Al Ferrara
Encyclopedia
Alfred John "The Bull" Ferrara Jr. (born December 22, 1939 in Brooklyn, New York was a Major League Baseball
player from to .
in the days of Sandy Koufax
, Don Drysdale
, and Tommy Davis
. He appeared in a number of television shows and movies, sometimes along with teammate Jim Lefebvre
.
A Brooklyn boy, he was a high school classmate of Bob Aspromonte
and played sandlot baseball with Joe Torre
and Joe Pepitone
. He was signed by the Dodgers in 1959 when they were in Los Angeles. He came up for the first time in 1963 at age 21, and was the roommate of veteran Johnny Podres
. He did not play in the 1963 World Series
. He came up again in 1965 for 41 games. He did not play in the 1965 World Series
.
In 1966, he had one of his best two years. He played in over 100 games, hitting .270, and appeared as a pinch-hitter in the fourth game of the 1966 World Series
, hitting a single. His last year with the Dodgers was in 1968, when he played in two games with them.
He was picked by the San Diego Padres
in the 1969 expansion draft, and became one of the original Padres in 1969. He hit .260 with 14 home runs in 1969, and followed that up with his other best year: a .277 average and 13 home runs in 1970.
Ferrara had an interesting game with the Padres on April 22, 1970. Batting clean-up and facing Tom Seaver
and the New York Mets
, he hit a home run to lead off the second inning, to tie the game at one. Behind 2-1, Ferrara struck out to end the sixth inning, which was Seaver's tenth strike-out. Seaver proceeded to strike out the side in the seventh, eighth, and ninth innings (with Ferrara also being his last victim), to set a record ten consecutive strike-outs (and tie a record at the time, with 19 K's for the game).http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NYN/NYN197004220.shtml
The following year, in 1971, he closed out his career with San Diego and Cincinnati playing just 49 games, almost exclusively as a pinch hitter.
In 1974 Ferrara appeared as a contestant on Match Game '74
, listing his profession as a "freelance piano dealer." Ferrara played to a zero-zero tie against defending champion Marlena Cruz; Cruz won the game 1-0 in a tiebreaker match.
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
player from to .
Biographical information
Al Ferrara was an outfielder who once played piano at Carnegie Hall. He was a Los Angeles DodgerLos Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are a professional baseball team based in Los Angeles, California. The Dodgers are members of Major League Baseball's National League West Division. Established in 1883, the team originated in Brooklyn, New York, where it was known by a number of nicknames before becoming...
in the days of Sandy Koufax
Sandy Koufax
Sanford "Sandy" Koufax is a former left-handed baseball pitcher who played his entire 12-year Major League Baseball career for the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers...
, Don Drysdale
Don Drysdale
Donald Scott "Don" Drysdale was a Major League Baseball player and Hall of Fame right-handed pitcher with the Los Angeles Dodgers. He was one of the dominant starting pitchers of the 1960s, and became a radio and television broadcaster following his playing career...
, and Tommy Davis
Tommy Davis
Herman Thomas Davis, Jr. is an American former Major League Baseball left fielder and third baseman. He played from 1959-1976 for ten different teams, but he is best known for his years with the Los Angeles Dodgers. During an 18-year baseball career, Davis batted .294 with 153 home runs, 2,121...
. He appeared in a number of television shows and movies, sometimes along with teammate Jim Lefebvre
Jim Lefebvre
James Kenneth Lefebvre is a former second baseman, third baseman and manager in Major League Baseball. Lefebvre, the 1965 National League Rookie of the Year, was signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers as an amateur free agent in 1962. In 1965, his rookie year, he hit .250 with 12 home runs and 69 RBI...
.
A Brooklyn boy, he was a high school classmate of Bob Aspromonte
Bob Aspromonte
Robert Thomas Aspromonte is a former utility player who had a 13 year career in 1956 and from 1960 to 1971. He played for the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers, Houston Colt 45's/Astros, Atlanta Braves and New York Mets all of the National League.During his career, Aspromonte played first base, second...
and played sandlot baseball with Joe Torre
Joe Torre
Joseph Paul Torre is a former American professional baseball player and manager who currently serves as Major League Baseball’s Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations. A nine-time All-Star, he played in Major League Baseball as a catcher, first baseman and a third baseman for the...
and Joe Pepitone
Joe Pepitone
Joseph "Joe" Anthony Pepitone is a former Major League Baseball first baseman and outfielder who played the bulk of his career for the New York Yankees. He also played several seasons with the Chicago Cubs and had short stints with the Houston Astros and Atlanta Braves...
. He was signed by the Dodgers in 1959 when they were in Los Angeles. He came up for the first time in 1963 at age 21, and was the roommate of veteran Johnny Podres
Johnny Podres
John Joseph Podres was an American left-handed starting pitcher in Major League Baseball who spent most of his career with the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers...
. He did not play in the 1963 World Series
1963 World Series
The 1963 World Series matched the two-time defending champion New York Yankees against the Los Angeles Dodgers, with the Dodgers sweeping the Series in four games to capture their second title in five years, and their third in franchise history....
. He came up again in 1965 for 41 games. He did not play in the 1965 World Series
1965 World Series
The 1965 World Series featured the National League champion Los Angeles Dodgers against the American League champion Minnesota Twins, who had won their first pennant since 1933 when the team was known as the Washington Senators...
.
In 1966, he had one of his best two years. He played in over 100 games, hitting .270, and appeared as a pinch-hitter in the fourth game of the 1966 World Series
1966 World Series
The 1966 World Series matched the Baltimore Orioles against the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers, with the Orioles sweeping the Series in four games to capture their first championship in franchise history...
, hitting a single. His last year with the Dodgers was in 1968, when he played in two games with them.
He was picked by the San Diego Padres
San Diego Padres
The San Diego Padres are a Major League Baseball team based in San Diego, California. They play in the National League Western Division. Founded in 1969, the Padres have won the National League Pennant twice, in 1984 and 1998, losing in the World Series both times...
in the 1969 expansion draft, and became one of the original Padres in 1969. He hit .260 with 14 home runs in 1969, and followed that up with his other best year: a .277 average and 13 home runs in 1970.
Ferrara had an interesting game with the Padres on April 22, 1970. Batting clean-up and facing Tom Seaver
Tom Seaver
George Thomas "Tom" Seaver , nicknamed "Tom Terrific" and "The Franchise", is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He pitched from 1967-1986 for four different teams in his career, but is noted primarily for his time with the New York Mets...
and the New York Mets
METS
The Metadata Encoding and Transmission Standard is a metadata standard for encoding descriptive, administrative, and structural metadata regarding objects within a digital library, expressed using the XML schema language of the World Wide Web Consortium...
, he hit a home run to lead off the second inning, to tie the game at one. Behind 2-1, Ferrara struck out to end the sixth inning, which was Seaver's tenth strike-out. Seaver proceeded to strike out the side in the seventh, eighth, and ninth innings (with Ferrara also being his last victim), to set a record ten consecutive strike-outs (and tie a record at the time, with 19 K's for the game).http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NYN/NYN197004220.shtml
The following year, in 1971, he closed out his career with San Diego and Cincinnati playing just 49 games, almost exclusively as a pinch hitter.
In 1974 Ferrara appeared as a contestant on Match Game '74
Match Game
Match Game is an American television game show in which contestants attempted to match celebrities' answers to fill-in-the-blank questions...
, listing his profession as a "freelance piano dealer." Ferrara played to a zero-zero tie against defending champion Marlena Cruz; Cruz won the game 1-0 in a tiebreaker match.