Greg Perschke

From BR Bullpen

Gregory Lee Perschke

  • Bats Right, Throws Right
  • Height 6' 3", Weight 180 lb.

BR minors page

Biographical Information[edit]

Greg Perschke pitched in AAA in five seasons but did not make the majors. He later coached at the college level.

Perschke was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 32nd round of the 1987 amateur draft out of junior college. He went on to the University of New Orleans and was taken by the Atlanta Braves in the 23rd round of the 1988 amateur draft. Again not signing, he went to the Chicago White Sox in the 24th round of the 1989 amateur draft. The right-hander split his first summer as a pro between the Utica Blue Sox (3 R, 5 H, 4 BB, 20 K in 17 IP, 9 Sv) and the South Bend White Sox (0-2, Sv, 3.10 in 13 G). He was 5th in the New York-Penn League in saves. In 1990, he was with the Sarasota White Sox (7-3, 9 Sv, 1.21 ERA, 1.01 WHIP) and Birmingham Barons (3-1, 2.60). He was 5th in the White Sox farm system in games pitched (46), first in ERA among pitchers with 100+ IP, tied with Shawn Hillegas for fifth in saves, third in strikeouts (125) and tied with Dan Matznick and Rod Bolton for 7th in wins. He was 2-5 with a 3.89 ERA for the 1990-1991 Tiburones de La Guaira, tying Scott Aldred for 4th in the Venezuelan League in losses.

The 1990 dominance earned him a full-time look as a starter in AAA with the 1991 Vancouver Canadians but he slumped to 7-12, 4.65 against the harder competition. He tied Matznick and Jason Bere for second in the Pale Hose chain in losses, behind Mario Brito. He also tied Jeff Bittiger and Sergio Valdez for the 1991 PCL lead in losses. Back with Vancouver in 1992, he reversed his record to 12-7, 3.76 to finish 5th in the Chicago minor league system in wins. He was one win shy of 1992 PCL leaders George Tsamis and Zak Shinall. Unfortunately for Greg, the White Sox rotation was remarkably stable with a bunch of healthy pitchers with Jack McDowell, Alex Fernandez, Charlie Hough, Kirk McCaskill and Greg Hibbard all starting at least 27 games, with Wilson Alvarez the 6th option.

He was then traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Dave Fitzpatrick. The move did not pan out, as he was 7-4 with a 6.36 ERA for the Albuquerque Dukes, allowing 146 hits in 104 2/3 IP in a hitter-friendly environment. In the winter, he was 2-1 with a save and a 6.08 ERA for the Caribes de Anzoategui. In 1994, he was with the Chicago Cubs chain, appearing for the Orlando Cubs (4-3, 3 Sv, 1.54 in 25 G) and Iowa Cubs (1-1, Sv, 5.43 in 21 G). He tied for 8th in the Cubs chain in games pitched. His next stop was with the Cleveland Indians organization, appearing for them as a potential strike replacement in spring training. He pitched only briefly in 1995 for the Canton-Akron Indians (1-0, 3.38 in 3 G) and Buffalo Bisons (1-1, 5.74 in 3 G). He ended up back in the White Sox system, going 2-1 with a 2.25 ERA in 9 games for Birmingham in 1996.

Overall, Perschke had gone 45-35 with 23 saves and a 3.86 ERA in 223 minor league games (87 starts). He allowed 710 hits and 206 walks in 749 IP while striking out 490. He hit well for a pitcher, .222 in 18 at-bats.

In 2002, he became head coach of Trine University. He guided the school to 23 years, setting a school record with 356 wins.

Sources[edit]

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