Jack Aker facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Jack Aker |
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Aker in 1973
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| Pitcher | |||
| Born: July 13, 1940 Tulare, California, U.S. |
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| debut | |||
| May 3, 1964, for the Kansas City Athletics | |||
| Last appearance | |||
| September 27, 1974, for the New York Mets | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Win–loss record | 47–45 | ||
| Earned run average | 3.28 | ||
| Strikeouts | 404 | ||
| Saves | 124 | ||
| Teams | |||
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Jackie Delane Aker (born July 13, 1940) is a former professional baseball player from America. He was a special kind of pitcher called a relief pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for several teams, including the Kansas City/Oakland Athletics, Seattle Pilots, New York Yankees, Chicago Cubs, Atlanta Braves, and New York Mets.
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Jack Aker's Early Life
Jack Aker was born on July 13, 1940, in Tulare, California. He went to Mt. Whitney High School in Visalia, California. He was a great athlete there.
High School Sports Star
In high school, Jack played on the baseball team as a pitcher. In 1957, his junior year, he was named one of the best pitchers in his league. His team, Mt. Whitney, won the league championship that year. In 1958, he was again named a top player, but this time as an outfielder. Mt. Whitney won the championship again in 1958.
Jack was also a star on his high school's undefeated football team. He played as a running back and was named the team's best player in 1957. He was even chosen to play in a special all-star game for high school players.
College and Nickname
After high school, Jack went to the College of Sequoias. He continued to play both baseball and football there. He was a good hitter in baseball and a starting fullback in football.
Jack Aker has Potawatomi Native American family. Because of this, he was later given the nickname "Chief" during his professional baseball career.
Jack Aker's Professional Baseball Career
Jack Aker played in the major leagues for 11 years. He was known as a "side-arming" sinkerballer, which means he threw the ball with a special motion that made it drop as it reached the batter. He earned 47 wins, had 404 strikeouts, and saved 123 games. Saving games was a big deal back then!
Starting in the Minor Leagues
A scout for the Kansas City Athletics signed Jack Aker in 1959. He started as an outfielder, but the team soon realized he was a better pitcher. They moved him to pitching in the winter of 1959-60.
He played for several minor league teams, slowly getting better. In 1963, he started pitching mostly as a relief pitcher instead of a starter. This change helped him a lot. He had a great record and a very low earned run average (ERA) that year.
In 1965, he played for the Vancouver Mounties and had an amazing 1.36 ERA, which was the best in his league. He learned to pitch to his own strengths, which made him a much better player.
Playing in the Major Leagues
Jack Aker joined the Kansas City Athletics in July 1965. He pitched in 34 games that year, all as a relief pitcher.
Best Season with the Athletics
His best year in the major leagues was 1966 with the Athletics. He played in 66 games, all in relief. He led all major league pitchers in games finished (57) and saves (32). He had a great record of 8 wins and 4 losses, with a fantastic 1.99 ERA. His 32 saves were a major league record until 1970. He was even named the "Fireman of the Year" by The Sporting News for being such a great relief pitcher.
In 1967, the Athletics team had some disagreements between players and the owner. Jack Aker was the player representative, meaning he spoke for the players. He helped deal with these issues. Even though there were problems, Jack didn't blame them for his performance that year.
In 1968, the Athletics moved to Oakland. Jack continued to pitch for them, helping the team improve.
Seattle Pilots and New York Yankees
In 1969, Major League Baseball added new teams. Jack Aker was chosen by the Seattle Pilots in a special draft. He even got a save in the very first game in the Pilots' history!
Later that year, Jack was traded to the New York Yankees. After the trade, he pitched 33 innings in a row without giving up any runs. This is still a record for the Yankees during the regular season! He led the Yankees in saves in 1969 and 1970, even after having back surgery. In 1970, he and another pitcher, Lindy McDaniel, combined for 45 saves for the Yankees.
Chicago Cubs, Atlanta Braves, and New York Mets
Jack stayed with the Yankees until 1972. Then, he was traded to the Chicago Cubs. He continued to be a strong relief pitcher for them, getting 17 saves in 1972 and 12 saves in 1973.
After the 1973 season, he signed with the Atlanta Braves. In June 1974, he was traded to the New York Mets, where he finished his playing career. A cool fact: Jack Aker was standing in the bullpen when his Braves teammate Hank Aaron hit his historic 715th home run in 1974!
After Playing: Manager and Coach
After his playing days, Jack Aker became a manager in the minor leagues from 1975 to 1985. He managed teams like the Visalia Mets and the Lynchburg Mets. He was named the Carolina League's manager of the year twice!
In 1981, he became the manager for the Triple-A Tidewater Tides. He even led them to win the Governor's Cup, which is the championship for their league, in 1982. Later, he became a pitching coach for the Cleveland Indians from 1985 to 1987.
Jack Aker's Personal Life
After his baseball career, Jack Aker started teaching baseball skills to children. In 1988, he founded "Jack Aker Baseball," an academy where he offered camps and lessons. By 2004, he was teaching nearly 3,000 students each year, from young kids to adults.
In 1997, President Bill Clinton honored Jack with a "Giant Steps Award." This award recognized his important work teaching baseball to Native American children on reservations in Arizona and New Mexico.
See also
- List of Major League Baseball annual saves leaders
- List of Major League Baseball leaders in games finished
