Whitey Ford
Whitey Ford was the greatest pitcher for the greatest dynasty in baseball history, pitching in the World Series in most of the seasons in his career and setting numerous World Series records along the way.
Ford first pitched for the Yankees in 1950, accumulating a 9-1 record and finishing as the runner-up in the Rookie of the Year voting. Ford pitched the decisive game 4 of the World Series that year against Philadelphia, pitching all but the final out without giving up an earned run as they took home a repeat championship.
He spent the next two years with the military in Korea, then returned to the team in 1953 having missed out on 2 championships along the way. He had an 18-6 record that year and won another championship, making it 5 in a row for the Yankees, a record that no team has reached since.
Ford was used sparingly by Casey Stengel throughout the 1950's, with the manager hoping to keep his arm well-rested for the playoffs each year. He was the top pitcher in the league in 1958, recording a 2.01 ERA and 7 shutouts, both best in the league, but didn't receive a single MVP or Cy Young vote for some reason.
Ford holds the record for most consecutive Game 1 World Series starts, with 4, a feat he accomplished twice in his career. The exception came in 1960, when he was held out until game 3, which turned out to cost the Yankees the title. He pitched complete game shutouts in games 3 and 6, but was unavailable to pitch in relief in game 7 and they lost the Series to Pittsburgh, costing Stengel his job.
With a new manager the next year, Ford became a superstar, reaching 200 strikeouts for the first time and recording 25 wins to go with only 4 losses. He received the Cy Young Award after the season, then kept it going in the World Series, pitching 14 shutout innings while giving up only 6 hits, which earned him the World Series MVP award as well.
After 4 more seasons and another championship, his shoulder gave out, and he was forced to retire. He is still the Yankees' all-time leader in pitching wins, and his .690 win percentage is the highest of any pitcher since 1900 with at least 150 wins. The Yankees win percentage in games he did not pitch during his career was .576, so his high percentage cannot be attributed to the team he played for.
He also had a career ERA of 2.75, second-lowest of any pitcher in the live-ball era, trailing only Clayton Kershaw currently. He recorded 10 victories in the World Series, more than any other pitcher ever, and pitched 33 consecutive scoreless World Series innings, another record that remains untouched, though Mariano Rivera has bested it as a postseason record. Though his career ended up being somewhat short, he was the best pitcher on the Yankees during their most dominant run, completely dominated in the World Series two years in a row, and belongs in this place among the best players to ever take the field.
Whitey Ford admitted to cheating in pretty much every game he ever played. Yet you don't put an asterisk next to his name. You don't care about cheating at all, stop pretending you do.
ReplyDelete