Pacella appeared in three games for the Mets during the 1977 season, all out of the bullpen, pitching four innings of shutout ball in his Major League debut at the age of 20.
He would spend all of 1978 in the Minor Leagues, going 8-14 with an earned run average at 4.26, never getting the call up to the Majors.
That would end up being the pattern for the rest of his career, which would last through the 1988 season, as he would come up, get some games in, then spend the next season in the Minors.
He’d spend most of 1979 in the Minors, with only four games in the Big Leagues, then getting his one truly active season as a Major League pitcher in 1980 when he made 32 appearances, 15 of them starts, going 3-4 for the Mets with an ERA at 5.14.
But again, he would spend 1981 in the Minors, then make it all the way back in 1982, now as a member of the New York Yankees and later the Minnesota Twins for 24 appearances, going 1-3 combined.
After another full year in the Minors in 1983 in the Baltimore system, he’d make it back in 1984, appearing in six games for the Orioles, going 0-1 with a 6.75 ERA over 14.2 innings.
Well, you guessed it, another full season in the Minors in 1985, now in the Detroit system, he’d make it back for what would be the final five appearances of his career, not factoring in a decision for the Tigers while sporting an ERA at 4.09 in eleven innings of work.
He’d spend the 1987 and 1988 seasons in the Minor Leagues for no less than three organizations, but would then retire from pro ball, still only 31 years of age.
All told, Pacella would finish his Big League career with a record of 4-10, with an earned run average of 5.73 over 74 appearances and 191.2 innings pitched between 1977 and 1986, collecting three saves along the way.
