52 Facts About Frank Tanana

Frank Daryl Tanana was born on July 3,1953 and is an American former professional baseball left-handed pitcher.

Frank Tanana struck out 2,773 batters in his career and twice won playoff-clinching games for the teams he was on, the 1979 Angels and the 1987 Tigers.

Frank Tanana made his debut with the team in 1973 and won 14 games his rookie year.

Frank Tanana led the American League in strikeouts in 1975, then made the AL All-Star team three years in a row.

Frank Tanana tied for the AL lead in losses his first year with Texas, then failed to make their starting rotation at the beginning of the 1983 season, though he returned to it in June.

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Frank Tanana would stay with the Tigers through 1992, pitching eight seasons with the club.

Frank Tanana threw a shutout in the final game of the 1987 season to clinch a playoff spot for the team, winning 15 games that year.

Frank Tanana was removed from the rotation for a time in 1990, only winning nine games that year, but the next season, he became the Tigers' first pitcher besides Jack Morris to start on Opening Day since 1979.

Frank Tanana won 13 games apiece in 1991 and 1992 before pitching one more season with the Mets and the Yankees in 1993.

Frank Tanana has continued to serve in the ministry following his retirement, serving as an elder in his church, assisting the Tigers' chaplain, and performing Bible studies and marriage counselling.

Frank Tanana's father, named Frank, had played professional baseball in the 1950s and was on the 1955 Eastern League championship team, the Reading Indians, before he left baseball and joined the Detroit Police Department to support his family.

Frank Tanana rooted for the hometown Detroit Tigers growing up, listing Al Kaline, Mickey Lolich, Willie Horton, and Mickey Stanley among his favorite players.

Frank Tanana attended Detroit Catholic Central High School, an all-boys school; though it was seven miles from his home, he was attracted to it after seeing their basketball team featured on the front page of a newspaper sports section.

Frank Tanana pitched through the injury for the rest of the year until leaving the mound after the fourth inning of the championship game, when the pain got to be too much for him.

Frank Tanana was assigned to the Idaho Falls Angels of the rookie-level Pioneer League in 1971, but tendinitis in his shoulder prevented him from pitching.

Frank Tanana made four starts with the Angels in September 1973.

Frank Tanana only lasted four innings, giving up four runs and taking the loss.

The 180 strikeouts were seventh in the American League, the four shutouts were tied for sixth, and Frank Tanana did not lead the league in losses, as four other pitchers tied him for third behind Lolich and Clyde Wright.

Frank Tanana came in third in Cy Young voting behind Palmer and Fidrych and got votes for the AL Most Valuable Player award.

Frank Tanana finished ninth in Cy Young voting after the season.

Frank Tanana was named to the All-Star Game for the third year in a row.

Frank Tanana threw ten complete games and tied with four others for fifth in the league in shutouts, with four.

Frank Tanana started Game 3 of the AL Championship Series against the Baltimore Orioles, limiting them to one run through five innings.

Frank Tanana was taken out in the sixth, though, after giving up two straight singles and a walk to open the frame.

Frank Tanana slipped to fifth in the Angels' starting rotation in 1980.

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Frank Tanana pitched for the Red Sox for a single season, earning only 4 victories against 10 losses.

Frank Tanana signed as a free agent with Texas Rangers on January 6,1982.

Frank Tanana's contract was for $375,000 a year for two years, plus a $75,000 signing bonus.

However, the Rangers lost 98 games, and Frank Tanana was responsible for 18 of those, tying with Matt Keough for the AL lead in losses while only earning seven wins.

Back in the rotation for good in 1984, Frank Tanana had his best season since 1978 for a Rangers team that finished in last place in its division.

Frank Tanana's ERA went down with Detroit, and he won each of his last five starts.

On May 29,1986, Frank Tanana allowed one run against the Twins, coming within one out of a complete game before getting pulled in favor of Willie Hernandez after allowing a double and a walk with two outs in the ninth.

However, Frank Tanana only missed one start before rejoining the rotation with the Tigers in the middle of a pennant race.

Frank Tanana won eight of his first ten decisions in 1988, matching the best start of his career.

On June 9,1989, Frank Tanana struck out 10 in his first complete game of the year, but the two runs he allowed were the only runs of the game in a loss to Toronto.

Frank Tanana is pitching the best for me this year since he came over here.

Frank Tanana became a free agent after the season but re-signed with the club a week later.

Frank Tanana signed as a free agent with the New York Mets for the 1993 season.

Frank Tanana lost two of his three starts for the Yankees, and they did not reach the post-season.

On February 15,1994, Frank Tanana signed a minor league contract with the Angels, hoping to pitch another year.

Frank Tanana is one of only 23 major league pitchers to have struck out at least 2,700 batters in his career.

In 1999, Frank Tanana appeared on the Hall of Fame ballot for the first time but received no votes and thus, he was removed from future Baseball Writers' Association of America consideration for election.

Frank Tanana is one of five Hall of Fame-eligible pitchers who rank in the top 25 all-time in career strikeouts and who have not been elected to the Hall.

Frank Tanana is in the top 10 among Angels in several categories.

Frank Tanana is one of only two pitchers in MLB history to give up a home run to both Hank Aaron and Barry Bonds, the top two players on MLB's all-time home run leaderboard.

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When Frank Tanana first reached the major leagues, he quickly earned a reputation as a partier and drinker.

Frank Tanana found himself struggling for answers following the 1978 murder of his Angel teammate Lyman Bostock.

On November 6,1983, while at an Arizona hotel room, Frank Tanana became a born again Christian.

Since then, Frank Tanana has been a leader in the Christian community within professional baseball.

Frank Tanana has participated in Bible studies and performed marriage counselling since retiring.

Frank Tanana met his wife, Cathy Mull, at a Newport disco in 1977, while she was a dance major at Long Beach State University.

In 1996, Frank Tanana was inducted into the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame, and in 2006, Frank Tanana was inducted into the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame.