On June 2, 1982, Juan almost threw the Padres' first no-hitter against the Chicago Cubs. A questionable umpiring call resulted in Scot Thompson being credited with a 2nd inning single on a ground ball that was not cleanly fielded by Tim Flannery.[citation needed] Juan kept the Cubs hitless over the next 7 innings and ended up with a complete game 1 hitter. The Padres won the game 3–1.[1]
In 1982 he was traded by the Padres along with first baseman-outfielder Broderick Perkins to the Cleveland Indians for pitcher Ed Whitson.
In 7 seasons Eichelberger had a 26–36 win–loss record, 125 games, 79 games started, 14 complete games, 1 shutout, 16 games finished, 603+1⁄3 innings pitched, 575 hits allowed, 312 runs allowed, 275 earned runs allowed, 50 home runs allowed, 283 walks allowed, 281 strikeouts, 8 hit batsmen, 25 wild pitches, 2,605 batters faced, 20 intentional walks, 14 balks and a 4.10 ERA. His career WHIP was 1.422.
Eichelberger was known for his unusual set position. While most pitchers would come to a standing position with their feet together and bring the ball and glove to their chest or chin, Eichelberger would keep his feet spread apart with his knees bent in a crouch and ball and glove at his belt.
Juan Eichelberger's son Jared followed his father into professional baseball, as a RHP originally drafted by the Chicago Cubs in 2001.[2] Juan is the founder and head instructor at Baseball Science, a baseball training program in San Diego, California.[3]
