Rick Waits

Michael Richard Waits

• Bats Left, Throws Left
• Height 6' 3", Weight 195 lb.
• High School Therrell High School
• Debut September 17, 1973
• Final Game October 6, 1985
• Born May 15, 1952 in Atlanta, GA USA

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Biographical Information

Rick Waits was best known in the late 1970s and early 1980s as the Cleveland Indians' "Yankee Killer." He was also known for having a good singing voice; he sang the National Anthem before games a number of times to wild applause.

Without Rick, Bucky Dent never has his moment in the sun in 1978. He beat the New York Yankees with a complete game five-hitter on the final day of the season, while the Boston Red Sox defeated the Toronto Blue Jays to force the AL East tiebreaker at Fenway Park.

Rick was the only player from the 5th round draft class of 1970 to record both a win and a save as a major leaguer.

In 1989 and 1990, Waits played for the Fort Myers Sun Sox of the Senior Professional Baseball Association. He went 5-4 with a 3.81 ERA the first season. In 1990, he pitched in 2 games and was 1-0 with a 1.59 ERA when the league folded.

After his playing career, he managed Rimini and Parma in Serie A1 (116-46 in 1989, 1992-1994, with a title for Rimini in 1992 and one for Parma in 1994). He then was a pitching coach in the New York Mets organization, working for the GCL Mets in 1995-1996, the St. Lucie Mets in 1997, the Binghamton Mets in 1998 and the Norfolk Tides from 1999 to 2002. From 2003 to 2010, he was the Mets' minor league pitching coordinator. He also replaced Dan Warthen as the pitching coach of the New Orleans Zephyrs on June 17, 2008. In 2011, Waits moved to the Seattle Mariners as minor league pitching coordinator and in 2014 became the team's major league pitching coach under new manager Lloyd McClendon. Waits was named minor league pitching coordinator for the Mariners for the 2016 season. In 2017, he became a coach for the Chinatrust Brothers.

Notable Achievements

• 15 Wins Seasons: 1 (1979)
• 200 Innings Pitched Seasons: 3 (1978-1980)