Joe Pollack - M Club Hall of Fame - University of Minnesota Athletics

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Sep 10

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Sep 11

7:00 PM

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at Nebraska

Sep 12

3:00 PM

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vs Dayton vs. South Dakota State

Joe Pollack
Class of 2011
Baseball: 1963-65

A right-handed pitcher during a dominant stretch for the Golden Gopher baseball program, Joe Pollack had a stellar career as a hurler, highlighted by the 1964 season in which he was instrumental in leading Minnesota to its third national championship in eight years.

As a junior during that championship season, Pollack led the Gophers to a Big Ten title, going 4-1 in conference games and allowing just 17 hits in 42 innings pitched to establish a Big Ten record for fewest hits allowed in a season.

In regular season play that year, he was 7-2, but he was even more impressive in the postseason. In the Mideast Regional in Kent, Ohio, Pollack picked up a victory against host Kent State to help the Gophers earn a spot in their third College World Series.

At the CWS, Pollack earned a spot on the All-Tournament Team and etched his name into the record books, as he pitched three complete-game victories to lead Minnesota to the title. Pollack's third win of the 1964 CWS was a 5-1 decision in the championship game versus Missouri, which had entered the tournament as the nation's top-ranked team. He struck out seven and allowed just four hits in the game. He also went 2-for-4 with a run scored and a run batted in at the plate in that win.

Pollack is one of just seven pitchers in College World Series history to have won three games in just three appearances, and he's among three pitchers to have thrown three complete games in a single CWS. He's also tied for second all-time, having pitched 27 innings during that CWS. Pollack also batted .444 (4-for-9) with two runs scored, two runs batted in, and a double at that CWS.

Pollack finished his junior season with a record of 11-2 and a 1.75 earned run average. He made 14 starts, with 12 complete games, striking out 81 and allowing just 66 hits in 108 innings pitched. For his career, he was 20-4 with a 2.04 ERA. He earned three letters for the Gophers and was a First Team All-Big Ten selection during his standout junior campaign.

Pollack was drafted in the 26th Round of the first-ever Major League Baseball amateur draft following his senior season in 1965. He played four years in the Giants' farm system, advancing as far as Class AAA before an arm injury ended his career. He combined for a 21-18 record and a 3.17 ERA as a professional.