The 1980 St. Louis Cardinals went 74-88, finished fourth in the NL East, and missed the postseason for a 12th consecutive season. Owner Gussie Busch fired both his manager (Ken Boyer) and general manager (John Claiborne) during the season and filled each vacancy with the same man—Whitey Herzog. Amidst the period of flux and a subpar season emerged a sliver of hope. His name was Andy Rincon. The rookie pitcher was dominant in his first three starts, flashing the potential of a future ace.
The Cards selected Rincon in the fifth round of the 1977 June Amateur Draft. The Southern California native steadily progressed up the minor league ranks. Pitching at Double-A Arkansas in 1980, he registered a 10-7 record and 3.40 ERA. Herzog, who spent the final weeks of the season evaluating the Cards’ minor league team while Red Schoendienst served as interim manager, declared that Rincon had the best arm in the organization.
The White Rat wanted to test Rincon against major league hitters during the final few weeks of the ’80 season. But there was a problem. Rincon had already left for California in his car before the team could inform him of his promotion. Fortuitously, he was pulled over in Texas for speeding and taken to a local courthouse, as was customary at the time in the Lone Star State. The judge said, “You’re the guy we’ve been looking for. Here, call this number.” Rincon dialed the number and Herzog answered. “Report to Philadelphia,” said Whitey. “We want to see what you can do.”
Rincon made his debut a few days later at Wrigley Field in Chicago versus the Cubs. He went the distance, limiting the Cubbies to one run on five hits in the Cards’ 5-1 victory. “One game doesn’t make a pitcher,” said Schoendienst, “but he had very sharp control and very sharp command of his breaking pitch. And did you see him go after those last three hitters?” The Cubs weren’t exactly Murderers’ Row, but their lineup did include Bill Buckner and Dave Kingman.
Rincon faced a more formidable opponent his next time out in the form of the Montreal Expos, but the results were the same—eight innings pitched, one run allowed, and another win. In his third start, he stymied the Mets at Shea Stadium, ceding just one tally in eight frames for his third consecutive victory. Through three starts, he owned three wins and a 1.08 ERA. The Expos touched Rincon for six runs in six innings in his fourth and final outing of the season, pushing his ERA up to 2.61. Still, three brilliant starts in four games was an encouraging sign for the the 21 year old.
Rincon survived Herzog’s offseason roster overhaul and began the 1981 season in the Redbirds’ starting rotation. He picked up where he left off at the end of ’80, going 3-1 with a 1.77 ERA through his first five starts. But in his fifth outing, he was knocked out in the eighth inning by a line drive off the bat of Pittsburgh’s Phil Garner. X-rays obtained the next day revealed a broken forearm. While Rincon was on the disabled list he reportedly gained weight and fell out of shape. Just before the players’ strike that interrupted the ’81 season, Herzog astutely optioned Rincon to the minors so that he could pitch himself back into shape during the work stoppage.
There was one problem, however. Rincon injured his back attending a funeral while he was on the DL and pitched poorly in Triple A. The strike ended in early August and the pitching-thin Cards recalled him anyway on August 30. When Rincon reported to St. Louis, he said he couldn’t pitch because a sore shoulder. He was diagnosed with biceps tendinitis and sent back to the minors. In 10 starts between Arkansas and Springfield that season, he went 1-5 with a 6.60 ERA.
The Cardinals, meanwhile, finished a half-game behind the Expos in the second-half standings and missed the playoffs despite having the best overall record in the division. Rincon’s teammates felt he was partially to blame. “Hopefully, Rincon has learned his lesson,” said Keith Hernandez. “He let the whole team down. What he did cost us the division.”
Rincon, who turned 23 during spring training in 1982, again made the St. Louis’ opening day rotation and appeared locked-in during his first two starts—a complete game victory versus the Cubs and a seven-inning no-decision against the Phillies. But then he failed to make it past the fifth inning in his next three outings. Rincon was relegated to the bullpen and then bumped off the roster in late May to make room for John Stuper. Rincon had a 2-3 record and 4.73 ERA in 40 innings for St. Louis. At Triple-A Louisville, he was worse—a 5-8 record and 5.09 ERA. While he struggled down on the farm, St. Louis won the NL East and eventually took down the mighty Milwaukee Brewers in the World Series.
Rincon and fellow hurler John Fulgham were among the last players cut by the Cardinals in the spring of 1983. Both were young pitchers coming off back-to-back, injury-riddled seasons. After a handful of starts in Triple A, Rincon complained of a sore elbow. He was limited to just 31 innings all season. Fulgham’s injury woes continued as well. “It’s a shame,” said Herzog. “Both could have been No. 1 pitchers.”
Rincon became a free agent after the 1983 season and signed a minor league contract with the Pirates. He was assigned to the Triple-A Hawaii Islanders out of spring training. On June 12, 1984, Rincon pitched a no-hitter against the Tacoma Tigers. His overall numbers for Hawaii were rather pedestrian, however, and he never got called up to the Steel City. Rincon attended Baltimore Orioles’ camp in the spring of 1986 but was released soon thereafter. He had shoulder surgery that fall and spent the next year rehabbing. In 1988, he pitched a few games in the Mexican League before joining an independent team in Fresno. That’s where Cardinals scout Fred McAllister saw him. “He was getting it up there, 84, 85 miles per hour … if he can throw 84 consistently, he might help the Cardinals.” said McAllister.
Based on McAllister’s recommendation, Rincon received a non-roster invitation to spring training in 1989 and was assigned to Double-A Arkansas. He appeared in 11 games as a reliever for the Travelers, winning his only decision and posting a 4.21 ERA. That marked the end of his pro career. Rincon appeared in 20 career games, 15 of them starts. He went 8-5 with a 3.12 ERA and struck out 46 batters in 106 2/3 innings.
In 1990, Rincon went to work as a minor league pitching coach for the Cardinals’ Single-A affiliate in Savannah, Georgia. He expressed no bitterness at the trajectory of his once-promising career. “Guys have had it worse than me,” said Rincon at the time. “There are a lot of guys whose careers ended because of injury and never made it to the big leagues. At least I have that to look back to and remember.”
Andy Rincon died on August 28, 2023, at the age of 64.
