Benny Joe Edelen was touted as one of the all-time great high school athletes in the state of Oklahoma. A recipient of the Jim Thorpe award, Joe excelled in basketball and baseball receiving All-State and All-America honors in both sports. Joe is a former Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...

 relief pitcher

Relief pitcher

A relief pitcher or reliever is a baseball or softball pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed due to injury, ineffectiveness, fatigue, ejection, or for other strategic reasons, such as being substituted by a pinch hitter...

 who pitched for the St. Louis Cardinals

St. Louis Cardinals

The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...

 and Cincinnati Reds

Cincinnati Reds

The Cincinnati Reds are a Major League Baseball team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. They are members of the National League Central Division. The club was established in 1882 as a charter member of the American Association and joined the National League in 1890....

. The Cardinals drafted him in the 1st round (12th pick) of the 1973 amateur draft and he debuted for them on April 18, 1981 against his future team, the Reds. During the 1981 season he was traded by the Cardinals with Neil Fiala

Neil Fiala

Neil Stephen Fiala is a former Major League Baseball player. He played in five games in the majors in September , all as a pinch hitter. He pinch-hit three times for the St...

 to the Reds for Doug Bair

Doug Bair

Charles Douglas Bair is a right-handed former Major League Baseball pitcher. He played all or part of fifteen seasons in the majors, from until , for seven different teams...

. His Major League career was brief as he pitched his final game the next year.He know teaches art and coaches golf at Washington Oklahoma.

Career statistics

G	W	L	ERA	SO	BB
27	2	0	6.75	26	11

External links