Philip Nastu (born March 8, 1955) is a former

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), ...

who played from 1978 through 1980 for 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 ...

. Born in

Bridgeport, Connecticut Bridgeport is the List of municipalities in Connecticut, most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the List of cities by population in New England, fifth-most populous ...

, Nastu attended

Bassick High School Bassick High School is a US public trade high school located in Bridgeport, Connecticut. History In 1924, the Bassick family home was demolished to begin construction for a school. The E & F Construction Company was awarded the contract after s ...

and the

University of Bridgeport The University of Bridgeport (UB) is a private university in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The university is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education. In 2021, the university was purchased by Goodwin University; it retain its own n ...

before being signed by the Giants as free agent in 1976. Nastu began his professional pitching career in 1977 with the Cedar Rapids Giants of the

Midwest League The Midwest League is a Minor League Baseball league established in 1947 and based in the Midwestern United States. A Class A league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseball's 2021 reorganizat ...

and the Waterbury Giants of the Eastern League. The next season, he was promoted to the

AAA AAA, Triple A, or Triple-A is a three-letter initialism or abbreviation which may refer to: Airports * Anaa Airport in French Polynesia (IATA airport code AAA) * Logan County Airport (Illinois) (FAA airport code AAA) Arts, entertainment, and me ...

Phoenix Giants Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

of the

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

. As a

September call-up A Major League Baseball roster is a list of players who are allowed, by league agreement, to play for a Major League Baseball (MLB) team. Each MLB team maintains two rosters: an active roster of players eligible to participate in an MLB game, and ...

, Nastu made his MLB debut on September 15, 1978, when the Giants hosted 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 ...

Candlestick Park Candlestick Park was an outdoor stadium on the West Coast of the United States, located in San Francisco's Bayview Heights area. The stadium was originally the home of Major League Baseball's San Francisco Giants, who played there from 1960 un ...

. He pitched the final two innings in the 6–1 loss; although he surrendered a single and walk, no runs scored. His first decision, a loss, came on October 1 (the final game of the season) when 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 ...

shutout the Giants, 3–0, in the

Astrodome The NRG Astrodome, also known as the Houston Astrodome or simply the Astrodome, is the world's first multi-purpose, domed sports stadium, located in Houston, Texas. It was financed and assisted in development by Roy Hofheinz, mayor of Houston ...

. Starting the game, he gave up runs in the first 3 innings before being removed for a pinch hitter in the 5th inning. Although Nastu began the 1979 season back with AAA Phoenix, he was recalled to the majors when

John Montefusco John Joseph Montefusco Jr. (born May 25, 1950), nicknamed "The Count," is an American former professional baseball player and coach. He played as a right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball from 1974 to 1986, most notably as a member of the Sa ...

was placed on the

disabled list In Major League Baseball (MLB), the injured list (IL) is a method for teams to remove their injured players from the roster in order to summon healthy players. Before the 2019 season, it was known as the disabled list (DL). General guidelines ...

in late April. The season was the high-mark of his MLB career when he appeared in 25 games (14 as a starter) pitching 100 innings. After his call-up, he was the starting pitcher on April 30 at 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 ...

but lost the 4–1 game, pitching 4 innings. On May 10 he also suffered the 3–0 loss after he gave up a 1st inning home run to the visiting Montreal Expos' Rodney Scott, who only hit 3 in his MLB career. His first victory came on May 15 at the same site as his first career loss when the Giants defeated the Astros, 8–1; pitching his only career complete game, he scattered 5 hits en route to the victory. His second victory came 9 days later hosting the Reds; with the visitors committing 4 errors, Nastu and the Giants posted a 2–1 victory. He suffered his third loss of the season on May 28 while hosting the

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. The Braves ...

; although he pitched eight innings, the Giants were defeated 4–1. Again in 1980, Nastu opened the season with AAA Phoenix before being recalled in September. Used sparingly, he appeared in only 6 games, pitching six innings, finishing his MLB career on October 3, 1980. In the off season, he was traded along with infielder

Joe Strain Joseph Allan Strain (born April 30, 1954) is a former a professional baseball player who was an infielder in the Major Leagues from to for the San Francisco Giants and Chicago Cubs. Strain currently resides in the home rule municipality of Cen ...

to 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 ...

in exchange for outfielders

Jesús Figueroa Jesús Maria Figueroa (born February 20, 1957) is a Dominican former professional baseball player. He appeared in 115 games during the 1980 baseball season with the Chicago Cubs, mostly as a pinch hitter and defensive replacement. Figueroa als ...

and Jerry Martin, and minor league infielder/outfielder Mike Turgeon as a

player to be named later In Major League Baseball, a player to be named later (PTBNL) is an unnamed player involved in exchange or "trade" of players between teams. The terms of a trade are not finalized until a later date, most often following the conclusion of the seaso ...

. Nastu's last professional appearances came in 1981 and 1982 when he played for the

Midland Cubs Midland may refer to: Places Australia * Midland, Western Australia Canada * Midland, Albert County, New Brunswick * Midland, Kings County, New Brunswick * Midland, Newfoundland and Labrador * Midland, Ontario India * Midland Ward, Kohima, Naga ...

, the AA affiliate of the Chicago Cubs in the

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

, and the

Charlotte O's The Charlotte Knights are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox. They are located in Charlotte, North Carolina, and play their home games at Truist Field, which opened in 20 ...

, the AA affiliate of the

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 ...

in the Southern League.

References

External links

, o
RetrosheetPelota Binaria (Venezuelan Winter League)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nastu, Phil 1955 births Living people Baseball players from Connecticut Bridgeport Purple Knights baseball players Cardenales de Lara players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Cedar Rapids Giants players Charlotte O's players Major League Baseball pitchers Midland Cubs players Phoenix Giants players San Francisco Giants players Sportspeople from Bridgeport, Connecticut Waterbury Giants players