John Paul Poloni (born February 28, 1954) is a left-handed former
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 ...
pitcher who appeared in two games for the
Texas Rangers in 1977.
Career
Poloni was originally drafted out of
Lutheran West High School in
Detroit
Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...
,
Michigan
Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...
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 third round of the 1972 amateur draft; however he opted not to sign. He was then drafted by the Rangers in the sixth round of the 1975 amateur draft out of
Arizona State University
Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public university, public research university in Tempe, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 as Territorial Normal School by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, the university is o ...
, signing.
Poloni spent three seasons in the minor leagues until making his big league debut on September 16, 1977. Pitching against 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 his first match, Poloni pitched two innings, allowing one earned run while allowing two hits and striking out two batters. The first batter he faced was
Butch Wynegar.
He started his second game on October 2 against the
Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...
. He pitched five innings, allowing six hits and four earned runs, while striking out three batters and walking one, earning the win. He was relieved by
Roger Moret, who earned the save.
Game log
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In total, Poloni went 1-0 with a 6.43 ERA in seven innings. He allowed eight hits and one walk while striking out five batters.
He then pitched in the minor leagues in 1978, 1980, 1983 and from 1985 to 1986. In eight seasons on the farm, he went 45-44 with a 4.24 ERA in 120 games (95 starts).
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Poloni, John
Living people
1957 births
Cincinnati Reds scouts
Gulf Coast Rangers players
Knoxville Blue Jays players
Major League Baseball pitchers
Milwaukee Brewers scouts
New York Mets scouts
Oakland Athletics scouts
Pawtucket Red Sox players
Sportspeople from Dearborn, Michigan
Baseball players from Wayne County, Michigan
Pittsfield Rangers players
Salinas Spurs players
San Antonio Brewers players
Texas Rangers players
Texas Rangers scouts
Tucson Toros players
Wausau Timbers players
20th-century American sportsmen