Melvin Douglas Queen (March 26, 1942 – May 11, 2011) was an American professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

player,

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...

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 * Coac ...

scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement *Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement ** Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom ** Scouts BSA, sect ...

and executive. He played all or part of nine seasons as an

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to catch ...

and

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB), and also served for four seasons as a

pitching coach In baseball, a number of coaches assist in the smooth functioning of a team. They are assistants to the manager, who determines the starting lineup and batting order, decides how to substitute players during the game, and makes strategy decision ...

. He batted left-handed and threw right-handed.

Early life

Queen's father, Melvin Joseph Queen (1918–1982), was a Major League pitcher for the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...

and

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

for parts of eight seasons from 1942 to 1952. The younger Mel Queen was born in

Johnson City, New York Johnson City is a village in Broome County, New York, United States. The population was 15,343 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Binghamton Metropolitan Statistical Area. The village of Johnson City is in the town of Union and is a part ...

and the family moved to California in the early 1950s when his father was playing for the

Hollywood Stars The Hollywood Stars were a Minor League Baseball team that played in the Pacific Coast League during the early- and mid-20th century. They were the arch-rivals of the other Los Angeles–based PCL team, the Los Angeles Angels. Hollywood Stars ( ...

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 ...

. He was signed to a bonus by the Reds after a stellar three-sport high school career at

San Luis Obispo High School San Luis Obispo High School, also referred to as "San Luis High" and "SLO High", is an American public high school in San Luis Obispo, California. It is the only non-Continuation high school, continuation public high school within the city. The ...

San Luis Obispo, California ; ; ; Chumashan languages, Chumash: ''tiłhini'') is a city and county seat of San Luis Obispo County, California, United States. Located on the Central Coast (California), Central Coast of California, San Luis Obispo is roughly halfway betwee ...

, where he was a teammate of future Major League pitcher

Jim Lonborg James Reynold Lonborg (born April 16, 1942) is an American former professional baseball right-handed starting pitcher, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the Boston Red Sox, Milwaukee Brewers, and Philadelphia Phillies. Though nicknam ...

Professional career

Cincinnati Reds

Queen started his

minor league Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nort ...

career as a

third baseman A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the Baseball scorekeep ...

with the Palatka Redlegs of the

Florida State League The Florida State League (FSL) is a Minor League Baseball league based in the state of Florida. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following ...

. The following year, Queen led Three-I League

third basemen A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the scoring system us ...

with 228 assists while playing for the Topeka Reds. After spending 1962 with the

Macon Peaches The Macon Peaches was the predominant name of the American minor league baseball franchise representing Macon, Georgia, during the 20th century. Although Macon did not field teams during and immediately after World War I, the height of the Great ...

, Queen was converted into an outfielder in 1963 while with the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. ...

, at the time the Reds' Triple-A affiliate in the

. In 1964, Queen started the season with the major league Reds, making his MLB debut on

Opening Day Opening Day is the day on which professional baseball leagues begin their regular season. For Major League Baseball (MLB) and most of the American minor leagues, this day typically falls during the first week of April, although in recent year ...

, April 13, as a

pinch hitter In baseball, a pinch hitter (PH) is a substitute batter. Batters can be substituted at any time while the ball is dead (not in active play); the manager may use any player who has not yet entered the game as a substitute. Unlike basketball, A ...

in the sixth inning, lining out to center field off

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...

pitcher Ken Johnson. He got his first hit 11 days later with a single against the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

, off future Hall of Famer

Juan Marichal Juan Antonio Marichal Sánchez (born October 20, 1937), nicknamed "the Dominican Dandy", is a Dominican former right-handed pitcher who played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball from 1960 to 1975, mostly with the San Francisco Giants. Known ...

. He spent the entire season with the Reds, appearing in 46 games and batting .200.

Conversion to pitching

After spending nearly all of 1965 back with the minor league Padres, appearing in only five games for the Reds, Queen returned to the majors full-time in 1966. It was this season that he was again converted, this time into a pitcher. He made his pitching debut on July 15 against the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Centra ...

, pitching the ninth inning of a blowout loss. Altogether, he appeared in 56 games for the Reds, 32 as an outfielder, seven as a pitcher, and the rest as a pinch-hitter. As a pitcher, he compiled a 6.43

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 ...

in seven

relief Relief is a sculpture, sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces remain attached to a solid background of the same material. The term ''wikt:relief, relief'' is from the Latin verb , to raise (). To create a sculpture in relief is to give ...

appearances for the Reds and did not have a decision. Queen's most productive season came in 1967, when he posted a 14-8 record and a 2.76 ERA in 31 games,

striking out ''Striking Out'' is an Television in the Republic of Ireland, Irish television legal drama television series, broadcast on RTÉ, that first aired on 1 January 2017, based on ''The Good Wife'' by Robert King (writer), Robert and Michelle King. Prod ...

154 batters in a career-high 195.2

innings pitched In baseball, the statistic innings pitched (IP) is the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of Batter (baseball), batters and baserunners that have been put out while the pitcher is on the Baseball field#Pitcher's mou ...

, while allowing two or less earned runs in 15 of his 24 starts. His season highlights included a six-hit

shutout In team sports, a shutout (North American English, US) or clean sheet (Commonwealth English, UK) is a game in which the losing team fails to score. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketba ...

against the

in his first career start on April 16, and a two-hit shutout against the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...

on September 8. Queen developed shoulder problems including a torn rotator cuff and missed most of the 1968 season, then spent much of 1969 in the minor leagues.

California Angels

Queen was purchased by the

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

in October 1969. He appeared in 34 games in 1970, all but three in relief, posting a record of 3-6 and an ERA of 4.20 with nine saves. In 1971, he pitched in 44 games, all in relief, and posted a career-best 1.78 ERA. In 1972, he appeared in 17 games, posting a 4.35 ERA with no decisions, while spending part of the year back in the minor leagues. It was his last year as an active player.

Career overview

In a seven-season career, Queen went 20–17 with a 3.14 ERA and 14 saves in 140 games, giving up 154 runs (136 earned) on 336 hits and 143 walks while striking out 306 in 389.2 innings of work. As a pitcher, Queen relied almost entirely on his fastball. "I just went to the mound and threw as hard as I could", he said in an interview. Even after his conversion to pitching, he occasionally came off the bench to

pinch-hit In baseball, a pinch hitter (PH) is a substitute batter. Batters can be substituted at any time while the ball is dead (not in active play); the manager may use any player who has not yet entered the game as a substitute. Unlike basketball, Am ...

against right-handed pitchers, finishing his career with a collective .179

average In colloquial, ordinary language, an average is a single number or value that best represents a set of data. The type of average taken as most typically representative of a list of numbers is the arithmetic mean the sum of the numbers divided by ...

with two

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...

s and 25

runs batted in A run batted in or runs batted in (RBI) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if th ...

through 269 games as a hitter.

Coaching career

Following his playing career, Queen managed a friend's seafood restaurant and was thus able to spend more time with his wife Gail and their three children. Queen joined the Indians' organization in 1979 as a minor league pitching coach after former manager

Dave Bristol James David Bristol (born June 23, 1933) is an American former professional baseball manager and coach in Major League Baseball (MLB). Success in the minors, and with the Reds Bristol attended high school at the Baylor School in Chattanooga, Te ...

recommended him, and had a stint on their major league staff in 1982. He later joined 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 (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

organization, serving as

of the

Bakersfield Dodgers Bakersfield is a city in and the county seat of Kern County, California, United States. The city covers about near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley, which is located in the Central Valley (California), Central Valley region. Bakersf ...

in 1985. In 1986, Queen joined the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Since 1989, the team has p ...

, where he would play a significant role in the development of the homegrown players during their 11 straight winning seasons. He started as a coach, being promoted as their farm director in 1990 and served as their major league pitching coach from 1996 through 1999. During his four seasons in that role, two Toronto hurlers won three consecutive

Cy Young Award The Cy Young Award is given annually to the best pitchers in Major League Baseball (MLB), one each for the American League (AL) and National League (baseball), National League (NL). The award was introduced in 1956 by Commissioner of Baseball ( ...

s as the top pitcher in the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is the younger of two sports leagues, leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western L ...

—

Pat Hentgen Patrick George Hentgen (born November 13, 1968) is an American former professional baseball pitcher, and currently a special assistant with the Toronto Blue Jays organization. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Blue Jays, St. Louis ...

in 1996 and

Roger Clemens William Roger Clemens (born August 4, 1962), nicknamed "Rocket", is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 24 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), most notably with the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees and also played ...

in the 1997 and 1998 seasons. In addition, Queen was instrumental in helping shape the careers of a number of top Blue Jays players, to include pitchers

Chris Carpenter Christopher John Carpenter (born April 27, 1975) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played 15 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays and St. Louis Cardinals from 1997 to 2012. A Cy Young Award wi ...

Todd Stottlemyre Todd Vernon Stottlemyre (born May 20, 1965) is an American former professional baseball player. He played for 15 seasons in Major League Baseball as a starting pitcher from to , most notably as a member of the Toronto Blue Jays with whom he won ...

Mike Timlin Michael August Timlin (; born March 10, 1966) is an American former professional baseball relief pitcher. Timlin played on four World Series championship teams in an 18-year career; the 1992 Toronto Blue Jays, 1993 Toronto Blue Jays, 2004 Bost ...

David Wells David Lee Wells (born May 20, 1963) is an American former baseball pitcher who played 21 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for nine teams, most notably the Toronto Blue Jays and New York Yankees. Nicknamed "Boomer", Wells was considered on ...

and

Woody Williams Gregory Scott "Woody" Williams (born August 19, 1966) is an American baseball coach and former pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays, San Diego Padres, St. Louis Cardinals, and Houston Astros. Baseball ca ...

; infielders Alex Gonzalez and

Jeff Kent Jeffrey Franklin Kent (born March 7, 1968) is an American former professional baseball second baseman. He played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1992 to 2008 for the Toronto Blue Jays, New York Mets, Cleveland Indians, San Franci ...

, as well as outfielders

Shawn Green Shawn David Green (born November 10, 1972) is an American former professional baseball right fielder who played for multiple teams in Major League Baseball (MLB). Green was a first-round draft pick and a two-time major league All-Star. He drov ...

and Shannon Stewart, among some other notables. Queen also served as the Blue Jays interim

for the final five games of the 1997 season after

Cito Gaston Clarence Edwin "Cito" Gaston (; born March 17, 1944) is an American former Major League Baseball outfielder, coach and manager. His major league career as a player lasted from 1967 to 1978, most notably with the San Diego Padres and Atlanta Brave ...

was let go, and later became a scout for the organization. Nevertheless, one of his major achievements came in 2000, when the Blue Jays coaxed him out of retirement to help revive the sagging career of

Roy Halladay Harry Leroy Halladay III (May 14, 1977 – November 7, 2017) was an American professional baseball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays and Philadelphia Phillies between 1998 and 2013. His nickname, "Doc ...

, by then a 23-year-old pitcher. Queen met Halladay in

Dunedin, Florida Dunedin ( ) is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. The name comes from ''Dùn Èideann'', the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Dunedin is part of the Tampa Bay Area, Tampa–St. Petersburg–Clearwater ...

, where the Jays had sent their once-promising hurler after his ERA had soared to 10.64 in the major leagues, at which he ran a virtual boot camp for Halladay, rebuilding his delivery, teaching him new grips for his pitches and helping him develop a new mental approach. "There's no one I made that drastic a change to and verbally abused the way I did Doc", Queen explained after Halladay won his first Cy Young Award in 2003. "There aren’t many people that would have gone through what I put him through. I had to make him understand that he was very unintelligent about baseball. He had no idea about the game", he added. In 2009, then Toronto's

general manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...

J. P. Ricciardi brought Queen out of retirement again to serve as a senior advisor, working on special assignments with minor league pitchers, retaining that position for the rest of his life.

Managerial record

Personal life

Queen's brother-in-law was Jim Lonborg, whose sister Celia Queen married and had a son, Steven Queen. Lonborg had also been Queen's high school teammate. Lonborg pitched from 1965 to 1979 for the

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) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. The Brewers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Di ...

and

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. The Phillies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has ...

. Mel Queen was a longtime resident of

Morro Bay, California Morro Bay (''Morro'', Spanish for "Hill") is a seaside city in San Luis Obispo County, California, United States. Located on the Central Coast of California, the city's population was 10,757 as of the 2020 census, up from 10,234 at the 2010 ...

, where he died at age 69 on May 11, 2011, as a result of complications from cancer. He was survived by his second wife of 44 years, Gail, his daughter Shirlee and her two children, Tanner and Rocky, as well as his son Jeffrey Todd Queen and his two children, Ashley and Jeffrey, as well as his son Steven from his first marriage. He is also survived by two stepsons and seven step-grandchildren .

Notes

External links

, o
RetrosheetSABR Biography Project
{{DEFAULTSORT:Queen, Mel 1942 births 2011 deaths American expatriate baseball people in Canada American expatriate baseball players in Mexico Baseball coaches from New York (state) Baseball players from New York (state) California Angels players Deaths from cancer in California Cincinnati Reds players Cleveland Indians coaches Florida Instructional League Astros/Reds players Indianapolis Indians players Macon Peaches players Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball pitching coaches Major League Baseball left fielders Major League Baseball right fielders Palatka Redlegs players People from Johnson City, New York People from Morro Bay, California Petroleros de Poza Rica players Salt Lake City Angels players San Diego Padres (minor league) players Seattle Rainiers players Baseball players from San Luis Obispo County, California Syracuse Chiefs managers Tigres de Aragua players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Topeka Reds players Toronto Blue Jays coaches Toronto Blue Jays executives Toronto Blue Jays managers Toronto Blue Jays scouts 20th-century American sportsmen