It’s always a fun question to ask among friends, “Who would
you give the ball to for one game if your life depended on it?” or “If the
bases were loaded and your life was on the line, who would you want up?” Names
such as Walter Johnson, Bob Gibson, Christy Mathewson, Satchel Paige, and more
recently Randy Johnson would come up for pitchers. Hitters like Babe Ruth, Rogers
Hornsby, Ted Williams, or newly David Ortiz would be in the conversation. Some
would have better arguments than others, regardless of what decade they came
from. The stats were always there but outside factors such as fearlessness, or
clutch greatness were the influences that would end those conversations.
The All-Century team was named at Fenway Park during the
2000 All-Star game, home of perhaps the greatest hitter of all time, Ted
Williams. Many living legends arrived from the outfield wall just like players
appearing the corn stock in “Field of Dreams.” For nearly two decades, Williams
punished pitchers in Boston. His six batting titles are just a portion of his
awards that attributes to his hall of fame career. The great hitter retired in 1960. With the
greatest hitter hanging them up, the next 10 of 12 years fear switched from one
lefty to another. However, this one made his career on the mound.
Sandy Koufax
As unconventional as they come, Koufax would become
dominant, but it didn’t happen overnight. Sandy would throw as hard as he could
on every pitch and for five seasons it did not work in his favor, almost
causing him to quit the game after the 1960 season where he finished 8-13. He
threw his glove and cleats in the trash, only to be recovered by the clubhouse
manager. Koufax would come back for a ’61 season, but not until he took the
winter to get into the best shape of his life. Spring Training came around and
Sandy would still be rearing back and firing with all he’s got. During a “B
team” game, Dodgers’ catcher Norm Sherry gave Koufax some advice which some say
was the turning point in his career. A simple quote of “Don’t throw so hard.”
After walking in the bases loaded, Koufax threw a shut out the next seven
innings during that ballgame. A new
Koufax was created. In that 1961 campaign, Koufax would break the National League
strikeout record of 267 held by the great Christy Mathewson; A record that
stood for 58 years.
We would go on to learn a lot more about the southpaw in 1962. During this season, Koufax would throw his first no-hitter and would drop his season ERA below 3.00 for the first time in his career. However, his season was hampered by a popped artery in his palm. He was prone to injuries, but he was just getting better. The next four years would be his last as he would retire at the age of 30, but it is arguably the greatest four consecutive years ever assembled by any player or pitcher.
Major League Baseball expanded the strike zone in 1963
switching the advantage from the hitters to the pitchers overnight. Koufax now
in more control of his pitching than ever would begin his dynasty and reign of
the Cy Young award. Sandy threw his second career no-hitter against the Giants
on May 11TH outdueling fellow hall of fame pitcher Juan Marichal. In
the 1963 World Series Koufax beat Whitey Ford and the Yankees 5-2 in game one,
striking out 15 batters including the first five of the game. He would take the mound in game four and
close the sweep to capture the World Series championship. Koufax finished the
season 25-5 with a 1.88 ERA and setting a new high in strikeouts with 306,
giving him his first pitching triple crown along with the Cy Young and the 1963
MVP award. The only major league category Koufax seemed not to lead in was
complete games. He had 11 while Bob Gibson recorded 13.
1964 was another great year for Sandy although an ailing
elbow would cause him to miss starts. A 19-5 with a 1.74 ERA was still amongst
the top of the list. The wing would not get any better going into the 1965
season. After pitching a complete spring training game in late March, Koufax
woke up to see a black and blue arm, a sign of serious hemorrhaging. He would
be told that pitching would be nearly impossible and soon would lose complete
feeling in his arm. Koufax would start
taking medication, applying creams, and sticking his arm in ice baths after
every game. Somehow that season, Sandy threw more innings than any other
season, recording a lead 335.2 innings pitched.
Then on September 9th,
Koufax would become the 6th pitcher in modern-day baseball to throw
a perfect game. The Dodgers would face the Minnesota Twins in the World Series
and Koufax would be asked to pitch in games two, five and seven. He won all three games he started including
throwing complete games in game five and seven to bring the World Series trophy
back to Los Angeles along with another Cy Young and World Series MVP
award. His season ending stats were a
record of 26-8 with a 2.04 ERA and a record setting 382 strikeouts giving him
yet another pitching triple crown.
It’s always a good feeling to end on a high note, and that’s
exactly what Sandy Koufax did, even with all the arm pain, holding out with
teammate Don Drysdale during contract talks, and even starring in a movie,
Koufax would pitch one more season. 1966 would be his final campaign and he
gave it all he got. Koufax would set a career high in wins with 27, again lead
the league in ERA with a 1.73 and record a league leading 317 strikeouts,
giving him his 3rd pitching Triple Crown and Cy Young award. The Dodgers once again made it back to the
World Series, only to get swept by Jim Palmer and the Baltimore Orioles.
In four trips to the World Series with the Dodgers, Sandy
Koufax recorded a 4-3 record in 57 innings with a 0.95 ERA including four
complete games and two shutouts. In his
12-season career, Koufax had a 165–87 record with a 2.76 ERA, 2,396 strikeouts,
137 complete games, and 40 shutouts. He was the first pitcher to average fewer
than seven hits allowed per nine innings
pitched in his career (6.79) and to strike out more than nine
batters (9.28) per nine innings pitched in his career. He also
became the 2nd pitcher in baseball history to have two games with 18 or more
strikeouts, and the first to have eight games with 15 or more strikeouts. For
10 years, he was the best pitcher in the league. He will go down as the
greatest left handed pitcher of all time.
