Fazekas, Bill “Fuzzy”

 

Bill “Fuzzy” Fazekas – (1985)

 

BILL “FUZZY” FAZEKAS

From the time he began his meteoric ascent from the baseball sandlots to the high-school baseball, basketball and football fields to his signing by the Cleveland Indians as a $20,000 “bonus baby” in 1958, to his fence-busting exploits on area softball diamonds, Fazekas’ career has been a standard for excellence.

Just how fast Fazekas’ athletic star rose to its zenith and how brightly it glowed can be shown in what happened to the teen-ager in early 1958. In a period of less than two weeks, he established himself as an athlete to be reckoned with in the annals of Lorain sports.

On January 25, 1958, Fazekas powered the Lorain High Steelmen to a come-from-behind victory over Lorain St. Mary’s by scoring 39 points in the contest, breaking the school record of 38 points set two years before by current Lorain High Coach Dale Reichert. Ironically, that was the last game Fazekas played as a Steelman; he had graduated during the week. Just days later, Fazekas -described in The Lorain Journal as “Lorain’s most sought-after high school baseball player” — signed a three-year Class A contract with the Cleveland Indians.

Signed to what was believed to be a pact in the $20,000 range by Lorain-based scout Ed Molnar, Fazekas chose the Tribe over the New York Yankees, the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Chicago White Sox and the Detroit Tigers.

In May, 1957, the Fazekas arm propelled the Steelmen to the championship game of Ohio. He did it by hurling Lorain past Euclid on a three-hitter for a district championship. He came right back with a three-hitter — his third straight in the tourney — to pace Lorain past Columbus St. Charles in the state semi-final. Not wanting to risk injury to his young star, Lorain Coach Tony Misko decided not to allow Fazekas who had won seven straight, to pitch in the championship game. The Steelmen lost to Reading and a young fireballer by the name of Claude Osteen.

Fazekas also attracted a lot of attention in the summer of 1957 when he tossed a no-hit, 12-strikeout game against National Tube in a Class A contest at Oakwood Park. National Tube later went on to capture the national NABF crown. Fazekas was a star with the state Class D champion Lorain Youth Center teams of 1955 and 1956.

After a sore arm derailed Fazekas’ pro baseball career, he returned to the Lorain sandlots where he was the leading home-run hitter for such championship softball teams as Coach Lite Inn and Amvets. For the past 20 years, Fazekas’ bat has been recognized as one of the most potent in area softball circles.