Fred Gladding

Who is Fred Gladding?

Fred Earl Gladding is a former professional baseball player. He was a right-handed pitcher over parts of thirteen seasons with the Detroit Tigers and Houston Astros. For his career, he compiled a 48–34 record and 109 saves in 450 appearances, all but one as a relief pitcher, with an 3.13 earned run average and 394 strikeouts. Gladding led the National League in saves with Houston in 1969, the first season the statistic was recognized.

In seven seasons with the Tigers, Gladding compiled a record of 26–11 and a 2.70 ERA in 217 games. His .703 winning percentage with the Tigers is the highest in the franchise's history for a pitcher appearing in at least 200 games for the team.

Gladding also has the distinction of having the lowest non-zero lifetime batting average in major league history. For his career he batted .016.