Carl Michael Yastrzemski Sr., nicknamed "Yaz", is an American former professional baseball player who played his entire career with the Boston Red Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB). He started his career primarily as a left fielder, but also played 33 games as a third baseman. Later in his career, he was mainly a first baseman and designated hitter.
Robert Moses "Lefty" Grove was an American professional baseball pitcher. After having success in the minor leagues during the early 1920s, Grove became a star in Major League Baseball with the American League's Philadelphia Athletics and Boston Red Sox. One of the greatest pitchers in history, Grove led the American League in wins in four separate seasons, in strikeouts seven consecutive seasons, and had the league's lowest earned run average a record nine times. Over the course of the three years from 1929 to 1931, he twice won the pitcher's Triple Crown, leading the league in wins, strikeouts, and ERA, while amassing a 79–15 record and leading the Athletics to three straight AL championships. Overall, Grove won 300 games in his 17-year MLB career. He was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1947.
Gregory Alan Maddux, also known as "Mad Dog" and "the Professor," is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 23 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), primarily with the Atlanta Braves and Chicago Cubs. He won the 1995 World Series with the Braves over the Cleveland Indians. Maddux was the first pitcher in MLB history to win the Cy Young Award four consecutive years (1992–1995), matched by only one other pitcher, Randy Johnson. During those four seasons, Maddux had a 75–29 record with a 1.98 earned run average (ERA), while allowing less than one baserunner per inning.
In baseball, a player earns a Triple Crown when he leads a league in three specific statistical categories in the same season. The term "Triple Crown" generally refers to the batting achievement of leading a league in batting average, home runs, and runs batted in (RBI) over the same season. The term "Pitching Triple Crown" refers to the pitching achievement of leading a league in wins, strikeouts, and earned run average (ERA).
Robert Gibson, nicknamed "Gibby" and "Hoot", was an American baseball pitcher in Major League Baseball who played his entire career for the St. Louis Cardinals from 1959 to 1975. Known for his fiercely competitive nature, Gibson tallied 251 wins, 3,117 strikeouts, and a 2.91 earned run average. A nine-time All-Star and two-time World Series Champion, he won two Cy Young Awards and the 1968 National League Most Valuable Player Award.
Warren Edward Spahn was an American professional baseball pitcher who played 21 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). A left-handed pitcher, Spahn played in 1942 and then from 1946 until 1965, most notably for the Boston Braves, who became the Milwaukee Braves after the team moved west before the 1953 season. His baseball career was interrupted by his military service in the United States Army during World War II.
Charles Gardner Radbourn, nicknamed "Old Hoss", was an American professional baseball pitcher who played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played for Buffalo (1880), Providence (1881–1885), Boston (1886–1889), Boston (1890), and Cincinnati (1891).
John Dwight Chesbro was an American professional baseball pitcher. Nicknamed "Happy Jack", Chesbro played for the Pittsburgh Pirates (1899–1902), the New York Highlanders (1903–1909), and the Boston Red Sox (1909) of Major League Baseball (MLB). Chesbro finished his career with a 198–132 win–loss record, a 2.68 earned run average, and 1,265 strikeouts. His 41 wins during the 1904 season remains an American League record. Though some pitchers have won more games in some seasons prior to 1901, historians demarcating 1901 as the beginning of 'modern-era' major league baseball refer to and credit Jack Chesbro and his 1904 win-total as the modern era major league record and its holder. Some view Chesbro's 41 wins in a season as an unbreakable record.
John Gibson Clarkson was an American Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. He played from 1882 to 1894. Born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Clarkson played for the Worcester Ruby Legs (1882), Chicago White Stockings (1884–1887), Boston Beaneaters (1888–1892), and Cleveland Spiders (1892–1894). Clarkson pitched the first known immaculate inning in MLB history on June 4, 1889 vs the Philadelphia Quakers in the 3rd inning.
Early Wynn Jr., nicknamed "Gus", was an American professional baseball right-handed pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Washington Senators, Cleveland Indians, and Chicago White Sox, during his 23-year MLB career. Wynn was identified as one of the most intimidating pitchers in the game, having combined his powerful fastball with a hard attitude toward batters. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972.
Lee Arthur Smith is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 18 years in Major League Baseball (MLB) for eight teams. Serving mostly as a relief pitcher during his career, he was a dominant closer, was the first pitcher to reach 400 saves, and held the major league record for career saves from 1993 until 2006, when Trevor Hoffman passed his total of 478. He was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame as part of the class of 2019 by the Today's Game Era Committee.
Edward Augustine Walsh was an American pitcher and manager in Major League Baseball, nicknamed "Big Ed". From 1906 to 1912, he had several seasons where he was one of the best pitchers in baseball. Walsh holds the record for lowest career earned run average, 1.82. He is one of two modern (post-1901) pitchers to win 40 or more games in a single season, and the last pitcher to do so. He is the last pitcher from any team to throw more than 400 innings in a single season, a feat he accomplished in 1907 and 1908. Though injuries shortened his career, he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1946.
Selva Lewis Burdette, Jr. was an American right-handed starting pitcher in Major League Baseball who played primarily for the Boston / Milwaukee Braves. The team's top right-hander during its years in Milwaukee, he was the Most Valuable Player of the 1957 World Series, leading the franchise to its first championship in 43 years, and the only title in Milwaukee history. An outstanding control pitcher, his career average of 1.84 walks per nine innings pitched places him behind only Robin Roberts (1.73), Greg Maddux (1.80), Carl Hubbell, (1.82) and Juan Marichal (1.82) among pitchers with at least 3,000 innings since 1920.
Jonathan Ray Lieber is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He stands 6 feet 2 inches (1.88 m) tall and weighs 240 pounds (110 kg). He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates (1994–1998), Chicago Cubs, New York Yankees (2004), and Philadelphia Phillies (2005–2007). He batted left-handed and threw right-handed, and utilized a fastball, a slider, and a changeup for his pitches. In a 14-season career, Lieber compiled a 131–124 record with 1,553 strikeouts and a 4.27 ERA in 2,198 innings pitched.
John Stanley Sanford was an American professional baseball pitcher who played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). Sanford was notable for the meteoric start to his career when, he led the National League with 188 strikeouts as a 28-year-old rookie for the Philadelphia Phillies in 1957. He later became a 20-game-winner and made his only World Series appearance as a member of the San Francisco Giants. He also played for the California Angels and the Kansas City Athletics.
Rickey Eugene Reuschel is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher from 1972 to 1991, winning 214 games with a career 3.37 ERA. His nickname was "Big Daddy" because his speed belied his portly physique. He was known for his deceptive style of pitching, which kept hitters off balance by constantly varying the speeds of his pitches.
Kenton Charles Tekulve, nicknamed "Teke", is an American former professional baseball right-handed relief pitcher who played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), primarily for the Pittsburgh Pirates. He also played for the Philadelphia Phillies and Cincinnati Reds. Pitching with an unusual submarine delivery, Tekulve was known as a workhorse relief pitcher who holds several records for number of games pitched and innings pitched.
Lawrence J. Corcoran was an American professional baseball player. He pitched for four different major-league teams from 1880 to 1887.
Earl Alonzo Moore was an American professional baseball pitcher who had a 14-year career in Major League Baseball.
The 1974 Los Angeles Dodgers won the National League West by four games over the Cincinnati Reds, then beat the Pittsburgh Pirates in the NLCS before losing to the Oakland Athletics in the World Series.
