David Wallace Heaverlo ( ;Markusen, Bruce. "#CardCorner: 1978 Topps Dave Heaverlo," National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.
Retrieved August 2, 2021 born August 25, 1950) is a former right-handed

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 ...

relief pitcher In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who pitches in the game after the starting pitcher or another relief pitcher has been removed from the game due to fatigue (medical), fatigue, injury, ineffectiveness, ejection ...

. His out pitch was a forkball. He is noted for shaving his head at a time when it wasn't popular and wearing a uniform number usually assigned to players not expected to make the major leagues coming out of

spring training Spring training, also called spring camp, is the preseason of the Summer Professional Baseball Leagues, such as Major League Baseball (MLB), and it is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spri ...

.Olson, Luke. "Dave Heaverlo enjoying life after baseball," ''Daily Record'' (Ellensburg, WA), Tuesday, January 22, 2019.
Retrieved August 2, 2021 He attended Moses Lake High School in

Moses Lake, Washington Moses Lake is a city in Grant County, Washington, United States. The population was 25,146 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Moses Lake is the most populous city in Grant County. The city anchors the Moses Lake Micropolitan area, w ...

, graduating in 1968. He then went on to

Central Washington University Central Washington University (CWU) is a public university in Ellensburg, Washington, United States. Founded in 1891, the university consists of four divisions: the President's Division, Business and Financial Affairs, Operations, and Academi ...

, in Ellensburg, Washington, where he graduated in 1973. For his baseball contributions, he is a member of the school hall of fame at both his high school and university. Heaverlo pitched for 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 ...

, the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...

, and the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. The Mariners compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. The team joined the American ...

. He made his major league debut on April 14, 1975, for the Giants and pitched his last game on September 27, 1981, for the Athletics. He earned a reputation as a jokester. He shaved his head because he couldn't stand the

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

heat in spring training and insisted on keeping his non-roster uniform number 60 so he didn't have to change it on his glove or cleats. His bald head earned him the

nickname A nickname, in some circumstances also known as a sobriquet, or informally a "moniker", is an informal substitute for the proper name of a person, place, or thing, used to express affection, playfulness, contempt, or a particular character trait ...

Kojak ''Kojak'' is an American Action film, action Crime film, crime Drama (film and television), drama television series starring Telly Savalas as the title character, New York City Police Department Detective Lieutenant Theophilus "Theo" Kojak. Tak ...

after the television detective played by

Telly Savalas Aristotelis "Telly" Savalas (; January 21, 1922 – January 22, 1994) was a Greek-American actor. Noted for his bald head and deep, resonant voice, he is perhaps best known for portraying Lt. Theo Kojak on the crime drama series '' Kojak'' (1973� ...

. After going 5–1 with a 2.55 ERA in

1977 Events January * January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...

, he along with

Gary Thomasson Gary Leah Thomasson (born July 29, 1951) is an American former professional baseball player. He played as an outfielder and first baseman in Major League Baseball (MLB) between 1972 and 1980, most prominently as a member of the San Francisco Gi ...

, Gary Alexander, John Henry Johnson, Phil Huffman, Alan Wirth and $300,000 was traded from the Giants to the Athletics for

Vida Blue Vida Rochelle Blue Jr. (; July 28, 1949 – May 6, 2023) was an American professional baseball player. He was a left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball from 1969 to 1986, most notably as an integral member of the Oakland Athletics dynasty ...

on March 15, 1978. Mario Guerrero was sent to the Athletics just over three weeks later on April 7 to complete the transaction. In his career, he made 356 major league appearances, all as a relief pitcher.Dave Heaverlo
/ref> He pitched 537 career innings and earned 26 saves. His ERA was a respectable 3.41. Heaverlo now works as the pitching coach for the Big Bend Vikings in Moses Lake, Washington. He also hosts a radio talk show.Tri-Cities Sports Hall of Fame
/ref> He is the father of Jeff Heaverlo, a minor league pitcher who played in the Seattle Mariners and

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim 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 ...

organizations.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Heaverlo, Dave 1950 births Living people Major League Baseball pitchers Baseball players from Washington (state) Central Washington Wildcats baseball players Sportspeople from Ellensburg, Washington San Francisco Giants players Oakland Athletics players Seattle Mariners players Fresno Giants players Amarillo Giants players 20th-century American sportsmen Phoenix Giants players Tacoma Tigers players