Heath "Heathcliff" Slocumb (born June 7, 1966) is an American former

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(MLB)

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. He batted and threw right-handed.

Early life and amateur career

As a child, Slocumb was nicknamed "Heathcliff" after the comic strip cat of the same name. Slocumb did not play Little League or even sandlot baseball as a child. According to his high school coach, he first played baseball when he showed up to tryouts as a junior at John Bowne High School in

Flushing, Queens Flushing is a neighborhood in the north-central portion of the New York City Borough (New York City), borough of Queens. The neighborhood is the fourth-largest central business district in New York City. Downtown Flushing is a major commercial ...

without a

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. According to a scout, his high school coach told him Slocumb was a

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player who had tried out for every team at the school. Despite a strong arm, Slocumb had poor pitching mechanics and was not selected in the 1984 MLB draft. Slocumb caught the attention of a

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scout who put him on an amateur team until July 17, 1984 when the Mets signed him for $5,000 ().

Professional career

In a 10-year career, Slocumb played with the

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Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. Since , the team ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. As one of the America ...

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 ...

, and

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. ...

. An

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selection in , Slocumb compiled a career 28–37 record with 513

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s and a 4.08

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in 631 innings. He collected 98 saves, including 32 for the Phillies in 1995 and 31 with Boston in 1996. Slocumb was traded in mid-1997 from Boston to Seattle for pitcher Derek Lowe and catcher Jason Varitek, in what is often cited in retrospect as one of the most one-sided trades in baseball history.Most lopsided MLB trades in recent memory

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. Published July 22, 2015. Accessed April 14, 2021. At the time, Lowe had pitched in only 12 major-league games with an ERA of nearly 7, and Varitek had never played in the majors. However, Lowe and Varitek both went on to make multiple All-Star teams and were major contributors to the 2004 World Series Champion Red Sox, and were inducted into the team's Hall of Fame after their careers. In 2005, Varitek was named captain of the Red Sox. Although Slocumb helped the Mariners make the playoffs in 1997, his career had dissipated significantly by 1998 and he was never effective again.

Personal life

Slocumb married and had two daughters with his high school sweetheart, Deborah, before she died of

breast cancer Breast cancer is a cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a Breast lump, lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, Milk-rejection sign, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipp ...

in 1992. The daughters lived with their maternal grandmother in

Richmond Hill, Queens Richmond Hill is a commercial and residential neighborhood located in the southeastern section of the New York City borough of Queens. The area borders Kew Gardens and Forest Park to the north, Jamaica and South Jamaica to the east, South Ozo ...

during his playing career.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Slocumb, Heathcliff 1966 births Living people National League All-Stars Major League Baseball pitchers Baltimore Orioles players Boston Red Sox players Chicago Cubs players Cleveland Indians players Philadelphia Phillies players Seattle Mariners players St. Louis Cardinals players San Diego Padres players Baseball players from Queens, New York African-American baseball players Kingsport Mets players Little Falls Mets players Peoria Chiefs players Winston-Salem Spirits players Charlotte Knights players Iowa Cubs players Memphis Redbirds players 21st-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century African-American sportsmen