Steven Wayne Ratzer (born September 9, 1953) is an American former

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), ...

(MLB) player pitching for the

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos (french: link=no, Les Expos de Montréal) were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal, Quebec. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in t ...

in 1980 and 1981.

Early years

Ratzer was born in Paterson, New Jersey, and is Jewish. He attended

John Bowne High School John Bowne High School is a public high school located in Flushing, New York City and has an enrollment of nearly four thousand students.Flushing, New York Flushing is a neighborhood in the north-central portion of the New York City borough of Queens. The neighborhood is the fourth-largest central business district in New York City. Downtown Flushing is a major commercial and retail area, and the i ...

, and St. Johns University in

Queens, New York Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...

. He was signed as a minor league free agent by the Expos on June 11, 1975.Major League Baseball Statistics and History
''Baseball Reference''. Retrieved on November 14, 2014. He began playing immediately at the rookie league level, and by 1977 he had worked his way up to the Expos'

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 ...

affiliate in the

American Association American Association may refer to: Baseball * American Association (1882–1891), a major league active from 1882 to 1891 * American Association (1902–1997), a minor league active from 1902 to 1962 and 1969 to 1997 * American Association of Profe ...

, the

Denver Bears Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the United ...

, where he remained through the 1980 season.Minor League Baseball Statistics
''Baseball Reference''. Retrieved on November 14, 2014.

Montreal Expos

Ratzer made his Major League debut on the final day of the 1980 season as the starting pitcher when the Expos hosted the Philadelphia Phillies. In the bottom of the fourth inning, he was removed in favor a pinch hitter having surrendered five runs on nine hits. The Expos rallied, winning the game in 10 innings, leaving him with a no-decision in his debut.Expos 8, Philadelphia Phillies 7. Game Played on Sunday, October 5, 1980 (D) at Stade Olympique
Box Score and Play by Play. ''Baseball Reference''. Retrieved on November 14, 2014. In 1981, Ratzer appeared in 12 games, all in relief. On April 28 at the Philadelphia Phillies, he relieved starter

Charlie Lea Charles William Lea (December 25, 1956 – November 11, 2011) was a starting pitcher in Major League Baseball. From through , Lea played for the Montreal Expos (1980–84, 1987) and Minnesota Twins (1988). He batted and threw right-handed. Caree ...

, pitching a 1–2–3 fifth inning. Because the starting pitcher did not pitch the requisite five innings to earn the victory, the

official scorer In the game of baseball, the official scorer is a person appointed by the league to record the events on the field, and to send the official scoring record of the game back to the league offices. In addition to recording the events on the field ...

awarded the win to Ratzer, which proved to be the only win of his major league career. On May 14 at the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

, he relieved

Bill Gullickson William Lee Gullickson (born February 20, 1959) is an American former Major League Baseball pitcher who played professionally in Canada, the U.S. and Japan, during an 18-year professional career, of which 14 seasons were spent in MLB. MLB career ...

pitching another 1–2–3 eighth inning. However, he recorded his only loss when he surrendered a lead-off,

walk-off home run In baseball, a walk-off home run is a home run that ends the game. For a home run to end the game, it must be hit in the bottom of the final inning of the game and generate enough runs to exceed the opponent's score. Because the opponent will no ...

to Pedro Guerrero in the next inning. Three days later Ratzer was sent back down to the minors.

Post-MLB career

Ratzer finished the 1981 season with the Denver Bears. He was traded with cash 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 ...

for

Frank Taveras Franklin Crisostomo Taveras Fabian (born December 24, 1949), is a former Major League shortstop from to for the Pittsburgh Pirates, New York Mets and Montreal Expos. Career Pittsburgh Pirates Taveras signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates as an a ...

on December 11, 1981. He finished his professional career with the

Tidewater Tides The Norfolk Tides are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. They are located in Norfolk, Virginia, and are named in nautical reference to the city's location on the Chesap ...

, the Mets' AAA affiliate in the International League in 1982, and back with the Bears, who were by then the

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 ...

AAA affiliate in 1983.

Winter Leagues

In between, Ratzer played winter ball with the

Águilas del Zulia The Águilas del Zulia ( en, Zulia Eagles) is a Venezuelan professional baseball team based in Maracaibo which plays in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League. History The team was founded in 1969 and debuted in the 1969–70 season. The fra ...

and

Tiburones de La Guaira The Tiburones de La Guaira ( en, La Guaira Sharks) are a baseball team in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League. Based in the city of La Guaira, they play their home games in Estadio Fórum La Guaira and have won seven national champions ...

clubs of the

Venezuelan Professional Baseball League The Venezuelan Professional Baseball League or Liga Venezolana de Béisbol Profesional (LVBP) is the professional baseball league in Venezuela. The league's champion takes part in the Caribbean Series each year. History Early years Baseball exp ...

during three seasons spanning 1978–1982.Venezuelan Winter League Pitching Statistics
''Pura Pelota''. Retrieved on April 28, 2016. He also pitched for the

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares with ...

Leones del Escogido Leones del Escogido (English: ''Chosen One Lions'' or ''Lions of Chosen One'' or ''Picked Lions'') is a professional baseball team in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Established in , Leones are the third most successful team in the Dominican Wi ...

in the winter of 1981, and in Game 9 of the 1982 Caribbean Series.

References

External links

Steve Ratzer
at B-R Bullpen {{DEFAULTSORT:Ratzer, Steve 1953 births Living people Águilas del Zulia players American expatriate baseball players in Canada Baseball players from Paterson, New Jersey Denver Bears players Leones del Escogido players American expatriate baseball players in the Dominican Republic Lethbridge Expos players Major League Baseball pitchers Montreal Expos players Quebec Metros players St. John's Red Storm baseball players St. John's University (New York City) alumni Tiburones de La Guaira players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Tidewater Tides players West Palm Beach Expos players Jewish American baseball players Jewish Major League Baseball players 21st-century American Jews