Randy Carl Martz (born May 28, 1956) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played for the
Chicago Cubs and
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...
.
Career
In 1977, after being named the Most Valuable College Player (he went 14–0 for the
University of South Carolina), he was drafted 12th overall by the Cubs. This , 210 pound pitcher saw moderate success in the minors before making his Major League debut on September 6, 1980 at the age of 24 and wearing #34. In his first game, he pitched six innings, giving up five walks and five hits for the loss. Overall, he went 1–2 with a 2.08 ERA that year. Oddly, in 30+ innings of work, he struck out only five batters.
In 1981, he went 5–7 with a 3.68 ERA in 33 games, 14 started. He had a 4.21 ERA with 11–10 record in 1982, and he struck out only 40 batters in 147+ innings of work. Perhaps the highlight of his 1982 season was the two-hitter he threw against 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 ...
. The hits he gave up were to
Ron Hodges
Ronald Wray Hodges (born June 22, 1949) is a former catcher in Major League Baseball, who spent his entire 12-year career with the New York Mets.
Hodges was originally draft (sports), drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the sixth round of the 19 ...
.
On January 25, 1983, Martz was traded with
Scott Fletcher,
Pat Tabler
Patrick Sean Tabler (born February 2, 1958) is an American former Major League Baseball player. After retiring professional baseball, he became a color analyst for the Toronto Blue Jays on the Canadian sports television networks TSN and Sports ...
and
Dick Tidrow
Richard William Tidrow (May 14, 1947 – July 10, 2021) was an American professional baseball pitcher and the senior vice president of player personnel and senior advisor to the general manager for the San Francisco Giants of Major League Basebal ...
to the White Sox for
Steve Trout and
Warren Brusstar.
He only appeared in one game in 1983, starting it. He wore #33 during that game. In 5 innings of work in that August 5 game, he walked four and gave up four hits but still managed to walk away with the no-decision.
Overall in his career, he went 17–19 with a 3.78 ERA in 290+ innings of work. Although he walked only 100 batters, he was definitely not a strikeout pitcher as he struck out only 78. As a batter, he hit .165 in 79 at-bats. He had a .988 career fielding percentage.
Martz currently lives in
East Alton, Illinois
East Alton is a village in Madison County, Illinois, United States. The population was 6,301 at the 2010 census.
History
East Alton was incorporated as a village in 1893 (some say 1894).
William Cobb, namesake of Cobb Street, was one of the fir ...
. He was an assistant coach at
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE) is a public university in Edwardsville, Illinois. SIUE was established in 1957 as an extension of Southern Illinois University Carbondale.Butler 1976, p. 18 It is the younger of the two major inst ...
in 1986. He was then head coach at
MacMurray College
MacMurray College was a private college in Jacksonville, Illinois. Its enrollment in fall 2015 was 570. Founded in 1846, the college closed in May 2020.
History
Although founded in 1846 by a group of Methodist clergymen as the Illinois Confer ...
from 1987-1990. Since 1991 he has been the head coach at
Lewis and Clark Community College
Lewis and Clark Community College is a public community college in Godfrey, Illinois. It serves approximately 15,000 credit and non-credit students annually. The college has nine locations throughout the St. Louis Metro East, including a campu ...
. He was the manager of the
River City Rascals
The River City Rascals were a professional baseball team based in O'Fallon, Missouri, in the United States. The Rascals were a member of the West Division of the Frontier League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball. From the 1999 ...
of the independent
Frontier League
The Frontier League is a professional independent baseball league with teams in the Northeastern and Midwestern United States and Eastern Canada. Formed in 1993, it is the oldest currently running independent league in the United States. The le ...
from 2003 to 2006 and also the pitching coach for the Frontier League's
Gateway Grizzlies
The Gateway Grizzlies are a professional baseball team based in the St. Louis suburb of Sauget, Illinois, in the United States. The Grizzlies are a member of the West Division of the Frontier League, which is a partner league of Major League Base ...
from 2007-2016.
[Biographical Information]
References
External links
, o
Pura Pelota (Venezuelan Winter League)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Martz, Randy
1956 births
Living people
Baseball players from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Chicago Cubs players
Chicago White Sox players
Denver Bears players
Gulf Coast Cubs players
Iowa Cubs players
Major League Baseball pitchers
Midland Cubs players
Minor league baseball managers
Navegantes del Magallanes players
American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela
Richmond Braves players
South Carolina Gamecocks baseball players
Sportspeople from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Tucson Toros players
Wichita Aeros players
People from Madison County, Illinois
All-American college baseball players
SIU Edwardsville Cougars baseball coaches
MacMurray Highlanders baseball coaches
Junior college baseball coaches in the United States