Larry Biittner

Look under your damn cap!

This week’s Moonlighter is one of the best ballplayers to come out of Iowa. Larry Biittner had a heck of a career and spent quite a bit of time in a true Moonlighter role; pinch hitter. Though he is an all-timer as a pinch hitter, Bittner is the first to say that he didn’t like doing it, but it was what the team needed. Tim sits down with Larry to talk about a career spent in the big leagues with names like Nolan Ryan and Ted Williams.

Larry Bittner was able to play baseball and basketball at a pretty high level growing up in Pocahontas, Iowa. After initially heading to Des Moines to play for Drake, the two-sport star headed north to play for a baseball powerhouse in Storm Lake and become a Beaver. Buena Vista gave Bittner the best opportunity to play both sports and be part of a talented baseball program.

Biittner was drafted out of Buena Vista in the tenth round in 1968. He was selected by the Washington Senators, which came as a surprise that an East Coast team had an eye on him. Biittner made his debut in 1970. Coming out of small-town Iowa and making the leap from AA ball, Biittner was in a little bit of awe of realizing his dream of playing the big leagues though he only spent two weeks in the majors that year. His coach in Washington was none other than Ted Williams. The greatest hitter of all time wanted Biittner to become a home run hitter and it took a little while for Biittner to get back on track after The Splendid Splinter tried to change his swing.

Hey, you see the ball, you hit it

By 1972 Larry Biittner was a regular in the lineup and he would go on to play in over 1,200 games over the course of his career. Bittner played professional baseball for 14 years and suited up for the Senators, Montreal Expos, Chicago Cubs, Texas Rangers, and Cincinnati Reds. He racked up 861 hits and a career .273 average.

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