Episode 23: Dave LaRoche - LaStory Behind the Famous Pitch

Dave LaRoche had a decent career in Major League Baseball, going 65–58, with 819 strikeouts in 1,0491⁄3 innings pitched, and a career 3.53 ERA. But he is best-known for a pitch he used sparingly, a 28-mph curveball he called “LaLob.” It resembled a slow-pitch softball pitch and it confounded hitters gearing up for pitches more than three times faster. The most famous “LaLob” came against Milwaukee Brewers slugger Gorman Thomas, who spun a complete 360 after missing strike three. LaRoche joins “Sports Connections” to talk about that pitch, his entire baseball career and raising three sons who also played professional baseball.