Andy Messersmith

John Alexander "Andy" Messersmith, born August 6, 1945, in Toms River, New Jersey, is an American former Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. Over a 12-year career he pitched for the California Angels (1968–72), the Los Angeles Dodgers (1973–75 and 1979), the Atlanta Braves (1976–77), and the New York Yankees (1978). As a member of the Dodgers, he appeared in the 1974 World Series.

The son of a doctor, also named John, Messersmith moved with his family from New Jersey to Orange County, California, at the age of five. He attended Woodrow Wilson High School in Long Beach before transferring to Western High School in Anaheim, where he graduated. As a senior in 1963, the 6-foot Messersmith posted a 14–1 regular-season won–loss record with a 0.75 earned run average and batted .344, the only year he played primarily as a pitcher in high school. He finished the season 15–2 or 16–2 overall, losing a close championship game, and recorded two no-hitters and a 17-strikeout game. Western placed second in the 1963 California Interscholastic Federation AAA playoffs.