Rob Dibble

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Rob Dibble pitching for the Cincinnati Reds in 1991

Robert Keith Dibble (born January 24, 1964 in Bridgeport, Connecticut) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. A promising young pitcher with a blazing fastball that often exceeded 99 MPH, he was drafted by the Cincinnati Reds in the first round of the 1983 amateur draft, and made his debut with the Reds on June 29, 1988.

On June 4, 1989, Dibble struck out three batters on nine pitches in the eighth inning of a 5-3 win over the San Diego Padres. Dibble became the 14th National League pitcher and the 22nd pitcher in Major League history to accomplish the nine-strike/three-strikeout half-inning.

He also pitched for the Chicago White Sox and Milwaukee Brewers (both in 1995). He was an MLB All-Star in 1990 and 1991, and was the 1990 NLCS Most Valuable Player (along with Randy Myers). He required surgery to his pitching arm in 1994, and missed the entire season as a result. Dibble retired after the 1995 season.

[edit] Bad Boy antics

During his career Dibble often caused a great deal of problems for his teams. After one game he threw a baseball into the outfield seats at Cincinnati and struck a woman in the stands, fracturing her forearm. He was also involved in a brawl in 1991 with Astros shortstop Eric Yelding. That same season he was caught attempting to throw a baseball into the back of Cubs outfielder Doug Dascenzo as he ran down the first base line. Finally, Dibble was involved in a nasty locker room brawl with Reds manager Lou Piniella after a game. During the fight Lou Piniella said to Dibble, "You don't want to be treated like a man!"

[edit] Career after playing

In 1998, Dibble joined ESPN as a baseball analyst, working mostly on the radio show hosted by Dan Patrick. As of 2005, Dibble is working on The Best Damn Sports Show Period as a co-host. Dibble, once called a "Nasty Boy" along with other Reds relief pitchers Randy Myers and Norm Charlton, also spends time as a co-host/analyst of The Show on XM Radio. The Show, with co-host Kevin Kennedy, is a Monday-Friday 3 p.m.-6 p.m. (Eastern time) baseball show (on XM Channel 175) that discusses current events in the sport.