Rick & Paul Reuschel – Major League Baseball Players

Rick Reuschel & Paul Reuschel (pronounced Rush-al) are American former professional baseball players.

Rick played as a pitcher in Major League Baseball from the early 1970s into the early 1990s. His nickname was “Big Daddy” because of his portly physique. He was known for his deceptive style of pitching, which kept hitters off balance by constantly varying the speeds of his pitches.

His older brother Paul also pitched for the Cubs for a few years while Rick was pitching the Chicago team. Both of them were Illinois farm boys, with strong physiques and plain-spoken ways who each graduated from Western Illinois University in Macomb where they played on the Leathernecks baseball team.

The two are the only siblings in the major league history to combine on a shutout. On August 21, 1975, Rick started and went 6⅓ innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers, followed by Paul, who pitched the final 2⅔ innings for the Cubs’ 7–0 win.

Rick began his Major League Baseball career when he was drafted in the third round of the 1970 Major League Baseball draft by the Chicago Cubs at a time when they were declining in the post-Durocher era, and provided a strong arm for the Cubs’ increasingly mediocre staff. After spending two years in the minor leagues, he joined the Cubs’ major league team in 1972. His best season was in 1977, when the Cubs made a brief run at the pennant. Reuschel won 20 games and finished third in the Cy Young Award voting behind Steve Carlton and Tommy John. In addition, Reuschel pitched in a memorable game for Cub fans on July 28, 1977, when making a rare relief appearance on two days’ rest, he entered the 13th inning of a 15–15 tie between the Cubs and the Cincinnati Reds at Wrigley Field. Reuschel retired two batters to end the top of the 13th. Then, he singled and scored the game-winning run in the bottom of the 13th, also picking up the victory in the 16–15 contest. Rick also played for the  New York Yankees(1981),

the Pittsburgh Pirates(19851987),and the San Francisco Giants(19871991).

Reuschel began his professional career when he was drafted by the Chicago Cubs in the fourth round of the 1968 amateur draft.[3] On August 21, 1975, he and brother Rick became, as of the end of the 2010 season, the only siblings to combine to pitch a shutout. Rick started a game for the Cubs and pitched 6.1 innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Paul pitched the final 2.2 innings for the Cubs’ 7–0 win. Paul also pitched for the Cleveland Indians (19781979). Paul makes his home in Macomb with his wife, Alene.