Gary Eave

Gary Eave
Pitcher
Born: (1963-07-22) July 22, 1963
Monroe, Louisiana, U.S.
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
MLB debut
April 12, 1988, for the Atlanta Braves
Last MLB appearance
May 15, 1990, for the Seattle Mariners
MLB statistics
Win–loss record2–3
Earned run average3.56
Strikeouts25
Stats at Baseball Reference 
Teams

Gary Louis Eave (born July 22, 1963) is an American former professional pitcher for the Atlanta Braves (1988–1989) and Seattle Mariners (1990). He later pitched in the Mexican League in 1992 and 1993 and the Chinese Professional Baseball League in 1993.

Amateur career

Eave played two years of Division I NCAA baseball for the Grambling State Tigers where he had an 18–6 win–loss record. He gave up no home runs and struck out 157 batters in his 172+2⁄3 innings with the Tigers.[1]

Professional career

Atlanta Braves

The Atlanta Braves drafted Eave in the 12th round of the 1985 MLB draft.[2] He then joined the Gulf Coast Braves, where he played 3 games before being moved up to the Sumter Braves, a Single-A team in 1986. In 1988, Eave played his first MLB season with the Braves. His first game was against the Houston Astros, who had Nolan Ryan on the mound. Eave pitched the final two innings of this game, an 8–3 loss. Eave pitched 5 innings in 5 games in his first MLB season.[3] In 1989, Eave started three games for Atlanta, going 2–0 with a 1.31 ERA.[1]

Seattle Mariners

Atlanta traded Eave and infielder Ken Pennington to the Seattle Mariners on January 24, 1990 for Jim Presley.[4] After being traded to the Mariners, Eave spent some time playing for the Triple-A Calgary Cannons, with a 3–3 record and a 7.82 earned run average (ERA). With the Mariners, he had a 0–3 record and 4.20.[1]

Later career

The Mariners traded Eave to the San Francisco Giants for Russ Swan on May 24, 1990.[5] Eave finished the season with the Triple-A Phoenix Firebirds. He then returned to the Mariners organization, splitting the 1991 season between bounced around between Double-A and Triple-A.[6]

Eave played in the Mexican League in 1992 and 1993, playing for Leones de Yucatán in 1992 and Acereros de Monclova in 1992 and 1993. He also pitched for the China Times Eagles in the Chinese Professional Baseball League in Pingtun, Taiwan in 1993, going 5–2 with a 5.02 ERA in 16 games.[6]

In 1995, Eave was a replacement player with the Kansas City Royals in spring training during the ongoing players' strike.[7][8] After the strike ended, he pitched for the independent Corpus Christi Barracudas in the Texas-Louisiana League that year. In 1998, he returned to that league, pitching for the Bayou Bullfrogs.[6]

Personal life

Eave met his wife, Kathy Grimm, in a class at Grambling in 1982. Together, they had three children. Shortly after his wife's death in 2024, Eave re-enrolled at Grambling. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in general studies in December 2025.[9][10]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Gary Eave". The Baseball Cube. Retrieved January 5, 2025.
  2. ^ "1985 Baseball Draft". Baseball Almanac. Retrieved March 26, 2018.
  3. ^ "Gary Eave 1988 Pitching Game Logs". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 12, 2025.
  4. ^ "Mariners trade Presley to Braves for infielder, pitcher". UPI. January 24, 1990. Retrieved March 18, 2026.
  5. ^ "Mariners Deal Eave To Giants". The Seattle Times. May 24, 1990. Retrieved March 18, 2026.
  6. ^ a b c "Gary Eave Minor, Mexican, CPBL & Independent Leagues Statistics". Baseball Reference. Retrieved March 18, 2026.
  7. ^ Horst, Craig (February 26, 1995). "KC replacement liking special treatment". The Salina Journal. Associated Press. p. 39.
  8. ^ Rieper, Max (February 26, 2015). "The Royals replacement players of 1995". Royals Review. SB Nation.
  9. ^ Dorsica, Samantha (December 30, 2025). "Former MLB Player Gary Eave 'Finishes Strong,' Earning A Bachelor's Degree From Grambling State University At 62 Years Old". Yahoo News. Retrieved January 12, 2026.
  10. ^ Martin, De’Vante (December 26, 2025). "Bastrop native and Grambling baseball legend earns college degree after nearly five decades". KNOE-TV. Retrieved January 12, 2026.
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