David Arthur Roberts (September 11, 1944 – January 9, 2009) was an American 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. 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 1969 to 1981 for eight teams. He was second 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 ...

(NL) with a 2.10

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 ...

(ERA) in for the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penna ...

, after which he was traded to the

Houston Astros 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 ...

, where he spent the four most productive years of his career. Roberts was also a member of the 1979 World Series winning

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

team. Over his major league career he won 103 games. Roberts was one of the best

Jew Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""Th ...

ish pitchers all-time in major league history through 2010, ranking fourth in career games (445; behind only

Scott Schoeneweis Scott David Schoeneweis (; born October 2, 1973) is an American former Major League Baseball left-handed relief pitcher who played for several teams between 1999 and 2010. In the five seasons from 2003 to 2007, Schoeneweis allowed only one home r ...

Ken Holtzman Kenneth Dale Holtzman (born November 3, 1945) is an American former professional baseball player and coach. He played in Major League Baseball as a left-handed pitcher from through , most notably as a member of the Chicago Cubs for whom he pitch ...

, and

John Grabow John William Grabow, nicknamed "Grabes" (born November 4, 1978) is an American former professional baseball left-handed reliever. He played for the Pittsburgh Pirates and Chicago Cubs of the Major League Baseball (MLB). In his MLB career, he he ...

), fourth in wins (103) and

strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is deno ...

s (957) behind

Sandy Koufax Sanford Koufax (; born Sanford Braun; December 30, 1935) is an American former left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played his entire career for the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers from 1955 to 1966. He has been hailed as one of t ...

, Holtzman, and Steve Stone, and seventh in ERA (3.78).

Early and personal life

Roberts was born in

Gallipolis, Ohio Gallipolis ( ) is a chartered village in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Gallia County. The municipality is located in Southeast Ohio along the Ohio River about 55 miles southeast of Chillicothe and 44 miles northwest of Charlesto ...

, and was Jewish."Dave Roberts Stats" , Baseball-Reference.com
/ref> He attended George Washington elementary school, and then started high school at Gallia Academy, finally moving to and in 1963 graduating from Central High School in

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

, where his parents had relocated.">"Dave Roberts" , Society for American Baseball Research
/ref> In basketball, he was All-Columbus.

Minor league career

Roberts was signed in June 1963 as an undrafted amateur

free agent 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 a ...

by 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 ...

. He played on farm clubs for the Phillies,

Kansas City A's The history of the Athletics Major League Baseball franchise spans the period from 1901 to the present day, having begun as a charter member franchise in the new American League in Philadelphia before moving to Kansas City in 1955 for 13 seas ...

, and

(who claimed him on

waiver A waiver is the voluntary relinquishment or surrender of some known right or privilege. Regulatory agencies of state departments or the federal government may issue waivers to exempt companies from certain regulations. For example, a United St ...

s in April 1964 for $8,000 ($ in current dollar terms), and was chosen by San Diego with the 39th pick in the

1968 Major League Baseball expansion draft The 1968 Major League Baseball expansion draft was conducted to stock up the rosters of four expansion teams in Major League Baseball created via the 1969 Major League Baseball expansion and which would begin play in the 1969 season. The expansi ...

. Pitching for the 1963

Spartanburg Phillies Spartanburg is a city in and the seat of Spartanburg County, South Carolina, United States. The city of Spartanburg has a municipal population of 38,732 as of the 2020 census, making it the 11th-largest city in the state. For a time, the Offic ...

he was 9-3 with a 1.79

ERA An era is a span of time defined for the purposes of chronology or historiography, as in the regnal eras in the history of a given monarchy, a calendar era used for a given calendar, or the geological eras defined for the history of Earth. Comp ...

, Class-A

Western Carolina League The original Western Carolina League was a Class-D circuit in Minor League Baseball which was ideated and created by John Henry Moss. The league ran from 1948 to 1952, then combined with the North Carolina State League to form the Tar Heel Leag ...

and throwing three

shutout In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which one team prevents the other from scoring any points. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball. Shutouts are usuall ...

s in his 17 starts. In 1966 he pitched for Aguilas in the

Dominican Winter League Dominican may refer to: * Someone or something from or related to the Dominican Republic ( , stress on the "mi"), on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles, in the Caribbean ** People of the Dominican Republic ** Demographics of the Domi ...

, posting an ERA of 2.17 in 108

inning In baseball, softball, and similar games, an inning is the basic unit of play, consisting of two halves or frames, the "top" (first half) and the "bottom" (second half). In each half, one team bats until three outs are made, with the other team ...

s. Roberts was 1968 Pitcher of the Year for the

International League The International League (IL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the United States. Along with the Pacific Coast League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major League Baseball ...

Columbus Jets The Columbus Jets were a Minor League baseball team that played in Columbus, Ohio, from 1955 to 1970. The team moved from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada where they were known as the Ottawa Athletics. The Jets were a member of the Triple-A Internationa ...

, after going 18–5. In the minor leagues from 1963–69, he was 65–32 with a 3.00 ERA.

Major league career

San Diego Padres

After debuting with the Padres in 1969, Roberts was sixth in the NL in walks per 9 innings (2.13) in 1970. He went 14–17 for the last-place 1971 Padres, finishing second to 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 ...

Tom Seaver George Thomas Seaver (November 17, 1944 – August 31, 2020), nicknamed "Tom Terrific" and "the Franchise", was an American professional baseball pitcher who played 20 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played for the New York Mets, Cinc ...

with a 2.10 ERA. He was sixth in the voting for the NL

Cy Young Award The Cy Young Award is given annually to the best pitchers in Major League Baseball (MLB), one each for the American League (AL) and National League (NL). The award was first introduced in 1956 by Baseball Commissioner Ford Frick in honor of Hall ...

, seventh in walks per 9 innings (2.04), ninth in innings pitched (269.7), tenth in complete games (14), and 24th in the voting for the NL MVP Award. He held batters to a .191

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 ...

when runners were in scoring position.

Houston Astros

Roberts was traded from the Padres to the

for

Derrel Thomas Derrel Osbon Thomas (born January 14, 1951) is an American former professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a second baseman and utility player from to . Thomas was a member of the 1981 World Series winning ...

Bill Greif William Briley Greif (born April 25, 1950) is a retired professional baseball pitcher. He played all or part of six seasons in Major League Baseball, from 1971 to 1976, for the Houston Astros, San Diego Padres, and St. Louis Cardinals. Astros G ...

, and

Mark Schaeffer Mark Philip Schaeffer (June 5, 1948 – June 1, 2022) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a left-handed pitcher for the San Diego Padres in . He batted and threw left-handed. Schaeffer was born in ...

on December 3, 1971. His being traded by the Padres was just prior to the Padres signing another Dave Roberts (''see'' below), who joined the club in 1972. If this trade had not taken place, the Padres' roster would have featured two unrelated players named "Dave Roberts", making this among the few occasions where a team's roster featured two unrelated players with the same name. In 1972, Roberts was 12–7 for the Astros. In 1973, he recorded a career-best 17–11 record, setting a club record with a career-high six

s (second in the NL). Roberts was the August 25, 1974

NL Player of the Week In Major League Baseball (MLB), the Player of the Week Award is given weekly during the regular season to two outstanding players, one each in the National League (NL) and American League (AL). The NL first awarded the honor during the season, an ...

. That season, he finished sixth in the NL in wins and

sacrifice hit In baseball, a sacrifice bunt (also called a sacrifice hit) is a batter's act of deliberately bunting the ball, before there are two outs, in a manner that allows a baserunner to advance to another base. The batter is almost always put out, and ...

s (12), seventh in games started (36), eighth in complete games (12), and tenth in ERA (2.85) and walks per nine innings (2.24).

Detroit Tigers

Roberts was dealt along with

Milt May Milton Scott May (born August 1, 1950) is an American former professional baseball player and coach. He played as a catcher in Major League Baseball from to for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Houston Astros, Detroit Tigers, Chicago White Sox, and San F ...

and Jim Crawford from the Astros to the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

for

Leon Roberts Leon Kauffman Roberts (born January 22, 1951) is a former corner outfielder in Major League Baseball who played from 1974 through 1984 for the Detroit Tigers, Houston Astros, Seattle Mariners, Texas Rangers, Toronto Blue Jays and Kansas Ci ...

Terry Humphrey Terryal Gene Humphrey (born August 4, 1949) is an American former professional baseball player. A catcher, he appeared in 415 games played over all or parts of nine Major League Baseball seasons for the Montreal Expos (1971–1974), Detroit Tig ...

Gene Pentz Eugene David Pentz (born June 21, 1953) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He played all or part of four seasons in the majors, from until for the Detroit Tigers and Houston Astros. He was traded along with Leon Roberts, Terry Humphr ...

and

Mark Lemongello Mark Lemongello ("le-MAHNJ-ul-oh"; born July 21, 1955) is an American former professional baseball player who pitched in Major League Baseball from 1976 to 1979 for the Houston Astros and the Toronto Blue Jays. He is the cousin of singer Peter ...

on December 6, 1975. After a 16–17 season with the 1976 Tigers, in which he was fifth in 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 ...

(AL) in shutouts (4), seventh in games started (36) and ninth in complete games (18), he had surgery on his knee. On the final day of the 1976 season, Roberts gave up

Hank Aaron Henry Louis Aaron (February 5, 1934 – January 22, 2021), nicknamed "Hammer" or "Hammerin' Hank", was an American professional baseball right fielder who played 23 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), from 1954 through 1976. One of the gre ...

's final career hit and RBI in the sixth inning. Aaron was lifted for a

pinch runner In baseball, a pinch runner is a player substituted for the specific purpose of replacing another player on base. The pinch runner may be faster or otherwise more skilled at base-running than the player for whom the pinch runner has been sub ...

. In 1977, Roberts was the

Opening Day Opening Day is the day on which professional baseball leagues begin their regular season. For Major League Baseball (MLB) and most of the American minor leagues, this day typically falls during the first week of April, although in recent years ...

starter for the Tigers. In July 1977 he was purchased by the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...

Chicago Cubs

In 1978, Roberts batted .327 for the Cubs, with a .500

slugging percentage In baseball statistics, slugging percentage (SLG) is a measure of the batting productivity of a hitter. It is calculated as total bases divided by at bats, through the following formula, where ''AB'' is the number of at bats for a given player, ...

, in 52

at bat In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens during their turn at bat, but a batt ...

s. In February 1979 he signed as free agent with 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 Yor ...

1979: Giants and Pirates

Roberts was traded along with

Bill Madlock Bill "Mad Dog" Madlock, Jr. (born January 12, 1951) is an American former professional baseball player and coach. He played in Major League Baseball as a third baseman from 1973 to 1987. Madlock is notable for being a four-time National League b ...

and

Lenny Randle Leonard Shenoff Randle (born February 12, 1949) is a former Major League Baseball player. He was the first-round pick of the Washington Senators in the secondary phase of the June 1970 Major League Baseball draft, tenth overall. Early years Born ...

from the Giants to the

for

Al Holland Alfred Willis Holland (born August 16, 1952) is a former professional baseball relief pitcher, who played Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates, San Francisco Giants, Philadelphia Phillies, California Angels, and New York Yankees ...

, Ed Whitson and

Fred Breining Fred Lawrence Breining (born November 15, 1955) is a former pitcher in Major League Baseball who played from 1980 through 1985 for the San Francisco Giants and the Montreal Expos. He had been traded along with Ed Whitson and Al Holland from the ...

on June 28, . Combined, in 1979 he had a 2.90 ERA.

Later career

After pitching just two games for the Pirates in 1980, Roberts was purchased by the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West division. The team joined the American League ...

in April. He pitched the rest of the season in Seattle, going 2–3. Following that season, Roberts became a free agent, and in January 1981 he was signed by the Mets. He pitched just seven games for the Mets, going 0–3 with a 9.39 ERA, before being released in May. In June, Roberts was signed as a free agent by the Giants, but never pitched for them in the majors. Among Jewish pitchers all-time in major league history through 2010, Roberts ranks fourth in career appearances (445; behind only

, and

), fourth in wins (103) and

s (957) behind

, Holtzman, and Steve Stone, and seventh in ERA (3.78).

Later life, and death

After his playing career, he worked for the Allegany County, Maryland Detention Center, and served as an assistant baseball coach at

Potomac State College Potomac State College is a public college in Keyser, West Virginia. It is part of the West Virginia University system. Potomac State College is located approximately 90 miles (140 km) east of West Virginia University's campus in Morgantown, West ...

from 1996 to 1998 in

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...

. On January 9, 2009, Roberts died of

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissue (biology), tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from tran ...

that he developed from

asbestos Asbestos () is a naturally occurring fibrous silicate mineral. There are six types, all of which are composed of long and thin fibrous crystals, each fibre being composed of many microscopic "fibrils" that can be released into the atmosphere b ...

exposure as a young man, at his home in

Short Gap, West Virginia Short Gap is an unincorporated community in Mineral County, West Virginia, United States, located at the intersection of Routes 956 and 28; approximately eight miles from Cumberland, Maryland. The community is home to Frankfort High School, as ...

at the age of 64. According to his wife, Carol, he was exposed to carcinogenic chemicals while working for several offseasons as a

boilermaker A boilermaker is a tradesperson who fabricates steel, iron, or copper into boilers and other large containers intended to hold hot gas or liquid, as well as maintains and repairs boilers and boiler systems.Bureau of Labor Statistics, US Dep ...

. He is buried at Frostburg Memorial Cemetery, not far from

Lefty Grove Robert Moses "Lefty" Grove (March 6, 1900 – May 22, 1975) was an American professional baseball pitcher. After having success in the minor leagues during the early 1920s, Grove became a star in Major League Baseball with the American League's P ...

's grave.

References

External links

Dave Roberts
at SABR (Baseball BioProject)
Dave Roberts
at Baseball Almanac

{{DEFAULTSORT:Roberts, Dave 1944 births 2009 deaths Baseball players from Ohio Detroit Tigers players Chicago Cubs players Deaths from cancer in West Virginia Deaths from lung cancer Houston Astros players Jewish American baseball players Jewish Major League Baseball players Major League Baseball pitchers New York Mets players People from Gallipolis, Ohio Pittsburgh Pirates players San Diego Padres players San Francisco Giants players Seattle Mariners players 20th-century American Jews 21st-century American Jews Potomac State College of West Virginia University people

Early and personal life

Minor league career

Major league career

San Diego Padres

Houston Astros

Detroit Tigers

Chicago Cubs

1979: Giants and Pirates

Later career

Later life, and death

See also

References

External links