Lynn Nolan Ryan Jr., nicknamed "the Ryan Express", is an American former professional baseball pitcher and sports executive. Over a record 27-year playing career in Major League Baseball (MLB), Ryan pitched for the New York Mets, California Angels, Houston Astros, and Texas Rangers. After his retirement in 1993, Ryan served as chief executive officer (CEO) of the Texas Rangers and an executive advisor to the Houston Astros. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1999, and is widely considered to be one of the greatest MLB pitchers of all time. Ryan was a right-handed pitcher who consistently threw pitches that were clocked above 100 miles per hour (161 km/h). He maintained this velocity throughout his pitching career. Ryan was also known to throw a devastating 12–6 curveball at exceptional velocity for a breaking ball.
Sanford Koufax is an American former baseball pitcher who played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball for the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers from 1955 to 1966. He has been hailed as one of the greatest pitchers in baseball history. Koufax joined the major leagues at age 19 and had never pitched a game in the minor leagues. As a result, the first half of his career was marred with inconsistency and control problems. During this period, he was a member of World Series championship teams in both Brooklyn and Los Angeles, though he did not appear in any of the Series wins despite pitching brilliantly in the 1959 series. After making adjustments prior to the 1961 season to improve his control and getting more regular playing time, Koufax quickly rose to become the most dominant pitcher in Major League Baseball before arthritis in his left elbow ended his career prematurely at age 30.
Joseph Franklin Niekro was an American Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. He was the younger brother of pitcher Phil Niekro, and the father of former Major League first baseman Lance Niekro. Niekro was born in Martins Ferry, Ohio, and attended Bridgeport High School in Bridgeport, Ohio, and West Liberty University in West Liberty, West Virginia. During a 22-year baseball career, he pitched from 1967 to 1988 for seven different teams, primarily for the Houston Astros.
Jerome Martin Koosman is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Mets, Minnesota Twins, Chicago White Sox, and Philadelphia Phillies between 1967 and 1985. Koosman is best known as a member of the Miracle Mets team that won the 1969 World Series.
The 1969 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1969 season. The 66th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the American League (AL) champion Baltimore Orioles and the National League (NL) champion New York Mets. The Mets won the series, four games to one, to accomplish one of the greatest upsets in Series history, as that particular Orioles team was considered to be one of the finest ever. The World Series win earned the team the sobriquets "The Amazin' Mets" and "The Miracle Mets". This was the first World Series of MLB's divisional era.
William Grady Little is a former manager in Major League Baseball, currently working in the front office of the Pittsburgh Pirates. He managed the Boston Red Sox from 2002 to 2003 and the Los Angeles Dodgers from 2006 to 2007. He was inducted into the Kinston, North Carolina, Professional Baseball Hall of Fame in 2001, Charlotte Baseball Hall of Fame 1985 and was inducted into the Hagerstown Suns Hall of Fame on April 13, 2009.
William Michael Stanton is a left-handed former relief pitcher who pitched for eight teams in Major League Baseball between 1989 and 2007. Stanton won the World Series in 1998, 1999, and 2000 as a member of the New York Yankees. As of 2019, Stanton hosts the pregame show for the Houston Astros on AT&T SportsNet Southwest.
Stanley Wilson Williams, nicknamed "Big Daddy" and the "Big Hurt", was an American baseball pitcher who played 14 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He stood 6 feet 5 inches (1.96 m) tall and weighed 230 pounds (100 kg) during an active career spent with the Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Yankees, Cleveland Indians, Minnesota Twins, St. Louis Cardinals and Boston Red Sox between 1958 and 1972. He batted and threw right-handed and was a two-time World Series champion. After his playing days, Williams was a pitching coach for another 14 seasons for five Major League teams.
Michael Thomas Morgan is a former right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball. He played for 12 different teams over 25 years, and is one of 31 players in baseball history to appear in Major League baseball games in four decades (1978–2002). Upon his retirement, Morgan held the major league record for most major league teams played for (12), but this record was surpassed by Octavio Dotel in 2012 and Edwin Jackson in 2018. Because of this, Morgan was nicknamed "The Nomad" by his teammates due to his constant travel from team to team.
Harry Arthur "Cookie" Lavagetto was an American professional baseball player, coach, and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a third baseman from 1934 to 1947.
Patrick Paul Zachry is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He pitched in Major League Baseball from 1976 to 1985. Zachry was awarded the Major League Baseball Rookie of the Year Award for his play in the National League in 1976, but he is likely best remembered as one of the players the Cincinnati Reds sent to the New York Mets for Tom Seaver in one of the infamous Mets trades now referred to as the "Midnight Massacre".
Michael Augustine Torrez is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) starting pitcher. In an 18-season career, he pitched for the St. Louis Cardinals (1967–1971), Montreal Expos (1971–1974), Baltimore Orioles (1975), Oakland Athletics, New York Yankees (1977), Boston Red Sox (1978–1982), and New York Mets (1983–1984). As a member of the Yankees, he won two games of the 1977 World Series over the Los Angeles Dodgers. He batted and threw right-handed.
Ronald Gene Davis is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played 11 years from 1978 to 1988. Davis played for the New York Yankees and Minnesota Twins of the American League and the Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Dodgers, and San Francisco Giants of the National League. He was selected to the American League All-Star team in 1981.
Rudolph May, Jr. is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a left-handed pitcher in 1965 and from 1969 to 1983 for the California Angels, New York Yankees, Baltimore Orioles and Montreal Expos. Early in his career, May had a live fastball, but was known best for his "sharp-breaking curve." May was the 1980 American League ERA leader.
John Joseph Savage is an American former Major League Baseball pitcher who played for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1987 and the Minnesota Twins in 1990. He was born on April 22, 1964, in Louisville, Kentucky. He attended St. Xavier High School in Louisville, and he went on to attend the University of Kentucky. He threw and batted right-handed.
Joseph Anthony Foy was an American professional baseball player who played third base in Major League Baseball.
Robert Lane "Bob" Miller was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher from 1957 to 1974. Miller played for three World Series champions: the 1963 Los Angeles Dodgers, 1965 Los Angeles Dodgers and the 1971 Pittsburgh Pirates—five league champions and four division winners, as well as for four teams that lost 100 or more games in a season.
The 1981 Minnesota Twins finished a combined 41–68, seventh in the American League West. In the strike split season, the Twins were 17–39, seventh place in the first half and 24–29, fourth place in the second half. 469,090 fans attended Twins games, the lowest total in the American League. It was also their 21st and final season at Metropolitan Stadium, before moving their home games to the Metrodome the next season. The franchise would not play another outdoor home game until 2010, when Target Field opened.
The 1980 Major League Baseball season concluded with the Philadelphia Phillies winning their first World Series championship.
The 1965 Major League Baseball season was contested from April 12 to October 14, 1965. The Los Angeles Dodgers and Minnesota Twins were the regular season champions of the National League and American League, respectively. The Dodgers then defeated the Twins in the World Series, four games to three.
