Mike Torrez: Early 1980's Mets Pitcher (1983 - 1984)

Michael Augustine Torrez was born on August 28th, 1946, in Topeka Kansas. He was one of eight children to Juan & Mary Torrez, who were of Mexican decent. His father worked for the Railroad & managed local little leagues.

The tall six-foot five right hander was signed by the St. Louis Cardinals in 1964 at age 17.
Torrez went 10-10 at AAA Tulsa & would make his MLB debut as a September call up for the 1967 World Champion Cardinals.

MLB Career: On September 10th, he pitched to one batter & struck him out in a 8-7 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The next year he began the year with the Cardinals & went 2-1 but was sent down to AAA Tulsa in late May. There he went 8-2 as the Cards went on to win another pennant, losing to the Detroit Tigers in the World Series.

In 1969 the Cards fell to fourth place & Torrez filled in on a staff of Bob Gibson (20-13) Steve Carlton (17-11) & Nelson Briles (15-13) going 10-4 with the best winning percentage on the staff. In the second half of the season, Torrez was 9-0 with a 2.75 ERA. 

In 1970 Torrez fell to 8-10 with a 4.02 ERA.

One Hitter: On April 15th, he took a no hitter into the 8th inning, but the Expos Adolfo Phillips spoiled the bid with a base hit. Torrez went on to pitch a 10-0 one hit shutout. Dating back to last season it was his 11th straight win.

Expo Career: In June of 1971 was traded to the Montreal Expos for Bob Reynolds. Torrez would spend four years in Montreal (1971-1974) having two 15-win seasons. 

Loving the Night Life: Montreal was a great party town & Torrez who was known as the "knight of neon " in St. Louis took full advantage of it. Later in Boston, his partying at discos would lead to a divorce.

In 1972 he, Balor Moore & Bill Stoneman made a good rotation, but the team had little offense. His first two Expo wins were both one run complete game victories over the Giants. During a May stretch the Expos went 1-12 with Torrez earning the only win.  In the first half he was 10-5 but dropped off to 6-7 in the second half. Torrez won 16 games (9th most wins in the NL) going 16-12 with a 3.33 ERA. He struck out 112 batters, but also walked 103 in 243 innings of work. 

Torrez would be among the league leaders in walks allowed through most of his career. Although he was a work horse, Torrez would also give up lots of hits & runs throughout his career. Ten times in his career he pitched over 200 innings. He also walked 100 batters or more six times (leading the league three times). He would allow over 100 runs in a season seven times (leading the league twice). 

He was known as a nibbler, not having the best stuff but a guy who would nibble away at the corners of the strike zone.

In 1973 he fell to a 9-10 record walking 115 batters throwing a league lading 14 wild pitches driving his manager Gene Mauch crazy. At one-point Mauch was so fed up he overturned a clubhouse dinner table after a Torrez game & another time didn't pitch Torrez for three weeks.

In 1974 Torrez won another 15 games, tying Steve Rogers for the Expos team lead. From there on, he went on a seven-year stretch where he won games in double figures. 

That year Torrez married a girl from Montreal & was hoping to stay put to raise a family. But it was not to be, Expos manager Gene Mauch was tired of all the walks issued & he was soon traded again. 

Orioles Career: In 1975 he was sent to the Baltimore Orioles in a big trade that sent Torrez & Ken Singleton to the Orioles for Dave McNally, Rich Coggins & Bill Kirkpatrick.

The deal didn't work out well for Montreal, as McNally retired in May, Coggins got very sick, then was released & Kirkpatrick never pitched for the team. The trade was a great one for Baltimore, as Singleton became an All-Star outfielder & Torrez a top hurler on their staff.

In 1975, Torrez won twenty games (20-9) fourth most wins in the AL, posting a 3.06 ERA in 270 innings (9th in the AL). He also led the league with 133 walks. 

He was part of another talented staff that included Jim Palmer, Mike Cuellar & Ross Grimsley, but the O's finished second to the Boston Red Sox ending their six-year run as AL East champs.

Brawl with New York: On June 24th in Baltimore, Torrez hit Thurman Munson with a pitch. He singled in his next at bat. In the 6th inning Torrez threw a pitch up by Munson's head. When he came to bat again in the 8th, umpire Nick Breigan warned Torrez not to throw at him. This time Torrez blew kisses at him. The benches cleared but no punches were thrown. But when Thurman grounded out he charged the mound & a fight broke out.

Quotes- Mike Torrez: "You try to pitch guys tight; they start hollering. I can't change my pattern of pitching just because he's crying about it".

20 Game Winner: On September 20th, he tossed a two-hit shutout at Memorial Stadium, beating the Brewers 3-0, becoming a twenty-game winner for the only time in his career.

Oakland A's Career: That off season Torrez was traded to the Oakland A's who had just won five straight AL West Division titles & three World Series (1972-1974). But the A's were in transition in the dawn of free agency. Owner Charlie Finley began selling off or trading away all his top players.

But this was a monster trade at the time, as the Orioles sent Torrez & Don Baylor to Oakland in exchange for All Star Reggie Jackson & pitcher Ken Holtzman.

Torrez had another good year in Oakland, going 16-12 with a 2.50 ERA. He tossed four shut outs (4th in the AL) & pitched 266 innings. One A's pitcher left from the A's Championship years was Vida Blue who went 18-13. The A's still contended finishing second at 87-74.

Three Straight Shut Outs: On August 29th he gave up a run to the Tigers in the 1st inning, then pitched ten more shutout innings to beat Mark Fidrych 2-1 in eleven innings. Torrez then pitched three straight shutout wins to extend his scoreless innings streak to 37 innings. From July on Torrez was 10-2 for Oakland keeping them in the race.

In the off-season Charley Finley cut almost all his players' salaries. He accidently gave Torrez a raise then attempted to take it back. Torrez signed the deal & would not have resigned with Oakland for a pay cut, stating his unhappiness publicly.

AL New York Team: In 1977 after starting out 3-1 in April he was traded to the AL New York team for Doc Ellis, Marty Perez & Larry Murray. There he went 14-12 helping the club to a world championship. It was his only post season appearance of his long career. 

1977 Post Season- ALCS: In the ALCS win over the Kansa City Royals, he took a loss in Game #3 at Kansas City giving up five runs. 

1977 World Series: In the World Series win over the Dodgers. Mike was 2-0. In Game #3 he was the winning pitcher at Los Angeles pitching a complete game 5-3 win. In Game #6 at New York he pitched another complete game, led by Reggie Jackson's three HRs.

Red Sox Career: That winter he signed on as a free agent with the Boston Red Sox. Torrez would spend five seasons in Boston (1978-1982) winning 16 games in each of his first two seasons. He would finish second on the Red Sox staff in wins to Dennis Eckersley both seasons. Also on the staff were Luis Tiant & "Spaceman "Bill Lee, making up one of the league's best rotations.

But it was a heartbreaking season in 1978 for the Sox, as late as August 20th, they held a 9.5 game lead in the AL East. 

They went 21-20 the rest of the way losing 12 of their first 15 in September under manager Dom Zimmer. A four-game sweep from the AL New York club at Fenway was known as the Boston Massacre. 

After falling 3.5 games back, with 14 to go, the Red Sox went on a hot streak to win 12 of their last 14 games. The two teams tied for first forcing a one game playoff.

From August 23rd to the end of the season, Torrez was 1-7, losing six straight decisions before a September 28th three hit shut out over the Tigers. Torrez got the call for the one game playoff at Fenway Park.

Wrong Side OF Red Sox History: Boston held a 2-0 lead after a HR by Carl Yastremshi & RBI single from Jim Rice. Torrez cruised along until the 7th inning. He gave up back-to-back singles then recorded his second out. Rather than go to the bullpen, Zimmer stuck with him & Torrez gave up one of the worst HRs in Red Sox history. 

A three-run shot over the Green Monster to the light hitting short stop Bucky Dent. Although the score went to 5-2 & the Sox came within a run losing 5-4, it was Torrez HR that was forever remembered. 

He did get an applause when he left field but soon was a scapegoat for the so-called curse. It wasn't until 1986 when Bill Buckner let a little roller go thru his legs at Shea Stadium, that Torrez didn't get some of the weight off his shoulders.

In 1979, the Sox fell to third place & things were not happy in Boston. Torrez won 16 wins (8th best in the league). He also led the league in walks for a second time (121) as well as earned runs (126) posting a 4.49 ERA. 

In 1980 he fell to 9-16 the worst record he had since 1973. He fell out with Red Sox fans, hearing the Fenway boo birds. Seven of his last 11 starts came on the road. Manager Don Zimmer took him out of the rotation by mid-September.

That off season he attended a Boston Celtics game, his name was broadcast over the PA system & the fans booed him. Torrez felt it was done on purpose & did get an apology from the Celtics. 

In the strike shortened 1981 season Mike rebounded to a 10-3 record posting a 3.68 ERA. Even teammate Carl Yastrzemski said he looked like the Torrez who won twenty games six years ago. In 1982 after going 9-9 he was traded to the New York Mets for a player to be named later.

Mets Career: Torrez joined the 1983 Mets staff that included the return of Mets legend Tom
Seaver. Also on the staff was Craig Swan & youngsters Walt Terrell & Ed Lynch. 

On April 9th, Torrez made his Mets debut at Shea Stadium, in the third game of the season. Torrez gave up five runs in six innings, taking a loss to the St. Louis Cardinals. He lost to the Cardinals in St. Louis in his second start in St. Louis, beginning the year at 0-2. 

From April 15th to April 24th, Torrez then made three relief appearances, finishing up two games.  On April 27th he started in Cincinnati, going eight innings allowing just one run on three hits, earning his first win 2-1 over the Reds. In the 5th inning he drove in the first run of the game with an RBI single off Joe Price.

In his next start he went nine innings allowing three runs to Houston, but without run support took a 3-1 loss to the Astros. On May 7th he gave up five runs on eight hits to the Reds taking another loss. He then gave up four runs in Pittsburgh to fall to 1-5 with a 5.48 ERA.

On May 18th, he gave up just one run to the Padres, taking 1 2-1 win over Dave Dravecky. Rookie, Darryl Strawberry's RBI single in the 8th inning proved to be the winning run.

From May 28th to June 13th, Torrez took three straight losing decisions, giving up 12 earned runs in 26.2 innings pitched.

On June 2nd Torrez was facing Fernando Valenzuela in Los Angeles. He surrendered a lead in the 8th inning with a HR to Ken Landreaux. In the top of the 9th, manager George Bamberger removed Torrez for pinch hitter Mark Bradley, who homered to put the Mets ahead. 

Jesse Orosco who was 3-0 at that point gave up a walk hit in the 14th for the loss. Bamberger resigned after the game saying "he suffered enough" & Frank Howard took over as manager.

That June Keith Hernandez was brought into the Mets & the defense around the pitchers got better. Before Keith arrived Torrez was 2-8 with a 4.48 ERA after Keith arrived he was 8-9 with a 4.30 ERA.

Torrez then had a good stretch at the end of June winning three straight games, where he only gave up one run each time. On June 26th, he pitched a three hit one run victory over the Phillies at Shea Stadium. In that game he struck out a season high nine batters & lowered his ERA to a season best 3.72.

Torrez was a streaky pitcher that season, after those three straight wins he lost four straight decisions. From July 8th to August 11th, he lost six of seven games posting a 4.63 ERA in those nine games.

Franchise Record for Walks Issued: On July 21st, Torrez had a terrible outing in Cincinnati. He set a franchise record by issuing ten walks in just 3.1 innings of work. Torrez also served up five runs on just three hits, before exiting in the 6-1 loss.

Brawl With Atlanta: On July 26th, Torrez pitched a complete game ten inning 2-1 win over the Braves. The game was highlighted by Mookie Wilson's Walk off HR. Earlier in the game, Braves pitcher Rick Camp had hit Mookie in the back with a pitch which led to a bench clearing brawl.

In the 6th inning when Camp came to bat, Torrez drilled him in the hip with a pitch. Camp glared at Torrez then suddenly charged the mound. Newly acquired Met Keith Hernandez tackled Camp as Torrez got a punch into the face. The benches cleared again as a second brawl broke out. 

Mets manager felt Camp started the whole thing & wanted him ejected. But Umpire John McSherry disagreed saying if Camp goes so does Torrez. In the end no one was ejected & play resumed.

On July 31st, Torrez had another outstanding start, he shut out the Pirates at Shea for eleven innings. He did walk five & gave up eight hits but didn't allow anyone to score. But Jose DeLeon shut out the Mets for nine innings & Kent Tekulve another two-shutout innings. Torrez got no decision as George Foster grounded out scoring Mookie Wilson with the winning run off Manny Sarmiento in the bottom of the 12th.

Torrez the gave up four runs in consecutive starts to take two more losses to fall to 6-14. Then he won three straight games, beating the San Francisco Giants twice & the Los Angeles Dodgers to get to 9-14, lowering his ERA to 3.94.

Complete Game Victory: On August 31st, he pitched a complete game one run victory beating the Dodgers Fernando Valenzuela. In that game he struck out six, as the Mets put up seven runs. In the Mets five run 4th inning, Torrez had an RBI single off Fernando.

In September Torrez went 1-3 to finish the year at 10-17, the most losses in the National League. He also topped the league in earned runs allowed (108) & walks (113). He pitched 22 innings struck out 94 & posted a 4.37 ERA.

The Mets finished last under managers George Bamberger & Frank Howard. But things were to change by next season.

1984: Torrez began the year with Mets but this was a completely different team, the pitching staff now had young stars in Dwight Gooden, Ron Darling & Sid Fernandez. Davey Johnson was he new manager & the culture was different. The Mets were now contenders in the NL East. With Seaver gone again, Torrez helped tutor some of the young pitchers alone.

Torrez actually got the nod to make the Opening Day start that season, taking a loss at Cincinnati. He was shelled for six runs on six hits, exiting in the second inning.

On April 8th in Houston, Torrez pitched into the six-inning exiting in a scoreless game. 

Hitting Dickie Thon In Face: In that game, Torrez hit the Astros young All Star short stop; Dicke Thon in the face with a fastball, fracturing his orbital bone almost ending his career. Thon recovered but was never the same player.

The Mets won the game 3-1 with Torrez getting no decision.

On April 21st Torrez made the start but was gone after allowing three runs in the 1st inning. 

On May 13th the Dodgers tagged him for four runs at Dodger Stadium, as he exited in the 5th inning taking a 5-3 loss. 

On June 3rd, he pitched eight innings & although he gave up ten hits, only allowed one run to the Cardinals. But St. Louis pitcher, Dave LaPoint was better shutting out the Mets in a 1-0 loss for Torrez.

On June 9th, Torrez got his only win of the year, he gave up five runs to the Expos, including a 1st inning HR to Gary Carter. He also hit Carter with a pitch in his next at bat. It ended up being his last Mets start.

In the Mets four run 4th inning, Torrez contributed with an RBI single off Andy McGaffigan. It was his third Mets career RBI.

On June 12th Mike made a relief appearance finishing off a loss to the Pirates at Shea.

On June 22nd, he was 1-5 with a 5.02 ERA when the Mets gave him his release.

Post Mets Career: Torrez signed with the Oakland Athletics, pitched in two games ending his career at age 38. 

In his long 18-year career he was 185-160 with a 3.96 ERA. He had 1404 strike outs, with 1371 walks (23rd all time) 1340 earned runs (72nd all time most) allowed in 3042 innings over 494 appearances & 458 starts (82nd all time). He threw 15 shut outs, with 117 complete games, He also threw 103 wild pitches & hit 59 batters. 

Retirement: In the 1980's Torrez was living & working in New York selling office furniture. He lived in Westchester County, near former Brooklyn Dodger pitcher Ralph Branca.

1986 World Series: He was on hand at Shea Stadium, when the Mets came back to beat the Red Sox in Game # of the 1986 World Series.  Some of the pressure of being a goat in Red Sox history from the Bucky Dent HR, was off his back when the ball went thru Bill Buckner's legs that night.

In 2011 he was named General Manager of the Newark Bears as they began play in the Canadian American Association. He was fired that summer.

Family: Mike has been married three times. First to Connie
(1969-1971) then Danielle (1974-1981) & more recently to Teresa. The couple have two sons & live in Florida.