Rick Austin – Baseball Player Biography, Career, Net Worth Information

Rick Gerald Austin wrapped up his professional baseball career in 1976 after six seasons in the major leagues. That journey started with promise at Washington State University, where he first made a name for himself.

This left-handed pitcher from Seattle earned a reputation as a reliable arm, splitting his time between the Cleveland Indians and Milwaukee Brewers throughout the 1970s.

Austin left Major League Baseball after the 1976 season, finishing with a 4-8 career record, a 4.63 ERA, and 106 strikeouts over parts of four seasons. Along the way, he spent time in both American pro baseball and Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball, playing for the Hankyu Braves in 1974.

He went from a perfect game in college to getting drafted by Cleveland, and his story really shows the ups and downs of a pitcher trying to make it in the 1970s. He moved through the minors, had a brief stint overseas, and eventually retired, giving us a glimpse of what players faced back then as they tried to stick in the big leagues.

Early Life and Amateur Career

Rick Gerald Austin was born on October 27, 1946, in Seattle, Washington. He honed his pitching through high school and college ball in Washington State, eventually standing out at Washington State University with a perfect game.

Childhood in Washington State

Austin grew up in Seattle during the 1950s and early 1960s. Born in October 1946, he spent his childhood in the Pacific Northwest, where baseball was just part of life.

Seattle’s mild climate let him practice and play almost year-round. That definitely helped him develop his game.

Austin caught the eye of coaches and scouts early on thanks to his left-handed pitching. He just had that natural ability.

He put in long hours as a teenager, working on his mechanics and control. That work ethic stuck with him.

Lakes High School Achievements

Austin attended Lakes High School in the Tacoma area. He quickly became a standout on the school’s baseball team.

His high school years built his reputation as a talented pitcher. College recruiters from all over the region started to notice him.

He kept developing the skills that would serve him in college and, eventually, pro baseball. Those early successes set the stage for everything that came after.

Washington State University Baseball

Austin went on to Washington State University, pitching for the Cougars in 1967 and 1968. He really made his mark there.

March 22, 1968 stands out—Austin threw a perfect game against Gonzaga University. That kind of performance takes real control and focus.

Austin’s college stats were strong:

• Career Record: 18-4
• Strikeouts: 144 in 166 innings
• Awards: Team MVP in 1968, Second-team All-American

His run with the Cougars put him on the radar for Major League scouts. You could tell he was going to get a shot at the next level.

Major League Debut and Career Progression

Rick Austin’s pro baseball career covered parts of four seasons in the major leagues from 1970 to 1976. He played for the Cleveland Indians and Milwaukee Brewers, plus a season in Japan between MLB stops.

Entry into the Major Leagues

Austin started the 1970 season with the Wichita Aeros, Cleveland’s minor league affiliate. After just six games, the club called him up to the majors.

He made his MLB debut for the Cleveland Indians on June 21, 1970, facing the Detroit Tigers. He was only 23 at the time.

In that first game, Austin pitched 2.1 innings, giving up 5 hits and 5 earned runs, but he struck out 3 and walked 2. Not the easiest debut, but he’d earned his shot after being one of Cleveland’s top pitching prospects.

Austin finished his rookie season with a 2-5 record and a 4.79 ERA in 31 games. That was enough to keep him on the roster the next year.

Cleveland Indians Years

Austin’s second year in Cleveland, 1971, turned out to be tougher than his debut. He pitched in 23 games but struggled with control issues that just wouldn’t go away.

His ERA jumped to 5.09 that season. The Indians sent him back to Wichita to work on his mechanics and try to get back on track.

He stayed in Cleveland’s system through 1973, bouncing between the majors and minors. Partway through 1973, though, the Indians released him.

Austin had some good moments in Cleveland, but he never quite locked down a steady job in the rotation. His control problems kept getting in his way.

Milwaukee Brewers Years

After Cleveland let him go, the Milwaukee Brewers picked him up in 1973. He finished that season with their Evansville Triplets affiliate.

In 1974, Austin moved to Japan and pitched for the Hankyu Braves in Nippon Professional Baseball. He went 1-1 with a 2.33 ERA in eight games, but the team later criticized his control.

Back with Milwaukee in 1975, Austin turned in his best big league season. He posted a 2-3 record with a 4.05 ERA in 32 games, showing better command.

His last MLB game came on June 27, 1976, against the New York Yankees. He threw 0.2 innings and didn’t allow a hit or a run.

Austin’s major league career ended with a 4-8 record, 4.63 ERA, and 106 strikeouts in parts of four seasons.

Playing Style and Performance

Rick Austin pitched in the majors from 1970 to 1976, showing flashes of talent but also some inconsistency. His 4.63 ERA and 4-8 record pretty much sum up the challenges he faced moving from college to the pros.

Pitching Techniques and Strengths

Austin threw left-handed and stood 6’4″, which gave him a nice angle against hitters. That perfect game at Washington State, back in 1968, was a highlight.

In the majors, he struck out 106 batters in 136 innings, averaging 7.0 K/9. That was actually above average for pitchers in the 1970s.

But control was always an issue. He walked 78 in those 136 innings, which is 5.2 walks per nine. His strikeout-to-walk ratio sat at 1.36, so he struck out just a bit more than he walked.

He put together his best season with Milwaukee in 1975, finishing with a 4.05 ERA in 40 innings. He mostly pitched out of the bullpen, making 35 appearances without a single start.

Career Statistics and ERA

Austin’s MLB career saw him pitch to a 4.63 ERA in 89 games. His rookie year in 1970 was the busiest: 67.2 innings and two wins.

Career Pitching Statistics:

• Record: 4-8
• ERA: 4.63
• Innings: 136.0
• Strikeouts: 106
• Walks: 78
• Games: 89

His ERA+ was 84, so he pitched about 16% below league average. That 4.05 ERA in 1975 was his best, but he still walked 32 in just 40 innings.

His 1.61 WHIP (walks plus hits per inning pitched) shows he let a lot of guys reach base. In 136 innings, he allowed 141 hits and 78 walks, so he was almost always working out of trouble.

Austin’s FIP (Fielding Independent Pitching) was 4.55—almost identical to his ERA. That tells you his defense didn’t really bail him out or make things worse.

Fielding and Batting Overview

Austin handled his fielding duties without a single error in 89 games, finishing with a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage. He managed 29 chances, with 6 putouts and 23 assists.

His range factor was 1.92 per nine innings, just a bit above the league average of 1.89. He completed one game in his career and took part in three double plays.

Pitchers in the American League didn’t bat much because of the designated hitter rule, so he rarely stepped to the plate. When runners tried to steal on him, they succeeded 57.1% of the time.

He picked off two runners, showing he paid attention to the running game. He seemed to get a little better at this during his time with Milwaukee.

Even when his pitching stats weren’t great, Austin’s fielding consistency gave his teams some stability. Not making errors around the mound says a lot about his fundamentals.

Draft History and Professional Transitions

The Cleveland Indians picked Rick Austin in the first round of the secondary phase of the 1968 MLB Draft. His pro career took him through several teams and even a season in Japan before he hung it up in 1976.

Drafts by Detroit Tigers, Pittsburgh Pirates, and St. Louis Cardinals

Cleveland drafted Austin out of Washington State University in 1968, right after that perfect game against Gonzaga.

He started his pro career with the AA Waterbury Indians that same year. Austin went 1-8, but his ERA was a solid 2.73.

In 1969, he split the season between Waterbury and the Portland Beavers. With Portland, he posted a 5-6 record and a 3.66 ERA in 16 games. After that year, people saw him as one of the Indians’ top pitching prospects, along with Rich Hand.

Transitions Between Teams

Austin made his MLB debut on June 21, 1970, with the Cleveland Indians. He started that season with the Wichita Aeros and got called up after just six games.

His first season in the majors ended with a 2-5 record and a 4.79 ERA in 31 games. The next year was rough too, with a 5.09 ERA in 23 games before he went back to Wichita.

The Indians released him during the 1973 season. The Milwaukee Brewers picked him up, and he finished that year with the Evansville Triplets.

Return to the Minors and International Play

In 1974, Austin headed to Japan and joined the Hankyu Braves of Nippon Professional Baseball. He finished with a 1-1 record and a 2.33 ERA in eight games.

The Braves later said they’d “purchased two mistakes” by signing Austin and Gene Ammann, blaming Austin’s control issues. That criticism sent him back to the U.S.

Austin returned to the Milwaukee Brewers in 1975. He split his last two seasons between the big leagues and the minors. In 1975, he went 2-3 with a 4.05 ERA in 32 games.

His last MLB outing was June 27, 1976, against the New York Yankees. He pitched 0.2 innings without giving up a hit, then retired after the season.

Retirement and Recognition

Rick Austin’s pro baseball career ended in 1976 after his final game with the Milwaukee Brewers. That wrapped up a six-year run in the majors, starting with the Cleveland Indians back in 1970.

Final MLB Games in 1976

Austin wrapped up his final season in 1976, and honestly, it was a pretty brief ending to his major league career. He played just three games for the Milwaukee Brewers that year.

He made his last MLB appearance on June 27, 1976, facing off against the New York Yankees. In that final game, Austin pitched just 0.2 innings and didn’t give up a single hit.

He didn’t record any strikeouts or walks either. The outing was clean, with no earned runs crossing the plate.

In 1976, Austin struggled with control. His ERA climbed to 5.06 over those three appearances, which felt like a real drop-off compared to his 4.05 ERA in 32 games back in 1975.

Austin chose to retire after the 1976 season. At just 29 years old, he stepped away from the majors after parts of four seasons between 1970 and 1976.

Inclusion in Baseball Almanac Records

Austin’s retirement in 1976 got him listed in several baseball record databases. Baseball Almanac keeps track of American League players who retired that year, and Austin’s name sits among them.

The Baseball Almanac database shows his final team as the Milwaukee Brewers. They also keep details like his uniform number and last game on file, which is kind of cool for anyone digging into baseball history.

You’ll still find Austin’s career stats on several baseball reference sites. His final MLB record? 4 wins and 8 losses over 89 career games.

He racked up 106 strikeouts during his time in the majors. The databases also track his moves between the Cleveland Indians and Milwaukee Brewers, and they even note his short stint with the Hankyu Braves in Japan in 1974.

Post-Retirement Honors

After retiring, Austin picked up recognition for his college baseball days at Washington State University. The Tacoma Oldtimer Baseball & Softball Hall of Fame honored his contributions to the sport.

His college career was impressive—he went 18-4 with 144 strikeouts in 166 innings. That kind of record definitely sticks with people.

He earned the team’s most valuable player award in 1968 at Washington State. Austin also landed second-team All-American honors during his college run.

That perfect game against Gonzaga University on March 22, 1968? It’s still a highlight in his baseball story. Austin also played with the Cheney Studs during their national runner-up season, which added to his post-retirement recognition.

Most of these honors celebrate his amateur and college achievements, not so much his pro career.

Legacy and Impact on Baseball

Rick Austin left his mark on baseball, and not just because of his four years in the majors. His record-setting achievements at Washington State University and his timing during a shifting era in pro baseball made him a memorable figure, especially in the Pacific Northwest.

His perfect game and those college records? They still get mentioned when people talk about Washington State baseball history.

Contributions to Washington State Baseball

Austin’s time at Washington State University really left a lasting legacy. His career ERA of 1.19 still stands at the school, which says a lot about his pitching consistency from 1967 to 1968.

The lefty’s biggest moment came on March 22, 1968, when he threw a perfect game against Gonzaga University in a 5-0 win. That performance put his dominant college career on the map and showed off the kind of talent coming out of Washington State back then.

He put together an 18-4 record with 144 strikeouts in 166 innings. Four shutouts in just two seasons? That’s not something you see every day.

The university named him team MVP in 1968, and he picked up second-team All-American honors that same year. In 1968, he posted a wild 1.10 ERA, and the year before, he had a 1.33 ERA and tossed a no-hitter in a 1-0 victory over Lewis-Clark State.

Those achievements helped Washington State become a real contender in college baseball during the late 1960s.

Influence on Teammates and the Sport

Austin played during a period of big changes in baseball in the early 1970s. The Cleveland Indians picked him sixth overall in the first round of the 1968 draft, hoping he’d become a cornerstone of their pitching staff.

He had a standout moment in just his second major league start on June 27, 1970, when he threw a five-hit shutout against the Detroit Tigers. At 23, he struck out eight, walked three, and finished the complete game 3-0, beating big names like Mickey Lolich.

After the 1970 season, people saw Austin and Rich Hand as the Indians’ top pitching prospects. That recognition showed how much the team and coaches respected his potential.

He also spent some time with the Hankyu Braves in Japan’s professional league in 1974. That international experience reflected the growing ties between American and Japanese baseball, and honestly, it probably helped the sport’s global development during a time when more players started making those moves.

Lasting Reputation Among Fans

People mostly remember Austin for his college dominance and those flashes of brilliance he showed in the majors. That perfect game at Washington State? It’s still a huge deal for baseball fans in the Pacific Northwest.

Baseball fans often talk about the gap between his college success and his pro struggles. They know how tough it is to jump from amateur ball to the big leagues. Sure, his 4-8 record and 4.63 ERA in the majors only scratch the surface of his story.

In 1975, he had his best run with the Milwaukee Brewers. He pitched in 32 games, finished with a 2-3 record, and posted a 4.05 ERA. That season proved he could handle himself at the highest level.

After baseball, Austin moved to Missouri and became a financial advisor. Even though he found success outside of sports, fans still remember him for his college heroics and the promise he brought to the game.