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Jim Duckworth (baseball)

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Jim Duckworth
Pitcher
Born: (1939-05-24) May 24, 1939 (age 85)
National City, California
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
MLB debut
April 13, 1963, for the Washington Senators
Last MLB appearance
July 24, 1966, for the Kansas City Athletics
MLB statistics
Win–loss record7-25
Earned run average5.26
Strikeouts220
Teams

James Raymond 'Jim' Duckworth (born May 24, 1939 in National City, California, United States), is a former professional baseball pitcher. He played for 11 seasons, including four in Major League Baseball.

Career

Duckworth was signed by the Brooklyn Dodgers as an amateur free agent in 1957. He was selected in the 1959 minor league draft by the Cincinnati Redlegs.

Duckworth had not yet been called up to the major leagues when the Washington Senators selected him in the 1962 Rule 5 draft. Duckworth was on Washington's 1963 opening day roster and won his first big league game in relief against the New York Yankees on May 26, 1963.[1] While playing for the Senators in 1964, Duckworth missed a series in California due to his fear of flying. Washington docked him three days pay.[2] On September 4, 1965, Duckworth struck out eight of the first nine Detroit Tigers batters he faced. He finished the game with 11 strikeouts in seven innings.[3]

In June 23, 1966, the Senators traded Duckworth and a reported $20,000 to the Kansas City Athletics for Ken Harrelson.[4] Five weeks later, on July 30, Kansas City traded Duckworth back to Washington.[5] Duckworth played his last major league game with Kansas City on July 24, 1966.

With two hits in 59 at-bats, Duckworth had a career batting average in the major leagues of .034. He struck out 39 times.

Duckworth's final season in professional baseball was in 1967, when he played for the Hawaii Islanders in the minor leagues.

Personal life

Duckworth and his wife Kaydee reside in Shasta County, California, and have five children. After his baseball career ended, Duckworth was an officer with the California Highway Patrol for 25 years, retiring as a lieutenant. He then taught elementary and middle school for seven years and worked at a kayak store for two years. He enjoys kayaking, skiing and hiking. In 2006, Duckworth began doing nature photography full-time, with a particular interest in taking pictures of wild birds from his sea kayak on lakes throughout Northern California. He said, "It is a very relaxing and satisfying way to spend a day, especially when the birds cooperate and pose nicely for the camera".[6]

References

  1. ^ "Duckworth tames Yankees after Nats lose opener". St. Petersburg Times. 1963-05-27.
  2. ^ "Even Rival Players begin to believe in Phillies magic". Pittsburgh Press. 1964-07-27.
  3. ^ "Senators edge Tigers". Herald-Tribune. 1965-09-05.
  4. ^ Harper, Billy (June 27, 1966). "Quiet Chance For Ken". Spartanburg Herald. Retrieved August 10, 2012.
  5. ^ Peterson, John E. (2003). The Kansas City Athletics: A Baseball History, 1954-1967. Page 230: McFarland & Company. p. 352. ISBN 978-0-7864-1610-3. ISBN 0786416106,.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link) CS1 maint: location (link)
  6. ^ "The birds of Whiskeytown are landing at the Visitor Center!". National Park Service. Retrieved August 10, 2012.
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