Larry Lintz (born October 10, 1949) 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 ...

player whose career extended from 1971 to 1979 and included Major League service with the

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos () were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in the National League (baseball), National League ...

(1973–1975),

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 ...

(1975),

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 ...

(1976–1977) and

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 ...

(1978). Primarily a

second baseman In baseball and softball, second baseman, abbreviated 2B, is a fielding position in the Infielder, infield, between Baseball field#Second base, second and Baseball field#First base, first base. The second baseman often possesses quick hands and f ...

, Lintz stood tall and weighed . He was a

switch-hitter In baseball, a switch hitter is a player who bats both right-handed and left-handed, usually right-handed against left-handed pitchers and left-handed against right-handed pitchers, although there are some exceptions. Characteristics Right-han ...

who threw right-handed. In six Major League seasons, Lintz played in 350 games and had 137 runs, 140

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 128

stolen base In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a runner advances to a base unaided by other actions and the official scorer rules that the advance should be credited to the action of the runner. The umpires determine whether the runner is safe or out ...

Career

Lintz signed with the Expos after being selected out of

San Jose State University San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a Public university, public research university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the List of oldest schools in California, oldest public university on the West Coast of ...

in the sixth round of the

1971 Major League Baseball draft The 1971 Major League Baseball draft took place prior to the 1971 MLB season. The draft saw the Chicago White Sox select Danny Goodwin first overall. First round selections The following are the first round picks in the 1971 Major League Base ...

. He began his career with the

Watertown Expos The Watertown Expos were an American professional minor league baseball team that existed from 1970 to 1971 in Watertown, South Dakota, playing two seasons in the Northern League at historic Watertown Stadium. The Watertown Expos were a minor ...

that year, finishing with a .280 batting average in 65 games. In 1972, he spent the season with the Quebec Carnavals. In 131 games, he recorded 96 stolen bases in 107 attempts, which was an Eastern League record. After spending part of 1973 with the Peninsula Whips, the Expos promoted him to the major league roster. Lintz made his debut on July 14, 1973, and played in 52 games. In the following season, he played in 113 games, finishing the year with a .238 batting average and 50 stolen bases, which was fifth in the

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 ...

. After 46 games with the Expos in 1975, he was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals for Jim Dwyer, and finished the season with them; after the season ended he was traded to the Oakland Athletics for Charlie Chant. In 1976, Lintz was used almost exclusively by the Athletics as a

pinch-runner In baseball or softball, a pinch runner is a player substituted into a game for the purpose of base running. Description A pinch runner may be faster or otherwise more skilled at base running than the player for whom the pinch runner has been s ...

, appearing in 68 games with only one

at-bat In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens upon completion of his turn at bat, b ...

; during that season he scored 21 runs and stole 31 bases in 42 attempts. After spending 1977 with the Athletics, Lintz signed with the Cleveland Indians. He played in three games to end his major league career, and spent most of the season with the minor league

Portland Beavers The Portland Beavers was the name of separate minor league baseball teams, which represented Portland, Oregon, in the Pacific Coast League (PCL). The team was established in 1903, the first year of the PCL. Franchise history Many baseball teams h ...

. He played in three games for the Tacoma Tugs, the following season, then retired. Lintz was the inspiration for a character in the award-winning short film "Darwin's Tears."

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lintz, Larry 1949 births Living people American expatriate baseball players in Canada Baseball players from Martinez, California Cleveland Indians players Major League Baseball second basemen Montreal Expos players Oakland Athletics players Peninsula Whips players Portland Beavers players Québec Carnavals players St. Louis Cardinals players San Jose Missions players San Jose State Spartans baseball players Tacoma Tugs players Tucson Toros players Watertown Expos players