Jim Poole (pitcher)

James Richard Poole (born April 28, 1966) is a former pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) who was a relief pitcher from 1990 through 2000. He is most notable for having appeared in the 1995 World Series with the Cleveland Indians.

Jim Poole
Pitcher
Born: (1966-04-28) April 28, 1966 Rochester, New York
Batted: Left Threw: Left
MLB debut
June 15, 1990, for the Los Angeles Dodgers
Last MLB appearance
June 1, 2000, for the Montreal Expos
MLB statistics
Win–loss record	22–12
Earned run average	4.31
Strikeouts	256
Teams
Los Angeles Dodgers (1990) Texas Rangers (1991) Baltimore Orioles (1991–1994) Cleveland Indians (1995–1996) San Francisco Giants (1996–1998) Cleveland Indians (1998) Philadelphia Phillies (1999) Cleveland Indians (1999) Detroit Tigers (2000) Montreal Expos (2000)
Medals Baseball Representing  United States Pan American Games 1987 Indianapolis Team

Poole pitched for the Georgia Tech baseball team from 1985–1988, and attended La Salle College High School in Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania.

He was traded from the Los Angeles Dodgers to the Texas Rangers for minor-league pitchers Steve Allen and David Lynch and cash on December 29. 1990.[1] He was designated for assignment by the Rangers on May 26, 1991 and claimed off waivers by the Baltimore Orioles five days later on May 31.[2][3] He was the final Orioles winning pitcher at Memorial Stadium in a 7–3 victory over the Detroit Tigers in the penultimate MLB game ever at that ballpark on October 5, 1991.[4] He became a free agent for the first time when the Orioles declined to offer him a contract on December 23, 1994 amid a players strike.[5] He had been the Orioles' alternate players representative and a member of the Major League Baseball Players Association's pension committee.[6]

He was signed as a free agent by the Cleveland Indians on four occasions: March 18, 1995; July 22, 1998; August 26, 1999; and June 9, 2000. He appeared twice with the Indians in the 1995 World Series, both losses to the Braves at Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium. He retired all three batters faced in the seventh inning of Game 2. He was the losing pitcher in the decisive Game 6, giving up the only run of the contest. He relieved starting pitcher Dennis Martínez with Mark Lemke at second, Chipper Jones at first and two outs in the fifth and struck out Fred McGriff on three pitches. The next batter Poole faced to start the bottom of the sixth was David Justice who, with a 1–1 count,[7] hit a high-and inside fastball for a home run over the right-field fence. Poole said after the Series-ending loss, "It was a pitch that was supposed to be down and away, and it was up and in. If I don't throw that pitch, we're still playing." Prior to the homer in the top of the sixth, he had his first MLB at bat in which he fouled out to McGriff in an unsuccessful attempt to bunt over to second Tony Peña who had led off the inning with the Indians' only hit of the match.[8]

He was acquired along with cash by the San Francisco Giants from the Indians for Mark Carreon on July 9, 1996. He had pitched 26+2⁄3 innings in 32 games with a 4–0 record and a 3.04 earned run average (ERA) prior to the trade. The Giants addressed a need for left-handed pitchers at the time of the transaction.[9]

In 2021, Poole was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.[10]