1976 Topps #136 - Dave Goltz

• Dave Goltz pitched for the Minnesota Twins, the Los Angeles Dodgers, and the California Angels from 1972-1983. The thing I remember the most about him was him signing with the Dodgers as a big money free agent and not panning out.

• Goltz pitched for various A league teams in the Twins organization from 1967-1971. He didn't pitch at all in the 1969 season (perhaps he was in the military). Dave pitched for AAA Tacoma in 1972 and was 8-8 with a 3.89 ERA.

• Dave was promoted to the Twins on July 18, 1972 and pitched well for them. He was 3-3 with a 2.67 ERA in 15 games (11 starts) and got one of those "3-inning saves" in the last game of the season in a 14-2 laugher against the Chicago White Sox.

• Goltz didn't do as well in 1973. He was 6-4 with a 5.25 ERA in 32 games (10 starts). Dave started the 1974 season in the minors but came back in mid-May and had a 10-10 record with a 3.25 ERA. He was now used almost exclusively as a starter and it would continue to be that way until Dave went to Los Angeles.

• Dave went 14-14 with a 3.67 ERA in 1975 and was 14-14 with a 3.36 ERA in 1976. Goltz had his best year in 1977 when he was 20-11 with an ERA of 3.36. He led the American League in wins (tied with Jim Palmer and Dennis Leonard), starts (39), and innings pitched. Dave was sixth in Cy Young Award voting that year.

• Goltz followed up his 1977 season with a 15-10, 2.49 season in 1978. He went 14-13 with a 4.16 ERA in 1979 and then signed with the Dodgers ($3 million for six years) after the season.

• Dave was a disappointment in Los Angeles in 1980. He was 7-11 with a 4.31 ERA in 35 games (27 starts). Goltz made only eight starts in 1981 and was 2-7 with a 4.09 ERA. After pitching only 3.2 innings, Dave was released by the Dodgers in late April of 1982. The California Angels picked him up in late May and Goltz had an 8-5 record for the Angels. Dave had a torn rotator cuff and struggled in 1983 (0-6, 6.22 in 15 games) and he was released on July 6, 1983.

• Dave lives in Minnesota and does card shows, speaking appearances, and even umpires some high school games. One of our fellow bloggers (Garvey Cey Russel Lopes) narrowly missed him at a Twins autograph party in June. Dave's SABR biography will be posted later in 2009.