1973--when David Clyde went from teenage phenom to big league trouble: Texas high schooler's career was shortened when he went to the majors with no professional experience. (Turn Back The Clock).

DAVID CLYDE COULD HAVE been a more sympathetic figure. Instead, he became an example of what can happen to the potential of a young baseball player when the men with the money force unrealistic expectations on his arm.

Bob Short owned the Texas Rangers in 1973. The team was a flop in the Lone Star State two years after moving from Washington D.C. The Rangers had failed to attract more than 9,000 to a game all season.

That June, the franchise used its No. 1 overall pick in the amateur draft on Clyde, an 18-year-old Texas phenom with a sizzling fastball and name recognition.

Clyde was given a $125,000 signing bonus, setting a record for the largest bonus given to a draft pick. The money heaped more pressure on the ill-prepared teen.

The vast majority of even the most talented youngsters drafted into the major leagues receives some seasoning in the minor leagues before being called up to fulfill their dreams and the hopes of the organization that selected them.

Clyde was one of a few exceptions.

Before Clyde, there had been some ballplayers who went directly from high school to the major leagues, but few faced the pressure cooker Clyde did.