Phil Regan (baseball)

He made his major league debut on July 19 against the Washington Senators. Entering the game already behind 3-0, he allowed just two hits in five innings of work, including a home run to Harmon Killebrew.[5]

He made his first career start in the second game of a doubleheader with the Baltimore Orioles on July 23. He left the game with two outs in the ninth inning with the score tied at three, and the bases loaded. Relief pitcher Clem Labine walked Jim Gentile to drive in the winning run, and hand Regan his first career loss.[6] Splitting his time between starts and relief appearances, he was 0-4 with a 4.50 ERA his rookie season. His first career win also came against Baltimore during his second season in the big leagues, when he went 10-7 with a 5.25 ERA.[7]

Over six seasons, Regan went 42-44 with a 4.50 ERA for the Detroit Tigers. He was 0-4 with a 4.99 ERA in 1965 when he was demoted to triple A Syracuse. He earned a call up that September, and made two appearances, but it was while he was with Syracuse that Regan learned of interest in him from the Dodgers organization.[8]

Regan called Tigers General Manager Jim Campbell asking to be traded, and on December 15, 1965, he was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers for infielder Dick Tracewski.[9]

With Sandy Koufax, Don Drysdale, Claude Osteen, and Don Sutton in the starting rotation, Regan was used strictly as a reliever in 1966. He responded by going 14-1 with a 1.62 ERA, 88 strikeouts in 116 innings pitched and a National League leading 21 saves to help the Dodgers capture the NL pennant by a game and a half over the San Francisco Giants. It was on August 1 of that year, by Regan's own account, that he first acquired the "Vulture" moniker from Koufax, the latter having just exited his second consecutive game, tied 1-1, only to see Regan "swoop in" for the last-minute win.[4]

The Sporting News named him the NL Reliever of the Year and NL Comeback Player of the Year in 1966. He also earned the only All-Star nod in his career, but did not appear in the game.[10] He appeared in two games of the 1966 World Series, allowing just one base runner via a walk, and retiring the other five he faced.[11]

Regan won his first two decisions in 1967 to give him 15 consecutive wins before finally losing to the Houston Astros on May 15.[12] He won both games of a doubleheader with the New York Mets on April 21, 1968.[13][14] Two days later, he was traded with Jim Hickman to the Chicago Cubs for Jim Ellis and Ted Savage.[15]

Regan in 1969 with the Chicago Cubs.

Regan provided similar heroics for his new team. In his first two appearances as a Cub, he saved both games of an April 28 doubleheader with the Houston Astros.[16] Despite missing the first 14 games of the Cubs' schedule, Regan led all of Major League Baseball with 25 saves in 1968 on his way to capturing a second Sporting News Reliever of the Year Award.

He was involved in a bizarre incident on August 18, 1968, against the Cincinnati Reds. Regan apparently had good stuff that day, too good for home plate umpire Chris Pelekoudas. Despite no illegal substances being found on the ball, Pelekoudas called 14 illegal pitches on Regan based simply on the movement of the ball. Regan met with NL President Warren Giles August 20, and was absolved of any wrongdoing.[17] The incident earned Regan a reputation that followed him the rest of his career.[18]

During the twilight of his career, Regan found his workload diminishing rapidly. Through May 1972, Regan had pitched just four innings for the Cubs. He asked to be traded or released, and on June 2, Regan's contract was sold to the crosstown Chicago White Sox.[19] He appeared in ten games for the Chisox, going 0-1 with a 4.05 ERA before his release on July 20.

The only shutout of Regan's career came on May 10, 1963 against the Cleveland Indians. He also hit his only career home run in the 14-0 drubbing of the Tribe.[20]