Tag / Dave Cochrane

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#84 – Floyd Bannister

Floyd-Bannister-02Name: Floyd Bannister

Rank: 84

Position: P

Years With White Sox: 1983-1987

Floyd Bannister signed with the White Sox as a free agent on December 13, 1982, much to the chagrin of Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, who was not used to losing out on free agents that he was interested in.  The signing quickly paid dividends for the White Sox and Bannister, who won a career high 16 games as the White Sox ran away with the AL West crown, earning their first post-season berth since 1959.  Bannister started and lost game 2 of the ALCS, going 6 innings and giving up all 4 runs in the White Sox 4-0 loss to the Orioles.

Bannister, and the White Sox, faltered somewhat in 1984, with his ERA jumping up to 4.83.  1985 was more of the same, with an ERA at 4.87 and finishing with a losing record of 10-14.  Bannister rebounded in 1986, posting a 3.54 ERA in 28 starts despite finishing the year with the same 10-14 record.  Bannister tied his career high with 16 wins in 1987, finishing the year with a 3.58 ERA.  Following the season, with the White Sox in full rebuilding mode, Bannister and Dave Cochrane were traded to the Royals for Greg Hibbard, Melido Perez, John Davis, and Chuck Mount.

Bannister’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

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#92 – Melido Perez

melidoperezName: Melido Perez

Rank: 92

Position: P

Years With White Sox: 1988-1991

Melido Perez joined the White Sox organization on December 10, 1987 when he was acquired, along with Chuck Mount, John Davis, and Greg Hibbard, from the Royals for Floyd Bannister and Dave Cochrane.  Perez broke camp with the White Sox in 1988, joining the starting rotation and starting 32 games.  He finished the year with a 12-10 record and a 3.79 ERA.  His year was good enough for a 6th place finish in Rookie of the Year voting

Perez struggled in 1989, along with the rest of the White Sox, as his ERA ballooned up to 5.01 and his record fell to 11-14.

Perez was earned the opening day start for the White Sox in 1990, but his struggles continued as a much improved White Sox squad battled for the Western Division title.  The highlight of his year came on July 12, when he threw a rain-shortened no hitter against the Yankees.  He finished the year with a 13-14 record with a 4.61 ERA as the White Sox finished 9 games behind the eventual AL champion Oakland A’s.

With expectations raised after a 94 win season, Perez found himself left out of the starting rotation for the first time.  The change seemed to have agreed with him, as his ERA dropped to 3.12 and he set a career low in WHIP.

The following January, Perez was packaged, along with Domingo Jean and Bob Wickman, in a trade to the Yankees for Steve Sax.

Perez’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

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#93 – Greg Hibbard

hibbard

Name: Greg Hibbard

Rank: 93

Position: P

Years With White Sox: 1989-1992

Greg Hibbard joined the White Sox organization on December 10, 1987 when he was acquired, along with Chuck Mount, John Davis, and Melido Perez, from the Royals for Floyd Bannister and Dave Cochrane.  He made his major league debut on May 31, 1989, going 6 strong innings in the White Sox loss to the Tigers.  He remained in the starting rotation for the remainder of the year, going 6-7 with an impressive 3.21 ERA.

1990 was a special year for the White Sox, as they prepared to close down Comiskey Park and ended up surprising everybody by fielding their first competitive club in 5 years.  Hibbard played a big role in that resurgence, going 14-9 with a 3.16 ERA as the upstart White Sox battled the defending World Series champion Oakland A’s for the Western Division crown.

As the White Sox moved across the street in 1991, Hibbard started to struggle more than he had before in his career.  His record evened out at 11-11 and his ERA jumped up to 4.31, giving up the most runs (both earned and overall) of his career.

1992 was more of the same for Hibbard, as his ERA continued to rise, now to 4.40, despite posting a winning record at 10-7.  Following the season, Hibbard was left unprotected in the expansion draft and he was selected by the newly formed Florida Marlins, ending his White Sox career.

Hibbard’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

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#115 – Tom Paciorek

wimpyName: Tom Paciorek

Rank: 115

Position: 1B/LF

Years With White Sox: 1982-1985

Tom Paciorek was traded to the White Sox from the Mariners in December of 1981, for Rod Allen, Todd Cruz, and Jim Essian.  He became the primary first baseman for the White Sox in 1982 and finished the year second on the team with a .312 average.

In 1983, Paciorek split time between first base and the outfield, due to the emergence of young players like Greg Walker and Ron Kittle.  He finished the year with a team-leading .307 average as the White Sox took home their first division title, by a record 20 games.  Paciorek appeared in all 4 games of the ALCS, picking up 4 hits in 16 at bats as the White Sox fell to the Orioles.

Paciorek saw his playing time diminish further in 1984, as the White Sox struggled to repeat their success of the prior year.  His personal highlight came on May 8th (and 9th), when he set an odd major league record, garnering 5 hits in a game he did not start.  Paciorek replaced Ron Kittle in the 4th inning of what would become the longest game in major league history, with the White Sox eventually defeating the Brewers in 25 innings, with Paciorek going 5-9.

By 1985, Paciorek’s playing time was decreased even further.  He had only 122 at bats when, on July 16, he was traded to the Mets for outfielder Dave Cochrane, drawing his White Sox playing career to an end.

Following his playing career, Paciorek rejoined the White Sox as color commentator on their television broadcasts from 1988 through 1999, and appeared as an occasional fill-in in more recent times.

Paciorek’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

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#219 – Dave Cochrane

dcochrane

Name: Dave Cochrane

Rank: 219

Position: 3B

Year With White Sox: 1986

Dave Cochrane joined the White Sox organization on July 16, 1985, when he was acquired from the Mets in exchange for Tom Paciorek.  The following year, he was a September callup for the White Sox, making his major league debut on September 2, 1986 against the Royals.  Cochrane appeared in 19 games for the White Sox down the stretch in a season that saw the team lose 90 games.

Despite hitting .271 with 15 home runs for Triple A Hawaii in 1987, Cochrane did not get a chance to return to the major leagues.  On February 3, 1988, he was packaged along with Floyd Bannister in a trade with the Royals that brought back John Davis, Greg Hibbard, and Melido Perez.

Cochrane’s numbers in a White Sox uniform were:

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