Mike Flanagan (with Orioles from 1975-1987, 1991-1992)
141-116, .549, 3.89 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, 2317.7 IP, 100 ERA+ (with Orioles)
The Baltimore Orioles drafted Mike Flanagan out of the University of Massachusetts Amherst in the 7th round of the 1973 draft. He reached the big leagues in 1975, but didn’t get established as a regular in the rotation until 1977. In the eight-year stretch from 1977 to 1984, Flanagan was 122-81, with 87 complete games and 17 shutouts. His best year was 1979. Flanagan led the AL in wins and shutouts and won the Cy Young Award (23-9, 3.08 ERA). In the 1979 post-season, Flanagan was 2-1 with a 3.68 ERA.
Injuries limited Flanagan to 20 starts in the 1983 regular season, but he was still effective. He was 12-4 with a 3.30 ERA. The Orioles again made the playoffs. They beat the White Sox in the ALCS then beat the Phillies in the World Series for their first title since 1970.
Flanagan bounced back to pitch 226 2/3 innings in 1984, but he wouldn’t reach that innings total again in his career. He struggled towards the end of his time in Baltimore, then was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays in August of 1987 for Oswaldo Peraza and a player to be named later. That player would eventually be Jose Mesa.
During his three-plus years with the Blue Jays, Flanagan was 26-27 with a 3.94 ERA. The Jays released him during the 1990 season. Flanagan singed as a free agent with Baltimore as a 39-year-old in 1991 and finished out his career pitching almost exclusively out of the bullpen. He was effective in 1991 when he had a 2.38 ERA in 64 appearances, but got knocked around pretty hard in 1992.
The 1991 season was the last year the Orioles played in old Memorial Stadium. Camden Yards would open the following year and begin the trend towards baseball-only ballparks rather than multi-use stadiums. The final game at Memorial Stadium was on October 6, 1991. It was typical for an Orioles’ game that year. They fell behind early, couldn’t mount a comeback, and lost handily.
There were some great moments, though. After the game, 119 former Orioles walked out onto the field of Memorial Stadium to the music of Field of Dreams. Earl Weaver came out last and 50,000 people combined to sing Auld Lang Syne.
Before that final moment, there had been another nice moment that involved Mike Flanagan. With one out and the bases empty in the top of the ninth, Oriole’s manager Johnny Oates came to the mound to get the ball from reliever Gregg Olson. He signaled to the pen and in came Flanagan. Flanagan would be the last Orioles’ pitcher to ever throw a pitch at Memorial Stadium. He got Dave Bergman to strike out swinging on a full-count, then got Travis Fryman to do the same. The crowd roared.