Remembering Pat Zachry: Former Rookie of the Year & Late Seventies Mets All Star Pitcher (1977-1982)

Patrick Paul Zachry was born on April 24, 1952, in Richmond, Texas located 30 miles southwest of Houston. He was drafted out of Richfield high school in Waco, Texas by the Cincinnati Reds in 1970 in the 19th round.

Early in his teenage years, a situation occurred where he took a bullet in his abdomen. Luckily e was not injured badly & recovered taking up sports.

The tall lanky six foot five, right hander looked more like a fisherman than a ball player with his long-bearded face. He pitched as both a starter & reliever in the minor leagues, putting up identical 10-7 records at AAA Indianapolis in 1974 & 1975.

MLB Career: Zachry made the Reds staff as a reliever during the height of the Big Red Machines dominance, in 1976. He began the season in the bullpen but was moved into the rotation by mid-May. 

He won his first four starts throwing a complete game in San Diego & a complete game shutout.
against the Dodgers. He was the first pitcher in ten years to beat the Dodgers five straight times in a season. 

Zachry was pitching so well he was 11-3 with a 2.63 ERA in mid-August as the Reds were rolling through the National League.

He wound up winning the Rookie of the Year Award (sharing honors with San Diego’s Butch Metzger) going 14-7 with a 2.74 ERA (5th in the league), striking out 143 batters in 205 innings pitched. 

Zachry averaged 6.3 strike outs per nine innings, which was 6th best among NL pitchers.

1976 Post Season- NLCS: Zachry was the winning pitcher of the NLCS Game #2 against the Phillies, allowing two runs over five innings or work. 

1976 World Series: In the 1976 World Series, he won Game #3 in the Bronx, allowing two runs, on six hits in 6.2 innings pitched, helping the Big Red Machine easily sweep the Series.

In 1977 he struggled at the start of the year, going 2-2 in April, & then was 0-4 in May as his ERA rose to near six. He was 3-7 with a 5.04 ERA through mid-June when he became the main chip in the Tom Seaver trade. 

He came to the New York Mets on June 15th, 1977 “The Midnight Massacre” along with Doug Flynn, Steve Henderson, & Dan Norman. He had no chance following in Seaver’s footsteps no matter how well he would ever do

Mets Career: Two days after the trade he made his Mets debut at Shea Stadium, losing to the Houston Astros, allowing four runs over six innings. He quickly found out he didn't have the same offensive run support he had in Cincinnati.

In his next start he pitched well, allowing just one run in seven innings of work but got no decision. Almost a month after the trade he earned his first Mets win on July 10th, against the Montreal Expos.

In mid-August he began his best streak, winning three straight decisions through early September. He threw a complete game in St. Louis & then pitched a five hit shutout against the Braves at Shea. 

He did well the rest of the year, going 7-6 overall since joining the club with a 3.76 ERA. He only had 63 strike outs in 119 innings pitching in 19 games.

Zachry found himself leaving a two-time World Championship team on to a last place team that was trying to cut corners & save money any way they could. The organization was in shambles as the late Joan Payson's daughter Lorinda deRoulet was running the team with M. Donald Grant who refused to give in the new age of big salaries & free agency. 

Zachry remembered the Mets flew on Allegheny Airlines, calling it Agony Airlines. The meals were terrible, the plane was sometimes too cold because the AC was out of wack. The gates at the airports were always a mess as well. He did not enjoy his time playing in New York under these conditions.

1978: Zachry started out winning the third game of the season by beating the Montreal Expos pitching six innings of one run ball at Shea Stadium. 

On April 19th he pitched a two hit shutout in St. Louis, striking out five Cardinals batters. Bruce Boisclair drove in both runs of the 2-0 Mets win. Zachry himself scored a run after drawing a walk & then circled the bases.

On April 30th he went up against his old Reds teammates & earned a win as the Mets got Tom Hume for six runs early in the game. Zachry went to 3-0 with a 1.85 through April.

After suffering his first loss giving up six runs to the Phillies, he went on a personal four game win streak. On May 11th he earned a win over the Expos beating Wayne Twitchell in a one run 4-3 game. Skip Lockwood helped pitching two scoreless innings.

 

On May 29th after two no decisions, Zachry pitched another complete game victory for his fifth win, allowing just two runs on three hits to the Cardinals in the first game of a Shea double header. 

On June 3rd Pat pitched eight innings, striking out a season high ten batters as he beat the Padres, allowing two runs, one earned in a 3-2 win over Bob Owchinco. On June 7th he won another 3-2 game, pitching a complete game beating the NL Champion Los Angeles Dodgers at Shea Stadium. He struck out six & walked three.

On June 12th he went into the bottom of the 9th inning with a 2-1 lead in San Diego. Ozzie Smith singled & Dave Winfield doubled to tie the game. He was relieved by Dale Murray who gave up the walk off hit to Fernando Gonzalez giving Zachry the loss. It was just his second loss of the year as he was 7-2.

Zachry already had ten wins (10-3) by the fourth of July. He was the only Met chosen for the All-Star Game that year, although he didn’t pitch in the game held at San Diego's Jack Murphy Stadium.

Zachry took a win in San Francisco then was on the losing end of a 2-0 Expos shut out by Pitchers Hal Dues & Mike Garman. On June 27th, Zachry pitched a complete game win at Wrigley Field, beating the Cubs 7-2. Zachry only struck out one in the game, walked three while allowing two runs on six hits.

In the first game of a July 4th double header with the Phillies at Shea, Pat won his tenth game of the year, pitching a two-hit shutout striking out five while walking one. All the scoring in the game came on Lee Mazzilli's grand slam HR off Larry Christenson.

1978 All Star: Pat was named to the 1978 All Star team as the only Mets representative. He did not pitch in the 7-3 NL win in San Diego.

From there things went bad for what looked like a good season for him. He lost three straight decisions giving three or more runs each time, not getting past the 6th inning any time.

On July 24th, 1978, Shea Stadium was packed, hoping Zachry could shut down Pete Rose during his N.L. record setting hit streak. Unfortunately, Rose singled off him in the 7th inning; tying the 37 game NL hit streak record. The Reds then started a rally rallied knocking Zachry out of the game, four batters later. 

On his way into the dugout, he angrily kicked a helmet but missed it & kicked the dugout step.
The result was a fracture to his left foot. He was done for the rest of the year, finishing 10-6 with a 3.33 ERA, 78 strike outs & 60 walks in 138 innings. He also threw two shut outs & five complete games.

1979: He started out 1979 by beating the Cubs at Wrigley Field in the second game of the season. He allowed just a run in five innings of the 9-4 win. He then returned to Shea Stadium to pitch a complete game victory against Philadelphia. Although he gave up 12 hits, he only allowed two runs beating the Phillies 3-2.

He missed a month of action but returned at the end of May very strong, winning three straight starts going where allowed two earned runs each time. Zachry was 5-0 before taking his first loss on June 8th giving up five runs to the Houston Astros. 

He had pain in his arm & injuries finished off his season early once again, shutting him down in June. It was discovered he had a strained ulnar nerve in his right elbow. He then inured his Achillis tendon trying to run. Two months later he needed surgery to repair the nerve damage & would be out until the following May.

In seven games of the 1979 season, he was 5-1 with an .833 winning % & a 3.59 ERA. He had 17 strike outs but had walked 21 batters in 42 innings pitched. That season the Mets had lost 99 games. 

1980: His rehab from the surgery went slow, as he wasn’t ready pitch until May. In his first game he pitched two innings of relief in a1-0 loss to Jim Katt  & the Cardinals. On May 7th he was brought into a 2-2 tied game at Shea Stadium with the Reds in the 10th inning. 

In the top of the 12th, he gave up a single to Ken Griffey then a one out intentional walk to Dan Driessen. Junior Kennedy bounced into a double play but not before Griffey scored what was the winning run, giving Zachry the loss.

On May 18th he made his first start in almost a year, he allowed just two runs to the Braves in
Atlanta, in five innings, but the Mets were held to just a run by Rick Matula taking a 2-1 loss. On May 30th he finally got a win, as he beat the reigning World Champion Pirates at Three Rivers Stadium for his first win in a year.

 Brawl With the Dodgers: On June 10th in a game against the Dodgers at Shea Stadium, Steve Garvey & Dusty Baker tagged him for back-to-back HRs. Zachry took exception to the HRs & the attitude that went with them. 

He then drilled the next batter, Ron Cey with a pitch. Cey charged the mound & benches cleared for an all-out brawl. Cey was ejected but not Zachry. He gave up another HR to Baker later in the game, but the Mets went on to a comeback win.

Zachry was 2-5 by the end of June with a 3.26 ERA. 

Pitcher of the Month Award: He had a fantastic July going 4-0, with three shut outs while throwing four complete games. On July 10th, he threw a three-hit shutout at Shea Stadium beating the Pirates 2-0. On July 15th, he pitched another complete game, beating the Braves in Atlanta while striking out a season high eight batters.

On July 25th when the Reds came to town, he threw a six-hit shutout, striking out four walking just one. He won the game 2-0 beating Paul Moskau, as John Stearns drove in both Mets runs.

On July 30th, Zachry threw a four-hit shutout to beat the Atlanta Braves. In that 3-0 win the Mets had RBI singles from Doug Flynn & Mike Jorgensen. Zachry threw 21 scoreless innings that month as well. In one of the few bright spots for the Mets that year, he won the Pitcher of the Month Award.

The Mets were a bad team again, winning just 67 games while finishing in last place. Zachary would not get another win for the rest of the season. He never allowed more than three runs in his last five straight losses, but the team lacked any kind of run support. He finished up the year at 6-10, in those six wins his ERA was 0.82. He led the team with a 3.01 ERA and three shut outs.

Trivia: Pat's ERA was more than a half run below the league average of 3.60. That season he had six starts where he gave up a total of nine runs in 44 innings but never got a win any of those games.

1981 Strike Shortened Season: Pat began the year as the winning pitcher on Opening Day in Chicago. He shut out the Cubs for six innings, walking four on six hits with just one strike out. The Mets won 2-0 with RBI hits from Lee Mazzilli & Rusty Staub off veteran Rick Reuschel.

Pat started out 3-0 with wins over the Cardinals & Expos at Shea Stadium. But then came the bad luck again, as he lost five straight decisions. At the end of May he threw two complete game wins to get to .500 at 5-5. He fell to 5-7 in June as the Players went on strike for two months. The Mets were 17-34 in the first half in fifth place.

On August 16th, he gave up one run in six innings to the Phillies to earn his sixth win. On August 21st, he took a terrible loss when Mets errors led to two unearned runs 7 Zachry took the loss in a 2-0 Mario Soto shut out. After taking a loss to the Astros at Shea where he gave up four runs, he lost to them in Houston as he gave up just one run, but Don Sutton held the Mets to just one run in a 6-1 loss. Zachry fell to 6-10.

On September 5h, he finally got a win, it came because he only gave up one run in a 4-2 Mets win. he closed out the year with four straight losses.

He led the league in both losses (14) & HRs allowed (13). He went 7-14 but somehow still led the team in victories. He also led the team in strike outs (71) starts (24) complete games (3) & hits (151) posting a 4.14 ERA. He allowed 64 earned runs while walking 56 batters in 139 innings pitched. The Mets finished the second half of the year in the split season 24-28.

1982: On Opening Day, Pat started out the season taking a no hitter into the 8th inning, at Wrigley Field. But Cubs pinch hitter Bob Molinaro broke it up, Zachary ended up with the win allowing two runs on five hits in that inning.

Starting on April 21st he gave four runs or more in three straight games & then was put in the bullpen for two relief appearances. On May 15th, he got the start & beat the Dodgers then the Reds at Shea Stadium. On May 29th he won his third straight beating the Braves in Atlanta.

At the end of May he was 4-2 but his ERA was up near five at 4.89. He suffered tendinitis in his right elbow which added to his woes. He was placed in the bull pen to pitch in relief. He was there for over two months but back in the rotation by August. 

On August 7th, Pat pitched a complete game win over the Pirates giving up two runs on eleven hits. It was his last win of the year & last as a Met.

Zachry was tired of being out of the race by August & had enough, saying publicly he was sick of it.

He finished up the year at 6-9, with a 4.08 ERA. He struck out 69 batters, walking 57 in 137 innings pitched in 36 games making 16 starts. 

After the season he was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for Jorge Orta. Orta would get traded away a month later in February.

Mets Career Stats: In his six-year Mets career Pat Zachry was 41-46 with 3.63 ERA, 391 strike outs & 300 walks in 742 innings pitched in 145 games making 113 starts.

Trivia: One of my favorite Pat Zachry stories comes after a Kiners Korner episode in the late seventies.

 Zachry was a guest on one of Ralph Kiner’s post-game TV shows & received Getty Gas gift vouchers for his appearance. When Pat tried to use them at a Roosevelt Ave. gas station, the attendant came after him with a hammer. Quite a gift there Ralph!!

Post Mets Career: Zachry pitched two years in relief for the Dodgers, going 6-1 in 1983 with a 2.49 ERA. 

1983 NLCS: He appeared in two games of the 1983 NLCS loss to the Phillies giving up a run on four hits & two walks in four innings of work.

In 1985 he was traded to the Phillies for Al Oliver. He pitched in just ten games for the Phillies as his career ended.

Career Stats: In a ten-year career he was 69-67, with three saves posting a 3.52 ERA. He threw seven shutouts, with 27 complete games, 669 strikeouts & 495 walks in 1117 innings pitched in 293 games making 153 starts.

Retirement: Zachry coached for the Dodgers Aball Vero Beach team & the San Antonio Missions in the Texas League.

In 1989 he pitched in the Senior Professional League playing with his old Mets teammates, Jon Matlack, Steve Henderson & Red teammate George Foster. Pat was profiled in a book on the league.  

He also worked as an elementary school teacher in Waco, Texas.

Mets Alumni: Pat frequently attended Mets fantasy camps.

Family: Pat met his wife Sharron, at the Houston Astrodome on a blind date in 1976. They married a year later & would have two children. Sharron Zachry became a teacher, as well as a high school principal in Hewitt, Texas.

Tragedy: In November 2016, Pat & his wife Sharron, were involved in a single vehicle crash on I 35 in Texas. Their pick-up truck, which Pat was driving rolled off the highway toward the frontage road. Sharron was killed at the scene, she was 65 years old. Pat survived the crash.

Passing: On March 4th, 2024, Pat passed away after a lengthily illness in Waco, Texas, at age 71.

Quotes- Doug Flynn: "All of us knew, we could never replace Tom, we just stuck together. You couldn't find a better teammate than Zach. We will miss him dearly".

Quotes- Johnny Bench: "One of the great characters & an unbelievable teammate passed yesterday. Pat was a ROY in 1976, had two successful starts that season & was one of the key players in the Tom Seaver trade. Tears have been shed for our friend!"