David Vance Tobik (born March 2, 1953) is an American former right-handed professional baseball

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 ...

. After attending

Ohio University Ohio University (Ohio or OU) is a Public university, public research university with its main campus in Athens, Ohio, United States. The university was first conceived in the 1787 contract between the United States Department of the Treasury#Re ...

, Tobik played eight seasons in the

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) with the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. One of the AL's eight chart ...

(1978–1982), Texas Rangers (1983–1984), and

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 ...

(1985).

Career

Ohio University

Tobik played college baseball at

where he was an All-

Mid-American Conference The Mid-American Conference (MAC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference with a membership base in the Great Lakes region (North America), Great Lakes region that stretches from Western New York to Illinois. Its members co ...

pitcher from 1971 to 1974. During the 1974 season, Tobik compiled a record of 6-3 with 78

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 and an

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 ...

of 0.84. He was inducted into the

Kermit Blosser Ohio Athletics Hall of Fame The Kermit Blosser Ohio Athletics Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for Ohio Bobcats athletes and athletic personnel. Since 1965, selectees to the Hall are inducted during annual ceremonies, including recognition at halftime of a home college footb ...

in 1989.

Detroit Tigers

In January 1975, Tobik was drafted by the Detroit Tigers in the first round (second overall) during the secondary phase of the January 1975 MLB draft. From 1975 to 1977, he played for the Tigers' farm teams in

Lakeland, Florida Lakeland is a city in Polk County, Florida, United States. Located along Interstate 4, I-4 east of Tampa and southwest of Orlando, Florida, Orlando, it is the List of municipalities in Florida, most populous city in Polk County. As of the 2020 ...

(the

Lakeland Flying Tigers The Lakeland Flying Tigers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Lakeland, Florida, and play their home games at Publix Field at Joker Marchant Stadium. ...

) and

Montgomery, Alabama Montgomery is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Alabama. Named for Continental Army major general Richard Montgomery, it stands beside the Alabama River on the Gulf Coastal Plain. The population was 2 ...

(the

Montgomery Rebels The Montgomery Rebels was the name of several American minor league baseball franchises representing Montgomery, Alabama, playing in various leagues between and . ''Rebels'' was the predominant nickname of the Montgomery teams, but it was not the ...

). He moved up to the Triple-A

Evansville Triplets The Evansville Triplets were a Minor League Baseball team of the Triple-A American Association (AA) from 1970 to 1984. They were located in Evansville, Indiana, and played their home games at Bosse Field. The Triplets served as a farm club for ...

in 1977 and played in Evansville for parts of the 1977 to 1980 seasons. Tobik made his MLB debut on August 26, 1978, giving up three earned runs in a 9-5 loss to the

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 ...

. The following year, he appeared in 37 games for the 1979 Detroit Tigers. He spent most of the 1980 season in Evansville, but did appear in 17 games (all but one in relief) for the 1980 Tigers. On August 22, 1980, Tobik struck out four batters in one inning while pitching for Evansville against Denver, as La Rue Washington reached first base on a

passed ball In baseball, a catcher is charged with a passed ball when he fails to hold or control a legally pitched ball that, with ordinary effort, should have been maintained under his control, and, as a result of this loss of control, the batter or a run ...

after being struck out by Tobik. In 1981, Tobik compiled a record of 2-2 with a 2.69 earned run average ( Adjusted ERA+ of 141) in 60-1/3 innings pitched. In 1982, and after an injury sidelined

Dave Rozema David Scott Rozema ( ; born August 5, 1956) is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played ten seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), for the Detroit Tigers and Texas Rangers. Listed at 6' 4", 185 lb., Rozema batted and threw r ...

, Tobik became the Tigers' closer. In June 1982,

Sparky Anderson George Lee "Sparky" Anderson (February 22, 1934 – November 4, 2010) was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) player, coach, and manager. He managed the National League's Cincinnati Reds from 1970 to 1978 and the American League's Detroit Ti ...

credited Tobik's success to his development of a

forkball The forkball is a type of pitch in baseball. Related to the split-finger fastball, the forkball is held between the first two fingers and thrown hard, snapping the wrist. Due to its movement being similar to that of a spitball, the pitch is oft ...

and called Tobik the "king" of a Detroit bullpen that also included Kevin Saucier and

Elías Sosa Elías Sosa Martínez (born June 10, 1950) is a Dominican former professional baseball pitcher. He was signed by the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball (MLB) as an amateur free agent on March 4, 1968, and played for the Giants (1972– ...

. Anderson added: "I admit, I didn't see it coming. But I'm smart enough to pounce on something good when I see it. We don't have anybody throwing like Tobik. That forkball of his is unreal." In May 1982, Tobik and

Jack Morris John Scott Morris (born May 16, 1955) is an American former professional baseball starting pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) between 1977 and 1994, mainly for the Detroit Tigers. Morris won 254 games throughout his career. Arme ...

combined for a two-hit shutout against 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 June 1982,

Wade Boggs Wade Anthony Boggs (born June 15, 1958), nicknamed "Chicken Man", is an American former professional baseball third baseman. He spent 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), primarily with the Boston Red Sox. He also played for the New York Ya ...

hit his first career home run off Tobik—an 11th inning walk-off home run that Boggs later recalled as a turning point in his early career. Tobik led the 1982 Tigers with nine saves, and appeared in a career-high 51 games, but also compiled a disappointing record of 4-9.

Texas Rangers

During spring training in 1983, Tobik was traded to the Texas Rangers for all-star outfielder

Johnny Grubb John Maywood Grubb, Jr. (born August 4, 1948) is an American former Major League Baseball outfielder and designated hitter, who also occasionally played at first base. He played with the San Diego Padres (1972–1976), Cleveland Indians (1977 ...

. Playing for the Rangers in 1983, Tobik converted all nine of his save opportunities for the Rangers. Tobik pitched two seasons for the Rangers, appearing in 51 games, all in relief. In July 1984, the Rangers sent Tobik to Oklahoma City. On being sent to Oklahoma City, Tobik told reporters, "I don't know what to think anymore. I don't think they have to have a reason all the time for doing things. I'm a major league pitcher. I don't deserve this but what can you do?"

Calgary and Seattle

In January 1985, Tobik signed with the

Calgary Cannons The Calgary Cannons were a minor league baseball team located in Calgary, Alberta, for 18 seasons, from 1985 until 2002. They were a member of the Triple-A (baseball), AAA Pacific Coast League (PCL) and played at Foothills Stadium. The Cannons ...

in 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 the first player to sign with the newly formed Calgary baseball team. He won a career-high 12 games for the Cannons in 1985 and also established the team record for wins in a season. Tobik also compiled a 1-0 record for the

in 1985. He appeared in his final game for the Mariners on October 5, 1985. At the end of the 1985 season, the Mariners asked for unconditional waivers on Tobik. For his career, Tobik had a 14-23 record in 196 games. He had 28 saves and 116 games finished. His career ERA was 3.70 ( Adjusted ERA+ 110).

Family

Tobik married Anne Harter, whom he met while he played for the

and she was a sports writer for the ''

Evansville Press Evansville is a city in Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 118,414 at the 2020 census, it is Indiana's third-most populous city after Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, the most populous city in So ...

''. They have two daughters and a son. Their son, Dan Tobik, was a top baseball recruit for the

University of Tennessee at Martin The University of Tennessee at Martin (UT Martin or UTM) is a public university in Martin, Tennessee, United States. It is one of the five campuses of the University of Tennessee system. UTM is the only public university in West Tennessee outsi ...

. Dan currently pitches in the Los Angeles Angels organization, was drafted in 2013 out of the University of Tennessee at Martin. Tobik today lives in a suburb of

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tobik, Dave 1953 births Living people American expatriate baseball players in Canada Calgary Cannons players Detroit Tigers players Evansville Triplets players Lakeland Tigers players Leones del Caracas players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Sportspeople from Euclid, Ohio Major League Baseball pitchers Montgomery Rebels players Ohio Bobcats baseball players Oklahoma City 89ers players Seattle Mariners players Baseball players from Cuyahoga County, Ohio Texas Rangers players 20th-century American sportsmen