Tuesday, February 12, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #457 - Steve Luebber

  • Steve Luebber was drafted by the Minnesota Twins at the age of 17 in 1967. Steve slowly climbed up the Twins organization and made it to the majors in June 1971. Luebber was 2-5 with a 5.03 ERA in 18 games (12 starts) for the Twins in 1971.
  • Luebber got a high number card in the 1972 Topps set. That was his only other card appearance.
  • In 1972 Steve was back in the minors. He pitched in two games for the Twins late in September (0-0, 0.00 ERA in 2.1 innings).
  • From 1973-1975 Luebber pitched in AA and AAA. He put up some good numbers in AAA in 1975 (14-7, 2.39 ERA).
  • Steve made the Minnesota staff in 1976 and stayed in the majors for the entire season. Luebber was 4-5 with 2 saves and had a 4.01 ERA in 38 games (12 starts).
  • Luebber didn't make the Twins ballclub in 1977 and spent the entire season in AAA. He was 10-10 with a 4.63 ERA for the Tacoma Twins. Steve was released by the Twins after the 1977 season.
  • Steve pitched in several other organizations from 1978-1983. Luebber pitched in one game for the Toronto Blue Jays in 1979. He had an ERA of infinity due to allowing one run and not retiring any of the three batters he faced. In 1981 Luebber pitched in seven games for the Baltimore Orioles (0-0, 7.56 ERA in 16.2 innings).
  • Steve was part of the longest game in baseball history (Rochester Red Wings vs. Pawtucket Red Sox) in 1981. Luebber entered the game in the 15th inning and allowed one run in eight innings before giving way to Jim Umbarger in the 23rd inning.
  • After his playing career Steve became a minor league pitching coach. He is now the pitching coach for the class A Wilmington Blue Rocks, a position he has held for seven years.
  • Luebber did some pitching in the minors in the late 1980s. He pitched in the minors for three seasons (1986-1988) but never made it back to the majors. Steve also pitched in the Senior Professional Baseball Association in 1989 and in 1990.
  • 1977 Stats:
    • Tacoma Twins (AAA): 10-10, 4.63 ERA in 27 games (25 starts)
  • Other card blogs: 1972



1 comment:

  1. I remember seeing Luebber pitch during the 1983 and 1984 seasons for Detroit AAA team in Evanville In. The picture on my profie was taken at this time.

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