1935
Born June 8, 1935
Houghton, MI, USA
George Brunet Marquee
b. June 8, 1935 · Kansas City Athletics 1956–1957, 1959–1960, Milwaukee Braves 1960–1961, Houston Colt .45's 1962–1963, Baltimore Orioles 1963, Los Angeles Angels 1964, California Angels 1965–1969, Seattle Pilots 1969, Washington Senators 1970, Pittsburgh Pirates 1970, St. Louis Cardinals 1971
George Brunet pitched in the major leagues for eleven clubs across fifteen seasons and lost more than he won, largely because the teams that wanted him were the ones that needed innings. He led the American League in losses twice for California in the late 1960s.
The major league part was the short half. He pitched professionally for thirty-three years, most of the last two decades in the Mexican League, and was still starting games at fifty-four. His professional strikeout total across all leagues is among the highest anyone has recorded.
Born in Houghton, Michigan in 1935, Brunet finished 69-93 in the majors with 921 strikeouts and 15 shutouts. He died in Mexico on October 25, 1991, at fifty-six.
Batting, season by season
| Year | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1956 | KCA | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | .000 |
| 1957 | KCA | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .000 |
| 1959 | KCA | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1960 | KCA/MLN | 20 | 14 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | .071 |
| 1961 | MLN | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1962 | HOU | 17 | 17 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 0 | .059 |
| 1963 | BAL/HOU | 21 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | .000 |
| 1964 | LAA | 10 | 11 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | .182 |
| 1965 | CAL | 41 | 56 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 34 | 0 | .054 |
| 1966 | CAL | 41 | 68 | 5 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 34 | 0 | .103 |
| 1967 | CAL | 40 | 78 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 40 | 0 | .077 |
| 1968 | CAL | 39 | 74 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 38 | 0 | .081 |
| 1969 | CAL/SEP | 35 | 47 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 24 | 0 | .085 |
| 1970 | PIT/WSA | 36 | 42 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 23 | 0 | .143 |
| 1971 | STL | 7 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .333 |
| Career | — | 324 | 418 | 23 | 37 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 12 | 15 | 220 | 0 | .089 |
Pitching, season by season
| Year | Team | W | L | G | GS | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1956 | KCA | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 9.0 | 10 | 7 | 11 | 5 | 7.00 |
| 1957 | KCA | 0 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 11.1 | 13 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 5.56 |
| 1959 | KCA | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4.2 | 10 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 11.57 |
| 1960 | KCA/MLN | 2 | 2 | 20 | 8 | 0 | 60.0 | 65 | 33 | 32 | 43 | 4.95 |
| 1961 | MLN | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5.0 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 5.40 |
| 1962 | HOU | 2 | 4 | 17 | 11 | 0 | 54.0 | 62 | 27 | 21 | 36 | 4.50 |
| 1963 | BAL/HOU | 0 | 4 | 21 | 2 | 1 | 32.2 | 49 | 22 | 15 | 24 | 6.06 |
| 1964 | LAA | 2 | 2 | 10 | 7 | 0 | 42.1 | 38 | 17 | 25 | 36 | 3.61 |
| 1965 | CAL | 9 | 11 | 41 | 26 | 2 | 197.0 | 149 | 56 | 69 | 141 | 2.56 |
| 1966 | CAL | 13 | 13 | 41 | 32 | 0 | 212.0 | 183 | 78 | 106 | 148 | 3.31 |
| 1967 | CAL | 11 | 19 | 40 | 37 | 1 | 250.0 | 203 | 92 | 90 | 165 | 3.31 |
| 1968 | CAL | 13 | 17 | 39 | 36 | 0 | 245.1 | 191 | 78 | 68 | 132 | 2.86 |
| 1969 | CAL/SEP | 8 | 12 | 35 | 30 | 0 | 164.1 | 168 | 81 | 67 | 93 | 4.44 |
| 1970 | PIT/WSA | 9 | 7 | 36 | 21 | 0 | 134.2 | 143 | 63 | 57 | 84 | 4.21 |
| 1971 | STL | 0 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 9.1 | 12 | 6 | 7 | 4 | 5.79 |
| Career | — | 69 | 93 | 324 | 213 | 4 | 1431.2 | 1303 | 576 | 581 | 921 | 3.62 |
On this day & linked events
1991
Died October 25, 1991
1956
Major-league debut: George Brunet
George Brunet made a major-league debut on September 14, 1956.
1971
Final major-league game: George Brunet
George Brunet played a final major-league game on April 28, 1971.
Image: Unknown author Unknown, public domain