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Rik Aalbert "Bert" Blyleven (born April 6 , 1951 in Zeist , Netherlands ), is a former Major League Baseball Pitcher who played from 1970 - 1992 , and was best known for his Curveball . BASEBALL CAREER Blyleven, who was born in the Netherlands but raised in Southern California , became interested in Baseball as a young boy watching Sandy Koufax pitch for the Los Angeles Dodgers . Blyleven was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the third round in 1969 , and after a brief stint in the minor leagues he was called up by the Twins on June 2 , 1970 . In his first season, his sharp curveball helped him to ten victories and he was named AL Rookie Pitcher of the Year by '' The Sporting News ''. However, Blyleven's early career with the Twins was not always pleasant as he was hounded by critics and fans and suffered with a dismal Minnesota Twins team. Becoming more vocal, Blyleven was traded to the Texas Rangers on June 1 , 1976 . He pitched well with the Rangers, having a 2.76 ERA in his first season and throwing a No-hitter against the California Angels on September 22 , 1977 , just two weeks after being sidelined with a groin injury. On December 8 , 1977 , Blyleven and John Milner were traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates as part of the first four-team trade in Major League Baseball history. With the Pirates, he led the team in ERA, strikeouts and complete games in 1978 and helped them to a World Series victory in 1979 . However, Blyleven became disgruntled with the Pirates and threatened to retire during the victory. Blyleven went to the California Angels in 1989 and pitched a 2.73 ERA for a 17-5 record in his first season, but he missed the entire 1991 season following Rotator Cuff surgery. He came back in 1992 but was mostly unproductive, going 8-12 with a 4.74 ERA. He retired following that season with a career 287-250 record with 3,701 strikeouts (only thirteen other pitchers have at least 3,000 career strikeouts) and a 3.31 ERA. He tried out for the Twins again in the spring of 1993 but did not make the squad, making his retirement official. Blyleven is often considered to be the best eligible pitcher not yet in the Baseball Hall Of Fame ; his first year of eligibility was 1998 and if not elected, he will lose eligibility for the Writers' Vote if still not elected after the 2012 ballot. If that happens, he can still enter the Hall of Fame through the Veterans Committee. He is the only retired member of the 3000 strikeout club not in the Hall of Fame. Though he received only 17.55% of the vote for Hall of Fame admission in 1998 (first year of eligibility), by 2006 this total had increased to 53.33%. In 2007 Blyleven's total dipped to 47.7% (75% is the minimum required for admission to the Hall). Because of his long association with the club, it is believed that if elected to the Hall, Blyleven would enter as a Minnesota Twin. COMMENTATING CAREER In 1996 , Blyleven became a color commentator for the Twins. Early in the 2002 season, during a quiet portion of a Twins game, he circled a fan carrying a sign in the stands of the Metrodome on his Telestrator , and signs reading " Circle Me, Bert " (or variants thereupon) quickly became popular phenomenon at the stadium, continuing to the present. Blyleven's commentary is frequently risqué for a baseball broadcast, a fact which seems to cause play-by-play announcer Dick Bremer no small amount of discomfort (see below). Off-color comments Blyleven has been known to make off-color remarks during some Twins television broadcasts. Play-by-play announcer Dick Bremer frequently responds to these comments with silence or with an attempt to change the subject.
Circle Me, Bert Circle Me, Bert is a popular sign raised by fans of the Minnesota Twins . Fans hope that broadcaster Bert Blyleven will spot their sign and circle them on Television with his Telestrator . Use of Bert's "Circle Machine" is an honor rarely extended to his broadcast partner Dick Bremer . Blyleven did allow Bremer to use the telestrator on August 5, 2006. "For heaven's sake, let me circle my daughter," Dick pleaded. Blyleven then permitted Bremer to circle his daughter, who was in the crowd at the Kansas City Royals' Kauffman Stadium . Again, on August 16, 2006, Blyleven permitted Bremer to use the Circle Machine but was less than thrilled when Bremer drew a peanut shape around a fan's head. Fans have responded to these sorts of incidents by creating new signs for Bremer involving other shapes, including " Triangle Me, Dick" and " Rhombus Me, Dick." Starting in 2005, fans that are circled have a chance to win $100 in Minnesota State Lottery tickets as part of the promotion called Winner's Circle. Other comments
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CAREER STATISTICS SEE ALSO
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