Marty Pattin photo above courtesy of flickr

By Greg Echlin

To Marty Pattin’s peers, he was Duck because no one could talk in a Donald Duck voice any better other than Disney creator Clarence Nash.  But to managers, it was difficult to find a pitcher more capable of filling whatever role needed on the mound.

Pattin was an American League All-Star in 1971 for the Milwaukee Brewers, the year he threw a career-high five shutouts.  The last of his shutouts came against the Kansas City Royals in September, 1-0, when the Brewers got only one hit off Mike Hedlund and Bruce Dal Canton.

But earlier that year, in July against the Royals, Pattin dropped a 1-0 decision, which explains his 14-14 record in ‘71 pitching for a team that struggled to score runs.

“Some days you go out there and throw real well, do a great job and you get nothing to show for it,” said Pattin in a 2008 interview.  “Then on other days, you don’t think you’ve got very good stuff and, all of a sudden, you throw a shutout and you win the game.”

Marty Pattin broke in the big leagues as relief pitcher who wasn’t afraid to throw inside.  As a rookie with the Angels in ’68, he tied an American League record by hitting three batters in an inning—Mark Belanger, Frank Robinson and Brooks Robinson.

“(Angels manager) Bill Rigney finally took me out of the game.  He says ‘Well, I better get you out of there before something else happens,’” recalled Pattin.

In 1969, taken by the Seattle Pilots in the expansion draft and armed with a slider that pitching coach Wes Stock taught him, Pattin became a starter. The same day the Royals won the first game in their expansion history against Minnesota, Pattin was Seattle’s opening day starter and winner against his former team, the Angels.

By the time Pattin was traded to the Royals before the ’74 season, he was well-schooled as a starter and in relief pitching.  Though Pattin earned 21 of his career 25 saves as a Royals pitcher, he was handy until the end of his baseball career in 1980 pitching in long-relief and as a spot starter.

In a 1977 game against Cleveland, starter Paul Splittorff couldn’t get an out in the first inning, so Pattin relieved him. Pattin pitched shutout ball and limited the Indians to only three hits the rest of the way in the Royals 12-2 victory.

“That’s where a long-man can be very valuable to a ballclub,” said Pattin.

He died Oct. 3 in his hometown of Charleston, Illinois.