Patrick Paul Zachry (April 24, 1952 – April 4, 2024) was an American 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, ...

. He pitched 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

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

, and

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 ...

from 1976 to 1985. With the Reds, Zachry won the

Major League Baseball Rookie of the Year Award In Major League Baseball, the Rookie of the Year Award is given annually to two outstanding rookie players, one each for the American League (AL) and National League (baseball), National League (NL), as voted on by the Baseball Writers' Associatio ...

for his play 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 ...

in 1976. He was a member of the

1976 World Series The 1976 World Series was the World Series, championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1976 Major League Baseball season, 1976 season. The 73rd edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the National Leag ...

champions. The Reds included Zachry in their trade to the Mets for

Tom Seaver George Thomas Seaver (November 17, 1944 – August 31, 2020), nicknamed "Tom Terrific" and "the Franchise", was an American professional baseball pitcher who played 20 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played for the New York Mets, Cin ...

in one of the Mets' "Midnight Massacre" trades. Zachry was named an

MLB All-Star The Major League Baseball All-Star Game, also known as the "Midsummer Classic", is an annual professional baseball game sanctioned by Major League Baseball (MLB) and contested between the all-stars from the American League (AL) and National ...

in 1978. After pitching for the Mets through 1982, he pitched for the Dodgers in 1983 and 1984 and for the Phillies in 1985.

Early life and career

Zachry was born on April 24, 1952, in

Richmond, Texas Richmond is a suburb of Houston and the county seat of Fort Bend County, Texas, United States. The city is located within the metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city population was 11,627. History In 1822, a group of Austin's ...

, and grew up in

Waco Waco ( ) is a city in and the county seat of McLennan County, Texas, United States. It is situated along the Brazos River and I-35, halfway between Dallas and Austin. The city had a U.S. census estimated 2024 population of 146,608, making i ...

. He attended Richfield High School in Waco. The

selected Zachry in the 19th round of the 1970 Major League Baseball draft. In six seasons in their

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 ...

, he compiled a 54–42

win–loss record Win–loss may refer to: * Win–loss analytics, analysis of the reasons why a visitor to a website was or wasn't persuaded to engage in a desired action * Win–loss record, also winning percentage * Win–loss record (pitching), the number of ...

with a 3.00

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) and 619

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. While a member of the

Tampa Tarpons The Tampa Tarpons are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the New York Yankees. They are located in Tampa, Florida. The Tarpons play their home games at George M. Steinbrenner Field, which is a ...

in 1971, Zachry received notice of his military draft eligibility, but he failed the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

's physical examination due a severe childhood injury to his leg.

Major League Baseball

Cincinnati Reds

At the

Winter Meetings Representatives of all 30 Major League Baseball teams and their 120 Minor League Baseball affiliates convene for four days each December in the Winter Meetings to discuss league business and conduct off-season trades and transactions. Attendees in ...

after the 1975 season, the reigning

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...

champion Reds traded

starting pitcher In baseball (hardball or softball), a starting pitcher or starter is the first pitcher in the game for each team. A pitcher is credited with a game started if they throw the first pitch to the opponent's first batter of a game. Starting pit ...

Clay Kirby to 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 ...

for

third baseman A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the Baseball scorekeep ...

Bob Bailey in order to make room in their

starting rotation This is an alphabetical list of selected unofficial and specialized terms, phrases, and other jargon used in baseball, along with their definitions, including illustrative examples for many entries. 0–9 0 :"Oh and ..." See count. 1 ...

for Zachry. He made his major league debut on April 11, 1976 as a

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 ...

; the Reds moved him into the starting rotation shortly afterward. On May 28, he

shut out Shut Out may refer to: * 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 ...

the

to improve to 4–0 with a 1.17 ERA. For the season, Zachry compiled a 14–7 record, 2.74 ERA, and a team leading 143 strikeouts in 204

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 ...

. In the post-season, Zachry won game two of the

1976 National League Championship Series The 1976 National League Championship Series was a postseason series in Major League Baseball’s 1976 postseason between the two division champions of the National League in the Cincinnati Reds and the Philadelphia Phillies. This was the eighth ...

against the

Veterans Stadium Veterans Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, at the northeast corner of Broad Street (Philadelphia), Broad Street and Pattison Avenue, part of the South Philadelphia Sports Complex. The seating ca ...

, and won game three of the

opposing 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 ...

Yankee Stadium Yankee Stadium is a baseball stadium located in the Bronx in New York City. It is the home field of Major League Baseball’s New York Yankees and New York City FC of Major League Soccer. The stadium opened in April 2009, replacing the Yankee S ...

. The

Big Red Machine The Big Red Machine is a nickname for the Cincinnati Reds baseball team that dominated the National League from 1970 to 1979 and is widely recognized as being among the best in baseball history. The team won six National League West Division t ...

became the first team to

sweep Sweep or swept may refer to: Cleaning * Sweep, the action of using a brush to clean * Chimney sweep, a worker who clears ash and soot from chimneys * Street sweeper, a person's occupation, or a machine that cleans streets * Swept quartz, a cle ...

the entire post-season since the

League Championship Series The League Championship Series (LCS) is the semifinal round of postseason play in Major League Baseball which has been conducted since 1969. In 1981, and since 1995, the two annual series have matched up the winners of the Division Series, ...

debuted in 1969, en route to winning their second consecutive world championship. After the season, Zachry had a

hernia A hernia (: hernias or herniae, from Latin, meaning 'rupture') is the abnormal exit of tissue or an organ (anatomy), organ, such as the bowel, through the wall of the cavity in which it normally resides. The term is also used for the normal Devel ...

operation, and was in the process of recovering when he 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. ...

closer

Butch Metzger Clarence Edward Metzger (born May 23, 1952) is an American professional baseball scout and former pitcher who played five seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). Initially drafted by the San Francisco Giants, he played two-and-a-half seasons wit ...

were named co-winners of the

Rookie of the Year Award A Rookie of the Year award or ROY is given by a number of sports leagues to the top-performing athlete in his or her first season within the league. Athletes competing for the first time in any given league are also known as "rookies". Principal ...

. It was the first time in major league history co-winners of the award were named. The hernia, coupled with a sore elbow, delayed Zachry's 1977

Spring training Spring training, also called spring camp, is the preseason of the Summer Professional Baseball Leagues, such as Major League Baseball (MLB), and it is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spri ...

, and denied him the opening day

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 ...

. He did not pitch until the fifth game of the season against the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...

. He gave up three runs in his first inning of work. In the month of May, Zachry was 0–4 with a 9.85 ERA. Following an 8–0 loss to

and the New York Mets at

Shea Stadium William A. Shea Municipal Stadium ( ), typically shortened to Shea Stadium, was a multi-purpose stadium in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York City.M. Donald Grant, and had requested a trade. On June 15, 1977, the Reds traded Zachry,

Doug Flynn Robert Douglas Flynn Jr. (born April 18, 1951) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1975 to 1985 as an infielder for the Cincinnati Reds, New York Mets, Texas Rangers, Montreal Expos ...

, Steve Henderson, and Dan Norman to the Mets in exchange for Seaver; Zachry was considered the "principal figure" acquired by the Mets in the deal. Over the rest of the season, Zachry went 7–6 with a 3.76 ERA, and was the only Mets starting pitcher to post a winning record besides Seaver (7–3). After defeating his former club on April 30, he finished the first month of the 1978 season with a 3–0 record and 1.85 ERA. A complete game victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers on June 7 improved his record to 7–1, and Zachry was selected as the sole Mets representative on the National League

All-Star An all-star team is a group of people all having a high level of performance in their field. Originating in sports, it has since drifted into vernacular and has been borrowed heavily by the entertainment industry. Sports "All-star" as a sport ...

team, though he did not appear in the game. On July 24, the Cincinnati Reds came to

Shea Stadium William A. Shea Municipal Stadium ( ), typically shortened to Shea Stadium, was a multi-purpose stadium in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York City.Pete Rose Peter Edward Rose Sr. (April 14, 1941 – September 30, 2024), nicknamed "Charlie Hustle", was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1963 to 1986, most prominently as a member of ...

entering the game with a 36-game

hitting streak In baseball, a hitting streak is the number of consecutive official games in which a player appears and gets at least one base hit. According to the Official Baseball Rules, such a streak is not necessarily ended when a player has at least 1 pl ...

. Zachry held Rose hitless in his first three

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 ...

s, but Rose ultimately tied

Tommy Holmes Thomas Francis Holmes (March 29, 1917 – April 14, 2008) was an American right and center fielder and manager in Major League Baseball who played nearly his entire career for the Boston Braves. He hit over .300 lifetime (.302) and every year ...

' N.L. record 37 game streak with a single to left in the seventh inning. Four batters later, Zachry was pulled in favor of Kevin Kobel. Frustrated, Zachry went to kick a

batting helmet A batting helmet is worn by Batter (baseball), batters in the game of baseball or softball. It is meant to protect the batter's head from errant pitches thrown by the pitcher. A batter who is "hit by pitch," due to an inadvertent wild pitch or B ...

sitting on the dugout steps, missed, and kicked the step. He suffered contusions in his left foot, and left on crutches. He was lost for the remainder of the season. In the 1980 season, Zachry logged

. His 3.01 ERA was tops among Mets starters, although lack of run support led to his 6–10 record. On July 25 and July 30, Zachry shut out his opponent in consecutive starts. His streak would have hit three were it not for three

unearned run In baseball, an earned run is any run that was fully enabled by the offensive team's production in the face of competent play from the defensive team. Conversely, an unearned run is a run that would not have been scored without the aid of an erro ...

s in the eighth inning of his next start. Before the 1981 season, Zachry and the Mets signed a five-year contract worth $2 million. Zachry shut out the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...

Wrigley Field Wrigley Field is a ballpark on the North Side, Chicago, North Side of Chicago, Illinois. It is the home ballpark of Major League Baseball's Chicago Cubs, one of the city's two MLB franchises. It first opened in 1914 as Weeghman Park for Charl ...

in the 1981 season opener. He won each of his first three starts, but then fell into a five-game losing streak in which his ERA was 6.93, and opposing batters hit .330. His record stood at 5–7 with a 4.16 ERA when the players' strike interrupted the season. On the first day of the strike, Zachry's wife, Sharron, gave birth to their son, Joshua. Zachry finished the season with a 7–14 record and a 4.14 ERA. The 14 losses tied with

Steve Mura Stephen Andrew Mura (born February 12, 1955) is an American retired Major League Baseball player. A pitcher, Mura played from - with the San Diego Padres, St. Louis Cardinals, Chicago White Sox, and Oakland Athletics. He was a member of the Car ...

of the San Diego Padres for the most in the National League. In his first start of the 1982 season, Zachry took 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 ...

into the eighth inning. He walked lead-off batter Keith Moreland, retired the next two batters, walked Tye Waller, and then

pinch hitter In baseball, a pinch hitter (PH) is a substitute batter. Batters can be substituted at any time while the ball is dead (not in active play); the manager may use any player who has not yet entered the game as a substitute. Unlike basketball, A ...

Bob Molinaro hit a single to right to break up the no-hitter and the shut out. The Cubs scored four runs that inning, only one of them earned. New 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 ...

George Bamberger used Zachry as both a starter and reliever in 1982. He went 2–3 with a 2.11 ERA as a reliever, and earned his first career save on August 15 against the Cubs.

Los Angeles Dodgers

During the 1982–1983 offseason, the Mets traded Zachry to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Jorge Orta. In his two seasons with the Dodgers, Zachry pitched exclusively in relief, except for one emergency start made in the second game of a doubleheader against the Mets at Shea on August 30, 1983 (he held his former team scoreless for six innings before giving way to the bullpen). He ended his first season in Los Angeles with a 6–1 record and 2.49 ERA, and returned to the post-season for the first time since his rookie season. He appeared in games three and four of the 1983 National League Championship Series, both won by the Philadelphia Phillies by final scores of 7–2. In four total innings pitched, he allowed one

earned run In baseball, an earned run is any run that was fully enabled by the offensive team's production in the face of competent play from the defensive team. Conversely, an unearned run is a run that would not have been scored without the aid of an erro ...

and 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 ...

, while striking out two. For the 1984 season, he went 5–6 with two saves and a 3.81 ERA.

Philadelphia Phillies

Before the 1985 season, the Dodgers traded Zachry to the Phillies for slugging

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

Al Oliver Albert Oliver Jr. (born October 14, 1946) is an Americans, American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as an outfielder and first baseman from through , most notably as a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates teams ...

. With Kent Tekulve and Don Carman already in their bullpen, Zachry's role with the Phillies was very limited. After just ten appearances (mostly in losses), Zachry was released by the Phillies in June 1985 with no decisions and a 4.26 ERA.

Coaching career

Unable to sign with another team, Zachry retired and went into coaching, working in the Dodgers organization for the

Vero Beach Dodgers Vero may refer to: Geography * Vero Beach, Florida, a city in the United States * Vero, Corse-du-Sud, a commune of France in Corsica Other * ''Véro'', a talk show on the Radio-Canada television network * Vero (app), a social media company co-found ...

and the

San Antonio Missions The San Antonio Missions are a Minor League Baseball team based in San Antonio, Texas. The Missions compete in the Texas League as the Double-A (baseball), Double-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres. The team plays its home games at Nelson W. W ...

. In 1989, he played in the

Senior Professional Baseball Association The Senior Professional Baseball Association, referred to commonly as the ''Senior League'', was a winter baseball league based in Florida for players age 35 and over, with a minimum age of 32 for catchers. The league began play in 1989 and had ei ...

. He was profiled in a book by

Peter Golenbock Peter Golenbock (born July 19, 1946) is an American author. He is noted for his many books about baseball and other sports. Many of his books have been bestsellers. Career Golenbock initially worked as a lawyer for Prentice Hall, a publishing ho ...

about the league.

Later life and death

On November 21, 2016, Zachry was injured, and his wife killed, in a car crash on

Interstate 35 in Texas Interstate 35 (I-35) is a major north–south Interstate Highway that runs from Laredo, Texas near the Mexican border to Duluth, Minnesota. In Texas, the highway begins in Laredo and runs north to the Red River north of Gainesville, ...

. Zachry's teammate,

Johnny Bench Johnny Lee Bench (born December 7, 1947) is an American former professional baseball player. He played his entire Major League Baseball career, which lasted from to , with the Cincinnati Reds, primarily as a catcher. Bench was the leader of the ...

, reported that Zachry died on April 4, 2024. He was 71. According to the Mets, Zachry died at his son Josh's home in

Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...

, following a lengthy illness.

References

External links

, o
SABR Biography Project
o
The Ultimate Mets Database
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zachry, Pat 1952 births 2024 deaths American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Baseball players from Fort Bend County, Texas Baseball players from Waco, Texas Cincinnati Reds players Gulf Coast Reds players Indianapolis Indians players Los Angeles Dodgers players Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball Rookie of the Year Award winners National League All-Stars New York Mets players Sportspeople from Richmond, Texas Philadelphia Phillies players Sioux Falls Packers players St. Petersburg Pelicans players Tampa Tarpons (1957–1987) players Tigres de Aragua players Trois-Rivières Aigles players 20th-century American sportsmen