Steve Blass
Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher and broadcaster known for 1971 World Series heroics and the phenomenon 'Steve Blass disease'.
Stephen Robert Blass (born April 18, 1942) is an American retired professional baseball pitcher and television sports color commentator. He played his entire career in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates. Blass was one of the National League's top pitchers between 1968 and 1972, helping the Pirates win four National League Eastern Division titles in five years. He played a key role in the Pirates victory over the Baltimore Orioles in the 1971 World Series when he recorded two complete game victories. He remains the last National League pitcher to throw a complete game in Game Seven of a World Series. After his playing career ended, Blass had a 34-year career as a television sports commentator for Pittsburgh Pirates games.
Quick Facts
- Position
- Starting Pitcher (Right-Handed)
- Primary affiliation
- Pittsburgh Pirates (1964–1974)
- Nickname
- Steve Blass disease
Lore & Background
Blass is best known for his sudden and inexplicable loss of control after the 1972 season. His ERA climbed to 9.85 in the 1973 season, during which he walked 84 batters and struck out only 27; his WAR of -3.9 that year remains the worst of any pitcher in the modern era. After spending most of 1974 in the minor leagues, he retired from baseball in March 1975. Two months later writer Roger Angell chronicled Blass's travails in an essay in The New Yorker.
A condition referred to as 'Steve Blass disease' has become a part of baseball lexicon. The 'diagnosis' is applied to talented players who inexplicably and permanently seem to lose their ability to throw a baseball accurately. The fielder's variant is sometimes referred to as 'Steve Sax syndrome'. Notable victims include Rick Ankiel, Mark Wohlers, Dontrelle Willis, Ricky Romero, and Daniel Bard.
Blass stated that the sudden death of teammate and close friend Roberto Clemente was not a factor in him losing his control.
Reader's Guide
Blass was born in Canaan, Connecticut. Signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1960, he made his major league debut at age 22 in 1964 and joined the team permanently in 1966. He won 18 games in 1968, including a 2.12 ERA with seven shutouts, and won NL Player of the Month for September. In 1969 he won 16 games with a career-high 147 strikeouts.
From 1969 to 1972 he won 60 games, with a career-high 19 victories in 1972. That season he was an All-Star and runner-up for the NL Cy Young Award. In the 1971 World Series, he pitched two complete game wins, allowing only seven hits and two runs in 18 innings, and was the winning pitcher in Game Seven. He finished second in World Series MVP voting behind Roberto Clemente.
In a ten-season career, Blass posted a 103–76 record with 896 strikeouts and a 3.63 ERA in 1,597.1 innings, including 16 shutouts and 57 complete games. After retiring, he worked as a salesman for Jostens, then joined the Pirates' broadcast team in 1983 part-time, full-time in 1986. He announced only home games from 2005 onward and retired from broadcasting in 2019. He was inducted into the Kinston Professional Baseball Hall of Fame in 1997, the Charleston, West Virginia Baseball Hall of Fame in 2022, and as an inaugural member of the Pittsburgh Pirates Hall of Fame on August 7, 2022. His autobiography, A Pirate For Life, was released on May 1, 2012.
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