Skip Lockwood

{{Infobox baseball biography

|name=Skip Lockwood

|position=Pitcher, Third Baseman

|image=Skip Lockwood 1973.jpg

|caption=Lockwood in 1973

|birth_date={{Birth date and age|1946|8|17}}

|birth_place=Roslindale, Massachusetts, U.S.

|death_date=

|death_place=

|bats=Right

|throws=Right

|debutleague = MLB

|debutdate=April 23

|debutyear=1965

|debutteam=Kansas City Athletics

|finalleague = MLB

|finaldate=September 10

|finalyear=1980

|finalteam=Boston Red Sox

|statleague = MLB

|stat1label=Win–loss record

|stat1value=57–97

|stat2label=Earned run average

|stat2value=3.55

|stat3label=Strikeouts

|stat3value=829

|stat4label=Saves

|stat4value=68

|teams=

Kansas City Athletics ({{Baseball year|1965}})
Seattle Pilots / Milwaukee Brewers ({{Baseball year|1969}}–{{Baseball year|1973}})
California Angels ({{Baseball year|1974}})
New York Mets ({{Baseball year|1975}}–{{Baseball year|1979}})
Boston Red Sox ({{Baseball year|1980}})

}}

Claude Edward (Skip) Lockwood Jr. (born August 17, 1946) is an American former Major League Baseball pitcher. He pitched for the Seattle Pilots / Milwaukee Brewers (1969–1973), California Angels (1974), New York Mets (1975–1979) and Boston Red Sox (1980).

Lockwood was the last of the original Seattle Pilots to play for the Brewers, being traded to the California Angels prior to the 1974 season.

Baseball career

=Third base=

Lockwood attended Catholic Memorial High School in West Roxbury, Massachusetts, where he earned 14 varsity letters in four years. His school record time in the 100-yard dash in 1964 still stands. Lockwood was a third baseman when he signed with the Kansas City Athletics out of high school in 1964 as an amateur free agent. The scout representing the Athletics came to the Lockwood home with a $35,000 contract. Lockwood said that he needed to make one change before signing, and added a "1" in front of the contract amount, changing the number to $135,000. The scout was nervous and asked to use the Lockwood's phone to call Athletics' owner Charlie Finley. Finley spoke to Lockwood directly, asking why he should give Lockwood the money. "Because I'll make you a winner," said Lockwood. The scout went back on the phone, and Finley approved the higher amount.{{Cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w5IsDwAAQBAJ |title = Insight Pitch: My Life as a Major League Closer|isbn = 9781683581765|last1 = Lockwood|first1 = Skip|date = 2018-03-06| publisher=Sports }}

Despite batting only .208 with the Burlington Bees, he showed decent power with five home runs in 236 at bats, and was brought up to the majors for the {{Baseball year|1965}} season.{{Cite web |title=Skip Lockwood Winter & Minor Leagues Statistics |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=lockwo001cla |access-date=February 26, 2023 |website=Baseball-Reference.com |language=en}} With the A's, he batted only .121 with eleven strikeouts in 33 at bats, and was back in the minor leagues the next two seasons.{{Cite web |title=Skip Lockwood Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Rookie Status & More |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/l/lockwsk01.shtml |access-date=February 26, 2023 |website=Baseball-Reference.com |language=en}} Lockwood could hit fastballs, but struggled with breaking balls.

=Pitcher=

On November 28, {{Baseball year|1967}}, Lockwood was drafted by the Houston Astros in the 1967 Rule 5 draft, but, following spring training, he was returned to his original club, which had moved to Oakland.{{cn|date=February 2023}} Upon his return to the Athletics organization, Lockwood was converted to a pitcher despite having only pitched one inning, with the Modesto Reds in {{Baseball year|1966}}. On October 15, {{Baseball year|1968}}, he was selected by the Seattle Pilots in the 1968 expansion draft.{{Cite web |title=1968 MLB Expansion Drafts |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/draft/1968-expansion-draft.shtml |access-date=February 26, 2023 |website=Baseball-Reference.com |language=en}} During their first and only season, Lockwood made his major league debut on the mound with the Pilots, going 0–1 with a 3.52 earned run average in six games (three starts).

Lockwood spent the next four years with the franchise following their move to Milwaukee, and spent most of his time with the Brewers as a starting pitcher. In his final season in Milwaukee, 1973, he made 22 of his 37 appearances out of the bullpen. Up to that point, he had only made seven appearances in relief.

=Relief pitcher=

Lockwood was involved in a nine-player transaction when he was sent along with Ellie Rodríguez, Ollie Brown, Joe Lahoud and Gary Ryerson from the Brewers to the Angels for Steve Barber, Clyde Wright, Ken Berry, Art Kusnyer and cash on October 23, 1973.{{Cite news |last=Fletcher |first=Walter R. |date=October 24, 1973 |title=People in Sports: Cubs' Jenkins in Texas Livery? |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1973/10/24/archives/people-in-sports-cubs-jenkins-in-texas-livery-british-soccer-natl.html |access-date=November 28, 2020 |issn=0362-4331}} He was used almost exclusively as a reliever by the Angels (35 relief appearances, two starts). With the Angels, he earned his first save. After a 2–5 season, he was dealt from the Angels to the New York Yankees for Bill Sudakis at the Winter Meetings on December 3, 1974.{{Cite news |last=Durso |first=Joseph |date=December 4, 1974 |title=Big Deals: McGraw to Phils, Allen to Braves, Lee May to Orioles |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1974/12/04/archives/big-deals-mcgraw-to-phils-allen-to-braves-lee-may-to-orioles-mcgraw.html |access-date=October 31, 2020 |issn=0362-4331}}

In 1975, Lockwood joined the New York Mets, with whom he blossomed as a reliever. In {{Baseball year|1976}} and {{Baseball year|1977}}, Lockwood earned 19 and 20 saves, respectively, and established a Mets season record for games pitched in 1977 with 63. According to the Mets blog, Amazin' Avenue, Lockwood was in 2007 the forty-second best player in Mets history.{{cite web |author=Simon |first=Eric |date=January 23, 2007 |title=The Top 50 Mets of All Time: #42 Skip Lockwood |url=http://www.amazinavenue.com/story/2007/1/23/01955/0193 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071225112556/http://www.amazinavenue.com/story/2007/1/23/01955/0193 |archive-date=December 25, 2007 |access-date=February 7, 2008 |work=Amazin' Avenue}} Unfortunately, Lockwood played for the Mets during one of the darker times in franchise history (98 losses in 1977, 96 in {{Baseball year|1978}} & 99 in {{Baseball year|1979}}).

He signed with the Boston Red Sox for the 1980 season, going 3–1 with two saves and a 5.32 ERA in 24 games (one start). The following Spring, he was released by the Red Sox, and retired shortly afterwards. In twelve seasons, Lockwood's career stats are:

class="wikitable"

|PCT

|ERA

|GS

|GF

|CG

|SHO

|SV

|IP

|ER

|HR

|BB

|IBB

|WP

|HBP

|Bk

|BF

|Fld%

|Avg

|97

|.370

|3.55

|420

|106

|219

|16

|68

|1236

|1130

|488

|539

|98

|490

|62

|829

|43

|33

|5215

|.951

|.154

Outside baseball

Lockwood attended several universities in the months between his MLB seasons, including Merrimack College, Boston College, Bryant and Stratton Commercial School, Marquette University, and Carroll College. He finally graduated with a cum laude bachelor's degree from Emerson College in 1976, his eighth year in the majors.{{Cite web |last=Nowlin |first=Bill |title=Skip Lockwood |url=https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/skip-lockwood/ |access-date=August 10, 2022 |website=Society for American Baseball Research}} He has two master's degrees, one from Fairfield, and the other from MIT. He graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with a S.M. in {{Baseball year|1983}}. He is one of the few MIT graduates who have played in Major League Baseball.{{cite web |last=Waugh |first=Alice C. |date=April 6, 2004 |title=MIT alum makes it to 'the show' |url=http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2004/baseball.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040617014832/http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2004/baseball.html |archive-date=June 17, 2004 |access-date=May 6, 2009 |work=MIT News}} Lockwood was also an accomplished candlepin bowler.

In 2018, Lockwood released a memoir titled Insight Pitch, which he wrote without using a ghostwriter.

References

External links

[https://www.famebooking.com/blog/interview-with-skip-lockwood-major-league-baseball-player-author-and-mit-graduate "Interview with Skip Lockwood Major League Baseball Player, Author, and MIT Graduate"] Fame Booking July 11th, 2019

{{Baseballstats |mlb=117858 |espn=187 |br=l/lockwsk01 |fangraphs=1007696&position=P |brm=lockwo001cla }}

Category:1946 births

Category:Living people

Category:Kansas City Athletics players

Category:20th-century American sportsmen

Category:Seattle Pilots players

Category:Milwaukee Brewers players

Category:California Angels players

Category:New York Mets players

Category:Boston Red Sox players

Category:Major League Baseball pitchers

Category:Major League Baseball third basemen