Milton Darrell Osteen (February 14, 1943 – October 22, 2017) was an American

professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and skil ...

baseball player 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 ...

for the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

and the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...

from 1965 to 1970. A right-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 ...

, he was signed as an amateur free agent in 1962 by the Reds, and was traded to the Athletics on November 21, 1967. He was listed at tall and .

Career

He was a graduate of

Putnam City High School Putnam City High School (commonly, PC, Putnam City Original, and PCO) is a secondary school located in Warr Acres, Oklahoma, a northwestern suburb of metropolitan Oklahoma City, U.S.. It is one of three high schools in the Putnam City School Dis ...

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, and ...

, where he was named 1961 Player of the Year in the Oklahoma City area. Osteen's professional career extended from 1962 to 1967 and 1970–1971. He made his major league debut on September 2, 1965 against the Braves in Cincinnati's

Crosley Field Crosley Field was a Major League Baseball park in Cincinnati, Ohio. It was the home field of the National League's Cincinnati Reds from 1912 through June 24, 1970, and the original Cincinnati Bengals football team, members of the second (1937) an ...

, relieving

Gerry Arrigo Gerald William Arrigo (born June 12, 1941) is an American former professional baseball pitcher who appeared in 194 games pitched, games in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Minnesota Twins, Cincinnati Reds, New York Mets and Chicago White Sox be ...

and pitching two scoreless innings in a 4–3 Reds loss. The first batter he faced was opposing starting pitcher

Hank Fischer Henry William Fischer (born January 11, 1940 in Yonkers, New York) is a former pitcher in Major League Baseball who played with three different teams between 1962 and 1967. Listed at tall and , he batted and threw right-handed. Fischer was sign ...

, who grounded out. Osteen was traded with Rob Gardner from the

to the

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

for

Curt Blefary Curtis Leroy "Clank" Blefary (July 5, 1943 – January 28, 2001) was an American professional baseball left fielder who played in Major League Baseball for the Baltimore Orioles (1965–1968), Houston Astros (1969), New York Yankees (1970–1971), ...

on May 25, 1971.Rogers, Thomas. "Tigers Triumph over Yanks, 7–4, for 7th in Row," ''The New York Times'', Wednesday, May 26, 1971.
Retrieved October 25, 2020 He served in the military in 1968 and 1969. In parts of four Major League seasons, he pitched in 29 games and had a 1–4 record with an 8.05

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 ...

References

External links

, o
Baseball Reference (Minor and Mexican Leagues)
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Pelota Binaria (Venezuelan Winter League)
1943 births 2017 deaths American expatriate baseball players in Mexico Baseball players from Oklahoma Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Cafeteros de Córdoba players Cangrejeros de Santurce (baseball) players Cardenales de Lara players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Cincinnati Reds players Iowa Oaks players Knoxville Smokies players Liga de Béisbol Profesional Roberto Clemente pitchers Macon Peaches players Major League Baseball pitchers Mexican League baseball pitchers Military personnel from Oklahoma Oakland Athletics players Oklahoma State Cowboys baseball players Rocky Mount Leafs players San Diego Padres (minor league) players Saraperos de Saltillo players Sportspeople from Oklahoma City Syracuse Chiefs players Tampa Tarpons (1957–1987) players {{US-baseball-pitcher-1940s-stub