Steve Luebber

Steve Luebber
Steve Luebber
	Pitcher
	Born: July 9, 1949 (age 75); Clinton, Missouri
	Batted: Right Threw: Right
MLB debut
	June 27, 1971, for the Minnesota Twins
Last MLB appearance
	September 29, 1981, for the Baltimore Orioles
MLB statistics
Win–loss record	6–10
Earned run average	4.62
Strikeouts	93
Teams
	Minnesota Twins (1971–1972, 1976); Toronto Blue Jays (1979); Baltimore Orioles (1981);

Stephen Lee Luebber is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. Luebber pitched in all or part of five seasons in the majors between 1971 and 1981. He currently serves as pitching coach for the Wilmington Blue Rocks, single-A farm team for the Kansas City Royals

Luebber was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 13th round of the 1967 Major League Baseball Draft. After four-and-a-half years in the minors, he made his major league debut for the Twins in 1971, pitching in 18 games and starting 12, going 2–5 with a 5.03 ERA. He was returned to the minors in 1972, appearing in two games for the Twins in September.

Luebber spent the next three seasons in the minor leagues before finally returning to the major leagues in 1976. That season, he set career bests in every major category, going 4–5 with an ERA at 4.00. After another season in the minors, the Twins released Luebber in October of 1977.

After spending 1978 in the Chicago White Sox organization, Luebber returned to the majors in 1979 with the Toronto Blue Jays. He pitched in one game for them that September, pitching to three batters in a game against the Boston Red Sox without retiring a batter. The Blue Jays released him the following spring, and he was signed to a minor league contract by the Baltimore Orioles. In 1981 he was called up to the majors one last time, pitching in seven games with a 7.56 ERA.

Luebber continued to pitch in the minor leagues for several more seasons. He pitched in the Rangers, Tigers and Padres organizations through 1983. He then returned to the San Diego Padres farm system between 1986 and 1988, making a number of appearances at the double-A level. In 1989 he moved on to the Senior Professional Baseball Association, where he pitched two seasons for the Fort Myers Sun Sox. He finally retired after the 1990 season at age 40. In all, Luebber spent 22 seasons (over a 24-year period) playing professional baseball.

After his playing career, Luebber moved into the coaching ranks. He has coached in the Padres, Orioles, Texas Rangers, Florida Marlins and most recently the Royals' organization. In 2006 he was the pitching coach for the Burlington Bees, and in 2007 he moved into the same position with the Wilmington Blue Rocks. He is currently the pitching coach for the Northwest Arkansas Naturals, the Kansas City Royals' AA affiliate. Known to be a grumpy guy, Luebber's grumpiest moment of 2016 occurred on Father's Day at Arvest Ballpark in Springdale when he stepped in front of Royals outfielder Alex Gordon who was trying to sign autographs for fans before the start of the game. Saying it was "time to go" Luebber upset more than his share of fans on this particular occasion by denying them the chance to get an autograph from Gordon who was in town on a rehab assignment. We get it though, Steve, AA game in July are so important!

External links

Career statistics and player information from Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors), or Retrosheet
Venezuelan Professional Baseball League statistics