Harold Rudolph Stowe (born August 29, 1937) 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 ...

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, ...

. Following his

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played by Student athlete, student-athletes at institutions of higher education. In the United States, college baseball is sanctioned mainly by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA); in Japan, ...

career with the

Clemson Tigers The Clemson Tigers are the sport, athletic teams that represent Clemson University, located in Clemson, South Carolina. They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I level (NCAA Divis ...

, Stowe played in

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 ...

for the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...

in 1960.

Amateur career

Stowe is from

Gastonia, North Carolina Gastonia is the most populous city in and the county seat of Gaston County, North Carolina, United States. It is the second-largest satellite city of the Charlotte, North Carolina, Charlotte area, behind Concord, North Carolina, Concord. The po ...

. He played in

American Legion Baseball American Legion Baseball is a variety of amateur baseball played by 13-to-19-year-olds in fifty states in the U.S. and Canada. More than 3,500 teams participate each year. The American Legion Department of South Dakota established the program in 1 ...

and led his team to the national finals in 1954. He attended Belmont High School in

Belmont, North Carolina Belmont is a small Suburb, suburban city in Gaston County, North Carolina, United States, located about east of Gastonia, North Carolina, Gastonia. The population was 10,076 at the 2010 United States census, 2010 census. Once known as Garibaldi ...

, and played for their baseball team. Stowe enrolled at

Clemson University Clemson University () is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university near Clemson, South Carolina, United States. - The blue-shaded pattern denotes university property. This shows Clemson University is ''out ...

and played

for the

. As a junior in 1958, Stowe set school records with 14 wins, 21

games pitched In baseball statistics, games pitched (denoted by Games G in tables of only pitching statistics) is the number of games in which a player appears as a pitcher. The statistic is also referred to as appearances, especially to refer to the number of ...

, 15

games started In baseball statistics, games started (denoted by GS) indicates the number of games pitched, games that a pitcher has starting pitcher, started for his team. A pitcher is credited with starting the game if he throws the first pitch to the first opp ...

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 ...

, and 126

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. His wins and strikeouts were the most in college baseball that season. Used as a stopper in 1959, he pitched in 19 of Clemson's 32 games. Stowe pitched for the Tigers in the

1959 College World Series The 1959 NCAA University Division baseball tournament was played at the end of the 1959 NCAA University Division baseball season to determine the national champion of college baseball. The tournament concluded with eight teams competing in the C ...

(CWS), and was named to the All-Tournament Team. For his collegiate career, Stowe had a 24–13 win–loss record and a 2.32

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 ...

(ERA).

Professional career

Days after the 1959 CWS ended, the

signed Stowe as an amateur free agent for a bonus reported to be above $20,000 ($ in current dollar terms). He reported to the Greensboro Yankees of the Class B

Carolina League The Carolina League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated along the Atlantic Coast of the United States since 1945. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 unti ...

. Stowe also played for the Fargo-Moorhead Twins of the Class C Northern League and was assigned to the

Florida Instructional League The Florida Instructional League (FIL), sometimes known informally as "instructs", is an American professional baseball league. The league was founded in 1958. Young major league prospects hone their skills in the FIL, while experienced players may ...

after the season. In 1960, Stowe pitched for the Amarillo Gold Sox of the

Class AA Double-A (officially Class AA) is the second-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States since 1946, below only Triple-A. There are currently 30 teams classified at the Double-A level, one for each team in Major League B ...

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

, and had a 15–3 win–loss record and a 3.43 ERA. Stowe appeared in one major league game, on September 30, 1960, pitching one inning against the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

. He was optioned to the Richmond Virginians of the

Class AAA Triple-A (officially Class AAA) has been the highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States since 1946. Currently, two leagues operate at the Triple-A level, the International League (IL) and the Pacific Coast League (PCL). ...

International League The International League (IL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the United States. Along with the Pacific Coast League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major ...

in 1961, but was demoted to Amarillo during the season. He also pitched for Richmond in 1962 and 1963. In 1964, the Yankees released Stowe, and he signed with 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 ...

, who assigned him to the

Charlotte Hornets The Charlotte Hornets are an American professional basketball team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Hornets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team ...

of the Class AA Southern League. On July 11, he came into a tie game with two out and a runner on base. He picked off the baserunner, ending the inning without throwing a pitch, and earned the win after the team scored the go-ahead run in the next inning. Stowe retired after the season.

Personal life

Stowe married Betty Jean Taylor on December 22, 1956. After his baseball career, Stowe operated his family restaurant in Gastonia. He was inducted into the Clemson Tiger Athletic Hall of Fame in 1979. The Clemson Tigers annually give the Hal Stowe

Most Valuable Player In team sports, a most valuable player (MVP) award is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particular competition, or ...

Award to its top pitcher.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stowe, Hal 1937 births Living people New York Yankees players Major League Baseball pitchers Businesspeople from North Carolina Baseball players from Gastonia, North Carolina Fargo-Moorhead Twins players Greensboro Yankees players Amarillo Gold Sox players 20th-century American sportsmen Richmond Virginians (minor league) players Charlotte Hornets (baseball) players Clemson Tigers baseball players