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Steve Hovley

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Steve Hovley
Outfielder
Born: (1944-12-18) December 18, 1944 (age 79)
Ventura, California, U.S.
Batted: Left
Threw: Left
MLB debut
June 26, 1969, for the Seattle Pilots
Last MLB appearance
September 28, 1973, for the Kansas City Royals
MLB statistics
Batting average.258
Home runs8
Runs batted in88
Teams

Stephen Eugene Hovley (born December 18, 1944), nicknamed Tennis Ball Head, is a retired American professional baseball player whose career extended for eight seasons, including all or parts of five years in Major League Baseball for the Seattle Pilots / Milwaukee Brewers (1969–70), Oakland Athletics (1970–71) and Kansas City Royals (1972–73). An outfielder, he threw and batted left-handed, stood 5 feet 10 inches (1.78 m) tall and weighed 188 pounds (85 kg).

Born in Ventura, California, Hovley attended Stanford University and was selected by the California Angels in the 35th round (665th overall) of the 1966 Major League Baseball Draft.[1] After two seasons in the Angels' farm system, he was chosen by the Pilots in the 1968 Major League Baseball expansion draft—also with the 35th pick.[2] The Pilots loaned Hovley to the Triple-A Rochester Red Wings for the first two months of their inaugural 1969 season before recalling him in June. In his third big-league game, Hovley collected three hits against his former team, the Angels, on June 27.[3] His hot start in the Majors continued for his first two-dozen games, as he reached a season-high .352 batting average on July 24, with ten multi-hit games.[4] But Hovley eventually cooled off and he ended the year with a .277 batting mark, three home runs and 20 RBI in 91 games played.[5] He was a roommate[6] of veteran pitcher Jim Bouton's, whose diary of the 1969 season, Ball Four, became a national sensation a year later. Hovley, like Bouton, was a non-conformist in the baseball world; according to Bouton, other players nicknamed Hovley "Orbie," shorthand for "Orbit."[6]

The following season, in 1970, the Pilots moved to Wisconsin as the Brewers, and in their first-ever home game at Milwaukee County Stadium on April 7, Hovley had three hits in three at bats off the Angels' Andy Messersmith; but the rest of the Brewers combined for just one hit in 28 at bats and the team fell, 12–0.[7] Hovley got into 40 games and batted .281 with 16 RBI before being traded to Oakland on June 11 for Al Downing and Tito Francona.[5][8] Relegated to part-time duty with the A's, Hovley hit only .173 in 141 at bats during his tenure,[5] was sent to Triple-A in 1971, and then acquired by the Royals in the 1971 Rule 5 draft.[9] He then played two years as the Royals' fourth outfielder, appearing in 105 and 104 games, to close out his Major League career with 263 hits (39 doubles, five triples and eight home runs), 88 RBI and a .258 batting average in 436 games played.[5]

References

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  1. ^ "35th Round of the 1966 MLB June Amateur Draft". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 5, 2022.
  2. ^ "1968 MLB Expansion Drafts". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 5, 2023.
  3. ^ "Seattle Pilots vs California Angels Box Score: June 27, 1969". Baseball-Reference.com. June 27, 1969. Retrieved March 5, 2023.
  4. ^ "Steve Hovley 1969 Batting Game Logs". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 5, 2023.
  5. ^ a b c d "Steve Hovley Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Rookie Status & More". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 5, 2023.
  6. ^ a b Markusen, Bruce (October 19, 2015). ""Ball Four's" Characters Revisted: The Seattle Days". The Hardball Times.
  7. ^ "Retrosheet Boxscore: California Angels 12, Milwaukee Brewers 0". Retrosheet. April 7, 1970.
  8. ^ "BREWERS' HOVLEY IS TRADED TO A'S". The New York Times. UPI. June 12, 1970. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 5, 2023.
  9. ^ Flanagan, Jeffrey (December 11, 2020). "Every Rule 5 Draft pick in Royals history". MLB.com. MLB Advanced Media. Retrieved March 11, 2023.
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