Bill Lee
Pitcher
Born: December 28, 1946 (1946-12-28) (age 61)
Batted: Left	Threw: Left
MLB debut
June 25, 1969 for the Boston Red Sox
Final game
May 7, 1982 for the Montreal Expos
Career statistics
Win-Loss record	119-90
ERA	3. In Baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the Pitcher's mound toward the Catcher to begin each play with the goal of Events 1065 - Westminster Abbey is Consecrated. 1308 - The reign of Emperor Hanazono, Emperor of Year 1946 ( MCMXLVI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full 1946 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 524 - Battle of Vézeronce, the Franks defeat the Burgundians Champions Major League Baseball The most notable part of the 1969 season were the Miracle Mets World Series: New York Mets The Boston Red Sox are a Professional baseball team based in Boston Massachusetts, and are the reigning (2007 World Series Champions. Events 558 - In Constantinople, the dome of the Hagia Sophia collapses Champions Major League Baseball World Series Champion St Louis Cardinals World Series MVP Darrell Franchise history Creation of the franchise In 1960 Montreal lost its International League team the Montreal Royals (an affiliate of A win is a Statistic in Major League Baseball credited to the Pitcher for the winning team who was in the game when his team last took the lead In Baseball, a loss (denoted L) is charged to the Pitcher of the losing team who allows the run that gives the opposing team the lead with which In Baseball statistics, earned run average ( ERA) is the Mean of Earned runs given up by a Pitcher per nine Innings pitched 92
Strike Outs	713
Teams
Boston Red Sox (1969-1979) Montreal Expos (1979-1982)
Career highlights and awards
Member of the 1973 American League All-Star Team Won 17 games each year from 1973-1975

William Francis "Bill" Lee III (born December 28, 1946), (nicknamed "Spaceman"), is an American athlete and retired Major League Baseball pitcher. Strike Out, (1969-1998 North American Harness racing champion Strike Out was born in 1969 at Castleton Farm in Lexington Kentucky The Boston Red Sox are a Professional baseball team based in Boston Massachusetts, and are the reigning (2007 World Series Champions. Champions Major League Baseball The most notable part of the 1969 season were the Miracle Mets World Series: New York Mets Champions Major League Baseball World Series: Pittsburgh Pirates over Baltimore Orioles (4-3 Willie Stargell, Franchise history Creation of the franchise In 1960 Montreal lost its International League team the Montreal Royals (an affiliate of Champions Major League Baseball World Series: Pittsburgh Pirates over Baltimore Orioles (4-3 Willie Stargell, Champions Major League Baseball World Series Champion St Louis Cardinals World Series MVP Darrell Champions Major League Baseball World Series: Oakland Athletics over New York Mets (4-3 Reggie Jackson, The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League ( AL) is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in The Major League Baseball All-Star Game, also popularly known as the "Midsummer Classic" is an annual Baseball game between players from the National League Champions Major League Baseball World Series: Oakland Athletics over New York Mets (4-3 Reggie Jackson, Champions Major League Baseball World Series: Cincinnati Reds over Boston Red Sox (4-3 Pete Rose, MVP Events 1065 - Westminster Abbey is Consecrated. 1308 - The reign of Emperor Hanazono, Emperor of Year 1946 ( MCMXLVI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full 1946 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the A sportsperson ( British and American English) or athlete (principally American English is any person who participates regularly in a Sport. In Baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the Pitcher's mound toward the Catcher to begin each play with the goal of He played for the Boston Red Sox from 1969-1978 and the Montreal Expos from 1979-1982. The Boston Red Sox are a Professional baseball team based in Boston Massachusetts, and are the reigning (2007 World Series Champions. Champions Major League Baseball The most notable part of the 1969 season were the Miracle Mets World Series: New York Mets Champions Major League Baseball World Series: New York Yankees over Los Angeles Dodgers (4-2 Bucky Dent, MVP Franchise history Creation of the franchise In 1960 Montreal lost its International League team the Montreal Royals (an affiliate of Champions Major League Baseball World Series: Pittsburgh Pirates over Baltimore Orioles (4-3 Willie Stargell, Champions Major League Baseball World Series Champion St Louis Cardinals World Series MVP Darrell

On February 25, 2008 the Red Sox organization announced that Bill Lee will be inducted into the Red Sox Hall of Fame on November 7, 2008. Lee will be inducted as record-holder for most games pitched by a left-hander (321) in team history and the third-highest win total (94) by a southpaw. On June 21, 2008, Bill will be the starting pitcher for the Alaska Goldpanners of Fairbanks for the 103rd Midnight Sun Game. . . an event he last pitched in 1967 (losing to the Japan Amateur National Champion Kumagai-Gumi on seven unearned runs).

Lee is known for his adherence to the counterculture behavior, his antics both on and off the field, and his use of the Leephus pitch, a personalized variation of the eephus pitch. Counterculture (also " counter-culture " is a sociological term used to describe the values and norms of behavior of a Cultural group, or A baseball field or baseball diamond is the field upon which the game of Baseball is played An Eephus pitch, (also spelled Ephus) in Baseball, is considered a "junk" pitch with very low speed ^[1]

Lee has written four books: The Wrong Stuff; Have Glove, Will Travel; The Little Red (Sox) Book: A Revisionist Red Sox History; and Baseball Eccentrics: the Most Entertaining, Outrageous, and Unforgettable Characters in the Game. In 2006, the documentary film Spaceman in Cuba featured Lee. 2006 Major League Baseball season|2006 Nippon Professional Baseball season Headline Event of the Year The 2006 World Baseball Classic is a surprise success Documentary film is a broad category of visual expression that is based on the attempt in one fashion or another to " Document " reality

Contents 1 Early life 2 Major league career 3 Reputation and controversy 4 Post-professional career 4.1 Spaceman: A Baseball Odyssey 5 Books 6 See also 7 References 8 External links

Early life

Although Lee was born in Burbank, California, he was raised in Canoga Park and later in San Rafael. Burbank is a city in Los Angeles County California, United States. Canoga Park (formerly known as Owensmouth is a section of the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California, United States about 25 miles (40 kilometers PLEASE DO NOT DELETE EMPTY FIELDS UNTIL JUNE 1 2007--THIS WILL TAKE A WHILE--> San Rafael (ˌsænrəˈfɛl originally sɑn rɑfɑˈɛl . He was born into a family with a number of former professional baseball players. Baseball is a Bat-and-ball Sport played between two teams of nine players each His grandfather William Lee was an infielder for the Hollywood Stars of the Pacific Coast League and his aunt Annabelle Lee was a pitcher in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Baseball teams take turns one "out" in the field and one "in" at bat The Hollywood Stars were a Minor league baseball team that played in the Pacific Coast League during the early and mid 20th century The Pacific Coast League (PCL is a Minor league baseball league operating in the West and Midwest of the United States. The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League was a women's professional Baseball league founded by Philip K He graduated from Terra Linda High School in 1964. Terra Linda High School (Also known as TLHS and more commonly known as TL is a public secondary school in San Rafael, California, United States. Champions Major League Baseball World Series: St Louis Cardinals over New York Yankees (4-3 Bob Gibson, MVP Lee attended the University of Southern California from 1964-1968 where he played for Rod Dedeaux. The University of Southern California (commonly referred to as USC, SC, Southern California, and incorrectly The Year of the Pitcher In Major League Baseball, the trend throughout the 1960s was of increased pitching dominance caused by enforcing a larger strike zone (top of armpit Raoul Martial "Rod" Dedeaux ( February 17 1914 &ndash January 5 2006) was an American College baseball coach Lee was drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the 22nd round of the 1968 Major League amateur draft. The First-Year Player Draft, also known as the Rule 4 Draft, is Major League Baseball 's primary mechanism for assigning amateur baseball players from high schools

Major league career

Rather than rely on the use of a fastball, Lee developed as a finesse pitcher. For the American band of the same name see Fastball (band. For the game also known as fast-pitch softball see Softball. He threw a variety of off-speed pitches, including a variation of the Eephus pitch. An Eephus pitch, (also spelled Ephus) in Baseball, is considered a "junk" pitch with very low speed The Leephus pitch or Space Ball, the names for Lee's take on the eephus pitch, follows a high arcing trajectory and is very slow. Trajectory is the path a moving object follows through space The object might be a Projectile or a Satellite, for example In Physics, velocity is defined as the rate of change of Position.

Lee was used almost exclusively as a relief pitcher during the first four years of his career. A relief pitcher or reliever is a Baseball or Softball Pitcher who enters the game after the Starting pitcher is removed due to injury During that period, Lee appeared in 125 games, started just nine of them, and compiled a 19-11 record.

In 1973, Lee was used primarily as a starting pitcher. Champions Major League Baseball World Series: Oakland Athletics over New York Mets (4-3 Reggie Jackson, In Baseball or Softball, a starting pitcher, often abbreviated as starter, is the Pitcher who pitches the first pitch to the first batter of He started 33 of the 38 games in which he appeared and went 17-11 with a 2. 95 Earned Run Average. In Baseball statistics, earned run average ( ERA) is the Mean of Earned runs given up by a Pitcher per nine Innings pitched He was rewarded for his strong performance with a nomination to the American League All-Star team. The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League ( AL) is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in The Major League Baseball All-Star Game, also popularly known as the "Midsummer Classic" is an annual Baseball game between players from the National League He followed 1973 with two more 17-win seasons.

Lee started two games in the 1975 World Series against the Cincinnati Reds. The 1975 World Series was between the Boston Red Sox and Cincinnati Reds. The Cincinnati Reds are a Major League Baseball team based in Cincinnati Ohio, USA His first start came in Game Two of the series. Lee let up just one run in eight innings; however, the Reds scored two runs off of Dick Drago in the top of the ninth inning and subsequently won the game 3-2. Richard Anthony (Dick Drago (born June 25 1945 in Toledo Ohio) is a retired American Relief pitcher in Major League Baseball

In Game Seven, Lee shut out the Reds for five innings and the Red Sox took a 3-0 lead. After getting the Reds' Tony Perez out twice with an Eephus pitch, sixth inning, the Reds' Perez hit an Eephus pitch over the Green Monster, the left field wall at Fenway Park, for a two-run home run. Atanasio Pérez Rigal, more commonly known as Tony Pérez (born May 14, 1942 in Ciego de Ávila, Cuba) is a former player in The Green Monster is the nickname of the thirty-seven-foot two-inch (11 Shortly thereafter, Lee left with a blister. ^[2] The Red Sox lost the game by a score of 4-3, and the 1975 World Series four games to three.

Lee separated his left shoulder during a brawl that occurred between the Red Sox and the New York Yankees on May 20, 1976, after Yankee Lou Piniella ran over Red Sox catcher Carlton Fisk in a play at home plate. A separated shoulder, otherwise known as an acromioclavicular separation or AC separation is a common injury to the Acromioclavicular joint. The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the borough of The Bronx, in New York City, New York. Events 325 - The First Council of Nicaea &ndash the first Ecumenical Council of the Christian Church is held Champions Major League Baseball World Series: Cincinnati Reds over New York Yankees (4-0 Johnny Bench, MVP Louis Victor Piniella (pɨˈnɛlə born August 28, 1943, in Tampa Florida, United States) is the current manager of the Chicago Carlton Ernest Fisk (born December 26 1947 in) is a former Major League Baseball Catcher who played for 24 years with the Boston Red Sox A baseball field or baseball diamond is the field upon which the game of Baseball is played Lee initially blamed the injury on Yankee third baseman Graig Nettles. A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in Baseball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of Graig Nettles (born August 20, 1944, in San Diego California) (nicknamed Puff) is a former Major League Baseball Third baseman However, after he had a chance to see the fight on video tape, Lee apologized to Nettles. Videotape is a means of recording images and sound onto Magnetic tape as opposed to movie film. Subsequently, he blamed Yankee manager Billy Martin for encouraging the Yankees players to be confrontational. In Baseball, the head coach of a team is called the manager (or more formally the field manager) this individual controls matters Alfred Manuel "Billy" Martin Jr ( May 16 1928 &ndash December 25 1989) was an American Second baseman and ^[2]

During the 1978 season, Lee and Red Sox manager Don Zimmer engaged in an ongoing public feud over the handling of the pitching staff. Donald William Zimmer (born January 17, 1931 in Cincinnati Ohio) is a former Infielder, manager, and a coach in Major League Lee's countercultural beliefs (detailed below) and free spirit also clashed with Zimmer's old-school, conservative personality. Lee and a few other of the more free-spirited Red Sox formed what they called "The Buffalo Heads" as a response to what they considered the overbearing nature of Zimmer (whom Lee nicknamed "the Designated Gerbil"). Zimmer retaliated during the season by relegating Lee to the bullpen and convincing management to trade away some of the other "Buffalo Heads", such as Hall of Famer Fergie Jenkins and Bernie Carbo. Ferguson Arthur "Fergie" Jenkins CM (born December 13 1943 in Chatham, Ontario, Canada) is a right-handed former Bernardo "Bernie" Carbo (born August 5, 1947 in Detroit Michigan) is a former Major League Baseball Right fielder / And though, as a starting pitcher, Lee had owned a 12-5 career record against the New York Yankees, Zimmer refused to start him against the Yankees during a crucial late-season series. Although they had led their rivals by more than 14 games in mid-July, the Red Sox lost the division to the Yankees by one game.

Lee was traded at the end of the year to the Montreal Expos for Stan Papi, a utility infielder. Franchise history Creation of the franchise In 1960 Montreal lost its International League team the Montreal Royals (an affiliate of Stan Gerard Papi (born February 4, 1951 in Fresno California) was a major league Baseball player best remembered for being traded Referring to the previous season's collapse, Lee bid farewell to Boston by saying, "Who wants to be with a team that will go down in history alongside the ‘64 Phillies and the ‘67 Arabs?" Lee pitched well for the Expos in 1979, winning 16 games -- while his former team, the Red Sox, slumped, mostly for lack of starting pitching. Lee's career ended in 1982, when he was released by the Expos after staging a one-game walkout as a protest over Montreal's decision to release second baseman and friend Rodney Scott. Franchise history Creation of the franchise In 1960 Montreal lost its International League team the Montreal Royals (an affiliate of

Reputation and controversy

Lee's personality earned him popularity as well as the nickname "Spaceman". His intelligence, articulate conversational style, humorous voice, and outspoken manner meant his views were frequently recorded in the press. He spoke in defense of Maoist China (once visiting, only to lampoon it endlessly), population control, Greenpeace, school busing in Boston and anything else that happened to cross his mind. Maoism, variably and officially known as Mao Zedong Thought ( is a variant of Marxism derived from the teachings of the late Chinese leader Greenpeace, originally known as the Greenpeace Foundation, was founded in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada in 1972 He berated an umpire for a controversial call in the 1975 World Series, threatening to bite off his ear and encouraging the American people to write letters demanding the game be replayed. He ate health food and practiced yoga. Yoga ( Sanskrit: योग, IAST: yóga, joːgə refers to traditional physical and mental disciplines originating in India, to the He claimed his marijuana use made him impervious to bus fumes while jogging to work at Fenway Park. Cannabis, also known as marijuana or marihuana, or ganja (from Hindi / Sanskrit: गांजा gānjā hemp) is a He sang Warren Zevon songs at times, and in an act of mutual admiration, Zevon recorded a song entitled "Bill Lee" on his album Bad Luck Streak in Dancing School. Warren William Zevon (January 24 1947 &ndash September 7 2003 was a Grammy Award -winning American rock Singer-songwriter and Musician Bad Luck Streak in Dancing School is the fourth Album by American Singer/songwriter Warren Zevon, released in 1980 In a college town like Boston, his views were shared by many youths, and they quickly became Lee's biggest fans.

Despite his views on off-the-field matters, Lee was respected by fellow players, who believed his cajoling of the press took pressure off the team, and his attitude on the field was pure business. He was intensely competitive, and worked quickly, which always endears a pitcher to his teammates.

But Lee would often speak out on matters concerning the team and was not afraid to criticize management, causing him to be dropped from both the Red Sox and Expos.

Lee countered his offbeat politics with a strong sense of the game. He is an avowed purist and traditionalist, speaking out against the designated hitter, AstroTurf and polyester uniforms, while conversely extolling the virtues of day games and Sunday doubleheaders. In Baseball, the designated hitter rule is the common name for Major League Baseball Rule 6 AstroTurf is a brand of Artificial turf. Though the term is a Registered trademark, it is sometimes used as a generic description of any kind Polyester is a category of Polymers which contain the Ester Functional group in their main chain

Post-professional career

After the Expos released Lee, he played for a number of semi-professional teams. A semi-professional athlete is one who is paid to play and thus is not an Amateur, but for whom Sport is not a full-time occupation generally because the This included his time playing for and managing in the short-lived Senior League in Florida, largely composed of retired major leaguers. Florida ( is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States, bordering Alabama to the northwest and Georgia to the In 1988, he ran for President of the United States on the Canadian Political Rhinoceros Party ticket, but failed to appear on the ballot in any state. The President of the United States is the Head of state and Head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in United States by Policies and politics His slogan for the election was "No guns. No butter. In Macroeconomics, the guns versus butter model is a simple example of the Production possibility frontier. Both can kill. "

He still lives on a farm in Vermont and played baseball around New England with the "Grey Sox", a semi-pro nine made up for former Red Sox players. A farm is an area of land including various structures devoted primarily to the practice of producing and managing food ( Produce, Grains, or Livestock Vermont ( is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. History See also History of New England New England's earliest inhabitants were Algonquian -speaking Native Americans including the In addition, Lee appears every Monday on the Loren and Wally morning show at WROR from roughly 7:45am to 7:55am (EST) and with Mitch Melnick on the Team 990 in Montreal every afternoon during baseball season. WROR-FM is a radio station licensed to Framingham Massachusetts. The Eastern Time Zone ( ET) of the Western Hemisphere falls mostly along the east coast of North America and the west coast of South America

His farm is in Craftsbury, VT, and he visits his widowed father in Terra Linda, CA. Always the child, he likes to go play catch at the old high school and swim in the municipal pool. He prides himself on saying he lives his life in a series of "small untruths".

Specifically in 2007, Lee has played former major league players Dennis 'Oil Can' Boyd, Marquis Grissom, Delino DeShields and Ken Ryan on the Oil Can Boyd's Traveling All-Stars. Marquis Deon Grissom, nicknamed " Grip " (first name mɑrˈkiːs (born April 17, 1967 in Atlanta Georgia) is a former Major League Delino Lamont DeShields (born January 15 1969 in Seaford Delaware) is a former Second baseman in Major League Baseball who played Kenneth Ryan (born October 24, 1968 in Pawtucket Rhode Island) is a retired professional baseball player who pitched in the Major Leagues from 1992-1999 The team was assembled by Boyd to "promote the heritage of the great Negro League style of baseball and the tradition of barnstorming", as well as to "serve as an inspiration to young African-American baseball players as the number of African-American players in Major League baseball continues to decline". Part of the History of baseball in the United States series The Negro leagues were American professional Baseball leagues African Americans or Black Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have origins in any of the black populations of Africa ^[3][4]

Spaceman: A Baseball Odyssey

In 2003, filmmakers Brett Rapkin and Josh Dixon joined Lee on a barnstorming trip to Cuba. The Republic of Cuba (ˈkjuːbə or) consists of the island of Cuba (the largest and second-most populous island of the Greater Antilles) Isla de la During this trip, Rapkin and Dixon gathered footage for the documentary film "Spaceman: A Baseball Odyssey. " The film premiered at the 2006 SILVERDOCS AFI/Discovery Channel Documentary Festival and later achieved high ratings on the New England Sports Network. Discovery Channel is an American Satellite and Cable TV channel (also delivered via IPTV, Terrestrial television and The New England Sports Network, or NESN, is a regional Cable television network that covers the six New England states except Fairfield County Connecticut It currently distributed across North America by Hart Sharp Video.

Books

He is the author of four books. Two written with Richard Lally, and two with Jim Prime:

• Lee, Bill and Dick Lally (1984). The wrong stuff, New York: Viking Press. ISBN 0670767247
• Lee, Bill and Jim Prime (2003). The Little Red (Sox) Book: A Revisionist Red Sox History, Chicago: Triumph Books. ISBN 1572435275
• Lee, Bill and Richard Lally (2005). Have glove, will travel: adventures of a baseball vagabond, New York: Crown Publishers. ISBN 1400054079
• Lee, Bill and Jim Prime (2007). Baseball eccentrics: the most entertaining, outrageous, and unforgettable characters in the game, Chicago: Triumph Books. ISBN 157243953X

See also

• Montreal Expos all-time roster

References

External links

• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference
• chriscomerradio.com Various Bill Lee interviews
• spacemanincuba.com Homepage for Bill Lee Documentary
• [1] The Old Bat Company - Bill Lee's Bat Company.
• [2] - Bill Lee' Alaska Goldpanners Scrapbook

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