Michael Denis Wegener (born October 8, 1946, in Denver, Colorado) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. The right-hander was signed by the Baltimore Orioles before the 1964 season, drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies from the Orioles in the 1964 first-year draft (November 30), and later drafted by the Montreal Expos from the Phillies as the 15th pick in the 1968 expansion draft. He played for the Expos from 1969 to 1970. Wegener is perhaps best-known for giving up Willie Mays's 3000th hit. (July 18, 1970) The majority of his 57 appearances were as a starter, but he did relieve in 15 games. He had "good stuff" but was prone to wildness, as evidenced by 152 bases on balls and 17 wild pitches in just 270 innings. His BB/9IP was 5.07, much higher than the National League average at that time. After his MLB career. Career highlights include:
- a four-hit, complete game shutout against the San Francisco Giants (June 14, 1969)
- going 3-for-4 with 4 RBI and pitching the first 7.2 innings of an 11-4 victory over the New York Mets. (July 11, 1969)
- pitched 11 innings with 15 strikeouts, giving up just 2 runs (both unearned), with no decision, against the New York Mets (September 10, 1969)
- a three-hit, seven strikeout complete game against the Chicago Cubs, winning 8-2 (September 15, 1969)
- a seven-hit, six strikeout complete game against the Chicago Cubs, winning 6-2 (August 5, 1970)
- held All-Stars Tommie Agee, Matty Alou, Glenn Beckert, Bobby Bonds, Nate Colbert, Randy Hundley, and Cleon Jones to a .144 collective batting average (13-for-90)
- held Hall of Famers Hank Aaron, Ernie Banks, Lou Brock, and Billy Williams to a .207 collective batting average (12-for-58)
Wegener hit well for a pitcher, with 9 runs batted in and a batting average of .193 in just 88 lifetime at bats. He was also an excellent defensive player, handling 63 out of 64 total chances successfully for a fielding percentage of .984. He finished his career with a total of 8 wins, 20 losses, and an ERA of 4.73.
See also
External links
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference
- Retrosheet
