A typical knuckleballer, Steve W. Sparks (a namesake pitched three games with the Pirates in 2000) has conquered the odds and bloomed at the very ripe baseball age of 35. In the minors, the righty had a history of arm trouble and seemed to have topped out at Double-A. But then he took the advice of his pitching coach, former major-league reliever Bill Castro, and concentrated on the butterfly. He had a chance to make the Brewers out of spring training in 1994, but after attending a motivational seminar, Sparks dislocated his left shoulder trying to rip a phone book in half -- erroneously thought to be the reason he turned to the knuckler. Steve scuffled over the 1995-2000 period. He missed the '97 campaign with an injured elbow -- incurred when he tried to hold up a throw in the field -- and spent several stretches in the minors. But he achieved greater command over his elusive bread-and-butter pitch in 2001. With the Detroit Tigers, he hit double digits in wins for the first time in his career, going 14-9, and led the majors with eight complete games. His career-best effort came on June 19, as he mesmerized the Yankees, posting a complete-game three-hitter on an astoundingly low 85 pitches. Said catcher Brandon Inge of the 50-mph floaters, "it was like trying to catch a fly with chopsticks." (RC)
Contribute your recollections of Steve Sparks by clicking here.
FROM THE BASEBALL CHRONOLOGY
»April 13, 1996:
In Milwaukee, Michael Tucker's 3-run homer in the 5th inning -- the only hit allowed by knuckleballer Steve Sparks -- is enough to give the Royals a 3–2 win.
»April 23, 1996:
In Milwaukee, the A's rack up nine runs off knuckler Steve Sparks, with Scott Brosius banging a 3-run homer in the first and a solo shot in the 4th. Jason Giambi tallies a double in the first off Sparks, a triple in the 2nd, and a two run homer in the 4th. With teammates urging him to stop at first on any hit, Giambi lines out his next two times up. The A's need all nine runs as the Brewers battle back to lose, 9–6.
»May 31, 1996: The Indians bang 18 hits to beat Milwaukee 10–4, but the biggest hit is when Albert Belle decks Brewers 2B Fernando Vina with a vicious forearm in the 8th inning to set off a two-team brawl. Belle was on first after being hit with a pitch. In the 9th, Milwaukee reliever Terry Burrows throws three inside pitches before he finally plunks Belle. Tribe reliever Julian Tavarez then throws a pitch behind the back of Mike Matheny, who charges the mound. Both benches clear and during the brawl Tavarez slams down ump Joe Brinkman and Belle knuckles Brewer Steve Sparks. Belle, Tavarez, and Matheny will each receive 5-game suspensions for their brawling.
»April 1, 1998:
The Angels sign free agent pitcher Steve Sparks to a minor league contract. He'll go 0–8 in the minors, earning a promotion, where he'll go 9–4. The knuckler missed the entire 1997 season when he injured himself ripping a phone book in half following a spring training game.
»May 22, 1999: Mo Vaughn's single in the 8th snaps a tie and rescues Steve Sparks wild knuckler as the Angles beat the Devil Rays, 8–6. In the 3rd inning, Sparks hits Paul Sorrento to load the bases, then plunks the next two batters with a knuckler. He is the 4th pitcher to hit three batters in a row, joining Houston's C.J. Nitkowski (1988), White Sox Wilbur Wood (1977) and Pittsburgh's Dock Ellis (1974). He also plunks Jose Canseco in the 1st inning to tie the ML mark for HPB. Sparks only allows five hits, but walks six in addition to hitting 4.
»August 28, 1999: The Red Sox defeat the Angels, 7-6. With Tim Wakefield and Steve Sparks as the starting pitchers, the game is believed to be the 27th matchup of knuckleballers in major league history.
BALLPLAYERS | TEAMS | CHRONOLOGY | TODAY | BOOKS | NEWSLETTER | ERRATA | FAQ
