Grover David Powell (October 10, 1940 – May 21, 1985) was an American

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 ...

player Player may refer to: Role or adjective * Player (game), a participant in a game or sport ** Gamer, a player in video and tabletop games ** Athlete, a player in sports ** Player character, a character in a video game or role playing game who i ...

, a

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

who appeared in 20 Major League

games A game is a Structure, structured type of play (activity), play usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an Educational game, educational tool. Many games are also considered to be Work (human activity), work (such as p ...

for 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 ...

in . Born in Sayre, Pennsylvania, he threw and batted left-handed, stood tall and weighed .

Early years

As a sophomore at the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

, Powell went 4–0, and led all

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') may be a tertiary educational institution (sometimes awarding degrees), part of a collegiate university, an institution offering vocational education, a further education institution, or a secondary sc ...

pitchers nationwide with 166

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, still a Penn record. He also hurled a

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

against

Lafayette College Lafayette College is a private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Easton, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1826 by James Madison Porter and other citizens in Easton, the college first held classes in 18 ...

. His behavior, however, led coach Jack McCloskey to kick him off the team. The Mets took a chance, signing Powell before their inaugural season in regardless of the fact that he hadn't pitched since his sophomore year. Used as both a starter and

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 ...

in his first

professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who work (human activity), works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the partic ...

season with the Auburn Mets and the

Syracuse Chiefs Syracuse most commonly refers to: * Syracuse, Sicily, Italy; in the province of Syracuse * Syracuse, New York, USA; in the Syracuse metropolitan area Syracuse may also refer to: Places * Syracuse railway station (disambiguation) Italy * Provi ...

, Powell compiled a 4–12 record with a 5.45

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 ...

and 121 strikeouts in 114

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 ...

. Used more strictly as a starter in 1963 with the Raleigh Mets, Powell improved to 5–6 with a far more respectable 3.07 ERA.

New York Mets

The Mets called Powell up in July 1963. With the Mets behind 11–2 to the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

, Powell made his major league debut in the ninth

inning In baseball, softball, and similar games, an inning is the basic unit of play, consisting of two halves or frames, the "top" (first half) and the "bottom" (second half). In each half, one team bats until three outs are made, with the other tea ...

on July 13. Though he gave up two walks, Powell escaped his one inning of work without further damage. Despite this modest success, Powell was used strictly in "mop up duty" by Mets

Manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...

Casey Stengel Charles Dillon "Casey" Stengel (; July 30, 1890 – September 29, 1975) was an American Major League Baseball right fielder and Manager (baseball), manager, best known as the manager of the championship New York Yankees of the 1950s and later, t ...

through his first five appearances. In all five cases, the Mets were down a minimum of five runs when Powell was called upon to close out the game. Powell had a 1.88 ERA and sixteen strikeouts over 13 innings pitched when he was given his first opportunity to

start Start can refer to multiple topics: * Takeoff, the phase of flight where an aircraft transitions from moving along the ground to flying through the air * Starting lineup in sports * Track and field#Starts use in race, Starts use in sport race * S ...

on August 20 against the

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 ...

, who were coming off an eight-game winning streak. Powell and Phillies starter

Cal McLish Calvin Coolidge Julius Caesar Tuskahoma McLish (December 1, 1925 – August 26, 2010), nicknamed "Bus", was an American professional baseball pitcher and coach, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) between 1944 and 1964 for seven different ...

engaged in a pitchers' duel through the first seven innings before the Mets finally broke through for two runs in the eighth and two more in the ninth. Powell allowed four

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * '' H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014, a British compilation album s ...

and four walks, while striking out six in a complete-game

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 ...

. After escaping a bases loaded jam in the sixth, Powell did not allow another base runner. It would turn out to be his only Major League win. In his next start on August 27, Powell was holding onto a 1–0 lead over 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 ...

when

Donn Clendenon Donn Alvin Clendenon (July 15, 1935 – September 17, 2005) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a first baseman from to . He is most notable for his performance during the 1969 World Series when he ...

lined a pitch off Powell's cheek. He remained in the game through the end of the inning. Afterwards, he was taken to Presbyterian University Hospital for X-rays. The Pirates would come back to win upon his departure. His five innings of shutout ball against the Pirates lowered his season ERA to 0.95. From there, Powell pitched to a 5.06 ERA over the remainder of the season. He took his only career loss on September 5 against the

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 ...

. All told, he went 1–1 with a 2.72 ERA. He struck out 39, allowed 37

and 32

bases on balls A base on balls (BB), better known as a walk, occurs in baseball when a batter receives four pitches during a plate appearance that the umpire calls '' balls'', and is in turn awarded first base without the possibility of being called out. The bas ...

in 49 innings pitched.

After the majors

Powell remained in the Mets'

farm system In sports, a farm team (also referred to as farm system, developmental system, feeder team, or nursery club) is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful pl ...

through .

Tendinitis Tendinopathy is a type of tendon disorder that results in pain, swelling, and impaired function. The pain is typically worse with movement. It most commonly occurs around the shoulder ( rotator cuff tendinitis, biceps tendinitis), elbow ( tenn ...

limited him to just 42 innings, and cost him the entire season. He joined 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 ...

in , and seemed poised to return to the majors. In , he pitched 188 innings, and went 16–6 with a 2.54 ERA for the Southern League's

Asheville Tourists The Asheville Tourists are a Minor League Baseball team of the South Atlantic League and the High-A affiliate of the Houston Astros. It is located in Asheville, North Carolina. Asheville teams have played under the Tourists moniker in different ...

. However, he was limited to just 45 innings in . Midway during the 1969 season, he was dealt to the

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 ...

for former major league

infielder An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field, between first base and third base. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns pla ...

Mike de la Hoz. As a minor leaguer with the Braves, Powell went 1–7 with a 7.60 ERA through the season before retiring. Having left school to pitch for the Mets, he returned to the University of Pennsylvania to complete his degree in economics in 1966. In 1985, while visiting his son in the hospital, Powell was diagnosed with

leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia; pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and produce high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or '' ...

. He died later that year.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Powell, Grover 1940 births 1985 deaths Asheville Tourists players Auburn Mets players Baseball players from Bradford County, Pennsylvania Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Deaths from leukemia in the United States Greenwood Braves players Indianapolis Indians players Knoxville Smokies players Leones del Caracas players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Major League Baseball pitchers New York Mets players Raleigh Mets players Richmond Braves players Shreveport Braves players Syracuse Chiefs players University of Pennsylvania alumni Williamsport Mets players 20th-century American sportsmen