Charles William Lea (December 25, 1956 – November 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 ...

starting pitcher In baseball (hardball or softball), a starting pitcher or starter is the first pitcher in the game for each team. A pitcher is credited with a game started if they throw the first pitch to the opponent's first batter of a game. Starting pit ...

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 ...

. From through , Lea played for the

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos () were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in the National League (baseball), National League ...

(1980–84, 1987) and

Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The team is named afte ...

(1988). He batted and threw right-handed.

Career

Lea was drafted three times, by 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 ...

(1975),

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 ...

(1976) 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) American League Central, Central Division. The club plays its ...

(1977), but did not sign and decided to go on to

Memphis State University The University of Memphis (Memphis) is a public university, public research university in Memphis, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1912, the university has an enrollment of more than 20,000 students. The university maintains the Herff Col ...

. He signed with the Montreal Expos after being selected in the 1978 draft. Lea played for the Double-A Memphis Chicks in the Southern League from 1978 to 1980 and was selected an All-Star in 1979 and 1980. After a 9–0 mark and a 0.84

ERA An era is a span of time. Era or ERA may also refer to: * Era (geology), a subdivision of geologic time * Calendar era Education * Academy of European Law (German: '), an international law school * ERA School, in Melbourne, Australia * E ...

in his last season at Memphis, Lea was called to the majors and debuted with the Expos in the 1980 midseason. He finished his

rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience, a rookie is typically considered needing more tra ...

season with a 7–5 record. On May 10, 1981, Lea

no-hit In baseball, a no-hitter or no-hit game is a game in which a team does not record a hit through conventional methods. Major League Baseball (MLB) officially defines a no-hitter as a completed game in which a team that batted in at least nine ...

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 ...

4-0 in the second game of a doubleheader at

Olympic Stadium ''Olympic Stadium'' is the name usually given to the main stadium of an Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports ...

. He was one of only three Expos to throw a no-hitter, the others being

Bill Stoneman William Hambly Stoneman III (born April 7, 1944) is an American former professional baseball player and executive who, during his eight-year (–) pitching career in Major League Baseball, threw two no-hitters; then, as general manager of the A ...

, twice, in 1969 and 1972, and

Dennis Martínez José Dennis Martínez Ortiz (born May 14, 1955), nicknamed "El Presidente" (), is a Nicaraguan former professional baseball pitcher. Martínez played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Baltimore Orioles, Montreal Expos, Cleveland Indians, S ...

, who pitched a

perfect game Perfect game may refer to: Sports * Perfect game (baseball), a complete-game win by a pitcher allowing no baserunners * Perfect game (bowling), a 300 game, 12 consecutive strikes in the same game * Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League, New Yo ...

in 1991. In 1982, Lea finished with a 12–10 mark and a 3.24

. His most productive season came in 1983, when he collected career-highs in victories (16),

strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It means the batter is out, unless the third strike is not caught by the catcher and the batter reaches first base safe ...

s (137), and starts (33), posting a 3.12 ERA. Then, in 1984 Lea was 15–10, set personal marks in ERA (2.89) and

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 ...

(), and was selected as a National League All-Star where he was the starting and winning pitcher in the All-Star game. Lea suffered arm and shoulder injuries and could not pitch at all in 1985 and 1986. He spent most of 1987 rehabilitating in the

minor leagues 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 ...

and appeared in one inning for the Expos. A

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

before the 1988 season, he signed with the Minnesota Twins, finishing 7-7 with a 4.85 ERA. In a seven-season career, Lea posted a 62–48 record with 535 strikeouts and a 3.54 ERA in innings. He added 22

complete game In baseball, a complete game (CG) is the act of a pitcher pitching an entire game without the benefit of a relief pitcher. A pitcher who meets this criterion will be credited with a complete game regardless of the number of innings played—pitche ...

s and eight

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 ...

s in 152

games pitched In baseball statistics, games pitched (denoted by Games G in tables of only pitching statistics) is the number of games in which a player appears as a pitcher. The statistic is also referred to as appearances, especially to refer to the number of ...

(144 as a starter). Lea was inducted to the Tennessee Sports of Hall of Fame in 1999.

Later life

Lea died on November 11, 2011, in

Collierville, Tennessee Collierville ( "call your ville" or "call yer ville"), officially the Town of Collierville, is a town in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and a suburb located in the Memphis metropolitan area. With a population of 51,324 in the 2020 Unite ...

, after an apparent heart attack at the age of 54.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lea, Charlie 1956 births 2011 deaths American expatriate baseball players in Canada Baseball players from Memphis, Tennessee Denver Bears players Indianapolis Indians players Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball players from France Memphis Chicks players Memphis Tigers baseball players Minnesota Twins players Montreal Expos players National League All-Stars People from Collierville, Tennessee Sportspeople from Shelby County, Tennessee Southwest Tennessee Saluqis baseball players Sportspeople from Orléans West Palm Beach Expos players

Career

Later life

See also

References

External links