Todd Gerard Frohwirth (September 28, 1962 – March 26, 2017) was an American

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

right-handed In human biology, handedness is an individual's preferential use of one hand, known as the dominant hand, due to it being stronger, faster or more dextrous. The other hand, comparatively often the weaker, less dextrous or simply less subjecti ...

relief pitcher 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 (medical), fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection (sports), ejection, or for other strategic ...

. He played for all or part of nine seasons in

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) for 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 ...

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 ...

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

, and

California Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team ha ...

. Frohwirth threw with a

submarine A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...

delivery. Frohwirth, a

Milwaukee, Wisconsin Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at th ...

native, was a 1980 graduate of Messmer High School in

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee is ...

and a 1984 graduate of

Northwest Missouri State University Northwest Missouri State University is a public university in Maryville, Missouri. It has an enrollment of about 8,505 students. Founded in 1905 as a teachers college, its campus is based on the design for Forest Park at the 1904 St. Louis Worl ...

Major League Baseball career

The Philadelphia Phillies selected Frohwirth in the 13th round (335th overall) of the

1984 Major League Baseball draft First round selections The following are the first round picks in the 1984 Major League Baseball draft. Other notable players *Jeff Blauser†, 1st round (secondary phase), 4th overall by the Atlanta Braves * Greg Maddux‡, 2nd round, 31st ...

. Frohwirth began the 1987 season in Minor League Baseball (MiLB), with the Double-A Eastern League (EL)

Reading Phillies Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...

and was leading the league with 16 saves when he was promoted to the Triple-A

Maine Guides The Maine Guides were an American minor league baseball franchise that played in Old Orchard Beach, Maine, between 1984 and 1988. The Triple-A International League (IL) club was named for a classification of registered hunting and wilderness gu ...

of the

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

(IL), on June 29, 1987. On August 10, 1987, the Phillies promoted Frohwirth to the big leagues, when he made his MLB debut. Frohwirth entered the game in the fifth

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, when Phillies teammate

Kevin Gross Kevin Frank Gross (born June 8, 1961) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played from 1983 through 1997. Gross played for five different teams during his career: the Philadelphia Phillies (1983–1988), Montreal Expos (1989–1990), Los ...

was caught with an illegal substance (sandpaper) in his glove, and was ejected. Frohwirth pitched an effective 1 innings and was awarded the win in the team's 4–2 victory. Frohwith finished the 1987 minor league season with a 1.86

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

(ERA) with Reading and a 2.51 ERA with Maine, finishing the season with a combined 23 saves in MiLB. He won the 1987

Paul Owens Award This is a list of award winners and league leaders for the Philadelphia Phillies professional baseball team. Award winners Most Valuable Player (NL) :Note: This award was known as the Kenesaw Mountain Landis Memorial Baseball Award 1944-2019. : ...

as the top pitcher in the Phillies’

farm system In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team, feeder club, or nursery club is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a higher ...

. In 1988, Frohwith went back down to Maine, posting a 7–3 record, with a 2.44 ERA, and 13 saves, before returning to the Phillies, going 1–2 with an 8.25 ERA. He pitched infrequently enough to maintain his rookie status until 1989; that season, Frohwith had his breakout MLB season, as he appeared in 45 games, had a 3.59 ERA, and allowed fewer hits (56) than

innings pitched In baseball, innings pitched (IP) are the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of batters and baserunners that are put out while the pitcher is on the pitching mound in a game. Three outs made is equal to one innin ...

. After spending most of 1990 back at Triple-A, with the

Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (often abbreviated to SWB RailRiders) are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the New York Yankees. They are located in Moosic, Pennsylvania, in the ...

, Frohwirth was given his release by the Phillies. He then signed with the Baltimore Orioles and had three solid seasons, compiling a 2.71 ERA in 186 relief outings. Frohwirth also pitched for the Boston Red Sox and California Angels, before retiring following the 1996 campaign.

Later career

Frohwirth had a lengthy career coaching high-school basketball in the area, once leading

Whitefish Bay High School Whitefish Bay High School is a comprehensive public secondary school located in the village of Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin, United States. Enrollment is 947 students, in grades 9 through 12. The school newspaper, the ''Tower Times'', and the school ...

to the state final. Frohwirth was the boys' varsity basketball

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

Marquette University High School Marquette University High School (MUHS) is a private, all-male, Jesuit, Roman Catholic school located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It is accredited by the North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement (NCA CASI), an acc ...

in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 2013–14, but the school did not renew his contract. Frohwith continued to have an affiliation with the Baltimore Orioles as a major league

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. He joined the Orioles in Sarasota at spring training in March 2014 and worked (in a

coaching Coaching is a form of development in which an experienced person, called a ''coach'', supports a learner or client in achieving a specific personal or professional goal by providing training and guidance. The learner is sometimes called a ''coa ...

capacity) with Orioles submarine relief pitcher

Darren O'Day Darren Christopher O'Day (born October 22, 1982) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, New York Mets, Texas Rangers, Baltimore Oriole ...

Legacy

Frohwith died on March 26, 2017, from

bladder cancer Bladder cancer is any of several types of cancer arising from the tissues of the urinary bladder. Symptoms include blood in the urine, pain with urination, and low back pain. It is caused when epithelial cells that line the bladder become mali ...

. His son Tyler Frohwirth was drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in the 31st round of the 2016 baseball draft.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Frohwirth, Todd Major League Baseball pitchers Philadelphia Phillies players Baltimore Orioles players Boston Red Sox players California Angels players Northwest Missouri State Bearcats baseball players Baltimore Orioles scouts Baseball players from Milwaukee Deaths from cancer in Wisconsin Deaths from bladder cancer 1962 births 2017 deaths