Today's post features profiles of three baseball pitchers under six feet in height.
Bobby Shantz was 5'6" tall and weighed 140 pounds.
He began his Major League career in 1949 with the Philadelphia Athletics and was with the A's when the club moved to Kansas City in 1955.
After the 1955 season, however, Shantz pitched for the Toronto Maple Leafs, followed by stints with the New York Yankees, Pittsburgh Pirates, Houston Colt 45's, St. Louis Cardinals, Chicago Cubs, and Philadelphia Phillies.
Shantz won 119 games in 16 seasons with a 3.38 lifetime E.R.A.
His best year was in 1952 when he posted a 24-7 record with a 2.48 E.R.A. He was named Pitcher of the Year by The Sporting News as well as Most Valuable Player in the American League. He also appeared in 3 All-Star Games and won 8 Gold Gloves.
Bobby Shantz retired from baseball in 1964 at the age of 38.
Harvey Haddix was 5'9" tall and weighed 170 pounds.
He began his Major League career in 1952 with the St. Louis Cardinals at the age of 26.
After four years with the Cardinals, Haddix went on to play for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Philadelphia Phillies, Cincinnati Reds, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Baltimore Orioles.
Haddix won 136 games in 14 years while posting a 3.63 career E.R.A. His best year was in 1953 with the Cardinals when he was 20-9 with a 3.06 E.R.A. He was an All-Star 3 times and won 3 Gold Gloves. He retired from baseball in 1965 at the age of 39.
But the legacy of Harvey Haddix is more about one of the saddest stories in baseball lore.
On May 26, 1959, at County Stadium in Milwaukee, when Haddix was with the Pirates, he pitched a perfect game against the Braves through 12 innings, only to lose the game, 1-0, in the 13th inning.
In the bottom of the 13th, Pirate third baseball Don Hoak booted a grounder by Felix Mantilla, enabling the runner to reach first baseball. Eddie Mathews sacrificed Mantilla to second with a bunt, Hank Aaron was intentionally walked, and Joe Adcock belted a bouncer off the outfield wall, and Mantilla scooted home with the winning run. Haddix lost the perfect game as well as a chance to claim a no-hitter.
Bobby Shantz was 5'6" tall and weighed 140 pounds.
He began his Major League career in 1949 with the Philadelphia Athletics and was with the A's when the club moved to Kansas City in 1955.
After the 1955 season, however, Shantz pitched for the Toronto Maple Leafs, followed by stints with the New York Yankees, Pittsburgh Pirates, Houston Colt 45's, St. Louis Cardinals, Chicago Cubs, and Philadelphia Phillies.
Shantz won 119 games in 16 seasons with a 3.38 lifetime E.R.A.
His best year was in 1952 when he posted a 24-7 record with a 2.48 E.R.A. He was named Pitcher of the Year by The Sporting News as well as Most Valuable Player in the American League. He also appeared in 3 All-Star Games and won 8 Gold Gloves.
Bobby Shantz retired from baseball in 1964 at the age of 38.
*****
Harvey Haddix was 5'9" tall and weighed 170 pounds.
He began his Major League career in 1952 with the St. Louis Cardinals at the age of 26.
After four years with the Cardinals, Haddix went on to play for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Philadelphia Phillies, Cincinnati Reds, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Baltimore Orioles.
Haddix won 136 games in 14 years while posting a 3.63 career E.R.A. His best year was in 1953 with the Cardinals when he was 20-9 with a 3.06 E.R.A. He was an All-Star 3 times and won 3 Gold Gloves. He retired from baseball in 1965 at the age of 39.
But the legacy of Harvey Haddix is more about one of the saddest stories in baseball lore.
On May 26, 1959, at County Stadium in Milwaukee, when Haddix was with the Pirates, he pitched a perfect game against the Braves through 12 innings, only to lose the game, 1-0, in the 13th inning.
In the bottom of the 13th, Pirate third baseball Don Hoak booted a grounder by Felix Mantilla, enabling the runner to reach first baseball. Eddie Mathews sacrificed Mantilla to second with a bunt, Hank Aaron was intentionally walked, and Joe Adcock belted a bouncer off the outfield wall, and Mantilla scooted home with the winning run. Haddix lost the perfect game as well as a chance to claim a no-hitter.
*****
Whitey Ford was 5'10" tall and weighed 178 pounds, yet he became one of the most celebrated pitchers in baseball history, and he played his whole career with the New York Yankees.
In his rookie season, in 1950, he posted a 9-1 record with a 2.81 E.R.A.
Ford was out of baseball for the next two years, 1951-1952, because of his military service during the Korean War. After the war, however, Ford returned to New York to help the Yankees to win 8 American League pennants and 4 World Series Championships.
He won 236 games in 16 years with the Yankees with a .690 winning percentage, the highest winning percentage in baseball history, and a record that still stands to this day. He also had 45 career shutouts, played in 10 All-Star Games, and won 10 World Series games.
The trophies Whitey Ford won in baseball were many:
1955---The Sporting News Pitcher of the Year in the American League.
1956---American League Pitching Title.
1958---American League Pitching Title.
1961---American League Babe Ruth Award.
1961---The Sporting News Pitcher of the Year in the American League.
1961---Cy Young Award (25-4, 3.21 E.R.A.)
1961---World Series Most Valuable Player.
1963---The Sporting News Pitcher of the Year in the American League.
Whitey Ford retired from baseball in 1967, at the age of 38, and elected to the Hall of Fame in 1974.
Ford was out of baseball for the next two years, 1951-1952, because of his military service during the Korean War. After the war, however, Ford returned to New York to help the Yankees to win 8 American League pennants and 4 World Series Championships.
He won 236 games in 16 years with the Yankees with a .690 winning percentage, the highest winning percentage in baseball history, and a record that still stands to this day. He also had 45 career shutouts, played in 10 All-Star Games, and won 10 World Series games.
The trophies Whitey Ford won in baseball were many:
1955---The Sporting News Pitcher of the Year in the American League.
1956---American League Pitching Title.
1958---American League Pitching Title.
1961---American League Babe Ruth Award.
1961---The Sporting News Pitcher of the Year in the American League.
1961---Cy Young Award (25-4, 3.21 E.R.A.)
1961---World Series Most Valuable Player.
1963---The Sporting News Pitcher of the Year in the American League.
Whitey Ford retired from baseball in 1967, at the age of 38, and elected to the Hall of Fame in 1974.
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