Mike Norris
An excellent athlete, Mike Norris won 22 games for the Oakland A's in 1980, finishing second in American League Cy Young Award voting. He followed with 12 victories in the strike-shortened 1981 campaign, before ineffectiveness and arm injuries ended his career. Under Billy Martin in Oakland, Norris anchored a five-man staff that completed 93 of their 159 starts in 1980 (nearly 60%). That workload tired Norris and helped lead to the arm injury that shelved him for good in 1983 at the age of 28. The Bay Area native made a comeback with Oakland in 1990 at the age of 35, pitching out of the bullpen effectively for that one season.
Played For
Oakland Athletics (1975-1990)
Best Season: 1980
Steve Stone was awarded the Cy Young because he won 25 games, but Norris was a more efficient starter that season. Norris completed 24 of his 33 starts, winning 22 games, and was second in ERA with a 2.53 mark, well below Stone.
The 12 Black Aces
Through 2004, twelve African-American pitchers had won 20-games in the major leagues. Of course, black pitchers had won twenty many times in the negro leagues, but these dozen, who, under the direction of Mudcat Grant, called themselves the "12 Black Aces," are an exclusive club:
1. Don Newcombe
2. Sam Jones
3. Bob Gibson.
4. Mudcat Grant
5. Earl Wilson
6. Fergie Jenkins
7. Al Downing
8. Vida Blue
9. J.R. Richard
10. Mike Norris
11. Dwight Gooden
12. Dave Stewart
Where He Played
Starting pitcher
Born
Michael Kelvin Norris was born on March 19, 1955, in San Francisco, CA.
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
Primary Position: P
Primary Team: OAK
College: San Francisco CC
Major League Debut
April 10, 1975
Nine Other Players Who Debuted in 1975
Willie Randolph
Jack Clark
Chet Lemon
Craig Reynolds
Dennis Eckersley
Roy Smalley
Ron Guidry
Donnie Moore
Lyman Bostock
Similar Players
Joe Sparma
Related Players
Norris, Matt Keough, Brian Kingman, Rick Langford, and Steve McCatty were Billy Martin's five-man rotation from 1980-1982. The five starters, all 25-28 years old when Martin took over the A's in 1980, logged an incredible number of innings under their new manager. They made 91% of the starts in those three seasons, and racked up 189 complete games, nearly half of their starts. In 1980, the young rotation completed 93 games, and in 1981, they posted 59 complete games... Norris surrendered a solo-homer to Dave Parker in the 1981 All-Star Game.
Post-Season Appearances
1981 American League Championship Series
1981 American League Division Playoffs
Post-Season Notes
Norris tossed a shutout in Game One of the 1981 AL West Division Series against the Royals. He did not surrended a hit after the fifth inning.
Awards and Honors
1980 AL Gold Glove
1981 AL Gold Glove
Transactions
January 10, 1973: Drafted by the Oakland Athletics in the 1st round (24th pick) of the 1973 amateur draft.
November 12, 1985: Granted Free Agency.
April 6, 1989: Signed as a Free Agent with the Oakland Athletics.
July 15, 1990: Released by the Oakland Athletics.
Matchup Data
It's safe to say that Dan Ford "owned" Mike Norris. Ford batted .423 (11-for-26) against Norris, with three homers... Norris held Carl Yastrzemski to a .118 mark (4-for-34, all singles)... George Brett hit just .143 off Norris (6-for-42)... Detroit's Larry Herndon faced Norris just 17 times, but he slugged four homers off the right-hander.
All-Star Selections
1981 AL
Replaced
Ken Holtzman
Replaced By
Mike Warren
Best Strength as a Player
Norris was a fantastic defensive player, earning two Gold Glove Awards.
Learn More about Mike Norris
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View a map of his hometown at Mapquest ⇒
