Gene Nelson
Born: 12/3/1960 in Tampa, FL, USA
MLB Debut: 1981-05-04 | Final Game: 1993-09-29
Bats: R | Throws: R | Height: 6'0" | Weight: 172 lbs
Full name: Wayland Eugene Nelson
Biography
Gene Nelson was a professional baseball pitcher whose career spanned from 1981 to 1993. Born in 1960, he made a name for himself in the Major Leagues with a competitive spirit and a reliable presence on the mound. Over the course of his career, Nelson recorded a win-loss record of 53-64, an earned run average (ERA) of 4.13, and accumulated 655 strikeouts. He also demonstrated his ability to close games effectively, notching 28 saves.
Nelson's playing style was characterized by his versatility, often serving as both a starter and a reliever, which allowed him to adapt to the needs of his team during his tenure. He played in an era that saw significant changes in the game, including the rise of the designated hitter in the American League and an increasing emphasis on bullpen specialization. Despite facing challenges typical of the time, he remained a steady contributor to his teams, leaving a lasting impact on the franchises he represented. Nelson's journey through the Major Leagues showcases the resilience and skill required to compete at the highest level of baseball.
Career Pitching Statistics
| W | L | G | GS | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | ER | HR | BB | SO | ERA | Pitcher PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 53 | 64 | 493 | 68 | 6 | 1 | 28 | 1080.0 | 1061 | 496 | 117 | 418 | 655 | 4.13 | 0 |
Season-by-Season Pitching
| Year | Team | Lg | W | L | G | GS | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA | Pitcher PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | NYY | AL | 3 | 1 | 8 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 39.3 | 40 | 21 | 23 | 16 | 4.81 | - |
| 1982 | SEA | AL | 6 | 9 | 22 | 19 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 122.7 | 133 | 63 | 60 | 71 | 4.62 | -2854.8 |
| 1983 | SEA | AL | 0 | 3 | 10 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 32.0 | 38 | 28 | 21 | 11 | 7.88 | -2170.3 |
| 1984 | CHW | AL | 3 | 5 | 20 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 74.7 | 72 | 37 | 17 | 36 | 4.46 | - |
| 1985 | CHW | AL | 10 | 10 | 46 | 18 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 145.7 | 144 | 69 | 67 | 101 | 4.26 | - |
| 1986 | CHW | AL | 6 | 6 | 54 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 114.7 | 118 | 49 | 41 | 70 | 3.85 | - |
| 1987 | OAK | AL | 6 | 5 | 54 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 123.7 | 120 | 54 | 35 | 94 | 3.93 | 2253.7 |
| 1988 | OAK | AL | 9 | 6 | 54 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 111.7 | 93 | 38 | 38 | 67 | 3.06 | 44.0 |
| 1989 | OAK | AL | 3 | 5 | 50 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 80.0 | 60 | 29 | 30 | 70 | 3.26 | 1392.5 |
| 1990 | OAK | AL | 3 | 3 | 51 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 74.7 | 55 | 13 | 17 | 38 | 1.57 | 752.0 |
| 1991 | OAK | AL | 1 | 5 | 44 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 48.7 | 60 | 37 | 23 | 23 | 6.84 | -3450.0 |
| 1992 | OAK | AL | 3 | 1 | 28 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 51.7 | 68 | 37 | 22 | 23 | 6.45 | -891.4 |
| 1993 | LAA | AL | 0 | 5 | 46 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 52.7 | 50 | 18 | 23 | 31 | 3.08 | - |
| 1993 | TEX | AL | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8.0 | 10 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 3.38 | 0.0 |
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 500 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0.0 |
Season-by-Season Batting
| Year | Team | Lg | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | NYY | AL | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
| 1982 | SEA | AL | 22 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
| 1983 | SEA | AL | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
| 1984 | CHW | AL | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
| 1985 | CHW | AL | 47 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.0 |
| 1986 | CHW | AL | 54 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
| 1987 | OAK | AL | 55 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
| 1988 | OAK | AL | 57 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
| 1989 | OAK | AL | 51 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
| 1990 | OAK | AL | 51 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
| 1991 | OAK | AL | 44 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
| 1992 | OAK | AL | 29 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
| 1993 | LAA | AL | 46 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
| 1993 | TEX | AL | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0.0 |
Postseason Statistics
Playoff Career Batting
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
Playoff Batting by Year
| Year | Round | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | WS | OAK | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
| 1990 | ALCS | OAK | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
| 1989 | ALCS | OAK | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
| 1989 | WS | OAK | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
| 1988 | ALCS | OAK | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
| 1988 | WS | OAK | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
Playoff Career Pitching
| W | L | G | GS | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 20.0 | 20 | 7 | 8 | 6 | 3.15 |
Playoff Pitching by Year
| Year | Round | Team | W | L | G | GS | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | ALCS | OAK | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1.7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| 1990 | WS | OAK | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5.0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0.00 |
| 1989 | ALCS | OAK | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1.3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.00 |
| 1989 | WS | OAK | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 | 4 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 54.00 |
| 1988 | ALCS | OAK | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4.7 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.00 |
| 1988 | WS | OAK | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 6.3 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 1.42 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | 493 | 68 | 80 | 127 | 7 | 10 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | NYA | P | 8 | 7 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 0 |
| 1982 | SEA | P | 22 | 19 | 10 | 20 | 1 | 4 |
| 1983 | SEA | P | 10 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 1 | 0 |
| 1984 | CHA | P | 20 | 9 | 11 | 8 | 0 | 1 |
| 1985 | CHA | P | 46 | 18 | 10 | 19 | 1 | 0 |
| 1986 | CHA | P | 54 | 1 | 8 | 17 | 0 | 3 |
| 1987 | OAK | P | 54 | 6 | 8 | 13 | 2 | 0 |
| 1988 | OAK | P | 54 | 1 | 4 | 11 | 0 | 1 |
| 1989 | OAK | P | 50 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 1990 | OAK | P | 51 | 0 | 4 | 8 | 1 | 0 |
| 1991 | OAK | P | 44 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 1992 | OAK | P | 28 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 1993 | CAL | P | 46 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 0 | 1 |
| 1993 | TEX | P | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Career Games by Position
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Pitcher | 493 |
| Designated Hitter | 3 |
Awards & Honors
| Year | Award | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Player of the Week | Week of 1982-06-11 |
Salary History
| Year | Team | League | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | OAK | AL | $1,250,000 |
| 1991 | OAK | AL | $1,100,000 |
| 1990 | OAK | AL | $650,000 |
| 1989 | OAK | AL | $615,000 |
| 1988 | OAK | AL | $450,000 |
| 1987 | OAK | AL | $365,000 |
| 1986 | CHA | AL | $240,000 |
| 1985 | CHA | AL | $110,000 |
| Total Career Earnings | $4,780,000 | ||