Henry Eugene Garber (born November 13, 1947) is an American former 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 ...
sidearm 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 ...
who played for four
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) organizations from to .
Playing career
Garber was selected by the
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 ...
in the 20th round of the
1965 amateur draft. Over the course of his MLB career, he pitched for the Pirates,
Kansas City Royals
The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The team ...
(on two occasions),
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 ...
, and
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Eas ...
. In , Garber won his only postseason game, becoming the first Phillies pitcher to win a postseason game in 62 years. While pitching for the Braves against 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 ...
on August 1, 1978, Garber helped prevent
Pete Rose
Peter Edward Rose Sr. (April 14, 1941 – September 30, 2024), nicknamed "Charlie Hustle", was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1963 to 1986, most prominently as a member of ...
from setting a new
National League
National League often refers to:
*National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada
*National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...
(NL)
hitting streak
In baseball, a hitting streak is the number of consecutive official games in which a player appears and gets at least one base hit. According to the Official Baseball Rules, such a streak is not necessarily ended when a player has at least 1 pl ...
record. With the Braves winning 16–4 in the top of the ninth inning, Rose was 0 for 4 when he came to bat with two outs. Rose struck out swinging, on a 2–2
change-up, ending the consecutive game streak still tied with
Willie Keeler
William Henry Keeler (March 3, 1872 – January 1, 1923), nicknamed "Wee Willie" because of his small stature, was an American right fielder in Major League Baseball who played from 1892 to 1910, primarily for the Baltimore Orioles and Brooklyn ...
.
While pitching for the
1979 Braves, Garber recorded 25 saves, but also 16 losses, an unusually high number for a
closer. His best season came for the
1982 Braves' NL West division-winning team. That year, Garber recorded a career-high 30 saves, along with a 8–10 won-lost record, and he finished seventh in the
NL Cy Young Award balloting. Garber's most effective pitch was a change-up, which he effectively delivered from an unusual, herky-jerky motion, turning his back to the batter before delivering the ball in a side-arm, "submarine-style" manner. With 141 games saved for the Braves, Garber ranks third on the team's all-time saves list as of 2020, behind only
Craig Kimbrel (186) and
John Smoltz
John Andrew Smoltz (born May 15, 1967), nicknamed "Smoltzie" and "Marmaduke", is an American former baseball pitcher who played 21 seasons in Major League Baseball from 1988 to 2009, all but the last year with the Atlanta Braves. An eight-time Ma ...
(154).
Upon his retirement following the season, Garber’s 931 career pitching appearances ranked fifth in MLB history, trailing
Hoyt Wilhelm (1070),
Kent Tekulve (1013),
Lindy McDaniel (987), and
Rollie Fingers (944).
Personal life
Garber attended
Elizabethtown Area High School. He went on to graduate from
Elizabethtown College in 1969. Garber is a farmer in
Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania, where he and his sons raise poultry for eggs, emu for
emu oil, and they grow corn, wheat, soybeans, and barley. Prior to the 2009 season, he was invited by the Braves to be a guest instructor for a week during spring training, working with fellow side-armer
Peter Moylan.
[What ever happened to Gene Garber?]
/ref>
Garber is the Chairman of the Lancaster County Agricultural Preservation Board and is a member of the Lancaster Farmland Trust, which combined have protected more than 1,000 farms and of farmland from development, more than any other county in the United States.
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Garber, Gene
1947 births
Living people
Pittsburgh Pirates players
Kansas City Royals players
Philadelphia Phillies players
Atlanta Braves players
Major League Baseball pitchers
Baseball players from Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Elizabethtown College alumni
Águilas Cibaeñas players
American expatriate baseball players in the Dominican Republic
Salem Rebels (baseball) players
Batavia Pirates players
20th-century American sportsmen
Raleigh Pirates players
York Pirates players
Columbus Jets players
Charleston Charlies players
Toledo Mud Hens players
Águilas del Zulia players
American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela