Tom Glavine Retires

Illinois Times –

Tom Glavine announced the end of his storied 11 year career in the NASBL today.

At a press conference in the basement of Seventies Stadium, Glavine waxed nostalgic about his career. “When I broke in with Georgia in 1998, I never would have dreamed I would have 11 strong years in the NASBL. This is a tough league, especially so when you are a Southpaw. Very few pitchers can sustain success here for very long. I would have liked to have gotten to 150 wins, but at what price? Last year Illinois finally put up some runs for me, but I still could not manage a winning record. My ERA last season really tells me it is time to go.”

His best seasons were with Georgia where he amassed an 82-77 record. While Glavine never won the Cy Young, his best stretch came with Georgia where from 2001-2003 he was 45-29 with a 4.54 ERA. During this span he was one of the game’s elite.

When introducing Glavine, Chows GM/Owner gave context to his Illinois career. “Drafting Tommy was the very first move I made with the Chows. He was my first pick in the supplemental draft and will always have a warm place in my heart. He really deserved better with us but we didn’t really score many runs for him his first two years here. I could count on Tommy to take the ball every 5th day – his durability was a real asset to us in years where other guys went down. When I think of Glavine I think of a competitor.”

Tom Glavine has distinguished himself in the NASBL and appears all over the leader board. He has won double digit victories in each of the last 11 seasons – the only player in the NASBL to do so 11 straight years. He retires 4th on the career wins leader board with 139 victories. He is first all-time in the NASBL with 371 starts.

He is in the top 10 All-Time in the following categories:

Wins – 4th – 139
Losses – 1st – 149
Innings Pitched – 2nd – 2436.7
Games Started – 1st – 371
Complete Games – 8th – 67
Home Runs Allowed – 5th – 350

“Most of all I will miss my teammates. I played with some wonderful people over the years and have many friends from baseball. I will also miss the fans in Georgia, New Jersey and Illinois. All three cities made me feel at home.”