:Mark Schaeffer

{{Short description|American baseball player (1948–2022)}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2022}}

{{Infobox baseball biography

|name=Mark Schaeffer

|position=Pitcher

|image=Mark Schaeffer.webp

|bats=Left

|throws=Left

|birth_date={{Birth date|1948|6|5}}

|birth_place=Santa Monica, California, U.S.

|death_date={{Death date and age|2022|6|1|1948|6|5}}

|death_place=Los Angeles, California, U.S.

|debutleague = MLB

|debutdate=April 18

|debutyear=1972

|debutteam=San Diego Padres

|finalleague = MLB

|finaldate=September 26

|finalyear=1972

|finalteam=San Diego Padres

|statleague = MLB

|stat1label=Win–loss record

|stat1value=2–0

|stat2label=Earned run average

|stat2value=4.61

|stat3label=Strikeouts

|stat3value=25

|teams=

• San Diego Padres ({{mlby|1972}})

}}

Mark Philip Schaeffer (June 5, 1948 – June 1, 2022) was an American professional baseball player.{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/s/schaema01.shtml |title=Mark Schaeffer at Baseball Reference |publisher=Baseball Reference |accessdate=4 December 2015 }} He played in Major League Baseball as a left-handed pitcher for the San Diego Padres in {{By|1972}}. He batted and threw left-handed.

Schaeffer was born in Santa Monica, California, and attended Grover Cleveland High School in Reseda, California. He was drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the second round of the 1966 Major League Baseball draft.{{cite web |url=http://www.thebaseballcube.com/draft/research.asp?Y1=1966&Y2=1966&R=&RS==&Ov=&Ovs==&T=&Player=&School=&Pos=&HL=&Region=&P=Jan-Reg&CT=&Bonus=0&Signed=&Active=&Source=&Bats=&Throws=&Sort= |title=1966 Major League Baseball draft-January |publisher=thebaseballcube.com |accessdate=4 December 2015 }} He was traded along with Derrel Thomas and Bill Greif from the Astros to the Padres for Dave Roberts on December 3, 1971.{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1971/12/04/archives/astros-acquire-roberts-and-twins-get-granger-3-players-sent-to.html |last1=Durso |first1=Joseph |title=Astros Acquire Roberts And Twins Get Granger |newspaper=The New York Times |date=December 4, 1971 |access-date=March 23, 2020}} Schaeffer made his major league debut on April 18, 1972, at the age of 23 with the San Diego Padres.

Schaeffer was strictly a relief pitcher in MLB (41 appearances, zero starts). On July 29, 1972, during a 17 inning, 4–3 victory over the Reds, Schaffer picked up his lone MLB save by retiring the final batter of the game.{{Cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CIN/CIN197207290.shtml|title=San Diego Padres at Cincinnati Reds Box Score, July 29, 1972}}

Schaeffer died June 1, 2022.{{cite web |title=Mark Philip Schaeffer Obituary (1948 - 2022) |url=https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/latimes/name/mark-schaeffer-obituary?id=35100332 |website=Los Angeles Times |access-date=8 June 2022}}