Bill W
Nov 24 2003, 04:04 PM
363 wins, mostly for the Boston and Milwaukee Braves...
fantomas
Nov 24 2003, 05:13 PM
Talk about a man who could PITCH! Incredible record:
363 wins, 2 no hitters, 2,583 strikeouts, 382 complete games.
He won 20 games every year, except once, between 1953 and 1961.
He led the NL in wins eight times, including 5 times from 1957-61.
He led the league in strikeouts from 1949-52.
At age 42, he went 23-7, with a 2.60 ERA, pitching against hurlers such as Sandy Koufax, Don Drysdale, Juan Marichal, and Bob Gibson, and against such hitters as Willie McCovey, Ernie Banks, Roberto Clemente, Frank Robinson, and Felipe Alou.
He HIT 35 home runs, the most ever for a pitcher!
And, finally, he took a 3-year break (1943-1946) from pitching to serve in the US Army in World War II in the European theater, where he was wounded, earned a Bronze Star and Purple Heart for bravery, and garnered a battlefield commission. The man even fought at the Battle of the Bulge!
Surely one of the greatest baseball players of all time.
[ November 24, 2003, 04:15 PM: Message edited by: fantomas ]
Bill W
Nov 25 2003, 09:01 AM
What's most amazing about the win total is that he didn't get his first til age 25.
"You have to be able to throw strikes," Spahn said. "But you try not to whenever possible."
Sport_13
Nov 25 2003, 11:21 AM
I've always admired what he accomplished during his career, I met him at Cooperstown about 10 years ago for an autograph...nice man. Back when he pitched for the Braves, they didn't have the depth of pitching they have enjoyed the last 10-15 years....I believe there was a poem that echoed that....
First we'll use Spahn
then we'll use Sain
Then an off day
followed by rain
Back will come Spahn
followed by Sain
And followed
we hope
by two days of rain.
"It's not so much my pitching people know, but that little poem about me and Johnny Sain with the forty-eight Braves." - Warren Spahn