Mike Flanagan

Michael Kendall Flanagan (December 16, 1951 – August 24, 2011) was an American professional baseball left-handed pitcher, front office executive, and color commentator.

Flanagan graduated from Manchester (NH) Memorial High School, where he was on the baseball and basketball teams that each won consecutive New Hampshire Interscholastic Athletic Association (NHIAA) Class L titles in 1970 and 1971.

His pitching was limited in 1971 because of a left elbow injury he had sustained while playing American Legion Baseball for the local Henry J. Sweeney Post the previous summer.

This factored into him not signing a contract after he was picked by the Houston Astros in the 15th round (346th overall) of the 1971 Major League Baseball (MLB) draft.

Flanagan attended the University of Massachusetts (UMass), where he played baseball for the Minutemen in 1972 and 1973.

He was a pitcher and outfielder for the Falmouth Commodores in the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) during the summer of 1972.

On the mound, he had a 7–1 record and a 2.18 ERA, while at the plate he batted .286 with 7 home runs.

He was a first-team All-Yankee Conference and first team All-New England selection in 1973, when he posted a 9–1 record with a 1.72 earned run average and 89 strikeouts, leading the Yankee Conference in all three categories.

Flanagan was selected again in the 1973 MLB draft, this time by the Baltimore Orioles in the 7th round (159th overall).

When he signed with the Orioles, the ball club agreed to finance the remainder of his college education.

He progressed through the organization, with stops at Class A Miami (1973–1974), Class AA Asheville (1974), and Class AAA Rochester, where he went 13–4 with a 2.50 earned run average in 1975.

He spent 18 years as a player in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the Baltimore Orioles (1975–1987, 1991–1992) and the Toronto Blue Jays (1987–1990).

Flanagan was a starting pitcher for the Orioles from 1975 through 1987.

He received his degree from the UMass College of Education in 1975, and he was inducted into the UMass Athletic Hall of Fame in 2000.

His MLB career began with two appearances against the New York Yankees in the last month of the 1975 campaign.

He made his debut pitching 1 2⁄3 innings in relief of starter Wayne Garland in a 5–4 victory in the opener of a twi-night doubleheader at Memorial Stadium on September 5.

His first start and decision was a 3–2 loss at Shea Stadium in the nightcap of another twin bill 23 days later on September 28 which was the final game of the regular season.

He was named to the American League (AL) All-Star Team once in 1978.

In 1979, the first of two years he would play on an AL pennant winner, his 23 victories led the circuit and earned him the AL's Cy Young Award.

He was a member of the Orioles' World Series Championship team in 1983.

During the 1987 season, he was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays, with whom he pitched through 1990.

His .900 winning percentage was the best school single-season mark until Scott Meaney had a 6–0 record in 1990.

Flanagan had a career earned run average of 1.19 and a career winning percentage of .923 (12–1), which are both still the best marks in school history.

In addition to pitching for UMass, Flanagan played in the outfield.

Offensively, he batted .320 in 128 at bats with six home runs and 29 runs batted in.

As a freshman, Flanagan played basketball at UMass on the same Freshmen team as Rick Pitino.

Flanagan and Pitino crossed paths with Julius Erving, who was a junior on the Varsity at the time.

Flanagan said, "I really didn't know much about Dr. J until I came down on a Fast Break and pulled up to take a jump shot. Dr. J was nowhere in the area but, out of nowhere, he blocked the shot and nine players were running the other way. First thing I thought? Better work on my slider, because this is a whole different level of play."

He returned to Baltimore to close out his playing career as a relief pitcher in 1991 and 1992.

During this second tour, he combined with three other pitchers to throw a no-hitter against the Oakland Athletics on July 13, 1991.

He was also the last Orioles pitcher to appear in a major-league contest at Memorial Stadium.

In an 18-season career, Flanagan posted a 167–143 record with 1,491 strikeouts and a 3.90 earned run average in 2,770 innings pitched.

He served in three different positions with the Orioles after his retirement as an active player.

At the time of his death, he was one of the team's broadcasters, a role he had previously held three times (1994, 1996–1997, and 1999–2002).

Born and raised in Manchester, New Hampshire, Mike was one of four children born to Ed and Lorraine Flanagan, the younger of their two sons.

His grandfather, Ed Sr., had been a pitcher in the Boston Braves organization who could throw with both hands, and his father Ed had played minor league ball in the Boston Red Sox and Detroit Tigers systems.

He was the pitching coach in 1995 and 1998 and the executive vice president of baseball operations from 2006 through 2008.

He was a member of the CCBL's inaugural Hall of Fame class in 2000.

Ed died on December 13, 2020.

Under their tutelage, Flanagan once struck out 18 batters in a six inning Little League game.