Former Phillies pitcher Tom Underwood dies at 56

Former Phillies lefthander Tom Underwood died Monday of pancreatic cancer, according to his hometown newspaper, the Kokomo (Ind.) Tribune.

He was 56. He died in West Palm Beach, Fla., according to the paper.

The Phillies selected Underwood with the 27th overall pick in the 1972 draft. He spent 1973 and part of '74 in the minor leagues before being promoted to the Phillies. He told the Tribune that was the greatest moment of his baseball career.

Underwood was 10-5 with a 3.52 earned run average for the 1976 NL East champion Phillies. He was part of the trade in June 1977 that brought Bake McBride from the Cardinals to the Phillies.

Underwood pitched for the Phillies from 1974 to '77. He went 28-20, with a 4.02 ERA, striking out 245 batters and walking 170. He wore uniform number 34 with the Phils.

Underwood pitched for six teams over parts of 11 seasons, finishing with an 86-87 record and 3.89 ERA. *