RetroSimba

Two months after Joe Magrane won five consecutive decisions as a starting pitcher, the Cardinals gave up on him.

Magrane, 29, was released by the Cardinals on Aug. 15, 1993.

Trying to rebuild his career after being sidelined all of 1991 and most of 1992 because of reconstructive surgery on his left elbow, Magrane returned to the Cardinals’ starting rotation in 1993. He was 1-2 in April and 1-3 in May before posting a 5-1 record and 2.47 ERA in six June starts.

Magrane, however, slumped in July (1-3, 11.50 ERA) and was moved to the bullpen. In two August relief stints, he was 0-1 with a 21.60 ERA.

“Once he went to the bullpen, he didn’t really fit into what we’re doing,” Cardinals manager Joe Torre said to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Right stuff

Magrane was a first-round choice of the Cardinals in the 1985 amateur draft. He made his major-league debut with St. Louis in 1987, earned nine regular-season wins and was the starting pitcher in Game 1 and Game 7 of the World Series against the Twins.

Bright and personable, Magrane, a communications major at the University of Arizona, was popular with the media. “Few players combined his love of word play, his wit and his sharp bluntness _ an oxymoron he might appreciate,” Post-Dispatch columnist Tom Wheatley wrote. “His word choice was precise, as was his diction.”

Magrane wasn’t all talk either. He was the National League leader in ERA (2.18) in 1988 and he was 18-9 with a 2.91 ERA in 1989.

A damaged elbow altered his status. After sitting out the 1991 season, Magrane didn’t pitch again for the Cardinals until September 1992 when he was 1-2 with a 4.02 ERA in five starts.

Hot and cold

Magrane opened the 1993 season as part of a Cardinals starting rotation with Bob Tewksbury, Rheal Cormier, Donovan Osborne and Rene Arocha.

In his first start of the season, on April 10, 1993, at St. Louis against the Reds, Magrane pitched eight scoreless innings before he was relieved by Lee Smith in a game won by the Cardinals, 2-1, in 10 innings. Boxscore

“He was sensational,” said Torre. “… You could tell his ball was moving because the opposition was not hitting it on the good part of the bat when he got behind in the count.”

Magrane showed more signs of returning to form when he won five consecutive decisions from June 6 to June 27 in starts against the Reds, Expos, Pirates, Marlins and Mets.

His June 11 performance versus the Expos was the best. Magrane pitched 7.2 scoreless innings, limiting the Expos to two singles, before he was relieved by Paul Kilgus in a game the Cardinals won, 1-0, at St. Louis. Boxscore

The win was Magrane’s first at Busch Stadium since Sept. 4, 1990. “I’m not the same pitcher I was before,” Magrane said. “I know I’m not throwing as hard and my breaking ball isn’t as good, but I have a better changeup and my location is better.”

July was a different story. Magrane pitched well in one start, against the Braves, and was knocked around in the rest. Magrane gave up 22 hits and 17 runs in seven total innings over his last three starts. “He just got into a dead-arm period,” said Cardinals pitching coach Joe Coleman. “There just wasn’t enough in there to get people out.”

Letting go

When Torre removed Magrane from his last start, “Magrane put his hands on his hips and stared at Torre as he approached the mound,” the Post-Dispatch reported.

Taken out of the starting rotation, Magrane mostly sat in the bullpen and pitched poorly the two times he was used. “I don’t think they have any confidence in me to bring me into a close game,” Magrane said.

The Cardinals offered Magrane the option to go on the disabled list “because of an assortment of minor ailments,” the Post-Dispatch reported. Magrane, however, declined and said, “I thought that was a bad idea … I’ve been on the disabled list enough. My arm feels great and my elbow is a non-issue.”

Torre was torn about what to do _ “I’ve been wrestling with this thing for a while,” he said _ but recommended the Cardinals release Magrane.

“No disrespect intended, but I thought (Torre) panicked a bit,” Magrane said.

Magrane was 8-10 with a 4.97 ERA in 22 appearances for the 1993 Cardinals. He had almost as many walks (37) as strikeouts (38) in 116 innings pitched. “Magrane has Bob Tewksbury’s speed and stuff, but not the control,” Wheatley wrote. “Walks killed him. So did slipshod defense. Strapped to get three outs, he could not muster four.”

In six seasons with St. Louis, Magrane was 51-54 with a 3.34 ERA. “It was not the most successful era in Cardinals history, but it was certainly the most erudite,” Wheatley noted.

Said Magrane: “I was proud to be a St. Louis Cardinal and part of a tradition-rich ballclub. The organization has been good as far as treating you like a man and allowing you to get ready, not meddling with your affairs.”

Empty tank

On Aug. 19, 1993, four days after the Cardinals released him, Magrane signed with the Angels. Whitey Herzog, Magrane’s first manager with the Cardinals, was in the Angels’ front office as senior vice president and director of player personnel and he advocated for Magrane.

Magrane made eight starts for the 1993 Angels and was 3-2 with a 3.94 ERA. They brought him back in 1994 and he flopped, posting a 2-6 record and 7.30 ERA.

After spending 1995 in the minor leagues with the Ottawa Lynx, an Expos affiliate, Magrane pitched his final big-league season in 1996 with the White Sox and was 1-5 with a 6.88 ERA.