Joe Coleman, No. 3 pick in the first MLB draft who pitched for Senators and Tigers, dies at 78

Joe Coleman, a lanky right-hander who won 142 games in 15 major league seasons and was an All-Star in 1972 with Detroit, died Wednesday morning, his son said. He was 78.

Casey Coleman said his father died in his sleep in Jamestown, Tennessee.

The son and father of major leaguers, Coleman became the No. 3 pick in baseball’s inaugural amateur draft in 1965 when he was selected by the Washington Senators. His father, also named Joe — who pitched in the majors from 1942-55 — negotiated a club-record $75,000 signing bonus.

The 6-foot-3, 175-pound Coleman became the first player to reach the majors after being drafted when he debuted for the Senators on Sept. 28, 1965. He threw a four-hitter to beat the Kansas City Athletics 6-1.

After the 1970 season, Coleman was traded to Detroit in a deal that sent Denny McLain to Washington. He enjoyed his greatest individual success with the Tigers, going 88-73 with a 3.82 ERA from 1971-76.

In 1971, he went 20-9 with a 3.15 ERA after recovering from a skull fracture that hospitalized him for two weeks. He was an All-Star the following season and made his only postseason appearance, striking out a then-playoff-record 14 batters to shut out the Oakland Athletics in Game 3 of the five-game American League championship series. The Tigers lost the series 3-2 and Oakland went on to beat Cincinnati in the World Series.

Coleman’s strikeout record stood for 25 years. Baltimore’s Mike Mussina fanned 15 in the 1997 ALCS against Cleveland.

Coleman also pitched for the Chicago Cubs, Athletics, Toronto Blue Jays, San Francisco Giants and Pittsburgh Pirates. In his final season, he made 10 relief appearance for the 1979 Pirates, who went on to win the World Series.

For his career, he was 142-135 with a 3.70 ERA and 1,728 strikeouts in 484 appearances (340 starts).

After retiring as a player, Coleman worked as a pitching and bullpen coach for the California and Anaheim Angels, St. Louis Cardinals and Seattle Mariners along with several minor-league clubs.

“He was a good man with a really good heart,” Casey Coleman said. “Everywhere I went in professional baseball, I met pitchers he coached. Many gave him credit for making it to the big leagues.”

Casey Coleman pitched in 58 major league games for the Cubs and Kansas City from 2010-14.

Born in Boston, Joe Coleman graduated from Natick High. He attended Ted Williams’ baseball camps, where he learned how to throw a curveball and slider.

In addition to Casey, Coleman is survived by his wife, Donna, daughter, Kristen, and three grandchildren.

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