Gary Nilsson
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Gary Nilsson (born 28 November 1963 in
Brisbane, Australia Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...
) is a former Australian baseball player who played as 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 ...
for the
Lakeland Tigers Lakeland is primarily a toponym. It may refer to: Places Australia * Lakeland, Queensland Canada * Lakeland (electoral district), a federal electoral district in Alberta * Lakeland County, a former municipal district in Alberta * District of ...
in 1984 and in the
Australian Baseball League The Australian Baseball League (ABL) is a professional baseball league in Australia. The league is governed by the Australian Baseball Federation (ABF). It uses the same name as a now-defunct competition held during the 1990s, and though it sh ...
from 1989 to 1996. He is the brother of former All-Star,
Dave Nilsson David Wayne Nilsson (born 14 December 1969) is an Australian retired professional baseball catcher and current manager of the Australia national baseball team and the Brisbane Bandits. He played for Major League Baseball's Milwaukee Brewers ...
as well as former minor leaguer
Bob Nilsson Robert "Bob" Nilsson was the oldest of the four Nilsson brothers and one of the greatest relievers in the history of Australian baseball leagues. Bob's brother Dave Nilsson was the first Australian All-Star in MLB, his brother Gary Nilsson pl ...
. His son is Mitch Nilsson, currently contracted to the
Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...
and nephew Jay Nilsson, former
Gulf Coast Indians The Arizona Complex League Guardians are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians, competing in the Arizona Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays its home games at Goodyear Ballpark in Goodyear, Arizona. The team is c ...
player. He is currently
pitching coach In baseball, a number of coaches assist in the smooth functioning of a team. They are assistants to the manager, who determines the starting lineup and batting order, decides how to substitute players during the game, and makes strategy decisio ...
for the
Brisbane Bandits The Brisbane Bandits are a professional baseball team in Brisbane, Queensland that plays in the Australian Baseball League and is one of the six founding teams of the league. From the 2010/11 season till the 2012/13 season their home ballpark w ...
in the
Australian Baseball League The Australian Baseball League (ABL) is a professional baseball league in Australia. The league is governed by the Australian Baseball Federation (ABF). It uses the same name as a now-defunct competition held during the 1990s, and though it sh ...
.


Playing career

Gary was signed 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 ...
in 1983. The next year, he played in advanced A baseball with the Lakeland Tigers and was 1–4 with a 5.95 ERA. He was released at the end of the year. In 1989, when the Australian Baseball League was founded, the right-hander was picked up by the
Gold Coast Cougars The Gold Coast Cougars were the re-branded Daikyo Dolphins after major sponsor Daikyo had to end sponsorship of the team due to financial problems with the Australian arm of the company. History See also *Sport in Australia *Australian Ba ...
. He batted at a .289/.352/.378 clip as a
first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...
in the 1989–90 Australian Baseball League season, second on the team to brother
Bob Nilsson Robert "Bob" Nilsson was the oldest of the four Nilsson brothers and one of the greatest relievers in the history of Australian baseball leagues. Bob's brother Dave Nilsson was the first Australian All-Star in MLB, his brother Gary Nilsson pl ...
. In the 1990–1991 season, he was 6–1 with one save and a 5.96 ERA for the
Daikyo Dolphins The Daikyo Dolphins were formerly the Gold Coast Clippers, a foundation team in the now defunct Australian Baseball League. The Clippers changed their name to the Daikyo Dolphins following the signing of a major sponsorship deal with Japanese r ...
. The following year, he had a 5–4, 4.62 record for Daikyo, threw a one-hitter and helped the team to an ABL title. In 1992–1993, Nilsson was 3–0 with a 2.50 ERA with the
Brisbane Bandits The Brisbane Bandits are a professional baseball team in Brisbane, Queensland that plays in the Australian Baseball League and is one of the six founding teams of the league. From the 2010/11 season till the 2012/13 season their home ballpark w ...
, despite spending a lot of the season injured. In 1993–1994, Gary had a 2–2, 2.42 record, helping Brisbane win the title, picking up the win in the final game of the season, pitching to his younger brother
Dave Dave may refer to: Film, television, and theater * ''Dave'' (film), a 1993 film starring Kevin Kline and Sigourney Weaver * ''Dave'' (musical), a 2018 stage musical adaptation of the film * Dave (TV channel), a digital television channel in the ...
. The next year season was a bit of a low one for Nilsson as he was 0–4 with four saves and a 5.06 ERA, but did join with Kelly Wunsch and
Cam Cairncross Cameron Cairncross (born 11 May 1972) is a former left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who debuted for the Cleveland Indians on 20 July 2000, and pitched his final game on 1 October of that same season. Cairncross was born in Cairns, Q ...
on a combined no-hitter. His career ended due to injuries in 1996, after a 1–3, 6.35 campaign in 1995–1996. His career in the
Australian Baseball League The Australian Baseball League (ABL) is a professional baseball league in Australia. The league is governed by the Australian Baseball Federation (ABF). It uses the same name as a now-defunct competition held during the 1990s, and though it sh ...
totalled to a 17–14 record with 5 saves and a 4.57 ERA in 56 games. Gary is now a coach with the Pine Rivers Rapids in the
Greater Brisbane League The Greater Brisbane League or formerly the Greater Brisbane Baseball Board league (GB3) is the largest baseball league in the Australian state of Queensland and covers all teams from Brisbane North, South, West, Metro as well as three Gold Coas ...
.


References


External links


Gary Nilsson
at B-R Bullpen
Gary Nilsson
on the Baseball Cube *1985 Baseball Guide
Flintoff & Dunn Australian Baseball Almanac
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nilsson, Gary Australian baseball players 1963 births Living people Baseball players from Brisbane