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Bill McNulty

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Bill McNulty
Utility player
Born: (1946-08-29) August 29, 1946 (age 78)
Sacramento, California, U.S.
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
Professional debut
MLB: July 9, 1969, for the Oakland Athletics
NPB: June 3, 1975, for the Lotte Orions
Last appearance
MLB: October 4, 1972, for the Oakland Athletics
NPB: September 28, 1975, for the Lotte Orions
MLB statistics
Batting average.037
Home runs0
Runs batted in0
NPB statistics
Batting average.190
Home runs13
Runs batted in27
Teams

William Francis McNulty (born August 29, 1946) is an American retired professional baseball player. He played for the Oakland Athletics of Major League Baseball for parts of two seasons, in 1969 and 1972. He also played one season for the Lotte Orions of Nippon Professional Baseball in 1975. During his major league career, he played in the outfield and at third base.

Early life

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McNulty was born on August 29, 1946, in Roseville, California. His father, Ray, played professional baseball in the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and his uncle, Gene, played in the farm system of the New York Yankees.[1]

McNulty attended Highlands High School in North Highlands, California. The Sacramento Union named him to the All-City team as a third baseman in 1964, his senior year,[2] in which he had a .355 batting average with six home runs. McNulty also played for the basketball team and American football team as a quarterback.[1] He attended American River College in Sacramento and played college baseball and college basketball for one year.[1][3]

Professional career

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McNulty signed with the Kansas City Athletics in February 1965.[1] Don Pries, the scout who signed him, had informed him that the Athletics would be moving to Oakland, California, in two years.[4] That year, McNulty enlisted in the United States Marine Corps Reserve, attending boot camp for six months. He also needed to miss one month of each baseball season for the next six years to fulfill his commitment.[4]

McNulty played for the Burlington Bees of the Single-A Midwest League in 1966 before receiving a late season promotion to the Mobile A's of the Double-A Southern League in September.[5] McNulty split the 1967 and 1968 seasons between the Peninsula Grays of the Single-A Carolina League and the Birmingham A's of the Southern League. struggling with Birmingham in both seasons.[4] He began the 1969 season with Birmingham and he hit .292 with 18 home runs and 59 runs batted in (RBIs).[6]

On July 9, 1969, Tommie Reynolds went on the disabled list with a broken finger and the Athletics promoted McNulty to the major leagues.[6] They told him that he would play as a left fielder, though he had no experience playing the position.[7] He batted 0-for-17 with 10 strikeouts in five games.[7][8] The Athletics demoted him to the Iowa Oaks of the Triple-A American Association on July 14.[9]

McNulty batted .295 with 22 home runs for Iowa in 1970.[10] After the season, the Milwaukee Brewers acquired McNulty in a trade for Gary Timberlake.[11] McNulty thought that he had hit well enough to make the Brewers' roster for the 1971 season, but manager Dave Bristol thought he was a poor and lackadaisical fielder. Milwaukee's general manager, Frank Lane, approached McNulty about becoming a pitcher, which he refused. The Athletics purchased McNulty's contract back from Milwaukee before the start of the season and returned him to Iowa.[12] He hit 27 home runs for Iowa in 1971, which led the American Association.[10] After the 1971 season, the Athletics traded McNulty and Frank Fernández to the Chicago Cubs for Adrian Garrett.[13] He played for the Tacoma Rainiers in the PCL playoffs and hit four home runs.[10]

Having too many outfielders and wanting to prioritize the development of Terry Hughes as a third baseman, the Cubs loaned McNulty to the Brewers for the 1972 season.[11] He played for the Evansville Triplets of the American Association, where he batted .258 with 24 home runs and 73 RBIs.[8] In late September, the Athletics reacquired McNulty, intending to promote him to the major leagues. They could not find him as he had gone hunting in the Warner Mountains.[4] McNulty's father drove to Alturas where he found two forest rangers who located Bill at his campsite to tell him that there was a family emergency. At the nearest sheriff's station, he called his father, who told him to report to Oakland.[8][14] McNulty batted 1-for-10 for the Athletics in three games as a third baseman. His only hit came off of Nolan Ryan.[7]

After the 1972 season, the Athletics traded McNulty and a player to be named later to the Texas Rangers for Paul Lindblad.[15] The Athletics sent Brant Alyea to the Rangers to complete the trade.[16] McNulty attended spring training with Texas in 1973.[17] He did not make the team and the Rangers traded him to the New York Mets for Bill Sudakis.[18] He hit 25 home runs for the Tidewater Tides of the Triple-A International League in 1973.[7]

Before the 1974 season, the Brewers purchased McNulty's contract from the Mets and assigned him to the Sacramento Solons of the PCL.[19][20] In 1974, McNulty hit 55 home runs, leading all of professional baseball.[21][22] He also batted .330 and set PCL records with 134 runs scored and 135 RBIs. However, Sacramento's home stadium, Hughes Stadium, was a converted football field that went only 232 feet (71 m) to left field, an unusually short distance.[23] He returned to Sacramento for the 1975 season.[24] However, the Brewers attempted to cut his salary, and he signed with the Lotte Orions of Nippon Professional Baseball for $70,000 ($396,364 in current dollar terms) one month into the 1975 season. He batted .190 for Lotte and was released after spending six weeks with the team.[7]

Personal life

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While he was still playing for Sacramento, McNulty became a partner in a clothing store in Roseville, California.[21]

McNulty met Sue Isekite when he played for Tacoma. They married in 1979 and lived in Eatonville, Washington. They have two daughters.[4]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Bill McNulty Accepts Bonus Pact From KC". The Sacramento Bee. February 9, 1965. p. 32. Retrieved April 30, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  2. ^ "The Union Announces Its All-City Team". The Sacramento Union. May 31, 1964. p. 16. Retrieved April 30, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  3. ^ "This Oak's Strong Limb Saves Lead". Des Moines Tribune. May 26, 1970. p. 20. Retrieved April 30, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  4. ^ a b c d e Greene, Nelson. "Bill McNulty". Society for American Baseball Research. Retrieved May 1, 2024.
  5. ^ "Eastwood, Bohn, Creasey All Fire 2-Under-Par 70s". The Sacramento Bee. September 4, 1966. p. 54. Retrieved April 30, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  6. ^ a b "McNulty Replaces Reynolds On A's". The Baltimore Sun. July 10, 1969. p. 27. Retrieved April 30, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  7. ^ a b c d e "McNulty: He found homer haven". The Sacramento Bee. June 1, 1999. p. 20. Retrieved May 1, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  8. ^ a b c "McNulty Now Hunts For A's Job". Oakland Tribune. September 26, 1972. p. 35. Retrieved April 30, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Bill McNulty Sent to Oaks". The Des Moines Register. July 14, 1969. p. 19. Retrieved May 1, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  10. ^ a b c "McNulty Would Rater Switch Than Pitch ... Back to Minors". The Wichita Beacon. March 27, 1972. p. 9. Retrieved April 30, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  11. ^ a b "McNulty Predicts More HRs in '72". Evansville Courier and Press. April 9, 1972. p. 54. Retrieved April 30, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "McNulty Asked To Go Back to Iowa Oaks". Des Moines Tribune. April 7, 1971. p. 52. Retrieved May 1, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "Oakland Trades For Slugger Garrett: Cubs Get McNulty, Fernandez". The Des Moines Register. September 1, 1971. p. 17. Retrieved April 30, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "A's, Twins Schedule 2 For Tonight After Rainout In Oakland". The Sacramento Bee. September 26, 1972. p. 25. Retrieved April 30, 2024 – via newspapers.com. McNulty phoned his father from the nearest sheriff's office and was told the A's had bought his contract and to report to Oakland as soon as possible. 'My father said he had to tell me it was an emergency because that was the only way to get me off the mountain,' McNulty said last night.
  15. ^ "A's Send Bill McNulty To Texas For Linblad". The Sacramento Bee. November 3, 1972. p. 25. Retrieved May 1, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "'A's Trade Epstein for another pitcher". The Galt Herald. December 7, 1972. p. 4. Retrieved May 1, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  17. ^ "Ex-Oak McNulty May Move Again". Des Moines Tribune. March 30, 1973. p. 30. Retrieved April 30, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  18. ^ "Mets Obtain Bill McNulty". The Des Moines Registger. April 1, 1973. p. 40. Retrieved April 30, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  19. ^ "Possible Trade for McNulty". The Sacramento Bee. March 15, 1974. p. 31. Retrieved May 1, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  20. ^ "Bill McNulty to Sacramento". The Sacramento Bee. March 16, 1974. p. 34. Retrieved May 1, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  21. ^ a b "Relaxed Bill McNulty Eyes Another World Record Year". The Sacramento Bee. March 31, 1975. p. 30. Retrieved April 30, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  22. ^ "'Big Mac' came up huge at Hughes in '74: Homegrown McNulty thrived at makeshift park". The Sacramento Bee. June 1, 1999. p. 15. Retrieved April 30, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  23. ^ "Minor's top slugger gets no call". Star Gazette. September 10, 1974. p. 32. Retrieved May 1, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  24. ^ "Solons Get McNulty Back". The Sacramento Bee. February 12, 1975. p. 21. Retrieved April 30, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
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