William Frederick Hoeft (May 17, 1932 – March 16, 2010) was a

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 ...

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), ...

whose career spanned 15 seasons with the Detroit Tigers,

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 eigh ...

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) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

, Milwaukee Braves, Chicago Cubs and

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 ...

. Born in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, Hoeft threw and batted

left-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 subject ...

, stood tall and weighed .

Detroit Tigers (1952–1959)

Hoeft was signed by the Detroit Tigers as an amateur free agent in 1950. He made his major league debut on April 18, 1952 for the Tigers, and went on to pitch seven full seasons in Detroit. On September 7, 1953, Hoeft became the eighth pitcher in major-league history to pitch an

immaculate inning In baseball, a strikeout occurs when a pitcher throws three strikes to a batter during his time at bat. An immaculate inning occurs when a pitcher strikes out all three batters he faces in one inning, using the minimum possible number of pitche ...

, striking out all three batters on nine total pitches in the seventh inning of a game against the

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 ...

; it was the first time the feat had been accomplished since 1928. On June 24, 1955, Hoeft surrendered the first home run in the career of

Harmon Killebrew Harmon Clayton Killebrew Jr. (; June 29, 1936May 17, 2011), nicknamed "The Killer" and "Hammerin' Harmon", was an American professional baseball first baseman, third baseman, and left fielder. He was a prolific power hitter who spent most of hi ...

, who would eventually hit 573 home runs in his career. Hoeft was selected to 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 ...

squad in the 1955 MLB All-Star Game, although he was not called upon to pitch in the game. Hoeft was primarily used as a starting pitcher in Detroit, starting in 176 games during his time there. His best season came in 1956 when he won 20 games and pitched 18 complete games. He also showed occasional potential as a power hitter, once tying an American League record for consecutive home runs by a pitcher with two to begin a game.

Boston Red Sox and Baltimore Orioles (1959–1962)

In May 1959, Hoeft was dealt to the

for Dave Sisler and Ted Lepcio. He was the losing pitcher in three of his five appearances for Boston and was dealt to Baltimore for

Jack Harshman John Elvin Harshman (July 12, 1927 – August 17, 2013) was an American Major League Baseball pitcher with the New York Giants, Chicago White Sox, Baltimore Orioles, Boston Red Sox, and Cleveland Indians between 1948 and 1960. He batted and threw ...

after a little more than a month. Hoeft remained in Baltimore through the 1962 season, where he was primarily used as 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, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection, or for other strategic reasons, such as inclement weat ...

, although he did start 16 games for the Orioles. During the 1961 season, Hoeft posted a career-best

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 2.02 in 12 starts and 23 relief appearances.

San Francisco, Milwaukee and Chicago (1963–1966)

After the 1962 season, Baltimore traded Hoeft, as well as

Jimmie Coker Jimmie Goodwin Coker (March 28, 1936 – October 29, 1991) was an American professional baseball catcher, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Phillies (, –), San Francisco Giants (), and Cincinnati Reds (–). A nat ...

and Jack Fisher to the

for Stu Miller, Mike McCormick and

John Orsino John Joseph Orsino (April 22, 1938 – November 1, 2016) was a Major League Baseball catcher. He was signed by the New York Giants as an amateur free agent before the 1957 season, and played for the San Francisco Giants (1961–1962), Baltimore ...

. In 23 appearances for San Francisco during the 1963 season, Hoeft saved four games and posted 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 4.44. After the season ended, he was dealt to the Milwaukee Braves, along with

Felipe Alou Felipe Rojas Alou (born May 12, 1935) is a former Major League Baseball outfielder, first baseman, and manager. He managed the Montreal Expos (1992–2001) and the San Francisco Giants (2003–2006). The first Dominican to play regularly in the ...

Ed Bailey Lonas Edgar Bailey, Jr. (April 15, 1931 – March 23, 2007) was an American professional baseball player and later served on the Knoxville, Tennessee city council. He played as a catcher in Major League Baseball from through . A six-time All-S ...

and a player to be named later for

Del Crandall Delmar Wesley Crandall (March 5, 1930May 5, 2021) was an American professional baseball player and manager. He was born in Ontario, California. Crandall played as a catcher in Major League Baseball and spent most of his career with the Boston / ...

Bob Shaw Robert Shaw (31 December 1931 – 11 February 1996) was a science fiction writer and fan from Northern Ireland, noted for his originality and wit. He won the Hugo Award for Best Fan Writer in 1979 and 1980. His short story "Light of Other Days" ...

and

Bob Hendley Charles Robert Hendley (born April 30, 1939) is a retired American professional baseball player. A left-handed pitcher, he appeared in all or parts of seven seasons in Major League Baseball for the Milwaukee Braves (1961–1963), San Francisco Gi ...

. San Francisco ended up sending Ernie Bowman to Milwaukee to complete the deal. In Milwaukee, Hoeft appeared in 42 games posting a 3.80 earned run average and saving four games.. After the 1964 season, Hoeft entered

free agency In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is ...

, and was re-signed by his original team, the Detroit Tigers. He was released during spring training for the 1965 season. Shortly afterward, the Chicago Cubs signed Hoeft to a contract for the 1965 season, where he posted an ERA of 2.81 in two starts and 29 appearances for the Cubs. Hoeft's last season in

was 1966, as he appeared in 36 games for the Cubs, before being released in August. In August, he was signed by the

initially as a coach and batting practice pitcher before being activated in September when playing rosters increased to 40 men. He posted a 0–2 win–loss record in four games pitched during his second tour with the Giants, before announcing his retirement at the end of the 1966 season. Hoeft often entered games as a pinch runner, he had a career .202

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 ...

(107-for-531) with 73 runs, 18 doubles, 3 home runs, 47 RBI and 67 bases on balls.

Death

Hoeft died from cancer in

Canadian Lakes, Michigan Canadian Lakes is an unincorporated community in Mecosta County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The area is mostly within the southwest portion of Morton Township, southwest of Mecosta and east of Stanwood. For statistical reporting, the U.S. C ...

, at the age of 77.

References

External links

Billy Hoeft
- Baseballbiography.com

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hoeft, Billy 1932 births 2010 deaths American League All-Stars Baltimore Orioles players Baseball players from Wisconsin Boston Red Sox players Chicago Cubs players Deaths from cancer in Michigan Detroit Tigers players Major League Baseball pitchers Miami Marlins (IL) players Milwaukee Braves players Richmond Tigers players Salt Lake City Bees players San Francisco Giants coaches San Francisco Giants players Sportspeople from Oshkosh, Wisconsin Toledo Mud Hens players