Frank Enrico Pastore (; August 21, 1957 – December 17, 2012) was an American
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 ...
player and radio host. He
pitched for the
Cincinnati Reds
The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. The Reds compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Divisi ...
from 1979 until 1985 and for the
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 ...
in 1986, and was in the
Texas Rangers organization in 1987.
Playing career
Pastore was born in
Alhambra, California
Alhambra (, , ; from "Alhambra") is a city located in the western San Gabriel Valley region of Los Angeles County, California, United States, approximately east from the downtown Los Angeles civic center. It was incorporated on July 11, 190 ...
, and was valedictorian of the 1975 class of
Damien High School in
La Verne, California
La Verne is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The population was 31,334 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census.
History
The area was home to Native Americans.
The European history of the area dates back to the ...
. That year, Pastore went to the Cincinnati Reds in the second round of the amateur draft. Pastore continued to be promoted within the organization, with an impressive 3.28 ERA in the minor leagues. He made his major league debut on April 4, 1979, at
Riverfront Stadium
Riverfront Stadium, also known as Cinergy Field from 1996 to 2002, was a multi-purpose stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio. It was the home of the Cincinnati Reds of Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1970 Cincinnati Reds season, 1970 through 2002 Cincinna ...
, pitching three scoreless innings in a loss to 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 ...
. Used equally as a
reliever and
starter during his rookie season, he then moved full-time to the starting rotation in 1980.
Pastore's best statistical season came in 1980 with the Reds, as he posted a record of 13 - 7 with an
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 ...
of 3.27 in 27 appearances. Pastore was hit on the elbow with a batted ball on June 4, 1984. That injury caused him to appear in only 41 games in the 1984 and 1985 seasons combined. He was then released by the Reds in 1986 following spring training. However, Pastore quickly signed with the Minnesota Twins, and spent the entire season coming out of the bullpen. Following the season, he signed with the Texas Rangers and was assigned to the AAA
Oklahoma City 89ers. However, Pastore started four disappointing games with the team (compiling a 1–3 record and 8.46 ERA) before retiring.
Later life
After baseball, Pastore went back to school, graduating with a degree in business administration from
National University
A national university is mainly a university created or managed by a government, but which may also at the same time operate autonomously without direct control by the state. In the United States, the term "national university" connotes the highe ...
in 1989. He then spent the next two years with the national leadership of Athletes in Action, the sports ministry of Campus Crusade for Christ. He then attended the
Talbot School of Theology at
Biola University
Biola University () is a private, nondenominational, evangelical Christian university in La Mirada, California. It was founded in 1908 as the Bible Institute of Los Angeles. It has over 150 programs of study in nine schools offering bachelor' ...
, graduating ''summa cum laude'' with an MA in philosophy of religion and ethics in 1994. In 2003, Pastore completed his second master's degree, in political philosophy and American government, from
Claremont Graduate School
The Claremont Graduate University (CGU) is a private, all-graduate research university in Claremont, California, United States. Founded in 1925, CGU is a member of the Claremont Colleges consortium which includes five undergraduate and two grad ...
.
On January 5, 2004, Pastore became the host of ''The Frank Pastore Show'' on
KKLA-FM in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, which became one of the largest Christian talk shows in the United States.

In 2011, Pastore authored ''Shattered: Struck Down, But Not Destroyed'', a book recounting how he became a
born-again Christian
To be born again, or to experience the new birth, is a phrase, particularly in evangelical Christianity, that refers to a "spiritual rebirth", or a regeneration of the human spirit. In contrast to one's physical birth, being "born again" is d ...
during recovery from his 1984 pitching arm injury.
Pastore once held the record for the fastest time to finish eating the famous 72-oz steak dinner, "The Texas King", at
the Big Texan Steak Ranch. Pastore's record of 9 minutes 30 seconds stood for 21 years, until being broken by
Joey Chestnut in 2008.
Death
On November 19, 2012, during his radio show while discussing how his faith affects his view of death, Pastore said:
You guys know I ride a motorcycle, don't you? So, at any moment, especially with the idiot people who cross the diamond lane into my lane, all right, without any blinkers -- not that I'm angry about it, but at any minute I could be spread out all over the 210 reeway
That same day, he was critically injured on the
Foothill (210) Freeway in
Duarte, California
Duarte () is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city population was 21,727. It is bounded to the north by the San Gabriel Mountains, to the north and west by the cities ...
, when a woman from
Glendora, California
Glendora is a city in the San Gabriel Valley in Los Angeles County, California, east of Los Angeles. As of the 2020 census, the population of Glendora was 52,558. World-famous Route 66 runs through the city.
Known as the "Pride of the Footh ...
, driving a
Hyundai Sonata, collided with his
Honda VTX 1800, throwing him off the motorcycle. He was hospitalized in critical condition with serious head injuries.
Less than a month later, on December 17, 2012, Pastore died from pneumonia and other complications of his injuries.
Pastore was survived by his wife, Gina, children Frank Jr. and Christina, and one grandchild.
References
External links
*
Pastore Homepage
Los Angeles Times Op-Ed Piece, ''Christian Conservatives Must Not Compromise''
* ttp://www.tyndale.com/X_Products/details.php?isbn=978-1-58997-611-5 Book Detail Page for Shattered by Frank Pastore
Sports Illustrated stats on Frank Pastore
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pastore, Frank
1957 births
2012 deaths
Major League Baseball pitchers
Cincinnati Reds players
Minnesota Twins players
Nashville Sounds players
Tampa Tarpons (1957–1987) players
Indianapolis Indians players
Oklahoma City 89ers players
Wichita Aeros players
Billings Mustangs players
Trois-Rivières Aigles players
American Christians
Former atheists and agnostics
American talk radio hosts
Radio personalities from Los Angeles
Sportspeople from Alhambra, California
Baseball players from Los Angeles County, California
Motorcycle road incident deaths
Road incident deaths in California
Damien High School alumni
20th-century American sportsmen
Converts to evangelical Christianity