Charlie Leibrandt

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Charles Louis "Charlie" Leibrandt, Jr. (born October 4, 1956 in Chicago) was a Major League Baseball pitcher who played from 1979 to 1993 for the Cincinnati Reds, Kansas City Royals, Atlanta Braves and Texas Rangers. Leibrandt was a productive pitcher throughout his 14 year career, and a member of the 1985 World Series champion Royals team.

Leibrandt attended Miami University in Oxford, Ohio and was drafted by the Cincinnati Reds in the ninth round of the 1978 free agent draft. He made his debut in Major League Baseball on September 17, 1979 in a Cincinnati Reds uniform. A few weeks later, he made his first post-season appearance in the 1979 National League Championship Series, recording an out of the only batter he faced, John Milner.

In 1980, Leibrandt was the Opening Day pitcher as the Reds beat the Atlanta Braves, 5-0, and Leibrandt threw a five-hit shutout for his first career win. But Leibrandt, while 10-9 in 1980, showed little promise in Cincinnati and was traded to the Kansas City Royals for Bob Tufts on June 7, 1983. The following year, Leibrandt went 11-7 with a 3.63 ERA as the Royals won the Western Division championship.

In 1985, Leibrandt had the best year of his career, going 17-9 with a 2.69 ERA as the Royals won the World Series. Over the next three years, Leibrandt won 14, 16, and 13 games, but after a disastrous 1989 when he went 5-11 on a second place team, the Royals traded Leibrandt and Rick Luecken to the Atlanta Braves for Gerald Perry and Jim Lemasters.

On the last place Braves in 1990, Leibrandt went 9-11 with a 3.16 ERA, finishing only behind John Smoltz and Tom Glavine on the Braves staff in wins. The following year, 1991, Leibrandt was a member of the only trio of southpaws ever to win fifteen games on the same staff, sharing that honor with Glavine and Steve Avery. Leibrandt was generally regarded as a fourth starter on the Braves in 1991 and 1992. On September 29, 1992, Leibrandt recorded the 1,000th strikeout of his career against the San Francisco Giants. In the same game, the Braves clinched the National League West title for the second straight year.

On December 9, 1992, Leibrandt was traded to the Texas Rangers along with Pat Gomez for everyday utility player Jose Oliva. After a 9-10 record with a 4.55 ERA, Leibrandt retired.

[edit] Post-Season Failures

For all of his successes as a pitcher, Charlie Leibrandt is best-known for a series of post-season failures and suffering hard luck. In 1984, Leibrandt and the Royals faced elimination in the best-of-five LCS. Leibrandt threw a complete game three-hitter only to lose, 1-0, on a fielder's choice in the second inning.

The following year, he was beaten badly in game one by the Toronto Blue Jays but turned in an effective pitching performance in game four. Leibrandt lost when, leading 1-0 in the ninth, he walked Damaso Garcia, who scored on Lloyd Moseby's double. Responsible for Moseby, Leibrandt watched as the Blue Jays scored twice off reliever Dan Quisenberry and got the loss. He redeemed himself, however, coming off the bench to replace the injured Bret Saberhagen in game seven and get the win that clinched the World Series for Kansas City.

In the World Series, Leibrandt again pitched masterfully for eight innings and entered the ninth inning of game two leading a two-hitter, 2-0. It all fell apart again for Leibrandt as Willie McGee doubled to right. With two outs and McGee on second, three Cardinal hits, the last by future Braves teammate Terry Pendleton, scored four runs and saddled Leibrandt with another loss. Five nights later in game six, Leibrandt entered the ninth inning trailing 1-0 despite only allowing three hits. He was bailed out, however, by Don Denkinger's bad call and the subsequent Royals rally as Kansas City won its only World Series to date.

In 1991, Braves manager Bobby Cox designated Leibrandt the starter for game one of the 1991 World Series in Minnesota. Leibrandt got the start by virtue of his long post-season rest and the fact he was the only Braves starter who had ever pitched in the Metrodome. Leibrandt was rocked early and saddled with the game one loss.

Leibrandt is best known for surrendering an extremely famous walk-off home run to future Baseball Hall of Famer Kirby Puckett in Game 6 of that series. The first pitch of the inning was a fastball high and outside, which Puckett took for ball one. The next one was a similar high and outside fastball, which Puckett also took for ball two; pitch three was a low changeup across the plate for strike one. The fourth pitch, and last pitch of the game, was a weak, high changeup that failed to break. Puckett made solid contact and sprinted for first, as was his usual practice. Only after he saw first base coach Wayne Terwilliger throw up his hands in victory did Puckett realize he'd hit a home run. Leibrandt was called upon to enter the game in a highly unfamiliar role - as a reliever late in the extra-inning game, and very late at night. The Braves had exhausted their usual cadre of relievers and closers earlier in the game. Those unusual circumstances may have negatively impacted Leibrandt's ability to perform that night.

Leibrandt again had the opportunity to play in the World Series with the Braves the following year. The Braves lost that series also; this time to the Toronto Blue Jays in six games. In the final game, in circumstances eerily similar to Game 6 of the prior year's Series, Leibrandt was called in as a reliever in an extra-inning game. Toronto rallied for two runs in the top of the 11th. The Braves did manage to get one of those runs back in the bottom of the 11th; however, it was not enough and Leibrandt ended up as the losing pitcher.