Thomas Edward Niedenfuer (born August 13, 1959), is an American former professional baseball right-handed pitcher. Exclusively a

reliever 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, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection, or for other strategic reasons, such as inclement weather d ...

during his ten-year career, he played his first six-plus seasons for the Los Angeles Dodgers, then finished out with the Baltimore Orioles, Seattle Mariners, and St. Louis Cardinals.

Amateur career

Born in

St. Louis Park, Minnesota St. Louis Park is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 50,010 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is a first-ring suburb immediately west of Minneapolis, Minnesota, Min ...

, Niedenfuer first moved with his family to Pennsylvania when he was three, and later moved to Washington when he was in the third grade. Raised in

Redmond, Washington Redmond is a city in King County, Washington, United States, located east of Seattle. The population was 73,256 at the 2020 census, up from 54,144 in 2010. Redmond is best known as the home of Microsoft and Nintendo of America. With an an ...

, he graduated from Redmond High School in 1977 and was selected in the 36th round of the MLB draft by the

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 ...

. Niedenfuer did not sign and played college baseball; he was a standout pitcher for the Washington State Cougars in Pullman under head coach

Bobo Brayton Frederick Charles Brayton (October 20, 1925 – March 28, 2015), usually known as Chuck Brayton or Bobo Brayton, was an American college baseball head coach; he led the Washington State Cougars for 33 seasons, from 1962 to 1994. He is the winninge ...

. He signed with the Dodgers as an amateur free agent in August 1980, prior to his senior season at WSU.

Professional career

Niedenfuer started 1981 with the San Antonio Dodgers of the Double-A Texas League. As a rookie in the strike-shortened season, he debuted in the majors in mid-August. He appeared in 17 games for the

, and excelled in the World Series, pitching five innings in two games (1,4) with no runs allowed as the Dodgers defeated the New York Yankees in six games. Niedenfuer's best all-around year was

1983 The year 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to Internet protocol suite, TCP/IP is officially completed (this is consid ...

, when he pitched in a career-high 66 games and posted an 8–3 record with 11 saves and a 1.90 earned run average. He went 7–9 in

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...

, but posted career highs in saves (19) and innings pitched (106.1), with a 2.71 ERA. In the National League Championship Series, he gave up a walk-off home run to light-hitting shortstop Ozzie Smith in Game 5 that gave the St. Louis Cardinals a one-game lead. Two days later at Dodger Stadium, he was victimized by a Jack Clark three-run homer with two outs in the ninth inning that gave the Cardinals the pennant in six games. In

1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, k ...

, during his seventh season with the Dodgers, he went 1–0 with a 2.76 ERA in 15 games before being traded on May 22 to the Baltimore Orioles. He struggled in the American League the rest of the season, with a 4.99 ERA in 45 games;

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...

was better, posting a 3.51 ERA with 18 saves. Niedenfuer became a free agent after 1988, and spent one season each with the Seattle Mariners and St. Louis Cardinals, going a combined 0–9 and retired with 484 career appearances.

Personal life

Niedenfuer was married to Lisa Byers from 1982 to 1985. He has been married to actress

Judy Landers Judy Landers (born October 7, 1958) is an American film and television actress. Early years Landers is the daughter of Ruth Landers, and is the younger sister of actress Audrey Landers. She studied at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. C ...

since November 1987, and they have resided in Sarasota, Florida, since 1996. They have two daughters, Lindsey and Kristy, who own and operate an event-planning company and perform in a pop music band together.

References

Sources

* Bell, Christopher. ''Scapegoats: Baseballers Whose Careers Are Marked By One Fateful Play.'' (McFarland and Company, 2002)

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Niedenfuer, Tom 1959 births Living people Albuquerque Dukes players American expatriate baseball players in Canada American people of German descent Baltimore Orioles players Baseball players from Minnesota Baseball players from Pennsylvania Baseball players from Washington (state) Calgary Cannons players Los Angeles Dodgers players Louisville Redbirds players Major League Baseball pitchers People from St. Louis Park, Minnesota San Antonio Dodgers players Seattle Mariners players Sportspeople from Redmond, Washington St. Louis Cardinals players Washington State Cougars baseball players Anchorage Glacier Pilots players Mat-Su Miners players