Mickey McDermott

Maurice (Maury) Joseph McDermott
Born: April 19, 1929 in Poughkeepsie, NY 
Died: Aug. 7, 2003 in Phoenix, Ariz.
Debut: 1948 | Pos: P
Ht: 6'2" | Wt: 170 | B: L | T: L

>> Visit the Mickey McDermott biography on Baseball Almanac for complete statistics.

Mickey McDermott, who pitched 12 seasons in the major leagues, died on August 7, 2003 in Phoenix, Ariz., from congestive heart failure and colon cancer. He was 74.

In 12 seasons, including time with the Red Sox, Senators, Yankees, Athletics, Tigers and Cardinals, McDermott was 69-69.

McDermott was just 18 when he signed with the Red Sox in 1948. He was compared to Lefty Grove, but an elbow injury, coupled with a hard-living lifestyle, is reported to have put a damper on his career.

He made light of the reputation in an interview earlier this year.

"My knees are gone," he told The Associated Press in an interview in May. "It's an occupational hazard. Falling off barstools."

McDermott was also said to have had an excellent singing voice and had even performed with Eddie Fisher in the Catskills.

One of his best seasons came in 1953 when he was 18-10 with a 3.01 ERA in 206.1 innings. McDermott was popular with some of the Red Sox fans and they were angered when he was traded to the Senators in late 1953 for Jackie Jensen. McDermott's career began to wind down after the trade while Jensen averaged 25 home runs a season in his seven years with Boston.

McDermott excelled at the plate hitting .252 with 9 home runs in his career. He also had 127 pinch hit at-bats.

His death comes shortly after the publication of his baseball memoirs, "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Cooperstown." The book's co-author, Howard Eisenberg, said McDermott "told his wife that he was dying as a publicity stunt for the book."

One published report from his book said: "My reincarnation as a pitcher is doubtful. I'm more likely to come back as a Mexican gardener. Or his donkey. So at age 74, maybe it's time to sit down, tune in to whatever brain cells I've got left, and figure out where I got lost on the road to the baseball Hall of Fame. Hey, maybe what I've got to say will help a couple of kids find their way into it."

He threw out the first pitch at a Red Sox game in June, but had to cut the trip, a publicity tour for the book, short. He returned to Phoenix and was in and out of the hospital until his death.

In 1991, he and his wife, Betty, now deceased, won $7 million in the Arizona lottery. He said it was the sign that said he should give up drinking.

He had suffered from a number of health problems -- aneurysms, congestive heart failure, a triple bypass and colon cancer.