Frank Viola
| Frank Viola | |||
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| Pitcher | |||
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Born: April 19, 1960 East Meadow, New York |
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| MLB debut | |||
| June 6, 1982, for the Minnesota Twins | |||
| Last MLB appearance | |||
| May 28, 1996, for the Toronto Blue Jays | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Win–loss record | 176–150 | ||
| Earned run average | 3.73 | ||
| Strikeouts | 1,844 | ||
| Teams | |||
| Career highlights and awards | |||
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Frank John Viola, Jr. (born April 19, 1960) is an American former starting pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Minnesota Twins (1982–1989), New York Mets (1989–91), Boston Red Sox (1992–1994), Cincinnati Reds (1995) and Toronto Blue Jays (1996). A three-time All-Star, he was named World Series MVP with the Twins in 1987 and won the AL Cy Young Award in 1988. Long-time Tigers manager Sparky Anderson said of Viola, "...He's an artist; I love watching him work..." He is the pitching coach of the Las Vegas 51s.
He batted and threw left-handed, and was nicknamed "Sweet Music" – a nickname he picked up after a Minnesota sports writer declared that when Viola pitched, there was "Sweet Music" in the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome. The nickname was a play on the fact that his last name is also a name of a musical instrument, although pronounced differently. A fan began displaying a banner bearing the phrase in the outfield's upper deck whenever Viola pitched. Twins fans considered the banner to be a good luck charm. The banner is now property of the Minnesota Historical Society. It was again displayed when Viola was inducted into the Twins Hall of Fame. Frank was honored as a member of the Twins' "All Dome" team in 2009.
Viola was born and grew up in East Meadow, New York, with his brother John and sister Nancy, and went on to attend and play baseball for East Meadow High School before playing collegiately for St. John's University. On May 21, 1981, Viola faced future Mets teammate Ron Darling, then playing for Yale University; the game is considered to be the best in college baseball history. Viola was drafted following his freshman year in the 16th round of the 1979 Major League Baseball draft by the Kansas City Royals, but he did not sign.
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