John Leister
| John Leister | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Pitcher | |||
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Born: January 3, 1961 San Antonio, Texas |
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| MLB debut | |||
| May 28, 1987, for the Boston Red Sox | |||
| Last MLB appearance | |||
| April 16, 1990, for the Boston Red Sox | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Win–loss record | 0-2 | ||
| Earned run average | 8.50 | ||
| Strikeouts | 19 | ||
| Teams | |||
John William Leister (born January 3, 1961) is a former starting pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Boston Red Sox. He has also been a baseball and football coach.
Listed at 6' 2", 200 lb., Leister batted and threw right-handed. Signed as a free agent in 1984 he was originally drafted by the New York Mets out of high school in Great Falls, Montana. Leister's baseball career was delayed as he accepted a football scholarship at Michigan State University in the fall of 1979.
At MSU he was the starting quarterback for three years and set multiple passing records that have since been surpassed. The terms of his football scholarship did not allow him to play baseball until the completion of his football eligibility. After pitching for the Spartans his senior year, he was drafted again in 1983 by the Oakland A's.
Instead Leister tried out as quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers, who later cut him at the end of training camp, opting to keep Terry Bradshaw, who had undergone an off-season elbow surgery, for his final season. It is said that he outbenched Bradshaw at a spring workout. Bradshaw played in only one game in the 1983, when he suffered a career-ending injury after only his eighth pass of the season. Leister also was drafted and was briefly a member of the Michigan Panthers of the United States Football League (USFL), but left the team to play professional baseball with the Red Sox.
He played five seasons in the minor leagues for Winter Haven (1984), New Britain (1985), Pawtucket (1987, 1988–1990), and two for the Red Sox (1987, 1990). In a two-season major league career, Leister posted a 0-2 record with 19 strikeouts and an 8.50 earned run average in 36.0 innings of work. Leister was known to his fans as "The Mullet Man".
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