Stieb, David A.
Baseball
b. July 22, 1957, Santa Ana, CA
An outfielder on the college All-American team in 1978, while playing for Southern Illinois University, Stieb signed with the AL's Toronto Blue Jays after graduating and was converted to a pitcher in the minor leagues.
The 6-foot-1, 195-pound right-hander was called up to Toronto during the 1979 season and he emerged as an ace in 1982, when he was named The Sporting News American League pitcher of the year. He led the league with 5 shutouts, 19 complete games, and 288 1/3 innings pitched, compiling a 17-14 record with a 3.25 ERA.
He also led the league in innings pitched with 267 in 1984 and in ERA with a 2.48 mark in 1985. Never a 20-game winner, Stieb had winning records and between 11 and 18 victories in 9 of 11 seasons with Toronto through 1990.
After spending most of the 1991 and 1992 seasons on the disabled list, Stieb was signed by the AL's Chicago White Sox as a free agent in 1993. He had a 1-3 record before being released.
After being out of baseball for five years, Stieb returned to the Blue Jays in 1998, but pitched only 50 1/3 innings, compiling a 1-2 record with saves.
Stieb nearly threw three two no-hitters in 1988. Both of them were broken up with two outs in the bottom of the ninth. It happened again in 1989; that time, he had a perfect game going before giving up the hit.
He finally got his no-hitter on Sept. 2, 1990, a 3-0 win over the Cleveland Indians. It's still the only no-hit game ever thrown by a Toronto pitcher.