Elías Sosa
| Elías Sosa | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Elías Sosa in 2008, at a baseball clinic in Nicaragua.
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| Pitcher | |||
| Born: June 10, 1950 La Vega, Dominican Republic |
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| MLB debut | |||
| September 8, 1972, for the San Francisco Giants | |||
| Last MLB appearance | |||
| September 18, 1983, for the San Diego Padres | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Win–loss record | 59–51 | ||
| Earned run average | 3.32 | ||
| Strikeouts | 538 | ||
| Saves | 83 | ||
| Teams | |||
Elías Sosa Martínez (born June 10, 1950), is a former right-handed relief pitcher in Major League Baseball. He was signed by the San Francisco Giants as an amateur free agent on March 4, 1968. He played for the Giants (1972–1974), St. Louis Cardinals (1975), Atlanta Braves (1975–1976), Los Angeles Dodgers (1976–1977), Oakland Athletics (1978), Montreal Expos (1979–1981), Detroit Tigers (1982), and San Diego Padres (1983).
Sosa was used almost exclusively in relief during his 12-year MLB career. He appeared in 601 games, just three as a starter, and performed as both a closer and a long man.
He had several excellent seasons in the big leagues. He twice had an earned run average below 2.00 (1977 and 1979), and in his rookie year, 1973, he won 10 games, saved 18, and pitched in 71 games, all of which would become career highs.
Also of note in 1973, he saved nine of teammate Ron Bryant's major league-leading 24 wins, including #20 .
He finished in the American League or National League TOP TEN four times for games pitched and games finished, three times for saves, and once for winning percentage.
Other career highlights include:
- 3 scoreless innings to earn a save against the Philadelphia Phillies (June 2, 1973)
- won games on two consecutive days vs. the Atlanta Braves, pitching a combined 4 scoreless innings with 4 strikeouts, no walks, and giving up just one hit (September 1 and 2, 1973)
- 4 scoreless innings to earn a save against the Cincinnati Reds (July 26, 1974)
- 4 innings, allowing just one run (unearned), to earn a save against the San Francisco Giants (May 23, 1976)
- 4.1 scoreless innings, with a career-high 6 strikeouts, for a no decision vs. the San Diego Padres (July 10, 1977)
- 3 perfect innings to earn a save against the Toronto Blue Jays (May 2, 1978)
- 4 scoreless innings, allowing just one hit, to earn a save against the San Diego Padres (July 15, 1979)
Sosa did not get taken deep too often, giving up just 64 home runs, or one for every 14.1 innings pitched. But one of those home runs became quite famous, for it was the second home run of three hit by Reggie Jackson of the New York Yankees in Game 6 of the 1977 World Series. For his career, he finished with 59 wins, 51 losses, 83 saves, 330 games finished, and an ERA of 3.32.
In 1989 he played for the St. Petersburg Pelicans of the Senior Professional Baseball Association.
See also
External links
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball Reference, or Baseball Reference (Minors)
- Retrosheet
- 1950 births
- Living people
- Amarillo Giants players
- Atlanta Braves players
- Caribbean Series players
- Decatur Commodores players
- Detroit Tigers players
- Fresno Giants players
- Great Falls Giants players
- Leones del Escogido players
- Leones de Yucatán players
- Los Angeles Dodgers players
- Major League Baseball pitchers
- Major League Baseball players from the Dominican Republic
- Montreal Expos players
- Oakland Athletics players
- Phoenix Giants players
- People from La Vega Province
- Salt Lake City Giants players
- San Diego Padres players
- San Francisco Giants players
- San Jose Bees players
- St. Louis Cardinals players
- St. Petersburg Pelicans players
