1962
Born October 30, 1962
Los Angeles, CA, USA
Mark Portugal Marquee
b. October 30, 1962 · Minnesota Twins 1985–1988, Houston Astros 1989–1993, San Francisco Giants 1994–1995, Cincinnati Reds 1995–1996, Philadelphia Phillies 1997–1998, Boston Red Sox 1999
He went 18-4 with a 2.77 earned run average for the 1993 Astros, the best winning percentage in the National League at .818, and finished sixth in the Cy Young voting. Minnesota had given up on him five years earlier after he went 1-3 with a 7.77 earned run average in 1987.
Fifteen seasons gave him 109 wins against 95, a 4.03 earned run average and 1,826 innings for six clubs. He could hit: 17 hits in 48 at bats for San Francisco in 1994 took the Silver Slugger given to the best-hitting pitcher in the league.
He was signed and traded through the second half of his career — the Giants, the Reds, the Phillies, the Red Sox in four years — and finished at thirty-six with a 5.51 earned run average in Boston. No Hall of Fame ballot ever listed him.
Honors
| Award | Times | Years |
|---|---|---|
| Silver Slugger | 1 | 1994 |
Batting, season by season
| Year | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | MIN | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1986 | MIN | 27 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1987 | MIN | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1988 | MIN | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1989 | HOU | 20 | 34 | 3 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 0 | .206 |
| 1990 | HOU | 32 | 66 | 2 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 8 | 0 | .136 |
| 1991 | HOU | 33 | 46 | 4 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 0 | .196 |
| 1992 | HOU | 18 | 28 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 0 | .107 |
| 1993 | HOU | 33 | 65 | 4 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 3 | 13 | 0 | .231 |
| 1994 | SFG | 21 | 48 | 4 | 17 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 8 | 0 | .354 |
| 1995 | CIN/SFG | 31 | 58 | 5 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 13 | 0 | .138 |
| 1996 | CIN | 28 | 48 | 4 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 0 | .167 |
| 1997 | PHI | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | .000 |
| 1998 | PHI | 26 | 50 | 6 | 13 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 10 | 0 | .260 |
| 1999 | BOS | 31 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
| Career | — | 348 | 450 | 33 | 89 | 20 | 1 | 2 | 36 | 20 | 87 | 0 | .198 |
Pitching, season by season
| Year | Team | W | L | G | GS | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | MIN | 1 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 24.1 | 24 | 15 | 14 | 12 | 5.55 |
| 1986 | MIN | 6 | 10 | 27 | 15 | 1 | 112.2 | 112 | 54 | 50 | 67 | 4.31 |
| 1987 | MIN | 1 | 3 | 13 | 7 | 0 | 44.0 | 58 | 38 | 24 | 28 | 7.77 |
| 1988 | MIN | 3 | 3 | 26 | 0 | 3 | 57.2 | 60 | 29 | 17 | 31 | 4.53 |
| 1989 | HOU | 7 | 1 | 20 | 15 | 0 | 108.0 | 91 | 33 | 37 | 86 | 2.75 |
| 1990 | HOU | 11 | 10 | 32 | 32 | 0 | 196.2 | 187 | 79 | 67 | 136 | 3.62 |
| 1991 | HOU | 10 | 12 | 32 | 27 | 1 | 168.1 | 163 | 84 | 59 | 120 | 4.49 |
| 1992 | HOU | 6 | 3 | 18 | 16 | 0 | 101.1 | 76 | 30 | 41 | 62 | 2.66 |
| 1993 | HOU | 18 | 4 | 33 | 33 | 0 | 208.0 | 194 | 64 | 77 | 131 | 2.77 |
| 1994 | SFG | 10 | 8 | 21 | 21 | 0 | 137.1 | 135 | 60 | 45 | 87 | 3.93 |
| 1995 | CIN/SFG | 11 | 10 | 31 | 31 | 0 | 181.2 | 185 | 81 | 56 | 96 | 4.01 |
| 1996 | CIN | 8 | 9 | 27 | 26 | 0 | 156.0 | 146 | 69 | 42 | 93 | 3.98 |
| 1997 | PHI | 0 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 13.2 | 17 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 4.61 |
| 1998 | PHI | 10 | 5 | 26 | 26 | 0 | 166.1 | 186 | 82 | 32 | 104 | 4.44 |
| 1999 | BOS | 7 | 12 | 31 | 27 | 0 | 150.1 | 179 | 92 | 41 | 79 | 5.51 |
| Career | — | 109 | 95 | 346 | 283 | 5 | 1826.1 | 1813 | 817 | 607 | 1134 | 4.03 |
On this day & linked events
1985
Major-league debut: Mark Portugal
Mark Portugal made a major-league debut on August 14, 1985.
1999
Final major-league game: Mark Portugal
Mark Portugal played a final major-league game on September 22, 1999.
Image: Park Press Inc, public domain