, 1955, 1961),

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive Fi ...

(1960, 1965–67),

Houston Colt .45s The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after s ...

(1962), Milwaukee Braves (1963–65),

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...

(1965) and Chicago Cubs (1968). Tiefenauer was born in

Desloge, Missouri Desloge ( ) is a city in St. Francois County, Missouri, United States. The population was 5,054 as of the 2010 census. History The city was founded by Firmin V. Desloge II, son of Firmin René Desloge, who migrated from France, settled in Pot ...

; he threw and batted

right-handed In human biology, handedness is an individual's preferential use of one hand, known as the dominant hand, due to it being stronger, faster or more dextrous. The other hand, comparatively often the weaker, less dextrous or simply less subjecti ...

and was listed as tall and . Tiefenauer signed with the Cardinals in 1948, beginning his 21-year pitching career, but spent only two full seasons ( and ) on a major league roster. In 1964, with the Milwaukee Braves, he had one of his better seasons,

saving Saving is income not spent, or deferred consumption. Methods of saving include putting money aside in, for example, a deposit account, a pension account, an investment fund, or as cash. Saving also involves reducing expenditures, such as recur ...

13 games (eighth best 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 ...

) with an

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 ...

of 3.21. All told, Tiefenauer worked in 179 MLB games pitched, exclusively as a relief pitcher. He posted a 9–25 won–lost mark, with 23 career saves. In 316 innings pitched, he allowed 312 hits and 87 bases on balls, with 212 strikeouts. His career ERA was 3.84. Tiefenauer collected only one hit in 39 at-bats for a career

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

of .026. The hit occurred in the fourth inning of the game between the Houston Colt .45s and the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Y ...

on September 29, 1962, and it was an extra base hit, a

double A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another. Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to: Film and television * Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character * ...

, struck off one of the best pitchers in baseball that year,

Jack Sanford John Stanley Sanford (May 18, 1929 – March 7, 2000) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher from through . Sanford was notable for the meteoric start to his career when, he led ...

, who would win 24 games for the pennant-winning 1962 Giants. Tiefenauer pitched six innings in relief that day, and also came up to bat in the sixth inning when he grounded out to shortstop. After his active career, Tiefenauer joined the Philadelphia Phillies' organization as a minor league pitching coach from 1970 into the 1980s, and served one year, , as the bullpen coach on the Phils' MLB staff. Tiefenauer enjoyed multiple brilliant seasons in the Triple-A International League during the late 1950s and early 1960s, posting a composite won–lost record of 49–15 over four seasons between 1958 and 1963. He was posthumously elected to the

International League Hall of Fame The International League Hall of Fame is an American baseball hall of fame which honors players, managers, and executives of the International League (IL). It was created by the International League Baseball Writers' Association in 1947 to honor t ...

in 2008.

References

External links

Bobby Tiefenauer
at SABR (Baseball BioProject) {{DEFAULTSORT:Tiefenauer, Bobby 1929 births 2000 deaths Atlanta Crackers players Baseball players from Missouri Charleston Marlins players Charleston Senators players Chicago Cubs players Cleveland Indians players Houston Buffaloes players Houston Colt .45s players Knuckleball pitchers Major League Baseball bullpen coaches Major League Baseball pitchers Milwaukee Braves players New York Yankees players Omaha Cardinals players People from St. Francois County, Missouri Philadelphia Phillies coaches Portland Beavers players Rochester Red Wings players St. Louis Cardinals players San Juan Marlins players Tacoma Cubs players Tallassee Indians players Toledo Mud Hens players Toronto Maple Leafs (International League) players Winston-Salem Cardinals players