Tracy Stallard

Stallard began his professional career in Minor League Baseball with the Lafayette Red Sox of the Class D Midwest League from 1956 to 1957. Over the two seasons, he notched up win–loss records of 5–8 and 7–12, respectively. For the 1958 season, he was promoted to the Raleigh Capitals of the Class B Carolina League, where he posted a 9–6 record and a 3.09 earned run average. 1959 had several stops for Stallard, the first being the Class AAA Minneapolis Millers of the American Association. Stallard threw for a 7–11 record and a 3.51 ERA. He also saw time with the Class A Eastern League Allentown Red Sox, where he posted up a 9–4 record with a dominant 1.68 ERA. During the 1960 season, where Stallard was eventually called up to the major leagues, he posted a 4–5 record with a 4.82 ERA for Allentown. ==Boston Red Sox==

Stallard appeared in four games in his debut season of 1960. He faced 15 batters without giving up a single hit, and amassed 6 strikeouts. Three of his appearances were against the New York Yankees. Stallard's first victory came on August 10, striking out eight in 8 innings pitched in a 3–2 victory over the Minnesota Twins. Stallard started in 14 of his last 15 appearances for the season going 2–7 with a 5.00 ERA and 69 strikeouts in 86 innings pitched as a starter. Roger Maris's 61st home run On October 1, 1961, New York Yankees outfielder Roger Maris hit his 61st home run of the season off Stallard, breaking Babe Ruth's single season record of 60. The contest between the Red Sox and the Yankees was the final game of the season. Stallard, then 2–6, faced off against Yankees right-hander Bill Stafford (12–9). In the first duel between Maris and Stallard in the first inning, Stallard threw a changeup to Maris that ended up being a soft fly to left field. In the fourth inning, Stallard fell behind 2–0 to Maris. Up to that point, Stallard had said that he was probably having the best game he had ever pitched. Stallard threw a fastball, and Maris hit it over the wall for his 61st home run. It was Maris's only hit off Stallard in seven lifetime at bats. Stallard felt no shame over the ordeal, saying, "I'm glad he did it off me. Otherwise, I would never have been thought of again. That was about all I did, and I've had a good time with it." There has been speculation that Stallard grooved the pitch in an attempt to help Maris hit the home run, claims which he denied. Stallard struck out five and gave up five hits and just the one earned run in seven innings on the outing, but the Red Sox failed to score in a 1–0 loss, dropping him to a final record of 2–7 for the season. Stallard appeared in only one game for the Red Sox in 1962, spending the rest of the season with the minor league Class AAA Seattle Rainiers, where he threw for a 7–6 record and a 3.49 ERA. ==New York Mets==

Stallard resumed full-time major league pitching duty with the young New York Mets in 1963. Boston had shipped him along with Pumpsie Green and Al Moran to the Mets for Felix Mantilla on December 11, 1962. Stallard again started in the relief role for his first 13 games, but was finally given the opportunity to start on June 2. Stallard responded to the promotion by notching up a 2.28 ERA with 27 strikeouts in innings for the entire month of June. Afterwards, though, Stallard's season fell apart. He ended with a record of 6–17 to go with a 4.71 ERA. In 11 of his games the Mets scored one or no runs. While with the Mets, Stallard developed something of a taste for New York's night life, dating, among others, actress Julie Newmar, who would go on to play Catwoman in the Batman television series. ==St. Louis Cardinals==

On December 7, 1964, Stallard joined the St. Louis Cardinals in a move that sent him to the Cards in exchange for Johnny Lewis and Gordie Richardson. Stallard had the best season of his career in his first year with the Cardinals in 1965. After pitching in his first three games as a reliever, Stallard was moved to starter on April 24, and began the season 7–3 with a 2.80 ERA. In May alone, Stallard went 3–0 with a 2.31 ERA in 50 innings. ==Late career==

During the 1966 season, Stallard was very vocal about his displeasure of being assigned to the bullpen, though he had a 6.10 ERA at the time and had just came off three consecutive games where he gave up one or more earned runs in relief. He was promoted back to the starting role on June 4, but it only amounted to a 5.71 ERA in seven starts, averaging only five innings per outing. but the damage had been done. Stallard played his final Major League game on July 24 against the Chicago Cubs on the front-end of a doubleheader. Soon after his final appearance, the Cardinals reassigned Stallard to the Class AAA Tulsa Oilers of the Pacific Coast League. From 1967 to 1973, he played for several more minor league teams including the Dallas-Fort Worth Spurs and High Point-Thomasville Hi-Toms, with stops in Torreón and Córdoba of the Class AAA Mexican League. previously a Minnesota Twins scout and eventual manager of the 2003 World Series champion Florida Marlins and two-time National League Manager of the Year Award winner. Stallard resumed his playing career in 1969 for High Point-Thomasville by posting a 3–4 record and a 2.68 ERA. Despite posting solid earned run averages in three of his final four seasons (2.68, 2.52, 2.35), Stallard never received a call to the Majors again. In his final season, 1973, Stallard posted a 5–11 record with a 2.35 ERA at Córdoba. Over the course of his major league career, some Hall of Fame players had a tough time solving Stallard. Willie Mays was a career .200 hitter off him (6-for-30), Willie McCovey stuttered in at .152 (5-for-33, but with 3 home runs), Roberto Clemente hit .138 (4-for-29), and Frank Robinson could only muster a .214 (6-for-28) success rate against the pitcher. Others legends, however, such as Lou Brock (9-for-16) had no problem rattling Stallard. == Death ==

Stallard died on December 6, 2017, at the age of 80. ==References==