On this day in 1967 Graeme Lloyd was born in Geelong, Australia. He was 21 when the Blue Jays signed him as an amateur free agent in 1988 but was drafted in the 1992 Rule 5 draft and traded to the Brewers before his 1993 major league debut.
When Lloyd made his debut in April of 1993 he became the first Australian pitcher in major league history, and he would later go on to partner with catcher Dave Nilsson to also form the first all-Aussie battery. He's now one of 20 Australians to pitch in the majors, but his 568 career appearances are still more than any of his fellow countrymen.
Lloyd made 183 of those appearances as a Brewer between 1993-96, posting a 3.67 ERA over that time. Milwaukee eventually sent him to the Yankees in August of 1996 in a trade that brought Bob Wickman to the Brewers.
Thanks to the B-Ref Play Index for reminding me that Lloyd turns 46 today. We'd also like to wish a happy birthday to:
- 2009-10 Brewer Chris Smith, who turns 32.
- 2006 Brewer Dennis Sarfate, who also turns 32.
- 1999 and 2001 Brewer Kyle Peterson, the #13 overall pick in the 1997 draft, who turns 37. We covered his birthday in this space last year.
Today is also the 48th anniversary of the first major league game in the Astrodome, baseball's first domed stadium. We covered that event in this space two years ago.