Dean Chance Career Highlight

Position: Pitcher
Bats: Right  •  Throws: Right
6-3, 200lb (190cm, 90kg)
Born: June 1, 1941 in Wooster, OH us
Died: October 11, 2015 in Wooster, OH
Buried: Wooster Cemetery, Wooster, OH
High School: Northwestern HS (Wayne, OH)
Debut: September 11, 1961 (11,899th in major league history)
vs. MIN 7.1 IP, 10 H, 2 SO, 1 BB, 3 ER, L
Last Game: August 9, 1971 (Age 30-069d)
vs. BOS 0.0 IP, 2 H, 0 SO, 0 BB, 2 ER
Rookie Status: Exceeded rookie limits during 1962 season
Full Name: Wilmer Dean Chance
View Player Info from the B-R Bullpen
View Player Bio from the SABR BioProject

Nine Players Who Debuted in 1961

Carl Yastrzemski
Lou Brock
Boog Powell
Jim Fregosi
Sam McDowell
Dean Chance
Al Downing
Bill Freehan
Eddie Brinkman

All-Time Teammate Team

C:   Buck Rodgers
1B: Norm Cash
2B: Rod Carew
3B: Harmon Killebrew
SS: Jim Fregosi
LF: Leon Wagner
CF: Jose Cardenal
RF: Tony Oliva
SP: Ken McBride
SP: Bob Belinsky
SP: Jim Kaat
SP: Tom Seaver
SP: Mickey Lolich
RP: Al Worthington
M:   Billy Martin

Notable Events and Chronology 

Sort bySearch Days, Events, Players Title (A - Z)Date (Newest)

September 10, 1962

The Angels’ Dean Chance loses his no-hit bid when Zoilo Versalles singles in the 8th inning for the only Twins hit. Chance wins, 5 – 0.

December 7, 1962

Tom Tresh, the Yankees shortstop and left fielder, is selected as the American League’s Rookie of the Year by the BBWAA

July 28, 1964

Jim Fregosi of the Los Angeles Angels hits for the cycle in a 3-1 win over the Yankees

September 25, 1964

Dean Chance beats the Twins’ Jim Kaat, 1 – 0, to become the Angels’ first 20-game winner. Chance’s five 1 – 0 wins this year tie the major-league record held by four pitchers (Reb Russell; Walter Johnson; Joe Bush and Carl Hubbell).

December 25, 1964

Major League Baseball Season Recap 1964

August 13, 1965

Dean Chance establishes AL strikerecord with 11

December 2, 1966

Dean Chance traded to Twins in 5 player deal

June 11, 1967

The Twins’ Dean Chance tosses a one-hitter at the Athletics in winning‚ 8 – 0. The only hit is Danny Cater’s single in the 4th.

August 6, 1967

Minnesota’s Dean Chance throws a perfect no-hitter for five innings against the Red Sox before the game is called. Chance wins, 2 – 0.

August 25, 1967

Dean Chance throws his second no-hitter of the month, defeating the Indians 2-1

September 24, 1967

Dean Chance wins 20th

October 1, 1967

Impossible Dream – Yaz goes 4-4 and Longborg wins 22nd to clinch World Series Appearance

December 12, 1969

Cleveland trades pitchers Luis Tiant and Stan Williams to the Twins for 3B Graig Nettles and three others

April 10, 1970

Indians players Bob Miller, Ted Uhlaender, Graig Nettles, and Dean Chance in 1970

May 16, 1970

Yastrzemski clears centerfield wall

July 3, 1970

In Boston, a Carl Yastrzemski homer in the opener and an unearned run in the nitecap provide the Red Sox with 2 – 1 and 5 – 4 wins over Cleveland. In the second game, Indians reliever Dean Chance is told to remove a tiny flag pin on his cap by umpire Ed Runge in compliance with a rule prohibiting glass buttons and metal objects on uniforms because of their glare.

September 2, 1970

In the first six innings, Indians starter Sam McDowell walks six Nats batters, five intentionally. Three of the intentional passes go to Frank Howard in his first three at bats, twice when he leads off the inning. McDowell moves to 1B in the 6th inning, with two on and no outs, and Dean Chance comes in, allowing both runners to score. McDowell comes back to the mound to finish, losing 4 – 1 to Dick Bosman.

September 16, 1970

Clyde Wright 2nd Angel to win 20 games

September 18, 1970

The Mets purchase Dean Chance from the Indians

November 8, 2005

Los Angeles Angels pitcher Bartolo Colón wins American League Cy Young Award

Biography

Dean Chance was the Major League Cy Young winner in 1964 at the age of 23 when he became the first Angels’ pitcher to win 20 games, but arm injuries and an inability to find the strike zone prevented him from winning any games in the majors after his 30th birthday. The Halos first pitching phenom, Chance hurled 11 shutouts in ’64, winning six games by the score of 1-0. With the Twins in 1967, he pitched a no-hitter, and earned Comeback Player of the Year honors.

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Factoids, Quotes, Milestones and Odd Facts

Played For
Los Angeles Angels (1961-1964)
California Angels (1965-1966)
Minnesota Twins (1967-1969)
Cleveland Indians (1970)
New York Mets (1970)
Detroit Tigers (1971)

Similar: Andy Messersmith, Sonny Siebert

Linked: Graig Nettles, Luis Tiant

Best Season, 1964
Helped a bit by Dodger Stadium, but still a very good year. He had a 1.65 ERA and struck out 207 batters in more than 278 innings, for a mediocre Angels’ team.

Awards and Honors
1964 ML Cy Young

No-Hit Fame
8/25/1967: For MIN (A) vs. CLE (A), 2-1 at CLE. 9 innings pitched.

Post-Season Appearances
1969 American League Championship Series

Factoid
After his playing career, Dean Chance briefly worked as a boxing manager. One of his clients was Ernie Shavers, who fought Muhammad Ali for the heavyweight title.

Transactions
Signed as an amateur free agent by Baltimore Orioles (1959); Selected by Los Angeles Angels from Baltimore Orioles in the expansion draft (December 14, 1960); Traded by California Angels with a player to be named later to Minnesota Twins in exchange for Jimmie Hall, Don Mincher and Pete Cimino (December 2, 1966); Minnesota Twins received Jackie Hernandez (April 10, 1967); Traded by Minnesota Twins with Bob Miller, Ted Uhlaender and Graig Nettles to Cleveland Indians in exchange for Luis Tiant and Stan Williams (December 10, 1969); Sold by Cleveland Indians to New York Mets (September 18, 1970); Traded by New York Mets with Bill Denehy to Detroit Tigers in exchange for Jerry Robertson (March 30, 1971); Released by Detroit Tigers (October 6, 1971).

Data courtesy of Restrosheet.org

All-Star Selections
1964 AL
1967 AL

Best Strength as a Player
His fastball.

Largest Weakness as a Player
His strange pitch delivery, in which he turned his back to the plate and lost sight of his target. This helped result in his bouts with control… Chance was one of the worst hitters in baseball history. He retired with a miserable .066 batting average (44-for-662), and struck out 353 times.

Learn More about Dean Chance
The 1967 American League Pennant Race
The ’67 season saw four teams, the Red Sox, Twins, White Sox and Tigers, with a shot at the pennant entering the final weekend of play. No team seemed to want to win, as each struggled down the stretch. On October 1, the final Sunday, the Twins needed a win over the Red Sox to win the pennant. Making his third start in eight days, Dean Chance took the mound for Minnesota against Boston’s Jim Lonborg. Chance pitched into the sixth inning, allowing five earned runs on eight hits. He failed to protect a 2-0 Twins lead, allowing a lead-off single to Lonborg to start the 6th, followed by singles by Jerry Adair, Dalton Jones and Carl Yastrzemski (who collected four hits in the contest). The Bosox won 5-3 and took the flag.

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