#160 Andy Messersmith

At his prime, a very formidable pitcher....most known for being one of the first free agents but it was more of a detriment to his long term hopes....it was not the big pay day other would reap a year later...although born a product of Orange County California the eventual local of his glory days of his MLB employment....After high school took his glowing reviews up the Pacific Coast Highway to U of Cal Berkley....From there made a return ride to So Cal being the 1966 1^st round draftee by the California Angels....a short time in the minors MLB debuted 1968....from the git go in mid season;  effective...2.21 ERA and 4 win in a varied role....1969 quadruped win total establishing himself as ace starter....faltered with 11 wins 1970 but ERA was only up by half run a game....strong comeback with a 20 win season 1971, seemingly undistracted by a toxic Angel's clubhouse environment that year....1972 follow up was derailed by injuries 8-11 record although once again ERA a positive 2.81....never the less traded cross town to Dodgers....swap earns dividends with 14 win 1973....reprises 20 game winner status in 1974...voted #2 in NL Cy Young second only to teammate Mike Marshall bullpen dominance...wins 19 in 1975 in more dominant performance when compared to the year prior....ranked 5^th in Cy Young voting....then the free agent that left Andy more legal cannon fodder than anything else....While fighting the reserve clause, did not get the money intended....only a few teams made offers that fell short of expectation (sounds suspiciously like the first case owner collusion)....the Braves contract: 1 million over 3 years was about twice the Dodgers long standing offer...missing out on spring training, Messersmith toiled to a 11-11 record ….wore the word Channel 17 on jersey in reference to Braves owner Ted Turner TBS cable TV station...things headed downhill quickly...over next three years played for Braves, Yankees and a return trip to Dodgers (who apparently held no hard feelings about Andy’s previous exit).... only won 7 games over in that time due to injuries....out of baseball by 1978 for the free agent pioneer.