On Friday, Bowling Green State University announced it was cutting its baseball program effective immediately. The university claims the cut was made in effort to shed $2 million off the department of athletics budget following the coronavirus pandemic.
Nineteen players to pass through Bowling Green’s program reached Major League Baseball, from 1944 to the present day. The list of players includes a World Series Champion and Cy Young Award winner in Orel Hershiser, Fostoria native and all-star Grant Jackson, and current Miami Marlins utility player Jon Berti.
Here is the full list of Bowling Green State University baseball players who made major-league appearances, according to baseball-reference.com:
■ Barney Mussill, RHP, 1944: Went 0-1 with a 6.05 ERA in 16 career games with the Philadelphia Phillies.
■ Roy Lee, LHP, 1945: Went 0-2 in 7.0 career innings in three games with the New York Giants.
■ Johnny Antonelli, LHP, 1948-1961: Was a five-time all-star with the New York/San Francisco Giants. Finished third in MVP voting in 1954 after posting a 21-7 record and 2.30 ERA. Appeared in 11 games in 1961 with the Cleveland Indians. Posted a career 3.34 ERA in 1,992⅓ innings.
■ Grant Jackson, LHP, 1965-1982: A Fostoria native, he was an all-star in 1969 with the Philadelphia Phillies, when he went 14-18 with a 3.34 ERA in 253 innings. Played for six teams in an 18-year MLB career, and he spent six seasons each in Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, and Baltimore.
■ John Knox, INF, 1972-1975: Was the first player in BGSU history to be drafted and make it to a MLB organization. Played for the Detroit Tigers in parts of four seasons. Hit for a .274 average in 124 career games.
■ Danny Godby, OF, 1974: Appeared in 13 games for the St. Louis Cardinals. Went 2-13 and drew three walks.
■ Doug Bair, RHP, 1976-1990: A Defiance native and former second-round draft pick, Bair pitched 15 MLB seasons with seven different teams as a reliever, most notably with Cincinnati. In 1978 with Cincinnati, he saved 28 games and posted a 1.97 ERA. In 1979 he went 11-7 and notched 16 saves.
■ Kip Young, RHP, 1978-1979: Went 8-9 with a 3.86 ERA in 27 career games with the Detroit Tigers.
■ Jeff Jones, RHP, 1980-1984: Pitched five seasons with the Oakland Athletics. Posted a 2.84 ERA in 35 games as a rookie in 1980.
■ Larry Owen, C, 1981-1988: Played six seasons for Atlanta and Kansas City. Hit .193 with 30 RBIs in his career.
■ Orel Hershiser, RHP, 1983-2000: Was perhaps the most decorated baseball player to come out of BGSU. “The Bulldog” is a three-time all-star and a 1988 World Series champion with the Los Angeles Dodgers, when he had his best season that included the National League’s Cy Young Award. During that season, he went 23-8 with a 2.26 ERA while leading the NL in wins, innings pitched (267), complete games (15), and shutouts (eight). He won National League Championship Series and World Series MVP awards in that 1988 season. He was also the American League Championship Series MVP with the Cleveland Indians in 1995.
■ Roger McDowell, RHP, 1985-1996: Spent with bulk of his 12-year career with the New York Mets. Finished sixth in Rookie of the Year award voting in 1985 after posting a 2.83 ERA and 17 saves. He is a 1986 World Series champion with the Mets, and he saved a career-high 25 games in 1987 with the Mets.
■ Larry Arndt, INF, 1989: Appeared in two games with the Oakland Athletics, going 1-6 at the plate.
■ Scott Taylor, LHP, 1992-1993: A Defiance native, Taylor pitched in 20 games with the Boston Red Sox. Went 1-2 with a 6.31 ERA.
■ Brian Koelling, INF, 1993: Played in seven games with Cincinnati. Went 1-15 at the plate.
■ Andy Tracy, INF, 2000-2009: A Bowling Green native, Tracy’s best season was his rookie season in 2000 with the Montreal Expos. He hit .260 with 11 home runs, 32 RBIs, and eight doubles that year. He was named as manager to the Triple-A Columbus Clippers, a Cleveland Indians affiliate, in January.
■ Burke Badenhop, RHP, 2008-2015: A Perrysburg alumnus, Badenhop had his best season in 2014 with Boston, where he compiled a 2.29 ERA in 70⅔ innings.
■ Nolan Reimold, OF, 2009-2016: A former second-round draft pick in 2005, injuries cut Reimold’s career short, as he dealt with hamstring and back issues. As a rookie in 2009 with Baltimore, Reimold hit .279 with 15 home runs and 45 RBIs. Was a career .246 hitter with Baltimore, Toronto, and Arizona.
■ Jon Berti, UTIL, 2018-present: Hit .273 with six home runs and 24 RBI, and he stole 17 bases with the Miami Marlins in 2019.
First Published May 16, 2020, 12:47 a.m.
