August 10, 2023

1986 ALB Player of the Year: 'It's those little plays that determine your future'

By Richard Walker
Baseball
1986 ALB Player of the Year: ‘It’s those little plays that determine your future’
1986 American Legion Baseball Player of the Year Joe Grahe speaks during the Host City Welcome before The 2023 American Legion World Series at Veterans Field at Keeter Stadium in Shelby, N.C., on Wednesday, August 9. Photo by Chet Strange/The American Legion

Joe Grahe reflects on the turning point of his team’s season and his role in helping win the 1986 American Legion World Series.

One of the most dominant pitchers in American Legion Baseball history is a special guest at the 2023 American Legion World Series in Shelby, N.C.

Joe Grahe was a top pitcher and hitter for Jensen Beach, Fla. in 1986 when Post 126 won the ALWS title.

Grahe, who turns 56 on Aug. 14, went 16-3 with a 0.56 ERA while batting .394 for a Jensen Beach team that won its last 19 games of the season. For his efforts, Grahe was named George Rulon American Legion Baseball Player of the Year and his 52 strikeouts in national ALB postseason competition earned him that year’s Bob Feller Strikeout Award winner.

But what Grahe shared with players from all eight teams during Wednesday’s Host City Welcome banquet was how the little things can create success on the field — and alter your lives forever.

Grahe told the audience his life story is living proof.

“I’m going to give you players the best advice I can give you,” said Grahe, a former major league pitcher now in his 14th year selling real estate in Northern Palm Beach County, Fla. “When you’re out there playing this week and you’re asked to lay that bunt down or you’re asked to hit the ball to the right side to get the guy to third with less than two outs, do that with all you’ve got. Because it’s those little plays that determine your future, your teammate’s future and your team’s future in the tournament.

“Before you think I’m being melodramatic, I’m going to tell you my story.”

During that 1986 season, Jensen Beach was pushed to the limit in its district tournament by rival Lake Worth.

That team handed Grahe his only three pitching defeats that summer and led Jensen Beach 6-5 in the top of the ninth inning as a Post 126 batter hit a grounder that could’ve ended the game, and the team’s season, in the Florida District 11 tournament at West Palm Beach.

Instead, a wild throw allowed Jensen Beach to score twice and win 7-6 to stay alive.

Grahe literally caused the wild throw.

“I’m on first and our batter hit a routine grounder to short and if they turn a double play our season is over,” Grahe said. “Somehow, I got there quick ... so when their second baseman was pivoting to make the throw to first, I got a good piece of him. I’m laying on the ground and I see their first baseman try to scoop the ball and it gets by him and the tying run scores.

   “... Then the next guy hits a flare to right field and we score and hold them in the bottom of the ninth and end up winning the game — and we end up winning two nights later to win the district tournament.”

Actually, Jensen Beach wouldn’t lose again as they rolled to that District 11 title, then won the Southeast Area title, Florida state tournament, Southeast Regional tournament and ALWS championship.

Grahe was particularly dominant in the postseason as he went 8-0 with 88 strikeouts in 71 innings covering eight starts.

He also closed out both the Southeast Regional and ALWS title games.

In the Belton, S.C., Southeast Regional, Grahe struck out 12 in a 10-2 win over Caldwell County, N.C.

And in Rapid City, S.D., in the ALWS, Grahe struck out 13 in an 8-2 win over Las Vegas, Nev.

Grahe played for Jensen Beach one year after playing for Palm Beach Community College and being drafted in the 28th round by the Milwaukee Brewers.

He said his choices for that summer were to return to his American Legion team or play in the prestigious Cape Cod League.

“There are two reasons I played Legion ball,” Grahe said. “One, I wanted to play with my friends. And two, if I had played in the Cape Cod League, I would’ve just been a pitcher. And I wanted to hit. So I was able to pitch and play right field for my Legion team.”

That summer, Grahe hit .394 and was one of the team’s top hitters.

The next spring, Grahe began a three-year career for the University of Miami where the Hurricanes played in the 1988 and 1989 College World Series and he was drafted twice (1988 in the fifth round by the Oakland Athletics and 1989 in the second round by the California Angels) before going professional.

With the Angels (1990-94), Colorado Rockies (1995) and Philadelphia Phillies (1999), Grahe had a 22-30 major league pitching record with 45 saves and a 4.41 ERA highlighted by a 5-6 season with 21 saves in 1992.

With Jensen Beach, Grahe played on a team that had another future major league pitcher in Rusty Meacham and a former major league All-Star as his manager in Bob Shaw.

Shaw was an 11-year major leaguer who made the 1962 National League All-Star team for the Milwaukee Braves and also threw a 1-0 shutout victory for the Chicago White Sox in Game 5 of the 1959 World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers and future Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax.

“Coach Shaw passed away in 2013,” said Grahe, whose 1986 team had a 35-year reunion two years ago. “He basically broke me down into pieces as a pitcher. And then put me back together again. It took about two months. During all of that, I was thinking, ‘What am I doing here?’ I had no real ambition of being a pro baseball player. I was all set to go to the University of Florida and become an engineer. I wasn’t recruited that much out of high school.”

But all that changed in the summer of 1986 on a team that saw four of his teammates play professionally, and another become a prominent college baseball coach.

Fellow pitcher Rusty Meacham, who went 13-1 for Jensen Beach, played eight years in the major leagues for five teams, most notably the Kansas City Royals; the 1986 Southeast Regional MVP Jon Anderson spent one year in the minors for the Angels’ organization; Dan Furmanik spent three seasons in the minors for the New York Mets’ organization; and Brian Reimsnyder spent one season in the New York Yankees’ organization.

And reserve catcher Kevin O’Sullivan is currently the University of Florida head baseball coach and led the Gators to the 2017 College World Series title.

Grahe said he still considers his breaking up a potential season-ending double play as his greatest accomplishment for Jensen Beach in 1986; not all the awards he won.

“My point to you is that if I don’t take out that guy at second base, I’m not standing here tonight with you,” Grahe told the Host City Welcome crowd. “Plus, you can make the argument that I don’t make the big leagues. You can probably make the argument that ... Rusty Meacham, may never have gotten that chance. And if we don’t advance, (O’Sullivan) doesn’t make the contacts he makes to get a coaching job when we’re done.

“What I’m saying is that you have to do all of those inconsequential things sometimes to make in order to win a game that gets you here. When the (Shelby) mayor (Stan Anthony) was up here saying you’re going to remember this for the rest of your lives, that’s absolutely true.

“That’s why I’m here.”

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