John Bruce Dal Canton (June 15, 1941 – October 7, 2008) was a
major league 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 ...
for the
Pittsburgh Pirates (1967–70),
Kansas City Royals (1971–75),
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in Bos ...
(1975–76), and
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...
(1977).
Career
Dal Canton's career path to the major leagues was unusual in that he was signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates as the result of an open tryout. Dal Canton was teaching high school at Burgettstown JR / SR high school in
Burgettstown, Pennsylvania
Burgettstown is a borough in northwestern Washington County, Pennsylvania. The population was 1,424 according to the 2020 census. It is part of the Pittsburgh metropolitan area.
History
Burgettstown was laid out in 1795 by Sebastian Burgett, and ...
at the time of his signing. In eleven seasons he had a 51–49 win–loss record, 316 games (83 starts), 15 complete games, 2 shutouts, 102 games finished, 19 saves, 931.1 innings pitched, 894 hits allowed, 442 runs allowed, 380 earned runs allowed, 48 home runs allowed, 391 walks, 485 strikeouts, 23 hit batsmen, 46 wild pitches, 4,030 batters faced, 55 intentional walks, 5 balks, a 3.67 ERA and a 1.380 WHIP. He led 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 ...
in wild pitches (16) in 1974.
Dal Canton was traded along with
Freddie Patek
Freddie Joseph Patek (; born October 9, 1944), nicknamed The Flea or The Cricket, is an American former professional baseball shortstop who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Kansas City Royals and California Angels ...
and
Jerry May from the
Pirates to the
Royals for
Jackie Hernández
Jacinto Hernández Zulueta (September 11, 1940 – October 12, 2019)Dipaola, Jerry.Ex-Pirates SS Jackie Hernandez, member of 1971 World Series champs, dies, The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, October 16, 2019. was a Cuban professional baseball play ...
,
Bob Johnson and
Jim Campanis
James Alexander Campanis (born February 9, 1944 in New York City), is a former professional ballplayer who played in the Major Leagues primarily as a catcher from 1966 to 1970 and 1973. Campanis batted and threw right-handed. His father, Al Campan ...
at the
Winter Meetings
Representatives of all 30 Major League Baseball teams and their 120 Minor League Baseball affiliates convene for four days each December in the Winter Meetings to discuss league business and conduct off-season trades and transactions. Attendees in ...
on December 2, 1970.
From 1987-90, he was the
Braves pitching coach.
Dal Canton threw a knuckleball which
Wilbur Wood
Wilbur Forrester Wood Jr. (born October 22, 1941) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. In a 17-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career, he pitched for the Boston Red Sox (1961–64), the Pittsburgh Pirates (1964–65), and the Chi ...
helped teach him.
Death
Bruce Dal Canton died on October 7, 2008 in
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Western Pennsylvania, the second-most populous city in Pennsylva ...
, aged 67, of
esophageal cancer.
Legacy
On Friday, June 11, 2004, Dal Canton was inducted into the
. During Opening Day ceremonies on April 9, 2009, the
Myrtle Beach Pelicans
The Myrtle Beach Pelicans are a Minor League Baseball team in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and the Single-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. The Pelicans compete in the Carolina League. Home games are played at TicketReturn.com Field, which open ...
honored Bruce, who had been their pitching coach since 1999. The Pelicans' clubhouse was officially named in his memory and Dal Canton's number, 43, was retired. He was inducted into the
California University of Pennsylvania Athletic Hall of Fame in 1995, and spent more than a decade as a coach in the
Braves organization.
Dal Canton once threw a Perfect Game striking out every batter in a 7 inning high school game except for the shortstop who bunted and was thrown out at first.
References
External links
The 100 Greatest Royals of All-Time- #75 Bruce Dal Canton
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dal Canton, Bruce
1941 births
2008 deaths
People from California, Pennsylvania
Major League Baseball pitchers
Atlanta Braves players
Chicago White Sox players
Kansas City Royals players
Pittsburgh Pirates players
Baseball players from Pennsylvania
California Vulcans baseball players
Atlanta Braves coaches
Chicago White Sox scouts
Major League Baseball pitching coaches
Deaths from esophageal cancer
Deaths from cancer in Pennsylvania