Dennis Leonard

Position: Pitcher
Bats: Right • Throws: Right
6-1, 190lb (185cm, 86kg)
Born: May 8, 1951 in Brooklyn, NY
Draft: Drafted by the Kansas City Royals in the 2nd round of the 1972 MLB June Amateur Draft from Iona College (New Rochelle, NY).
School: Iona College (New Rochelle, NY)
Debut: September 4, 1974 (13,559th in major league history)
vs. CHW 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 SO, 0 BB, 0 ER
Last Game: September 27, 1986
vs. OAK 1.1 IP, 7 H, 0 SO, 0 BB, 3 ER
Full Name: Dennis Patrick Leonard
View Player Info from the B-R Bullpen
View Player Bio from the SABR BioProject

Nine Players Who Debuted in 1974

Robin Yount
Gary Carter
Jim Rice
Keith Hernandez
Fred Lynn
Jim Sundberg
Kent Tekulve
Dennis Leonard
John Montefusco

All-Time Teammate Team

Coming Soon

Notable Events and Chronology for Dennis Leonard Career

October 10, 1976

The Royals gain their first postseason victory in franchise history when they beat the Yankees in Game 2 of the ALCS

August 3, 1977

Dennis Leonard pitches the Royals to a 12 – 2 win over the White Sox. John Mayberry leads the offense by hitting for the cycle.

October 9, 1977

New York Yankees stun Royals with three runs in the ninth inning to capture ALCS

May 8, 1978

After a Bernie Carbo walk and a groundout, the Royals intentionally walk Jim Rice to pitch to Carl Yastrzemski, who clouts a three-run homer. The Red Sox, down 5 – 4, beat the Royals, 8 – 4. Bob Stanley is the winner over Dennis Leonard.

September 26, 1979

Dennis Leonard shuts out California, 4 – 0, and Royals SS Frank White hits for the cycle.

September 17, 1980

The Royals become the first team to clinch a division

October 14, 1980

Bake McBride slams 3 run shot to give the Phillies a 1-0 series lead

May 12, 1982

Paul Molitor hits 3 homeruns in Brewers loss to Royals

May 29, 1982

Paul Splittorff pitches eight solid innings in the Royals’ 14-1 rout of Texas at Arlington Stadium. The southpaw’s victory makes him the all-time franchise leader with 145 wins, one more than Dennis Leonard.

February 2, 1987

Dennis Leonard announces his retirement

Biography

The redhead was the Royals’ Pitcher of the Year in 1975, 1977, and 1979. He employed a hard fastball, curve, and slider to average 18 wins a year, 1975-80. His philosophy: “Win or lose, take something out of a game that will help me next time.” In 1982 he missed half the season after suffering a broken finger from a line drive. Torn knee ligaments cost him nearly all of the next three seasons. In 1986 Leonard returned to honor the final year of his contract. He made the starting rotation, and though his record was only 8-13, he pitched several strong games in the first half of the season, including two shutouts. Before coming to the Royals, he hurled two no-hitters in the minors.

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