Ed Spiezio

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Edward Wayne Spiezio (born October 31, 1941 in Joliet, Illinois) is a former third baseman in Major League Baseball who played for the World Series-winning 1967 St. Louis Cardinals team. He also played for the San Diego Padres and the Chicago White Sox.

He had the first hit, (a home run), and scored the first run in San Diego Padres history. This took place on April 8, 1969, in the bottom of the 5th against Houston Astros right-hander Don Wilson.

Other career highlights include:

a pinch-hit single in World Series Game # 5 against Detroit Tigers left-hander Mickey Lolich (October 7, 1968)
a pair of 4-hit games...four singles vs. the Cincinnati Reds (April 26, 1969) and three singles and a double vs. the Reds on the very next day
nineteen three-hit games...the most impressive being two home runs and a single vs. the Montreal Expos (June 10, 1969)
a pair of 4-RBI games...a three-run home run and an RBI single vs. the Pittsburgh Pirates (August 16, 1970) and a grand slam vs. the Chicago Cubs (August 18, 1970)
hit a combined .348 (16-for-46) against Hall of Famers Jim Bunning, Rollie Fingers, and Tom Seaver

Ed Spiezio's best season came in 1970 for the Padres, when he hit .285 with 12 home runs and 42 run batted in. For his career, he batted .238 with 39 HR, 174 RBI, and 126 runs scored in 554 games.

His son, Scott Spiezio, is also a Major League player and is seeing regular time with the St. Louis Cardinals. The two are the third father-son tandem in Cardinals' history. Both of the Spiezios have won World Championships with the St. Louis Cardinals (Ed in 1967, Scott in 2006).