Don Leshnock

Donald Lee Leshnock (November 25, 1946 – May 5, 2012) was an American professional baseball left-handed pitcher, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Detroit Tigers, in .

Leshnock’s entire big league career consisted of one inning of relief, for Detroit, on June 7, 1972, when the Tigers hosted the California Angels. He did not allow an earned run, giving up two hits, and no walks, while striking out two of the five batters he faced.

Leshnock attended Youngstown State University, where he played college baseball for the Penguins, (, Junior Varsity) and (–, Varsity) and was inducted into the Youngstown State Athletic Hall of Fame, in 1986.

Besides Leshnock‘s brief MLB stint, he pitched eight seasons of Minor League Baseball, from 1968 to .

Early years A native of Youngstown, Ohio, Leshnock played high school baseball for Ursuline High School. He subsequently played college baseball for Youngstown State University from 1966 to 1968. Leshnock ranks second in Youngstown State history, with a career earned run average of 1.61. He gave up his senior of eligibility to sign a contract to play professional baseball in the Detroit Tigers organization. Leshnock was drafted by the Tigers, in the 23rd round (527th overall) of the 1968 draft, and was signed by Detroit scout Cy Williams. He pitched a no-hitter for Rocky Mount in 1970.

Detroit Tigers The Tigers purchased Leshnock from the Mud Hens at the end of May 1972. On June 7, 1972, Leshnock appeared in his only MLB game, a 5-1 loss to the California Angels, at Tiger Stadium. Leshnock pitched the ninth inning for the Tigers, giving up two hits while also striking out two batters and allowing no earned runs. One of the batters he struck out was Nolan Ryan, who got the win in the game while allowing only three hits.

Minor leagues (1973–1975) In October 1972, Leshnock was sold by the Tigers along with catcher Tom Haller to the Philadelphia Phillies, though neither player ever appeared in a game for the Phillies. Leshnock played three more years of minor league baseball for the Eugene Emeralds (1973), Charleston Charlies (1974–1975), Jacksonville Suns (1975), and Shreveport Captains (1975).

Later years In 1986, Leshnock was inducted into the Youngstown State Athletic Hall of Fame. At the time, he was called "one of the greatest ever to don a Penguin baseball uniform."

Leshnock was a longtime resident of Raleigh, North Carolina, where he died of bladder cancer, in 2012, at the age of 65.