Richard Elde Hyde (August 3, 1928 – April 15, 2020) was an American

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 (medical), fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection (sports), ejection, or for other strategic ...

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 baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

who played in the Major Leagues for six seasons from 1955 to 1961 for the Washington Senators (1955, 1957–1960) and

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) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...

(1961). A right-handed pitcher, he stood and weighed . Born in Hindsboro, Illinois, he was the father of professional baseball pitcher Rich Hyde.

Professional career

After going to tryout camps for 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 ...

and

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 hav ...

in 1947, Hyde was signed by the Washington Senators in 1949, pitching for their D level (then lowest) minor league team that year and the next before military service in

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

, followed by two more seasons of minor league ball for Washington. By 1954, Hyde had made very little progress in Washington's

farm system In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team, feeder club, or nursery club is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a higher ...

. One day after watching him throw,

Calvin Griffith Calvin Robertson Griffith (December 1, 1911 – October 20, 1999), born Calvin Griffith Robertson, was a Canadian-born American Major League Baseball team owner. As president, majority owner and ''de facto'' general manager (baseball), general m ...

suggested Hyde might become more effective if he came down a little in his pitching motion when he threw. Hyde eventually adopted the

submarine A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...

style of pitching. While he made three appearances with the Senators in 1955, Hyde spent all of 1956 in the minors and it was only in 1957 that he established himself in the major leagues. His best year was 1958, when he went 10–3 with 19 saves and a 1.75

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 ...

. He also finished 12th in the voting for

Most Valuable Player In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particu ...

. Hyde's Major League playing career ended with the Baltimore Orioles in 1961, though he finished his career in the Orioles' minor league system in 1962. Of the 169 games Hyde appeared in, all but two were as a relief pitcher.

Transactions

Hyde was purchased by the Baltimore Orioles from the Washington Senators on July 2, 1960. In 1959, Hyde was included in a trade between Washington and the

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 eight ...

. On June 11, Hyde and

Herb Plews Herbert Eugene Plews (June 14, 1928 – December 12, 2014) was an American Major League Baseball second baseman. He played four years in the majors, from 1956 to 1959 with the Washington Senators and in 1959 for the Boston Red Sox. In the min ...

were sent to Boston for

Murray Wall Murray James Wall (September 28, 1945 - July 18, 2022) was an Australian jazz double bassist. Born in Melbourne, Wall was an autodidact on double bass, having learned by playing along with records by Oscar Pettiford. He began playing profession ...

and

Billy Consolo William Angelo Consolo ( ; August 18, 1934 – March 27, 2008) was an American professional baseball shortstop and Coach (baseball), coach, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for five different teams between and , most notably the Boston ...

. When it was discovered Hyde had a sore arm, he and Wall were returned to their original teams. Hyde died on April 15, 2020.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hyde, Dick 1928 births 2020 deaths Baltimore Orioles players Baseball players from Illinois Charlotte Hornets (baseball) players Chattanooga Lookouts players Concord Nationals players Concord Weavers players Major League Baseball pitchers Miami Marlins (International League) players People from Douglas County, Illinois Rochester Red Wings players University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign alumni Washington Senators (1901–1960) players