Jim Hardin

James Warren Hardin (August 6, 1943 – March 9, 1991) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher from through , most notably as a member of the Baltimore Orioles dynasty that won three consecutive American League pennants from 1969 to 1971, and won the World Series in 1970. He also played for the New York Yankees and the Atlanta Braves.

Baseball career Hardin attended Memphis State University to play baseball from 1961 to 1962. While at Memphis State, he turned down offers to go pro, and after only 14 college games, Hardin signed a contract with the New York Mets, which included a $10,000 bonus. Despite higher offers from other teams, Hardin picked the Mets, at the time a new expansion team with a lot of opportunities. Hardin spent three years in the Mets' minor league system before he drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the 1965 minor league draft. In 1967, he was called up from the minor leagues to replace an injured Jim Palmer. "Hardin really was an impressive pitcher before he hurt his shoulder," Palmer described him. "He had great control." Shortly after taking off from Key West International Airport the propeller of his aircraft failed from fatigue. The aircraft stalled and the plane crashed while Hardin attempted to return to the airport to make an emergency landing. It was widely reported that, during the plane's descent, Hardin steered the plane away from a baseball field filled with young children. The plane crashed in a parking lot of a TGI Fridays restaurant, which was under construction at the time. Hardin was survived by his wife and three children.