Tony Lee Cloninger (August 13, 1940 – July 24, 2018) was an American professional
baseball player and
coach
Coach may refer to:
Guidance/instruction
* Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities
* Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process
** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers
Transportation
* Co ...
. He played in
Major League Baseball as a right-handed
pitcher from through for the
Milwaukee / Atlanta Braves,
Cincinnati Reds
The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...
and the
St. Louis Cardinals.
Playing career
A power pitcher, Cloninger compiled a career 113–97 record with 1,120
strikeout
In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is deno ...
s and a 4.07
ERA in 1,767
innings pitched
In baseball, innings pitched (IP) are the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of batters and baserunners that are put out while the pitcher is on the pitching mound in a game. Three outs made is equal to one innin ...
. He enjoyed his best year for the 1965 Braves, with career highs in
wins WINS may refer to:
*WINS (AM), an all-news radio station in New York City
*WINS-FM, a radio station in New York City
*World Institute for Nuclear Security
*Windows Internet Name Service
*WINS (solution stack), a set of software subsystems
*Wireles ...
(24), strikeouts (211), ERA (3.29),
complete game
In baseball, a complete game (CG) is the act of a pitcher pitching an entire game without the benefit of a relief pitcher. A pitcher who meets this criterion will be credited with a complete game regardless of the number of innings played—pitche ...
s (16), innings (279) and
games started (40).
Regarded as a tough fireball pitcher, Cloninger also was a dangerous power hitter. He compiled a career
batting average of .192, with 67
RBIs and 11
home runs, including five in the 1966 season.
On July 3, 1966, in the Braves' 17–3 win over the
Giants at
Candlestick Park in San Francisco, Cloninger helped his team's cause with two
grand slams and nine RBIs, both of which still stand as Braves franchise single-game bests. Cloninger became the first player in the
National League, and remains the only pitcher, to hit
two grand slams in the same game. Cloninger used a bat of teammate
Denis Menke's to hit both of those big home runs, and they stood as the only two grand slams of his major league career.
Cloninger finished his career pitching with Cincinnati and St. Louis. He was acquired along with
Clay Carroll and
Woody Woodward by the Reds from the Atlanta Braves for
Milt Pappas,
Bob Johnson and
Ted Davidson on June 11, 1968.
Coaching career
After retiring, Cloninger served as a
bullpen coach for the
New York Yankees (1992–2001), where he was a member of five
American League champions and four
World Series champion teams.
In 2002, he became the
pitching coach
In baseball, a number of coaches assist in the smooth functioning of a team. They are assistants to the manager, who determines the starting lineup and batting order, decides how to substitute players during the game, and makes strategy decisio ...
for the
Boston Red Sox, but was forced to step down in early 2003 when he underwent successful treatment for
bladder cancer that had been diagnosed in spring training. In 2004, Cloninger became a player development consultant for the Red Sox, serving for almost 15 consecutive seasons until his death.
As Red Sox pitching coach, Cloninger was ejected from a game in 2002 against the
Baltimore Orioles. After two batters were hit by pitches, fights broke out and benches cleared. At one point, Cloninger, age 61 at the time but not shying away from trouble, grabbed Orioles player
Brook Fordyce
Brook Alexander Fordyce (born May 7, 1970) is an American former Major League Baseball catcher with the New York Mets, Cincinnati Reds, Chicago White Sox, Baltimore Orioles and the Tampa Bay Devil Rays between 1995 and 2004. He batted and threw ...
in a headlock.
Death
Cloninger died on July 24, 2018, in
Denver, North Carolina at the age of 77.
See also
*
List of Major League Baseball single-game grand slam leaders
*
List of Major League Baseball pitchers who have thrown an immaculate inning
*
Baseball record holders
In Major League Baseball (MLB), records play an integral part in evaluating a player's impact on the sport. Holding a career record almost guarantees a player eventual entry into the Baseball Hall of Fame because it represents both longevity and co ...
References
External links
Tony Cloningerat SABR (Baseball BioProject)
*
:
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cloninger, Tony
1940 births
2018 deaths
Atlanta Braves players
Baseball coaches from North Carolina
Baseball players from North Carolina
Boston Red Sox coaches
Cincinnati Reds players
Eau Claire Braves players
Jacksonville Braves players
Louisville Colonels (minor league) players
Major League Baseball bullpen coaches
Major League Baseball pitchers
Major League Baseball pitching coaches
Milwaukee Braves players
New York Yankees coaches
People from Cherryville, North Carolina
Richmond Braves players
St. Louis Cardinals players