James Douglas Bird (born March 5, 1950) was a Major League Baseball pitcher from 1973 to 1983. Bird was drafted by the Kansas City Royals in the 3rd round of the 1969 amateur draft's secondary phase.
During his career, Bird was used in a variety of pitching roles, frequently shifting from the bullpen to the starting rotation and back. Bird appeared in six postseason games from 1976-8, all with the Royals, and each time against the New York Yankees, posting a 2.35 ERA in 7.2 innings pitched. Unfortunately, after good work in the '76 and '77 playoffs, Bird is most known for surrendering a two-run homer to Thurman Munson in the 8th inning of Game Three during the 1978 ALCS.
Famous quotes containing the word bird:
“As the bird trims her to the gale,
I trim myself to the storm of time,
I man the rudder, reef the sail,
Obey the voice at eve obeyed in prime:
“Lowly faithful, banish fear,
Right onward drive unharmed;
The port, well worth the cruise, is near,
And every wave is charmed.””
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)