1998

David West, a former pitcher for four teams in his 10-year career and a key part of the bullpen for the Phillies’ pennant-winning 1993 team.

David Lee West was born in Memphis on September 1, 1964. He eventually grew to be 6’6″ tall, but even in pee-wee ball, his height put him head and shoulders above the competition — literally. His mother would have to have a copy of his birth certificate with her when he played, because opposing coaches always thought he was too old to play. David excelled in American Legion ball, playing for Millington Telephone, but the big left-handed with the 90 mile-per-hour fastball had to wait a bit to play at Craigmont High School. He was declared scholastically ineligible and missed his first two seasons of high school ball.

In his senior season, he struck out 109 batters in 52 innings, threw a no-hitter and hit a home run that Brock estimated traveled 450 feet. “He’s awesome. It’s that simple. I can’t think of another word to describe him. The kid’s just awesome,” his coach enthused.

David was drafted by the New York Mets in the fourth round of the 1983 June Amateur Draft, and he joined the team’s Gulf Coast League team that summer. In the offseason, he suffered a terrible fall that could have ended his playing career or worse. He fell from the second story of a Memphis warehouse and broke his left elbow and right arm. It took several years to regain his form, and he remained in Class-A ball until 1986. He put up some impressive strikeout totals, but he walked almost as many batters as he whiffed.

David made up for lost time when he did move up to the higher levels of the Mets organization. David’s first full season at Triple-A Tidewater resulted in a 12-4 win-loss record and 1.80 ERA. He was brought to the majors that September, and the 24-year-old debuted with a start against the St. Louis Cardinals on September 24th

David started the 1989 season in Tidewater but was added to the Mets bullpen in June. He was part of a large trade with the Minnesota Twins that sent Frank Viola to the Mets.  He was added to the Twins’ rotation for the rest of the year.

David spent all of 1990 with Minnesota in the rotation and won 8 while losing 9. David was bothered by a sore elbow and strained abdominal muscles in 1991 and stayed on the disabled list until July 2nd.

The Twins had West spent most of 1992 in Triple-A Portland, and he didn’t return to the big-league roster until August. He picked up his only win of the season with 5 innings of 1-hit relief against Seattle on August 14th.

That December, Minnesota traded him to the Philadelphia Phillies. A new team and a new role — he was exclusively a reliever in 1993 — resulted in David’s best season. The Phillies kept West as a late-innings reliever in 1994, but he didn’t have nearly the success he did in the previous season. So the team tried him as a starting pitcher — and he did just fine in the role. It was David’s last full season in the majors. He entered spring training as one of two established starters the team had. The Phillies let him leave via free agency at the end of the season.

David ventured to Japan for 1997, pitching in 19 games for the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks. He returned to the U.S. in 1998 and played for the Triple-A affiliates of Houston and Boston. He made 6 appearances for the Red Sox but gave up 6 runs across 2 innings. He was released by Boston in September, ending his major-league career.

David pitched briefly in the Dodgers organization in 1999 and also made 6 appearances for the Lehigh Valley Black Diamonds of the independent Atlantic League. They were his final appearances in professional baseball.

He came into the majors with considerable hype as a Mets prospect, and he was on the verge of fulfilling it in Philadelphia before injuries and surgery derailed his career.

On May 14, 2022 David West died from brain cancer at the age of 57.