- Glavine, Tom
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▪ American baseball playerbyname Tommy Glavine , in full Thomas Michael Glavineborn March 25, 1966, Concord, Mass., U.S.American professional baseball player. A dominant pitcher in the 1990s and 2000s, he won two Cy Young awards and was repeatedly named to the Major League Baseball (MLB) National League All-Star team.Glavine grew up in Massachusetts and had a strong interest in hockey as well as in baseball. While a senior in high school, he was named the outstanding Boston-area high school hockey player. He was drafted by the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League (NHL) and was also offered a hockey scholarship by the University of Lowell, in Massachusetts. In 1994 he was drafted by the Atlanta Braves, and, believing that a career in baseball would be longer than one in hockey, he chose baseball.Glavine moved quickly through the minor leagues into the majors and won his first game for the Braves on Aug. 22, 1987. Glavine perfected his trademark circle changeup pitch during spring training in 1989, and by the end of that season he had achieved his first winning record (14 victories and 8 losses). In 1991 Glavine was named starting pitcher for the National League All-Star team, finishing the season with 20 wins and 11 losses and a 2.55 earned run average (ERA). He won both the Cy Young Award (for best pitcher) and the Silver Slugger Award (for best offensive player at a position). The following year saw an equally impressive record (20 wins and 8 losses and a 2.76 ERA), and Glavine became the first National League pitcher since 1955 to start in two consecutive All-Star games.In 1994 Glavine helped lead a players' strike when negotiations between owners and players broke down. Fans were angry at his role in the strike, which had ended the season abruptly. They were appeased the following season, however, when Glavine led his team to a World Series victory over the Cleveland Indians and was named the Most Valuable Player. Glavine continued to pitch, and by 2007 he had become the fifth left-hander and 23rd pitcher in MLB history to win 300 games.
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Universalium. 2010.
