At the time Koufax was only the sixth pitcher of the modern era to throw a perfect game. Mays' home run came on Spahn's 201st pitch. The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional". And it came off the top of his head, at a moment when, like the man whose feat he was describing, he knew he had to be at the top of his game. Koufax struck out 14 of 27 batters; Hendley struck out three. Ever so slightly flawed by Johnson' flare, the Hendley-Koufax game need not be bronzed. Many historical player head shots courtesy of David Davis. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously. Click for copy. Marichal had thrown 227. Sandy Koufax, the L.A. Dodgers star pitcher, soaking his arm in a whirlpool after a game in April 1964. Jack Doyle, Date Posted: 10 July 2010 Koufax was obviously one of the greatest pitchers in MLB history, but his breaking balls were what was so devastating. won't be missed at all. ". Sandy Koufax, May 1965 "Sport" magazine story about his "toughest batters." We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data. ", The loss was readily rationalized by the Cubs pitcher: "If you have to lose a game, he was the guy you were proud to lose to," Hendley said. Clean Sweep: The 1963 World Series Sandy Koufax, Sports Illustrated cover, March 4, 1963. And on the worst days he had to shave with his right hand. Thus began, in June of 1955,theprofessional baseball career of Sandy Koufax with the Brooklyn Dodgers. But this pinnacle performance of pitching wouldn't be a prominent part of our past if this oft-times pedestrian pitcher had permitted one more hit in his extraordinary eight innings. Frank Howard homered into the second deck down the left-field line, a feat that went unmatched at Dodger Stadium for years. 2 How fast did Sandy Koufax throw a baseball? Mays' home run came on Spahn's 201st pitch. Other pitching performance have dazzled us over the years. "What a nice man! This forced the Dodgers to keep him on the major league roster for at least two years before he could be sent to the minors. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. Dodger team physician Robert Kerlan diagnosed him with traumatic arthritis. s Duels of All Time (Part III (Age 30-276d) Juan Marichal and Warren Spahn became Hall of Famers, and they already had developed uncommon prestige within the game by July 2, 1963, when their Giants and Braves opposed each other in San Francisco. Yankee starter Al Downing, who would take the loss, went only five innings and charged with three runs. Photo, Ben Olender / L.A. Times. He was also named the National Leagues Most Valuable Player. After playing in only 12 seasons, Koufax became the youngest player inducted to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972. Sandy Koufax with Ed Linn, Sandy Koufax, New York: Viking Press, August 30, 1966, 299 pp. . . amzn_assoc_placement = "adunit0"; Did Sandy Koufax Ever Hit A Home Run | StatMuse A crowd of 29,797 was on hand as Koufax took the mound. And seven of the 22, including Koufax's, have been decided by 1-0 scores. Cy Young Award winner. Consider that great fastball pitchers are tiny increments ahead of one another, and that the great Koufax was never timed faster than 93.2; the notion that Feller threw more than 7 mph faster than Ryan is dazzling. He was the first iconic sports figure to emerge in Southern California after Major League Baseball arrived on the West Coast. "I was average.". Gary Kaufman, Vin Scully, Salon.com, Tuesday, October 12, 1999. Koufax struck out the side. For our purposes today, though, the dazzling Koufax is merely half the story. Everyone knew he was pitching with traumatic arthritis in his left elbow, but how bad could it be when he pitched like that? Koufax would finish a very close second to Pittsburgh hitter, Roberto Clemente, in the National League voting that year for the regular season Most Valuable Player. Gibson vs. Sandy Koufax: Grand game for Charlie James He then scored a moment later on Willie Davis' sacrifice fly. But the Dodgers swept the three games from the Cardinals to move four games ahead with nine to play; a 41 win over the Mets clinched the pennant in the season's 158th game. Sandy Koufax & Mickey Mantle His column ended thusly: "Today he turns 75. [1][2] Seven more such meetings have followed with three more times each in the World Series and the NBA Finals, and the 2014 Stanley Cup Finals.[2]. Phone: 602.496.1460 . "And I came out a loser. His career resum includes a 48-52 record, 3.97 ERA, 25 complete games, six shutouts. "We both gave up two runs, we both allowed five hits. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); 1987: Year of the Smiths, Ozzie and J.T., forCardinals, Harry Parker: Best selection of Cardinals firstdraft. "He was great," Hendley said. Los Angeles Times opening-day welcome to the new L.A. Dodgers, April 18, 1958. amzn_assoc_region = "US"; Lasorda w The next delivery was high and away. "In the latter part of the game, [Sandy] was awesome," Hendley said. What made the game such a seductive piece of history was, of course, Koufax's involvement. amzn_assoc_tracking_id = "thpohidill-20"; But the losing pitcher in each of the seven instances surrendered at least two more hits than Hendley. amzn_assoc_title = "Related Reading"; The big league game has given us 22 other perfectos, 15 since Koufax produced his. Triple Crowns in pitching have been reached more recently in 2006 by Johan Santana of the Minnesota Twins in the American League, and in 2007 by Jake Peavy of the San Diego Padres of the National League. However, that day happened to be Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the year in the Jewish religion. Years later, James told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, You couldnt hit Koufaxs 100 mph fastball, but if the ball started at the knees, it would rise to belt high by the time it got to the plate. And Koufax admitted in one interview to having a good bit of trouble with Roberto Clemente of the Pittsburgh Pirates, especially in 1963. Many thanks to him. A 1955 Sandy Koufax rookie year card by the Topps card company, said to be a desirable card among collectors. At the University of Cincinnati he became a walk-on freshman basketball player. Sabermetricians put little stock in pitchers' victories these days. Frank Finch, Koufax, Drysdale Spurn Record Offer by Dodgers, Los Angeles Times, February 25, 1966, p. B-1. Much of the play-by-play, game results, and transaction information both shown and used to create certain data sets was obtained free of charge from and is copyrighted by RetroSheet. Sandy Koufax hit 1 solo homers, 0 with a single runner on base, 1 with two men on base, and 0 grand slams. I was merely trying to meet the ball and was astonished to see it land on the roof in right field, James said.
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