David Francis Dravecky (born February 14, 1956) is an American former professional baseball player, a motivational speaker, and an author.

[1] Dravecky represented the Padres at the 1983 All-Star Game, pitching two scoreless innings and striking out George Brett.

In the spring of 1984, Show recruited Dravecky and Thurmond to the John Birch Society, a far-right US political organization.

The three players were the subjects of wide reporting after they distributed Birch literature from a booth at the June 1984 Del Mar Fair.

[13] Used as a starter and as a reliever, Dravecky finished the season with a 9-8 record, an earned run average of 2.93, and eight saves.

[15] On July 4, 1987, the San Francisco Giants acquired Dravecky, pitcher Craig Lefferts, and third baseman Kevin Mitchell from the San Diego Padres for pitchers Keith Comstock, Mark Davis, and Mark Grant and third baseman Chris Brown for their pennant drive.

While with the Giants, Dravecky and teammates Scott Garrelts, Atlee Hammaker, and Jeff Brantley became known as the "God Squad" because of their strong Christian faith.

Foregoing the hard-partying lifestyle of many of their teammates, they preferred to hold Bible studies in their hotel rooms while on the road.

[20][21][22] On October 7, 1988, he underwent a surgical procedure in which half of the deltoid muscle in his left arm was removed and his humerus bone was frozen in an effort to eliminate all of the cancerous cells.

Dravecky collapsed on the mound; he had suffered a clean break midway between his shoulder and elbow, ending his season.

On October 9, 1989,[30] Dravecky's left arm was broken a second time when he was running out to the mound to celebrate[31] the Giants' 3-2 victory in Game Five.

[33] After a doctor found a lump in Dravecky's left arm, he opted to retire from baseball on November 13, 1989 to avoid risking further injury.

[8] In 2021, indie-folk artist Cousin Wolf released a song entitled "Dave Dravecky" as part of an album called "Nine Innings.