As a young teenager growing up in The Bronx, I was a devout Yankees fan.

Then along came the New York Metropolitans and an opportunity to witness National Leaguers on the main stage.

Sandy Koufax became my idol. He and I have the same heritage. My dad had a color photo of Sandy laminated on wood, which hung in my room until I left home for good after college. Though we had never met, I thought of him as Sandy.

On May 30, 1962, my dad took me to the Polo Grounds to see the Dodgers play a doubleheader against the Mets. It was a warm Memorial Day. The Polo Grounds capacity was listed as 55,000. We did not have tickets. The attendance that day was 55,704. My dad and I were part of the 704 who stood. Sandy Koufax pitched a complete game in the opener. I, however, did not complete the game. At the age of 13, I became dehydrated from standing and headed home with my dad before Koufax finished what was for him a lackluster effort against a hapless Mets team (10 strikeouts and a victory but six earned runs allowed over nine innings, the most runs he surrendered in a game all season).

About 13 years ago I received a notification from SABR that Martin Abramowitz was seeking assistance in having the BioProject compile life stories of all the Jewish players. When I realized that no one had signed up to write about Sandy Koufax, I quickly volunteered.

I contacted the Baseball Hall of Fame Research Library and requested, at my expense, all the clippings in their Sandy Koufax player file. A week or two later the boxes arrived.

One of the clippings was a copy of an uncashed check signed by Koufax for $5 made out to Vic Lapiner, with a note from the pitcher stating that this was a bet he was glad to lose. Lapiner was a minor-league pitcher who later threw batting practice for the Dodgers. It was in that role that Lapiner became friends with Koufax. They shared the same Jewish heritage. I contacted Vic, who explained that over lunch, Vic bet Sandy that he would go into the Hall of Fame on the first ballot.

 

A foolish bet. (National Baseball Hall of Fame Library)

 

A question arose when I wrote my bio of Sandy Koufax. I spoke with Vic about the issue. He gave me Sandy’s cellphone number. My reaction was “Are you kidding me?” Vic said Sandy owed him a favor. Well, I nervously called and received a generic voicemail greeting. I left a message stating that I wanted to verify some info in connection with the bio. I did not expect to hear anything back, not even knowing if I had the right number. That evening there was a voice message on my office phone from Sandy. His message said to write whatever I wanted, whether the truth or not, as everyone else does. I thought that this was closure. But the very next day another voice message arrived from Sandy. I immediately called him back. It remains a most memorable personal conversation. One that I treasure, like the picture in my room–wherever it may have gone. Sandy’s first message is the only saved message I maintain.

In this book you will read of Koufax’s pitching performances, his four no-hitters, strikeout records, World Series games, his early career struggles and successes, his rivalries, retirement decisions, life after baseball, the importance of his Jewish faith, and what his career might have been with modern medical technology and procedures.

So sit back, let the magic begin and read everything that is Koufax!

This book represents the collaborative work of 47 members of the Society for American Baseball Research.

MARC Z. AARON is a lifelong Yankees fan, having grown up in the Bronx. Despite this fact, he idolized Sandy Koufax and had the thrill of speaking with Sandy in connection with the SABR biography of Koufax he authored. Marc has been to games in Dodger Stadium and has contributed numerous bios to the SABR BioProject. He now resides in Pinehurst, North Carolina, where he does not play golf but continues to play competitive tournament tennis.

Sandy Koufax pitched one season for the University of Cincinnati baseball team in 1954. He posted a 3-1 record with a 2.81 ERA. (Courtesy of University of Cincinnati Athletic Department)

 

When you think of the nickname Wild Thing, which baseball player comes to mind? Perhaps it is Mitch Williams, who earned that moniker while pitching for the Texas Rangers due to his awkward delivery and frequent control issues. More likely, however, the name that pops into your head is Ricky Vaughn, the fictitious Cleveland Indians pitcher, played by actor Charlie Sheen in the classic 1989 movie Major League. Most certainly you aren’t thinking about Sandy Koufax, who in his 12-year career pitching to 9,497 hitters hit only 18 batters and threw 87 wild pitches.

But if you ask Koufax’s teammates at the University of Cincinnati how they would describe the young pitcher, “wild” might be the word most often used. Koufax was most certainly their “wild thing.”

It was just before the start of the Bearcats’ 1954 season that 18-year-old UC basketball player Sandy Koufax arrived between classes to hang out in the office of his coach, Ed Jucker, who also was the head coach of the varsity baseball team. Jucker was busy trying to quickly plan a trip to New Orleans for the baseball team. In Sandy’s words, “I heard those two magic words, ‘New Orleans,’ and I could think of no other place in the world I would rather be.” Koufax said, “Coach, I’m a baseball player. I’m a pitcher. I can pitch pretty good.”1

In 2000, when the university held a ceremony to retire Jucker’s jersey, he was asked about the day Koufax informed him of his pitching talents. “I didn’t even know he could pitch,” Jucker recalled. “At the end of the basketball season, he told me to come over to the gym to take a look at him. I was amazed. It was almost like the wonder man. It struck me in such a fashion. The way he could throw–the speed and the curve–you just didn’t find that.”2

UC captain and right fielder Ike Misali, who was in the office planning the trip with Jucker, later recalled, “All he needed was somebody to teach him control. A kid his age throwing 90 miles an hour–this was 1954. He was strong. He wasn’t at all cocky–just a nice guy.”3

Koufax pitched only one season for the Bearcats, finishing with a 3-1 record and a 2.81 ERA. He led the staff with 51 strikeouts in 32 innings. He also walked 30 batters. His only loss of the season came against the Xavier University Musketeers, in part due to three Cincinnati errors.4

To this day it remains a mystery as to what uniform number Sandy wore during that season, as existing individual and team photographs of him don’t show the back of his uniform where the number was displayed, nor did team rosters make note of player numbers. When asked by the Cincinnati Enquirer what jersey number he wore, Koufax couldn’t recall, and neither could his teammates.5 Perhaps even more a mystery than his uniform number, however, was where the baseball was going to go when he released his unbridled fastball or knee-buckling curve. Koufax later told the Enquirer that he didn’t have a specific strategy on the mound: “Just throw as hard and as long as you could.”6

In an exhibition game against a team from Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Koufax walked the first three batters he faced before striking out the next three on nine pitches.7 Joe Miller, who was a sophomore catcher for the Bearcats in 1954, recalled, “Koufax was built like a superhuman on the mound, [but] he was damn wild. He couldn’t get the ball over the plate … with consistency.”8 Legend has it that Jucker would have Sandy warm up on the sideline to terrorize opposing teams.9

 

 

Koufax threw so hard that everyone refused to catch him except for his friend and basketball teammate Dan Gilbert. Thinking back, Gilbert, who was a freshman catcher that spring, said, “We realized early on that Sandy was not a pitcher. He was just a thrower. He was a hard, wild thrower. We practiced inside the old Schmidlapp Hall. There was not much room in there, and it was poorly lighted. I would work with pitchers on the corners. With Sandy, I held my mitt in the center of the plate and prayed that he could get it over or close. I will say this though, when he got the ball over the plate, he was unhittable.”10 Gilbert also recalled using a sponge inside his mitt to help absorb the shock of the baseball, finding it challenging to catch the ball in the webbing.11 He described the first pitch he witnessed from Koufax in the following way: “You ever take a sledgehammer and hit a knot in a piece of wood? You know how it bounces back? That’s how it felt.”12

There’s a story that circulates throughout Oldenburg, Indiana, in which Koufax was invited to come from the University of Cincinnati to Oldenburg and try out for the local semipro baseball team, the Oldenburg Villagers. The gentleman who asked was Ace Moorman Sr., a UC basketball player who had heard about Sandy’s pitching talent. “I told Charlie Koester [manager of the Oldenburg Villagers] that there might be a possibility we can get Sandy to come to Oldenburg, but we have two problems,” Moorman told the Indianapolis Star in 2022. “One, I don’t think we have anybody who can catch him, and secondly, that little chicken wire at the back of the backstop, that isn’t going to stop him either.”13 In truth, no evidence exists that Koufax ever went to Oldenburg for the tryout, but the myth continues that he was cut from the Villagers because he couldn’t throw strikes.

Despite all that wildness, the, 6-foot-1½-inch, 200-pound collegiate pitcher enjoyed some incredible highlights, possibly none greater than on Friday, April 30, 1954, when the hometown Bearcats played against the visiting University of Louisville. Coming off an already incredible 16-strikeout performance against Wayne University (now Wayne State University), the southpaw’s sizzling fastball and wicked curve stymied Louisville hitters as Koufax struck out 12 of the first 15 batters he faced, allowing only three hits on his way to an 18-strikeout performance,14 one he would equal at the major-league level five years later on August 31, 1959, against the San Francisco Giants.

Later in the season, on May 14, in a contest against Lockbourne Air Force Base, Koufax came into the game in relief of starter Bill Norris. He struck out the final two batters he faced in the seventh inning and got three easy taps back to the mound in the eighth before striking out the side in the ninth inning for the victory, his third without a defeat.15 This was Sandy’s final victory as a member of the UC baseball team.

The next day, May 15, 1954, Dodgers scout Bill Zinser noted on his report of the player listed as Sanford Koufax: “A+ arm. Very good prospect. Tall, muscular, quick reflexes, well-coordinated. Going to U. of Cincinnati on Scholarship–not interested in pro ball until he graduates.” Moreover, Zinser gave Koufax an A for hitting with a notation that he played first base because of his hitting ability. Sandy himself stated, “I hit better for Cincinnati than I have ever hit in my life.”16 In fact, Koufax’s batting average for the 1954 season was a whopping .429, making him the second-best hitter on the team.17 (Koufax was a famously poor hitter as a major leaguer: just .097 in 776 career at-bats.)

It may seem unbelievable, but Koufax never told his parents of his collegiate baseball endeavors. Sandy explained that “my father got the good word when Gene Bonnibeau, the Eastern scout for the Giants, dropped into his office with a clipping about me from one of the Cincinnati papers.”18

Koufax recalled Jucker trying very hard to get the Cincinnati Reds interested in him but had heard that their scout, Buzz Boyle, “apparently thought I was too wild.”19 Dodgers scout Al Campanis invited Koufax to try out for the organization at Ebbets Field in front of manager Walter Alston and scouting director Fresco Thompson.20 In December 1954 Koufax said he would talk to Brooklyn and other interested clubs during his school’s Christmas vacation, but “I will not leave school unless I get a bonus to sign.”21 Shortly after, he went from being a UC Bearcat to becoming the Brooklyn Dodgers’ $20,000 “bonus baby.”22 For Dodgers fans, “wild thing” Sandy Koufax would eventually make everything “groovy.”

RUSS SPEILLER lives in Cincinnati with his wife and two children. Russ has a chemical engineering degree from the University of Pennsylvania. He is an avid New York Yankees fan and has been a SABR member since 2023, having contributed stories to SABR books and the SABR BioProject, as well as journals. Though not his first article published by SABR, the Koufax piece represents the first article he penned for submission as a SABR member.

 

NOTES

1 Sandy Koufax with Ed Linn, Koufax (New York: Viking Press, 1966), 43.

2 John Bach, “Bearcat Sports, University of Cincinnati.” Magazine–October 2020 | University of Cincinnati, 2000, https://magazine.uc.edu/issues/0500/sports.html.

3 Mike Dyer, “Sandy Koufax’s Season with UC Bearcats Remembered,” Cincinnati Enquirer, April 30, 2014, https://www.cincinnati.com/story/sports/college/university-of-cincinnati/2014/04/30/sandy-koufax-season-with-uc-bearcats-remembered/8512237/. Accessed March 11, 2023.

4 “XU Wins, 5-2, Over UC 9; Koufax Beaten,” Cincinnati Enquirer, May 18, 1954: 29.

5 Mike Dyer, “Sandy Koufax’s Cincinnati Uniform Number a Mystery.” Cincinnati Enquirer, April 30, 2014, https://www.cincinnati.com/story/sports/college/university-of-cincinnati/2014/04/30/sandy-koufax-uniform-number-a-mystery/8515119/.

6 Dyer, “Sandy Koufax’s Season with UC Bearcats Remembered.”

7 Gregg Doyel, “Sandy Koufax Made the Hall of Fame, but Not This Semi-Pro Team in Oldenburg, Indiana,” Indianapolis Star, June 30, 2022, https://www.indystar.com/story/sports/columnists/gregg-doyel/2022/06/30/sandy-koufax-baseball-indiana-semipro-cut-mlb-hall-fame-pitcher/7703165001/. Accessed March 11, 2023.

8 Dyer, “Sandy Koufax’s Season with UC Bearcats Remembered.”

9 Gary Cieradkowski, The League of Outsider Baseball (New York: Touchstone, 2015), 6.

10 Bach, “Bearcat Sports, University of Cincinnati.”

11 “Sandy Koufax’s Season with UC Bearcats Remembered.”

12 Jane Leavy, Sandy Koufax: A Lefty’s Legacy (New York: HarperCollins, 2002), 49.

13 Doyel.

14 “Koufax Fans 18,” Cincinnati Enquirer, May 1, 1954: 16.

15 “Wilson, Koufax Star as ’Cats Nine Wins,” Cincinnati Enquirer, May 15, 1954: 16.

16 Sandy Koufax with Ed Linn, 45.

17 “Brooks Sign Koufax, Pitching Star at UC,” Cincinnati Enquirer, December 15, 1954: 28.

18 Sandy Koufax with Ed Linn, 45.

19 Sandy Koufax with Ed Linn, 45.

20 “Sandy Koufax Biography & Los Angeles Dodgers Career,” Dodger Blue, https://dodgerblue.com/sandy-koufax-biography-los-angeles-dodgers-career-stats/. Accessed March 11, 2023.

21 “Koufax Denies Brooklyn Deal,” Cincinnati Post, December 14, 1954: 20.

22 Koufax actually had two higher bonus offers, from the Pittsburgh Pirates and Milwaukee Braves; however, as his father, Irving, had been in frequent contact with the Dodgers, it was decided to sign with Brooklyn. See Marc Z. Aaron, “Sandy Koufax,” SABR BioProject, at https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/sandy-koufax/.

Sandy Koufax (top row, second from right) finished fourth in scoring on the University of Cincinnati’s freshman basketball team in 1953-54. (Courtesy of University of Cincinnati Athletic Department)

 

In his early teen years Sandy Koufax, like most like-minded kids of his era, played the sport of the season, stopping only for dinner and maybe homework. After the family moved from Brooklyn to Rockville Centre, New York, he took full advantage of the comparatively wide-open spaces of the still-developing Long Island to play whatever sports were available. It was, he later recalled, “baseball in the summer and football in the fall. No leagues. No supervision. Just fun and bruises.”1

But all that changed after ninth grade, when, tired of commuting into the City on the Long Island Rail Road, Koufax’s parents returned to Brooklyn, settling in the Bensonhurt section. Suddenly, the city game, basketball, became the center of the sports-obsessed Koufax’s world.

In looking back on how the game dominated the athletic landscape when it barely existed in his Rockville Centre world, the aspiring architect, showing his appreciation of space, observed that “in Brooklyn every square foot of recreational space has to be used–and that’s about all the space you need to set up a basket.”2

Koufax’s formal high-school basketball career was, in fact, delayed when his arrival at Lafayette High School coincided with the refusal of New York City schoolteachers to supervise any extracurricular activities–including interscholastic sports–unless they received pay instead of leave time. The stalemate meant no organized sports during Koufax’s sophomore year. However, there was still gym class, which at Lafayette meant basketball, and when his classmates recognized his athleticism and saw his clear promise, they urged him to join the Jewish Community House on Bay Parkway and play on their team in the JCH league. Years later Koufax recalled that while “the J” offered a range of activities, its basketball court was the heart of the operation. For Koufax, it “became my second home.”3

Indeed, Koufax recalled playing virtually every day after school during the basketball season and when spring came around and he was also playing baseball, he would go from school to a baseball game “and then stop off for a three-man game of basketball in some playground.”4 Once that was done, it was time for a league game at the J. During the season, he played a Saturday night league game, only to be back at the J on Sunday morning, waiting for someone to arrive and open the doors so he could continue to work on his game.5 One teammate said Koufax “could jump like a kangaroo,” and he devoted most of his time to working on his rebounding.6 He worked continuously on his timing off the backboard, further honing his jumping ability and seeking to gain ever more control of his body.7

While his basketball career proved short-lived, Koufax’s love for the game, the way it appealed to his thoughtful side, as well as the memories he took away from his many days and nights on the Brooklyn playgrounds are lovingly recounted in his 1966 memoir, Koufax. He offers a take on the game that reflects both the memories of a teenager in love with the sport, as well as the analytical eye of a professional athlete who knows–and deeply appreciates–the elements of the game that go well beyond the physical side, but which are central to success. Too, however unconsciously, the way Koufax describes getting the right angles for snaring a rebound or the ins and outs of both the give-and-go and the way that you had to operate around the iron pole that supported the basket, reflects the same analytical approach of a man who made, spectacularly, the transformation from a thrower to a pitcher.

It may have been a short-lived career, but basketball was a central part of his late teen years. Indeed, so intensely competitive was the basketball-playing Koufax that he earned the nickname the “Animal of Bensonhurst.”8 Consequently, the fact that his formal introduction to the game came in a program and on a team that would, at year’s end, win the inaugural National Jewish Welfare Board-sponsored national tournament made the experience all the more rewarding.9

While the early stages of the Koufax basketball odyssey were something short of normal, the latter parts were equally distinctive. He did not play for Lafayette High in his sophomore year but made a smooth transition to high-school ball as a junior. He made a team that was composed for the most part of his JHC teammates. Playing for a new coach, Frank Rabinowitz, hopes were high. However, with the New York schools operating on semester rather than yearlong schedules, it was not uncommon for large numbers of students to graduate in December, something that could ravage a basketball team. And that is exactly what happened with two of his former JHC teammates. While Koufax gained more playing time, the team’s championship prospects were dashed.

As a senior, Koufax was both a starter and captain, but that team’s prospects were also hurt by midseason graduations. While disappointed, Koufax finished the season as the second highest scorer in the division, averaging 16.5 points per game.10 He was also named one of the forwards on the sportswriter-selected All-City team.11 For a guy who had only discovered basketball as a sophomore, he had come a long way and his promise was evident. Koufax’s limited performances during his high-school years offered clear evidence of his potential while leaving those who saw him with indelible memories that grew ever more vivid as his baseball career took off.

Nothing illustrated that better than a Police Athletic League benefit that the New York Knicks played against Lafayette in February 1953. As the star-struck high schoolers went through their layup line, the pros put on a bit of a show before the boisterous crowd. However, after Knicks star Harry Gallatin unsuccessfully tried a couple of dunks, a part of the game seldom seen at that time, Knicks guard Al McGuire, apparently prompted by Coach Rabinowitz, brought the 6-2 Koufax over and told Gallatin that he had someone who could show him how it was done–and the prep star did–twice.

That proved to be only a preview of the game, for while the pros saw the contest as a way to mix with the community and help popularize the still-developing NBA, Koufax and his teammates went all out. When it was over, the young basketball star had earned a memorable headline, with the New York Post declaring, “Lafayette Cager Wowed Gallatin.”12 Gallatin reportedly told Coach Rabinowitz, “We’ll be coming back for this kid someday,” while Koufax recalled that when it was all over Gallatin wrote down his name, telling him, “I am going to be looking for you in future years.”13

Indeed, despite the unevenness of his high-school career, Koufax hoped to play in college, an ambition fueled by at least casual feelers from the local schools, as well as one from the legendary Frank McGuire, who, having left St. John’s for the University of North Carolina, sought to draw upon the city’s talent and lift the program into the upper echelons of college basketball.14

In the end, Koufax went to the University of Cincinnati, although why remains a mystery. Indeed, years later even he termed the process and his interest in the school a “puzzlement.”15 That certainly was the case when Koufax arrived for the first day of freshman team tryouts. Assistant varsity/freshmen head coach Ed Jucker (also the head coach of the baseball team) admitted years later that he had no idea who the kid was or what kind of player he was getting.16 But Koufax’s early days on the hardwood impressed Jucker enough that he arranged for a partial scholarship.17 And providentially, it was the basketball connection that led to Koufax joining Jucker’s baseball team on a spring travel trip, a venture that arguably served as the launching pad for the left-hander’s Hall of Fame baseball career.

Before that happened, there was the matter of Koufax’s final year of organized basketball as a member of Cincinnati’s freshman team, the affectionately named Bearkittens. Like his previous stops, Koufax’s time with the freshman squad showed his potential. On a team that finished 12-2, he was a starter and one of only three players who saw action in all 14 games. Of note, he scored 23 points against Miami of Ohio, with future Dodgers manager Walter Alston in attendance.18 Koufax finished fourth on the team in scoring, but his work under the boards led to his going to the free-throw line more than all but one teammate.19 Even so, this was the last organized basketball he would play.

The might-have-beens related to Koufax’s basketball career are many. From the flashes of talent he showed playing for the JHC squad, for Lafayette, and against the Knicks, not to mention his efforts for the Bearkittens, it was clear he could play. And given the program he was a part of, that potential might have been developed further. Years later, Koufax mused that the roots of Cincinnati’s historic run were being planted while he was there. Indeed, as Koufax struggled to harness his baseball talents, in 1959, with George Smith at the helm, the Bearcats made the first of five consecutive Final Fours, finishing third both that year and in 1960. Jucker was promoted prior to the 1960-1961 season and led the team to national championships in 1961 and 1962, with the team’s bid for a historic third straight title coming up short when they lost in the championship game to Loyola in 1963.20

But Koufax had no regrets. After all, he fulfilled Harry Gallatin’s prophecy. Harry just had to look in a different place.

BILL PRUDEN has been a teacher of American history and government for over 40 years. A SABR member for over two decades, he has contributed to SABR’s BioProject and Games Project as well as a number of book projects. He has also written on a range of American history subjects, an interest undoubtedly fueled by the fact that as a seven-year-old he was at Yankee Stadium to witness Roger Maris’s historic 61st home run.

 

NOTES

1 Sandy Koufax with Ed Linn, Koufax (New York: The Viking Press, 1966), 19.

2 Koufax, 22.

3 Koufax, 23.

4 Koufax, 23.

5 Koufax, 23.

6 Richard Sandomir, “Koufax’s Roundball Once Trumped His Fastball,” New York Times, August 14, 2012 (online). https://www.proquest.com/usnews/docview/2215731904/C66102B78EFE4C08PQ/1?accountid=69. Accessed February 27, 2023.

7 Koufax, 23-24.

8 Steven L. Pease, The Golden Age of Jewish Achievement (Sonoma, California: Deucalion, 2009), 81; Talk Today, USA Today Book Club: ‘Sandy Koufax: A Lefty’s Legacy,’ https://archive.ph/MXmv5.

9 Koufax, 27.

10 Koufax, 27.

11 Jerry Mitchell, Sandy Koufax (New York: Grosset & Dunlap, 1971), 24.

12 Jane Leavy, Sandy Koufax: A Lefty’s Legacy (HarperCollins Publishers, 2002), 40.

13 Leavy, 40; Koufax, 28.

14 Koufax, 30; Koufax identified McGuire as being from the University of South Carolina, a post he did not, in fact, assume until 1964, after almost a decade at North Carolina and then a brief foray into the NBA; Typically, while Koufax himself never made the claim, part of the myth of Koufax the basketball player was that he was heavily recruited, fielding offers from a wealth of big-time programs. See Mitchell, 24.

15 Koufax, 30.

16 Leavy, 48; Among the many myths about Koufax and his basketball career was that he was recruited by Jucker at Cincinnati. Indeed, while his record at UC needed no burnishing, the New York Times obituary on the coach asserted that he had “recruited a left-handed pitcher from Lafayette High School in Brooklyn and signed him to a basketball scholarship.” Frank Litsky, “Ed Jucker, 85, Who Coached Cincinnati to Basketball Titles,” New York Times, February 6, 2002: B8.

17 Leavy, 48.

18 “Pair Of Guards Star for Bearkitten Five,” Cincinnati Enquirer, March 16, 1954; Koufax, 31; Leavy, 48.

19 “Pair Of Guards Star for Bearkitten Five.”

20 “History of Cincinnati Basketball,” gobearcats.com; https://gobearcats.com/sports/2017/6/15/history-of-cincinnati-basketball.aspx.

Dodgers manager Walter Alston celebrates with his Hall of Fame left-hander, Sandy Koufax. (SABR-Rucker Archive)

 

Sandy Koufax and Walt Alston will forever be linked in the minds of baseball fans, especially those who consider themselves to be close observers of the national pastime. One was a ferocious competitor who drove himself beyond reasonable thresholds of endurance and pain. The other, nicknamed “the quiet man,” was a fiery competitor in his own right, bubbling beneath the surface. Many questions have risen pertaining to the nature of their relationship; the task here is to shed light on this topic and perhaps to stimulate further inquiry.

While Koufax was attending Lafayette High School in Brooklyn, baseball scouts began to show guarded interest in him as he distinguished himself with the Parkviews, a team in the Coney Island League. Joe Labate, a scout from the Philadelphia Phillies, offered Koufax a contract for $1,500 to play in a college league in northern New York state. Koufax made it clear that he wanted a bonus large enough to allow him to pay for college if he found that he wasn’t talented enough to make it as a big-leaguer. At this point, he began to realize that a future in baseball might be a possibility.

By the time Koufax graduated from Lafayette High, he had developed into a skilled basketball player through many hours of practice, league games, and pickup games in both the school gymnasium and the Jewish Community House.1 His parents had clearly communicated to Koufax and his older stepsister that they were expected to go to college; Koufax agreed. Although he hadn’t been able to gather any feelers as far as scholarships were concerned, with the aid of letters of recommendation from both his high school and JCH coaches, he was invited to the University of Cincinnati, where he could work out with the basketball team. This workout, which amounted to a tryout, earned Koufax a scholarship offer.

As fate would have it, the basketball coach at the University of Cincinnati also happened to be the varsity baseball coach, and Koufax found himself as a Bearcats pitcher. He experienced enough success to attract scouts. The New York Giants offered him a tryout at the Polo Grounds, which apparently did not produce rave reviews and he never heard from them again. The New York Yankees made him an offer that didn’t include a bonus and was for a Class-D club. The Pittsburgh Pirates stepped forward but never made a concrete offer. The Brooklyn Dodgers and Milwaukee Braves were also expressing interest, which made for a frenetic schedule of traveling and tryouts.

The Dodgers appeared to express the most interest. Of note, Al Campanis, Brooklyn’s director of scouting, had a friendly rivalry with Branch Rickey, the executive vice president and general manager of the Pirates, and the former general manager of the Dodgers. Campanis thought that the Pirates were still very much in the running for the teenage pitcher. Koufax worked out with the Dodgers at Ebbets Field in the early fall of 1954 with Walt Alston, the Dodgers manager, also watching.

Walt Alston paid his dues during his climb to the major leagues. From 1940 through 1953, he worked his way up the minor-league managerial ladder. After observing the divergent paths Koufax and Alston took to the major leagues, it may not be too much of a stretch to think that Alston might want Koufax to prove himself before placing his trust in him as reliable member of his pitching staff. With Koufax having the “bonus baby” designation, the Dodgers were required to keep him on the major-league roster for two seasons, which essentially placed him ahead of several more experienced pitchers who were doing their time in the minors, just as Alston had done. Dick Young of the New York Daily News, in a column written June 14, 1956, referred to an overall lack of confidence Alston had in Koufax early in his career, writing, “A pitching pinch has to develop before Walt uses the kid. Then, it seems, Sandy must pitch a shutout or the bullpen is working full force and the kid will be yanked at the first long foul ball.”2

Based on comments he made in his autobiography as he thought back on his early years with the Dodgers, it appears that Koufax may have been frustrated by having been used sparingly. “I could be wrong. It could be argued, I know, that I was brought along slowly, nurtured carefully, and worked into the rotation when I was ready to put what I had learned to use. The only thing is that you can never convince me of it.”3 At other times however, he seemed to appreciate the predicament of his manager: “I needed experience, I needed work. Walt needed to win.” He went on to describe an incident in which he clearly lost his focus and failed to cover first base while pitching on the next to last day of the 1955 season. He was resigned to not getting a chance to pitch in the World Series that year. He conceded, “Any pitcher who doesn’t have the basic reflexes to break for first base on a ground ball hit toward the right side of the diamond can hardly be looked upon as a World Series pitcher.”4

After his first three seasons, Koufax’s record stood at 9 wins and 10 losses; hardly one that inspired his manager to view him as a pitcher he could depend on when games were up for grabs. In 1958, the Dodgers’ first season in Los Angeles, he went 11-11 with a 4.48 ERA, and 8-6 in 1959, when the Dodgers won the World Series in a season that provided many opportunities for a young pitcher to prove his worth. Koufax’s co-author wrote that Alston remained confident Koufax could indeed develop into a reliable pitcher: “Alston however, refused to quit on Koufax. The skipper’s attitude toward his young lefty had changed since ’56, and despite Koufax’s control problems, Alston gave him three straight starts in mid-June [of 1959].”5

Koufax rose to his manager’s challenge. On June 22, 1959, he struck out 16 Philadelphia Phillies, pitching a complete game and leading his team to a 6-2 victory. Koufax was given the start in a key August 31 game against the San Francisco Giants. He responded in magnificent fashion, fanning 18 and breaking Dizzy Dean’s National League record of 17 strikeouts and tying Bob Feller’s major-league record of 18 by striking out the side in the ninth inning. He started Game Five of the World Series, a potential Series clincher for the Dodgers. Although he couldn’t seal the deal, he held Chicago’s “Go-Go” White Sox to just one run over seven innings.

When Koufax finished the 1960 season with an 8-13 record, his frustration had reached the level that he was strongly considering quitting baseball to focus on other pursuits. In another book he related an incident in which he threw some of his equipment into the trash and told Dodgers clubhouse manager Nobe Kawano not to bother storing any of his possessions when the season had concluded. “It wasn’t that I had any regrets over the choice I had made. It was just that, having given myself six years, a full apprenticeship, I was convinced that the time had come to admit to myself that I wasn’t going to make it.”6

Koufax may have been more frustrated with himself and his own lack of progress than with Alston. He had been given multiple opportunities to learn the craft of pitching: “It wasn’t that I hadn’t gotten my chance to pitch in 1960, either, I had been given more chance than ever.”7 He was questioning his ability to master the all-important ability to control where his pitches were headed. Koufax was fully aware of this issue, having seen many pitchers who seemed very hittable but could make hitters look silly by exhibiting impeccable control.

Koufax ultimately decided to give baseball one last try as he entered the 1961 season with the attitude that if he was going to make it, he needed to fully commit himself to baseball. It didn’t hurt that he came into camp in the best shape of his life, having lost some unneeded weight which he attributed to having his tonsils out and not being able to eat or drink comfortably for two weeks. At least two other factors turned the tide in Koufax’s favor that year: He paid particularly close attention to the information the team statistician, Allan Roth, gave him about the importance of getting ahead of the hitter. And he heeded the advice of his roommate, catcher Norm Sherry, who encouraged him before a B-squad spring-training game to be a pitcher instead of a thrower. “You haven’t a thing to lose because none of the brass is going to be there,” Sherry told him. “If you get behind the hitters, don’t try to throw hard, because when you force your fast ball you’re always high with it.”8 Even though he had heard this type of advice many times before, Koufax finally absorbed it. Something clicked in that game and success followed. The 1961 season saw Koufax sprint out to a 10-3 record by the halfway point of the season and earn a spot on the National League All-Star team. By the end of the season he had won a career-high 18 games against 13 defeats and had broken the National League strikeout record, fanning 269 batters.

Koufax experienced his first significant injury during the 1962 season. He was cruising along with a 14-5 record in late July when he was forced to leave the rotation with a serious circulation issue in his left index finger. He came back in late September as his team was battling the San Francisco Giants for the pennant. However, he was largely ineffective in his return and the Giants edged out the Dodgers by taking a three-game tiebreaker series two games to one. Alston’s patience with Koufax had paid off, however, as Koufax had developed into a dominant pitcher, one of the stalwarts of the Dodgers staff.

Some might say that Alston’s trust and respect for his star pitcher had increased to a fault while Koufax developed into the player he had shown the potential to become. There are numerous examples of Alston leaving Koufax in a game when the situation seemed to dictate taking him out, as well as times in which he pitched him on short rest even though the health of his precious left arm was in question. For example, Alston gave Koufax the start on May 30, 1962; it was the Dodgers’ first return to New York since their move to Los Angeles. In the ninth inning, with the Dodgers holding a 13-6 lead over the New York Mets, Koufax had given up four hits in the inning and Alston let him stay in the game.

In late May of 1964, Alston brought in Koufax to pitch in relief on two days’ rest when just a month earlier he was out of the lineup with an ailing elbow. For Game Seven of the 1965 World Series against the Minnesota Twins, Alston was faced with the choice of pitching Koufax on two days’ rest or starting his other ace, Don Drysdale, who had an additional day of rest. He went with Koufax. Sandy was laboring in the fifth inning after giving up a solid double and a walk and appeared to have only his fastball at his disposal. Alston left him in the game even though Drysdale was warmed up. Koufax rewarded his manager’s trust by retiring the Twins and pitching a Series-winning shutout.

Despite the general belief by many observers that Alston had at times misused Koufax, it doesn’t appear that Koufax felt that way. Referring to his desire to pitch during the 1962 season with an injured index finger, he seemed to appreciate these opportunities. “I had spent too much of my life not pitching to think about missing any turns,” his autobiography said.9

There were indications that the relationship between pitcher and manager may not have always been smooth. Michael Leahy in his book The Last Innocents related an incident in which Maury Wills overheard a confrontation between Koufax and Alston concerning a change in the pitching rotation, Wills described the situation: “[Koufax] was raising hell. There was a lot of shouting between the two of them. Alston basically said, ‘Goddammit, I’m the manager.’ And Sandy yelled, ‘I’m the starting pitcher.’”10 The confrontation ended at that point as the room fell silent with Koufax emerging from the office.

Another incident involved a brief conversation between Dick Tracewski, a Dodgers infielder, and Koufax in which Tracewski commented on how Alston had relayed his decision to use Koufax over Drysdale to start Game Seven of the 1965 Series. Alston had apparently told the players that he would “start the left hander” and Tracewski felt that Alston’s choice to not use Koufax’s name was significant. “That rubbed Sandy the wrong way,” said Tracewski. Leahy wrote that Tracewski “believed that Koufax regarded Alston’s announcement as yet another slight in a relationship that wasn’t going to be warm and fuzzy ever.”11

Koufax gained his manager’s trust over time and Alston appeared to develop faith in Koufax. Alston and Koufax may not have had the closest of relationships. There were times when Koufax was frustrated with not being given enough opportunities to pitch early in his career and from time to time disagreed with Alston’s decisions. Perhaps, though, the ways in which they related to each other were more a product of their personalities. Some of these traits may have been ones they shared. Alston enjoyed some of the simpler pleasures of life; in his autobiography, A Year at a Time, he expounded on the value he placed on being back home in Darrtown, Ohio. “Back behind the barn there were woods of thirty or forty acres. … I loved to ride those woods, and Dad often went with me. The owners didn’t object and I’ve spent many an hour enjoying the quiet and solitude there.”12

Author Gruver cited former Dodgers general manager Buzzie Bavasi, who spoke of how Koufax’s interests were different than those of the typical ballplayer and, respecting Koufax’s privacy, said, “I think few ball players had the same interests as Sandy. I don’t think too many players had an interest in music, in lectures, or doing some work around the house. Sandy was a loner in that respect. And you never wanted to pry with Sandy, so I never got too close with him.”13

Gruver used the adjective “phlegmatic” to describe Alston when the Dodgers hired him as their manager in 1954; in addition, he received the nickname “The Quiet Man” somewhere along the way. Alston, however, wrote, “[E]veryone who knows me well realizes that I’m slow to anger but, once I boil–watch out, it’s pretty hard to calm me down.”14

Koufax had his moments as well; Gruver described one of Koufax’s challenges as being one of overall self-control, “Even in his great years, he grimaced in disgust following an ill-timed hit or a walk. At times, he kicked the sheet metal on the bottom of the dugout water cooler in anger over a poor pitch.”15 Some of Koufax’s teammates, Wills for example, talked about how serious and nontalkative he became when it was time to prepare for a game even during spring training. “Other guys would be looking to have a little fun sometimes. … Not Sandy. All business.” Jeff Torborg talked about wanting to communicate with Koufax to make a good impression as his catcher; however, the exchanges between them were typically short and to the point.16 Between Alston’s stoic, calm persona with the potential to erupt and Koufax’s desire for privacy, his serious approach to the game, and also with that potential to unleash his fury at times, one can see how a close relationship between the two might never have had a chance to develop.

There were times, though, when Koufax and his teammates were involved in rather comedic situations with their manager. One such incident occurred when Sandy and fellow pitcher Larry Sherry wanted to celebrate a little after each had pitched extremely well during spring training in 1961. They went out and when they returned, they had broken curfew and were loud enough to alert their manager to their transgression. Both Koufax and Sherry slipped into their rooms just before Alston came charging down the hall. When he arrived at Sherry’s room, he found it locked and began hammering on it with his fists. In doing so, he managed to break his diamond-studded World Series ring. Both players were fined $100, and the rest of their teammates found the whole thing hilarious.17

There are some indications that Walt Alston wasn’t one to play favorites and for the most part had the same expectations for all the players he managed. “I’ve always believed that baseball is still a game,” his book said. “You ought to enjoy, get some fun out of playing, yet give it everything you have. As long as I could get that out of a player I was pretty easy to get along with.”18 If you didn’t meet those expectations, however, you would potentially be introduced to Alston’s wrath. Leahy described an incident in which Lou Johnson, a Dodgers outfielder, was late for batting practice before the seventh game of the 1965 World Series and how angry that made Alston. “Johnson had never seen Alston so upset,” Leahy wrote. “That the two men got past the moment had less to do with anything Johnson said than it did with Alston’s utter lack of choices.”19 The Dodgers had a dearth of power that season, and Alston needed Johnson’s bat in the lineup.

Alston talked about the challenge he faced with being close with his players. He referred to one of his former players and coaches, Tommy Lasorda, who felt that Alston was becoming less close to his players. Alston explained the reason as being basic geography, “no doubt part of that comes from being older and more experienced as a manager. And the mere fact that in Los Angeles we’re spread out over half of Southern California rather than living within a few blocks of Dodger Stadium makes it hard to be close.” However, he described how his Montreal Royals ballclub from years earlier was “a tight little clique,” in part because most players did not speak French and tended to socialize with one another.20 It seems that Alston genuinely enjoyed down time with family members, other members of his staff, and players, as he talked fondly of playing cards with them during road trips: “During the years when Don Drysdale, Jim Gilliam and Wes Parker were playing for us we played a lot of bridge on the road. But in recent years we just haven’t had four bridge nuts on the club.”21

Both pitcher and manager shared a high level of competitiveness that fueled their drive to succeed. Over the course of their careers, each had a strong impact on the overall success the other experienced. After all, both Koufax and Alston were inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame–Alston in 1983 and Koufax in 1972. Perhaps this comment by Alston encapsulates how he truly felt about his star pitcher:

“You’d need a book or two to recite all of Sandy’s accomplishments. His greatest was himself. He worked tirelessly to achieve success. Once he did he was no different from the Sandy who came to Ebbets Field in 1955 [sic] to try out. He was team-oriented, took coaching well and worked hard.”22

BYRON PETRAROJA is a retired Syracuse city public-school teacher and a current SABR member. During the early stages of his teaching career, he was introduced to the field of storytelling and has since told stories in the classroom and at various community settings including the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. This is his initial experience as a contributor to a SABR book project and he has thoroughly enjoyed the process.

 

NOTES

1 The Jewish Community House is on Bay Parkway in the Bensonhurst section of Brooklyn. It was founded in 1927 and as of 2024 still existed. It has always served as a place for the Jewish community and their neighbors to gather and support each other during times of need. (JCHB.org).

2 Edward Gruver, Koufax (Latham, New York: Oxford, Taylor Trade, 2000), 119.

3 Sandy Koufax with Ed Linn, Koufax (New York: Viking Press, 1966), 114.

4 Koufax with Linn, 105.

5 Gruver, 121.

6 Koufax with Linn, 143.

7 Koufax with Linn, 143.

8 Koufax with Linn, 154.

9 Koufax with Linn, 165.

10 Michael Leahy, The Last Innocents (New York: HarperCollins, 2016), 226.

11 Leahy, 320.

12 Walter Alston, A Year at a Time (Waco, Texas: World Books, 1976), 76.

13 Gruver, 172.

14 Gruver, 173.

15 Gruver, 4.

16 Leahy, 197.

17 Koufax, 155.

18 Alston, 87.

19 Leahy, 322.

20 Alston, 88.

21 Alston, 100.

22 Alston, 164.

Sandy Koufax posted a career 57-15 won-loss record at Dodger Stadium and a 1.37 ERA. (SABR-Rucker Archive)

 

Sandy Koufax’s baseball career is a tale of two cities, Brooklyn and Los Angeles. It is a tale about a career that contained two disparate time periods, the worst of times and the best of times. For the first seven seasons he was a marginal player and, quite frankly, unremarkable. For the final five seasons he was phenomenal.

How did Koufax have such two distinctly different periods within his career? One possible answer points to the home ballparks where he plied his trade. It is not happenstance that each period of his career aligns with different home ballparks. He pitched at Brooklyn’s Ebbets Field and Los Angeles’ Coliseum from 1955 to 1961, his unremarkable years. At Los Angeles’ Dodger Stadium, his home ballpark from 1962 to 1966, Koufax built the legend that made him a Hall of Famer.

The story of Sandy Koufax and his home ballparks begins in December 1954 when Koufax signed his first professional baseball contract with the Brooklyn Dodgers for an annual salary of $6,000 and a $14,000 bonus. According to the rules in effect in 1954, the bonus guaranteed Koufax, soon to be 19 years old, a spot on the Dodgers roster until the end of 1956, two full seasons. There would be no skill development in minor-league home ballparks during his career.

Ebbets Field, in his hometown of Brooklyn, would be his home ballpark. Located in an area known as Pigtown in the Flatbush district of Brooklyn, Ebbets Field covered a full city block and was a prominent edifice in the community. The ballpark’s exterior featured grand arches and windows. Fans made their way to their seats through an Italian marble rotunda. With minimal foul territory, the double-tiered grandstand was close to the playing field, making for an intimate fan experience. In fact, portions of the grandstand and press box hung over the field.

An irregularly configured ballpark, Ebbets Field was considered a hitter’s haven. From home plate to the foul poles, the right-field fence was 297 feet, while the left-field fence measured 348 feet. The fences in right-center field and left-center field were roughly equivalent at 352 feet. Dead center field was a deep 393 feet.

Koufax’s rookie season was the 43rd season of baseball at Ebbets Field. Originally built in 1913 and renovated several times over the years, Ebbets Field had by 1955 a seating capacity of 31,902, small relative to other National League parks.

With Ebbets Field nearing the end of its useful life and needing a larger ballpark, Dodgers owner Walter O’Malley was negotiating with local government for the development of a new baseball stadium in Brooklyn. Covering a full city block meant the Ebbets site could not accommodate an expanded stadium.

Koufax attended Lafayette High School in a section of Brooklyn just five minutes southwest of Ebbets Field. His first memories of the ballpark were from high-school trips to see the Dodgers play. Annually, the students would go to a game starting at 11 A.M. Those school trips forged fond memories of Dodgers great Jackie Robinson and of other players like Gil Hodges, Duke Snider, Pee Wee Reese, and Don Newcombe who would later become his teammates.

It was in September 1954 that Koufax pitched on the Ebbets Field mound for the first time. Present for this tryout were scouting director Al Campanis, manager Walter Alston, scout Fresco Thompson, and broadcaster Vin Scully. Koufax threw to catcher Rube Walker. His fastball and curve were both rated A+ in Campanis’s scouting report.1

Koufax was considered a natural for Ebbets Field. A southpaw with highly rated pitching skills and a local Jewish talent, he merited a roster spot and the bonus money. He was added to the Dodgers roster in December 1954. Scout Thompson envisioned the 19-year-old Koufax’s development and early career use and decided, “We feel he’ll be ready in about four years.”2 It was hoped that Koufax, the lone Jewish player on the Dodgers’ major-league roster, would become a star and boost attendance at his home ballpark.

As Koufax’s professional career commenced, he saw pitching as an art form to be learned, honed, and perfected. To him, control was the essence of pitching.3 Control meant throwing strikes. Losing was precipitated by too many walks. Typical baseball pitching statistics show his progress in learning the pitching art form. Three specific pitching statistics measure his progress in the mastery of control: walks and hits per innings pitched (WHIP), strikeouts per nine innings (K/9), and strikeout/walk ratio (K/BB).

Koufax was on the Dodgers roster for the 1955 season, but his debut at Ebbets Field was delayed. Late in spring training, an ankle injury forced him onto the disabled list. Activated on June 8, Koufax made his first Ebbets Field game appearance on June 29. In the ninth inning of a 6-1 loss to the New York Giants, he faced six batters, surrendered two hits, walked one, and did not give up a run.

Entering games late when the Dodgers were trailing was manager Walter Alston’s plan for using and developing Koufax. It was 24 days before he next appeared in a home game. He was roughed up for two earned runs in the last two innings of an 11-6 loss to the Milwaukee Braves. The next day Koufax was back on the Ebbets Field mound in the second game of a doubleheader against the Braves. He pitched a perfect ninth inning in a 9-2 loss.

Thirty-two days passed before Koufax next appeared in a home game. He pitched well, pleasing the hometown fans with a perfect ninth inning against Cincinnati. Koufax had two strikeouts, his first at Ebbets Field.

In late August Brooklyn was cruising to the National League pennant with a significant lead over the second-place Milwaukee Braves. But the Dodgers had lost three straight to the fifth-place Reds and with starters Carl Erskine and Don Newcombe ailing, manager Alston gave Koufax his first Ebbets Field start on August 27.

It was an amazing debut for Koufax as a starter in his home ballpark. He got his first win, a 7-0 shutout. Surrendering hits only in the first and ninth innings, Koufax had 14 strikeouts, a National League single-game high for the 1955 season. The only negative in this stellar outing for Koufax was his lack of control; he walked five batters.

Koufax pitched twice more during a late August and early September homestand. A disastrous sixth inning against Milwaukee (five hits and four earned runs) on the last day of August did not dissuade Alston from naming him as the starter against Pittsburgh on the Saturday of the Labor Day weekend. That second start at Ebbets Field was another remarkable outing. Koufax picked up his second win of the season, another shutout, with six strikeouts, five hits, and two walks, as the Dodgers defeated the Pirates 4-0.

Highlighted by two shutouts, Koufax’s inaugural season at Ebbets Field was impressive. In the seven games he pitched in his hometown ballpark, he shut out opponents for 22 of his 24 innings pitched. Limiting opponents to nine hits (seven singles and two doubles), Koufax had two wins and attractive ERA of 2.25 at Ebbets Field, and contributed to Brooklyn’s capture of the National League pennant for the eighth time. Brooklyn defeated the New York Yankees in seven games to win the World Series, though Koufax did not see any action. In the dugout, he had the best seat in Ebbets Field as he watched the Dodgers win their only championship in Brooklyn.

Pleased with Koufax’s strong rookie performance in 1955, Dodgers leadership hoped that he would be immune from the sophomore jinx, the belief that a player performing well in his first season rarely does well in his second season.

During the 1956 season, Koufax was again infrequently used in home games. His first four appearances (one in April and three in May) were in a relief role. Thereafter, Koufax was limited to four home appearances, all as a starter. He did not play at Ebbets Field after August 5. For the second consecutive season, Koufax did not appear in the World Series, which the Dodgers lost in seven games to their crosstown rival Yankees.

Looking back at season’s end, Koufax did experience the feared sophomore slump. He pitched only 18 innings at Ebbets Field and was ineffective. Opponents batted .354 against him. His record of no wins, two losses, an ERA of 7.50, WHIP of 2.167, K/9 of 4.0, and K/W of 0.73 statistically evidence his dismal second season at his home ballpark.

Koufax’s away-game statistics starkly contrasted with his Ebbets Field performance (opponents batting average .250, ERA 3.76, WHIP of 1.38, K/9 of 4.9, and a K/W of 1.22). Overall, he was good enough to remain on the Dodgers roster. However, starting in May 1957 there were no restrictions on the Dodgers’ ability to assign him to the minor leagues.

As Koufax and the Dodgers finished spring training in 1957 in Vero Beach, the outlook for a new ballpark in Brooklyn was bleak. Surrounded by uncertainty about their future in Brooklyn, the Dodgers fell out of contention early in the season. For his third season, the Dodgers failing to contend for the pennant meant Koufax had increased opportunity and more appearances.

Overall, Koufax’s 1957 season at Ebbets Field was much better than the downbeat 1956 season but was again unremarkable. Appearing in 17 games, seven as a starter and 10 in relief, Koufax had a 3-1 record and an ERA of 3.70. His superior season was attributed to improved control. In 56 innings, he had 67 strikeouts and walked only 23. Improvement to his WHIP (1.250), K/9 (10.8), and K/BB (2.91) offer evidence of his improved command. The game on September 20, 1957, against the Philadelphia Phillies turned out to be Koufax’s last appearance on the Ebbets Field mound. Entering with two outs in the top of the ninth inning, Koufax retired the only batter he faced.

In October 1957 it was officially announced that the Dodgers were moving to Los Angeles. After three years of infrequent use and long periods of inactivity, Koufax bade farewell to Ebbets Field. He would now have a new home ballpark, 3,000 miles from his hometown.

To lure the franchise to Los Angeles, the Dodgers were deeded 300 acres of land to build a modern stadium in the Chavez Ravine section of Los Angeles. The plan was to develop the site with a baseball-only super-stadium to be known as Dodger Stadium.

However, the completion of Dodger Stadium was still four baseball seasons away. In the interim, the Dodgers needed a temporary home ballpark. After considering the Rose Bowl in suburban Pasadena and the Los Angeles-based, minor-league Wrigley Field, the club selected the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

The Coliseum, a bowl-shaped stadium with a seating capacity of over 90,000 for baseball, was used as a multisport facility, predominantly for college and NFL football. Fitting an appropriate ballpark into a stadium of the Coliseum’s shape and size was challenging. Far from ideal for baseball, the ballpark had to be situated in the west end of the stadium to keep the sun from blinding fielders’ eyes. In the end, the large seating capacity and its revenue potential outweighed the concerns that the Coliseum was ill-suited for baseball.

Expectedly, the configuration of the Dodgers home field within the Coliseum was highly irregular. Down the left-field line, the six-foot-high chain-link outfield fence was only 251 feet from home plate. Angling sharply toward center field, the fence was only 320 feet in left-center field and a cavernous 420 feet in dead center field. The fence angled back to the first-base foul pole, 380 feet in right-center field and only 300 feet down the first-base line. To allay concerns about the potential for an inordinate number of home runs to right field, a 42-foot-high screen was installed. The screen extended from the left-field foul pole to dead center field. For the first 140 feet, the screen was 42 feet high. Over the next 30 feet it cantilevered down to a height of 8 feet and then to 6 feet in center field.

Foul territory was negligible down the first-base line and massive down the third-base line. The fan experience lacked the intimacy of Ebbets Field. The Coliseum’s bowl seating meant poor sight lines. At its worst, seats were almost another ballpark away, 710 feet from home plate.

The Coliseum was clearly not a pitcher-friendly park–particularly for left-handers like Koufax with such a favorable configuration for right-handed pull hitters.

During his first year pitching in the Coliseum, Koufax appeared in 17 home games, 12 as a starter and five as a reliever. His inaugural appearance was pitching the ninth inning of a 15-2 blowout loss to the Cubs. In his one inning, he allowed a hit and no runs for a successful debut. Thereafter, the 1958 season at the Coliseum did not go well for Koufax. He won just two games and lost another six. An inability to consistently throw strikes resulted in 49 walks in 62 2/3 innings and contributed to an ERA of 5.60. He gave up 12 home runs. As a starter, he struggled, completing five innings or less in eight of his 12 starts. Relative to the previous season at Ebbets Field, Koufax’s control had declined (WHIP 1.66; K/9 7.6; K/BB 1.08).

The 1958 season did end with a positive outing, although Koufax still ended up on the losing end. In the second game of a doubleheader, he pitched a complete game, with the Cubs winning 2-1. Allowing five hits and one earned run, he had nine strikeouts, but lacked control, walking a season-high seven batters.

The conclusion of the 1958 season meant that Koufax had completed the four-year development horizon originally projected for him. Playing in the strangely configured Coliseum was, as expected, challenging for pitchers, especially left-handers like him. Adapting to his interim home ballpark and harnessing his control were mandatory prerequisites for a successful 1959 season.

The Dodgers used Koufax in home games during the 1959 season in a similar manner to the previous four years. He appeared in 15 games, 10 as a starter and five as a reliever. His control nicely improved as walks per nine innings decreased to 4.4 from 7. His K/9 increased significantly to 11.1 from 7.6. He was also better at keeping the ball in the ballpark, reducing home runs per nine innings to 1.5 from 1.7.

Noteworthy was Koufax’s start on August 31, 1959. Pitching before a Coliseum crowd of 82,794 (60,194 paid), he displayed his full potential. He went the distance in a 5-2 win against the San Francisco Giants and tied the modern National League single-game strikeout record by whiffing 18 Giants.4 Of the final 17 outs, 15 were by strikeout, including a near-immaculate inning in the ninth as Koufax struck out the Giants on just 10 pitches.

The Dodgers ended the 1959 154-game schedule tied with the Milwaukee Braves. Sweeping a best-of-three-game tiebreaker series, the Dodgers won the pennant and would face the Chicago White Sox in the World Series. The pennant-clinching game was a dramatic 6-5 12-inning win for the Dodgers. Koufax faced five batters in the ninth inning and did not give up any hits or runs despite walking three batters.

In Game Five of the Dodgers-White Sox World Series at the Coliseum, Koufax made his first postseason start. He pitched well, going seven innings and giving up five hits and one run, while striking out six and walking one. Despite nine hits, including a triple by Gil Hodges, the Dodgers were shut out 1-0 by White Sox starter Bob Shaw and a strong Chicago bullpen. The Dodgers beat the White Sox in six games for their second World Series championship in the first five years of Koufax’s career.

The Dodgers were looking for consistency from Koufax in the 1960 season as they sought to win back-to-back World Series. Koufax had shown signs that he was adapting to the Coliseum. However, his 1960 performance was eerily like 1958, his first season in the Coliseum. A home record of 1-7 and an ERA of 5.27 was very disappointing for him and the Dodgers. Control problems returned as Koufax walked 49 in 70 innings (6.3 per nine innings). His WHIP increased to 1.60, K/9 declined to 9.1, and K/BB decreased to 1.45. Despite this, he set a career high for home appearances with 19. He started 11 times and relieved in eight games. Success was elusive as a starter. In seven of his 11 starts in the Coliseum, he lasted fewer than 5 1/3 innings.

The 1961 season was the last of four seasons that the Dodgers played in the Coliseum. Entering his seventh season in the major leagues, having just celebrated his 25th birthday, Koufax was used more frequently, predominantly as a starter. Starting in 18 of his 21 appearances, Koufax pitched a personal-high 132⅓ innings at home. He had a 9-8 record for a Dodgers team that was 89-65. Improving his control (WHIP 1.29; K/9 9.9; K/BB 2.84) and keeping the ball in the park were keys to a better final season in the less than ideally configured Coliseum.

Koufax’s last appearance at the Coliseum was on September 20, 1961. It was also the last game the Dodgers played in this temporary home. They won 3-2 over the Chicago Cubs. Koufax pitched an amazing 13-inning complete game, striking out 15 batters while walking only three and allowing seven hits.

Signs of Koufax’s potential were displayed best when he was not pitching at the Coliseum. For example, on the road in National League ballparks in 1961, he appeared in the same number of away games as home games but had a 9-5 record and an ERA of 2.77, better by 1.5 runs. Koufax’s ascension to star status began in 1961 as he was named to the All-Star team and led the National League in strikeouts.

The Coliseum, as Koufax’s home ballpark, was a nemesis to his development as a major-league pitcher. Over his four seasons there, he compiled a record of 17 wins and 23 losses and an ERA of 4.33. Control continued to be a struggle. Even an increase in appearances at the Coliseum did not result in improved control (WHIP 1.41; K/9 9.6; K/BB 1.95). But he did have some great games. The Dodgers were patient with his development as Koufax was now three years past the original four-year development plan. Continuing to be on the Dodgers roster reflected the potential he displayed over the past two seasons as a visitor in National League ballparks.

For the 1962 season, finally the Dodgers would fully settle into their brand-new home; Dodger Stadium, opened for a new era of Dodger baseball.

Nestled in the hillside of Chavez Ravine, the setting of Dodger Stadium is beautiful. To the south, it overlooks downtown Los Angeles. To the north, the San Gabriel mountains and palm trees provide a picturesque background.

Built over three years at a cost of $23 million, Dodger Stadium’s five seating levels provided for a capacity of 56,000. The first four levels extended from the right-field foul pole to the left-field foul pole. The uppermost level reached from the first-base side to the third-base side.

Quite unlike the Coliseum, the configuration of this ballpark was symmetrical. The right-field and the left-field lines were 330 feet from home plate, right-center and left-center were 375 feet, and dead center measured 395 feet. Consistent with other ballparks of that era, the playing surface was grass.

Dodger Stadium was considered a pitcher’s ballpark, significantly different from Ebbets Field and, of course, the Coliseum. The environment in Chavez Ravine was pitcher-friendly, as the heavy evening air restricted fly balls that would have been home runs in the earlier home ballparks. Dodger Stadium’s more expansive outfield and regular-sized foul territory were positive features for pitchers.

In his first game at Dodger Stadium, the second game played there, Koufax commenced what became his remarkable career turnaround. He defeated the Reds with a complete-game 6-2 victory. The Reds managed only four hits (two singles and two doubles). Koufax had seven strikeouts and three walks.

On June 30 he made his 11th start at Dodger Stadium, against the New York Mets. Striking out 13 but walking five, Koufax managed through control issues to pitch the first no-hitter of his career. But after the no-hitter, he would make only two more starts at Dodger Stadium that season.

In mid-July, Koufax experienced physical ailments. A circulatory problem in his index finger and shoulder pain sidelined him for much of the second half of the season. He made one final start at home on September 27. In a no-decision outing, he pitched five innings (three hits, two runs) in a Dodgers’ loss to Houston.

Koufax was brilliant at Dodger Stadium during the 1962 season. He started in all his 13 appearances and achieved seven complete games. His record of 7-4 included two losses by one run and another loss by two runs. Koufax pitched 102 1/3 innings and had an ERA of 1.75. With 118 strikeouts and only 25 walks, his turnaround vis-a-vis his final season at the Coliseum was remarkable. Control had been harnessed (WHIP 0.91; K/9 10.3; K/BB 4.72).

Though curtailed by injury, Koufax’s performance in Dodger Stadium during the 1962 season was a precursor to the dominance that he would have in the National League in the seasons ahead.

The 1963 season was the first in a magnificent four-year run. Recovered from his injury setbacks and enjoying his new home ballpark, Koufax elevated his performance and completely dominated National League opponents in Dodger Stadium.

In front of 49,807 fans on May 11, 1963, Koufax pitched a no-hitter as the Dodgers won 8-0 over the Giants. He struck out four and walked two. It was his second career no-hitter, both at Dodger Stadium.

Koufax’s no-hitter made him a headliner at Dodger Stadium for each game he started. Not surprisingly, it was generally acknowledged that an extra 5,000 to 10,000 fans would buy tickets to watch a Koufax start at Dodger Stadium.

In 1963 Koufax showed that he was a clutch pitcher in a tight pennant race. In late August the Dodgers led the Giants and the Cardinals by 5½ and 6½ games respectively. The Cardinals embarked on a hot streak, winning 19 of 20 games. From August 21, Koufax made six starts at home, all Dodgers wins including victories over the Cardinals and Giants. Opponents were limited to nine runs in those six starts totaling 51⅓ innings.

The Dodgers won the pennant in 1963. Koufax started Game Four of the World Series at Dodger Stadium against the Yankees with the Dodgers leading three victories to none. He led the Dodgers to a complete-game win and a World Series sweep. He gave up one run on six hits, no walks, and eight strikeouts.

As a starter in all 17 of his appearances, Koufax pitched 143 1/3 innings, a personal high for innings pitched in his home ballpark. He won 11 games and lost one. Ten complete-game appearances including six shutouts were evidence of his dominance on the mound.

A home ERA of 1.38 contributed to his winning a well-earned National League ERA title (1.88). His control continued to improve (WHIP 0.74; K/9 9.0; K/BB 6.26). A Koufax start at Dodger Stadium put fear into National League hitters, who hit a dismal .164 against him.

The 1964 season started with much promise as Koufax pitched the home opener, a 4-0 shutout over St. Louis. His start on August 16 was his last home appearance that year. After his final start, a 3-0 shutout win over St. Louis, he was diagnosed with traumatic arthritis, a chronic ailment that put his career on a limited timeline.

Remarkably, Koufax was even more outstanding at Dodger Stadium during the 1964 season. He finished with a home record of 12-2. Since his no-hitter against the Mets in June 1962, Koufax’s home record was an incredible 25 wins and 3 losses.

Appearing in 15 games, all but one as a starter, Koufax took his dominance to an unprecedented level. His home ERA, a minuscule 0.85, meant another National League ERA title (1.74). Facing Koufax, opponents’ bats went silent at Dodger Stadium, hitting only .179, and his control remained at elite levels (WHIP 0.783; K/9 8.7; K/BB 6.89).

The 1965 season saw Koufax pick up right where he left off after his injury-shortened 1964 season. At home, he continued to trounce opponents. Used solely as a starter with appearances in a personal high of 20 home games, amazingly Koufax pitched 14 complete games and had a home record of 14-3.

The 1965 National League season ended with a memorable pennant race between the Dodgers and the Giants. Consistent with previous Septembers, Koufax was unbeatable at Dodger Stadium in that pennant race.

The game on September 9 against the Chicago Cubs stands alone in the annals of baseball history. Dodgers outfielder Lou Johnson had the only hit in the game, a 1-0 Dodgers victory. Koufax retired all 27 Cubs in order. This game has been marvelously chronicled in Jane Leavy’s book, Koufax: A Lefty’s Legacy.5 It was Koufax’s first perfect game and third no-hitter at Dodger Stadium.

Following that perfect game were three complete games including two shutouts and a 3-1 victory over Milwaukee. Koufax’s stats for those four September starts are unbelievable–wins 4; losses 0; IP 36; hits 11; runs 1; K 52; BB 8. The Dodgers won 15 of their final 16 games to claim the pennant.

The Dodgers faced the Minnesota Twins in the World Series. With the teams tied at two victories each, Koufax started and won Game Five at Dodger Stadium. His mastery of opponents in late-season and postseason home games continued; he blanked the Twins 7-0. The Dodgers went on to win the World Series in seven games.

Koufax bravely faced the 1966 season through much physical suffering. With chronic injuries afflicting him, a decline in performance would have been expected. His performance did decline relative to his otherworldly seasons of 1963 to 1965 but he remained the most elite pitcher in major-league baseball.

Koufax appeared in 21 home games, a career high. His statistics were awesome and remarkably consistent to those of his previous season. Opponents’ batting average increased to only .202. His ERA at Dodger Stadium was 1.52 with three shutouts and six one-run games.

The final month of the 1966 season featured another tight pennant race with the Giants. As in September 1963 and September 1965, Koufax was at his best when it mattered most. This time four Koufax starts at home in September resulted in three Dodgers wins. In 34 innings, he allowed only four runs.

The Dodgers won the pennant for the second consecutive year and were at home for Game Two of the 1966 World Series against the Baltimore Orioles. His final game at Dodger Stadium was not the dominant Koufax that fans had seen in recent pennant races and World Series. Betrayed by weak Dodgers hitting and poor fielding, Koufax exited his home ballpark stage after six innings as he took the loss in a 6-0 defeat. The Dodgers were swept by the Orioles.

Koufax’s final home game at Dodger Stadium closed the latter portion of his career.

Statistically, there was a consequential difference between the seven Ebbets Field/Coliseum seasons and the five Dodger Stadium seasons.

For decades after Koufax’s retirement, analysts and commentators have tried to assign meaning to the marked contrast in Koufax and his home ballparks and the trajectory of his success. One interpretation espouses the idea that Koufax owed a lot of his success to the configuration of and location of Dodger Stadium.6 The dimensions of the ballpark and climatic conditions were most favorable to him and his skills. In other words, what really happened to Koufax was that he moved from a park that was conspiring to stifle his abilities to a park that was a great fit for him. Following this view, some have concluded that he is the most overrated left-handed starter of all time.7 This view is argued by giving greater weight to the Ebbets Field/Coliseum mediocre years of his career.

Despite the controversy, most find the Sandy Koufax story inspiring. As a late bloomer, he is held up as an inspiration for the importance of focus, perseverance, patience, and encouragement. Metaphorically, Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles was truly Koufax’s promised land–a home ballpark that was the setting for his liberation and emergence as the most dominant pitcher in major-league baseball history.

PAUL SINCLAIR retired after a 38-year career as an investment professional for a leading Canadian life insurance company. A graduate of the University of Toronto, he is a lifelong Toronto resident, baseball player, and fan. As a player he tried out for both the Montreal Expos and Toronto Blue Jays. Highlights of his lifelong fandom include watching spring training with the Detroit Tigers in the mid-’70s, enduring the snow and cold of the first Blue Jays game ever and throwing out the first pitch at a Blue Jays game in August 2015.

 

NOTES

1 Sandy Koufax with Ed Linn, Koufax (New York: Viking Press, 1966), 64-65.

2 Dave Anderson, “Jewish Southpaw From Boro a Natural for Ebbets Field,” Brooklyn Daily Eagle, December 17, 1954: 27.

3 Koufax, 100-101.

4 Warren Spahn of the Boston Braves had struck out 18 Chicago Cubs on June 14, 1952.

5 Jane Leavy, Sandy Koufax: A Lefty’s Legacy (New York: Perennial, 2003).

6 Cody Swartz, “Why Sandy Koufax Owes a LOT of His Success to Dodger Stadium,” Bleacher Report, July 2, 2009. https://bleacherreport.com/articles/211023-why-sandy-koufax-owes-a-lot-of-his-success-to-dodger-stadium.

7 Jayson Stark, “Left-Handed Starting Pitchers,” in The Stark Truth (Chicago: Triumph Books, 2007), 15-19.

Sandy Koufax made the National League All-Star team each year from 1961 to 1966. (SABR-Rucker Archive)

 

Who can truly be compared to the great Sandy Koufax? This article offers a historical comparison between Koufax and other “short-term-peak” pitchers. Ron Guidry and Johan Santana will be the comparisons, with concluding thoughts on a current pitcher, Jacob deGrom. These pitchers had distinct phases in their careers and mirrored each other in some fashion. Each had a period of learning and rising, high-level performance, and ultimately a decline.

Sandy Koufax’s contributions to our game are nothing less than spectacular. While his detailed statistics are reviewed elsewhere, we note that his climb to prestige began in 1961, when he gained All-Star status and placed in National League MVP voting. He had continued success through 1966, earning three Cy Young Awards and helping to win a second World Series championship during those years. He was a two-time World Series MVP and had a career ERA of 2.76. With over 2,396 career strikeouts, the seven-time All-Star and Hall of Famer’s accolades are the stuff of legend, especially when one keeps in mind how these honors were earned in just six seasons.

The Ramp Up

When Koufax made his debut in 1955, he walked nearly as many batters as he struck out. His first two games were out of the bullpen until he earned his first start in July of 1955. In 1955 he started five of his 12 games, two of them shutouts. During this time, he pitched sporadically, suffering from lack of control and not getting much opportunity to improve. His middling performances continued throughout the late 1950s and into 1960. Over his first six seasons, his won-lost record was 36-40, with an ERA of 4.10. As 1961 began, so did a new dawn in Koufax’s career.

Ron Guidry was another dominating southpaw, who rose to prominence in the 1970s with the Yankees, and who had a career trajectory comparable to Koufax’s. Guidry played 14 years to Koufax’s 12, and started life out of the bullpen in the same way that Koufax did. In his early years in the minors, he struck out plenty of batters, but he also gave up a lot of walks. Guidry earned his major-league debut in 1975. He spent time during his first two years rotating between the minors and majors, not seeing much action. A key start against Seattle in 1977 in which he pitched 8⅓ shutout innings helped to cement him into the regular rotation. That year he made 25 starts and 6 relief appearances, going 16-7 with a sub-3.00 ERA.

Our third lefty, Johan Santana, is from more recent times, the 1990s and 2000s. This comparison often stirs up the most conversation and opinions. Although he and Koufax came from very different eras, they are often considered as two of the greatest left-handed pitchers in baseball history. Santana enjoyed a great run of about eight years in the 2000s of his 12 total years playing. He showed consistency earlier in his career when compared to Koufax and Guidry. A two-time Cy Young Award winner and four time All-Star, Santana shared a similar rise to stardom. He had fantastic years of peak performance and finally an injury-plagued ending, save for a few late-career gems. His minor-league starts were nothing short of atrocious, as he meandered around rookie ball and low A, with an ERA of 7.36 at one stop and 9.45 at another. Ultimately landing with the Minnesota Twins after a trade, Santana made his major-league debut in 2000. He struggled, to say the least, with an ERA of 6.49 in 86 innings, and an elbow injury in 2001. However, something happened in the 2002 season, a weapon was developed and elevated Santana to stardom. The changeup.

Lights Out!

As the 1961 season got underway, so did Sandy Koufax. That year he racked up 18 wins and led the National League with 269 strikeouts. His magical 1963 season is one for the ages. Riding a sub-2.00 ERA, 306 strikeouts, and his second no-hitter (He threw his first in 1962), he was voted the NL MVP. With a record of 25-5, 11 shutouts, and a sweep in the World Series, in which he was voted the Series MVP, Koufax had arrived. He became best known for an overwhelming fastball and a destructive curveball, and he knew how to change up his mix to keep batters off balance. His curveball was one of the most unhittable pitches in all of baseball. Not free from injury, he developed traumatic arthritis in his left elbow by the end of the 1963 season, which would slowly impact his effectiveness and health. At that time there was no Tommy John surgery or other advanced method to alleviate the injury or pain, so Koufax would submerge his throwing elbow in an ice bath after games. Other remedies included heat treatments with a type of chili powder and an anti-inflammatory pill that is no longer approved for humans. His options were limited, and he lived with excruciating pain. He still pitched some gems, including 15 complete games. He threw seven shutouts in 1964, including another no-hitter.

The pain and success continued side by side into 1965, where Koufax pitched a perfect game late in the season, his fourth no-hitter. That campaign culminated with another World Series win and another World Series MVP. The magic ended in 1966 as the injections became more frequent. Koufax also developed bone spurs in his arm. The Dodgers won another pennant but were swept by the Baltimore Orioles. Koufax retired weeks later at the age of 30.

Guidry enjoyed great peak years as well. His contribution to the game was marked by precision and control. His slider was his bread-and-butter pitch, along with a menacing breaking ball, hitting the corners with remarkable accuracy. In 1977 Guidry pitched a complete game in the AL Championship Series against Kansas City and successfully faced the Dodgers for his first World Series win. Guidry performed well, even earning accolades from his cantankerous manager, Billy Martin. The 1978 season was a fantastic one for Guidry, exemplified by dominating the Angels with an incredible 18 strikeouts during a June 1978 game. The hurler earned team records during that year for lowest ERA for a lefty (1.74), most strikeouts (248), highest win percentage (.893), and most shutouts (9). He won the Cy Young Award, along with another World Series ring, as the Yankees again dispatched the Dodgers. His success continued into 1979, although the Yankees were not back to the big game until 1981.

Santana honed his weapons during the 2002 season in Triple A, posting an ERA of 3.14 in 11 appearances, including 9 starts. As he moved back up to the majors, his stats got better, and his changeup more lethal. By 2003 Santana was in the starting rotation; he had a 2.51 ERA in his last 11 starts and struck out 70 batters in 68 innings. His true rise to prominence came in 2004, when he posted a sub-2.00 ERA with 75 strikeouts over 55 innings in his last seven starts before the All-Star break. With the confidence of his finely tuned changeup, Santana won his first Cy Young Award and led the American League in ERA (2.61), ERA+ (182), WHIP (0.921), and strikeouts per nine innings (10.5). He repeated this stellar performance in 2005 and 2006, leading again in many of those categories. Add to that another exceptional performance as 2007 unfolded, and Santana seemed unstoppable. But the unwanted attention of a potential trade with the Twins out of pennant contention brought drama to the Twin Cities. Santana was the talk of the offseason. By January of 2008 he had a new home with the New York Mets. He managed a good first season with the Mets, picking up a heavy workload. As the 2009 season unfolded, his uncharacteristically low strikeout totals and high number of hits suggested something was wrong. By the end of August, Santana underwent surgery to remove bone chips in his throwing elbow.

Sunset, Impact, and Legacy

Koufax retired after the 1966 season. His retirement was abrupt, although it has been reported that he was considering it for some time.1 Koufax is regarded as one of the top pitchers in baseball. His accolades were tremendous, earning himself election to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972. He remains a fan favorite to this day.

Guidry was getting older along with the rest of the Yankees as the 1980s rolled on. As his fastball slowed, he shifted his focus to inducing weak contact from hitters. Guidry made his first appearance on the disabled list in 1984 but managed a short resurgence during the 1985 season. He led the AL with a win percentage of .786 and 22 wins, but as time went on so did the reduction in his workload. By 1989 he had retired. He continued to work on and off in baseball until 2015. Guidry’s impact was shown in his leadership, consistency, and admirable work ethic, which served as an example to his teammates. He often outthought and outmaneuvered hitters, especially in later years when his velocity fell off. He espoused the mental side of the game and earned five Gold Glove Awards for his fielding excellence.

Santana came back for the 2010 season with high hopes, but it was clear that he was not quite the same. The low strikeouts and lower velocity on his fastball were beginning to show. He struggled through the season until he left a start in September after a five-inning outing, followed by the bad news that he needed season-ending shoulder surgery. The injury lingered and he missed the entire 2011 season as well. The Mets and Santana looked forward to 2012, which he started well, with an ERA of just over 2.00 by the end of April. Then he shocked everyone, and with a little help from the third-base umpire’s call, Santana threw the first no-hitter in Mets history. The exuberance did not last as he was clobbered in his next start, ran up a high ERA, and ultimately landed on the disabled list by August. Another shoulder injury in 2013 caused him to miss that season. He did not pitch in 2014 after suffering a torn Achilles tendon. Still trying to make a comeback in 2015, another injury caused Santana to end that season, and thus his career. Santana’s impact on baseball is not as profound as Koufax’s, but he was dependable and remains a fan favorite for the Mets and Twins. He has become an inspiration to young players, especially to those coming from Latin America, particularly his native Venezuela.

A Modern Comparison or “The Asterisk”

One of the questions that is often asked in baseball is: What if? What if Sandy Koufax had the benefit of modern remedies to lengthen his playing career? As noted, some of the treatments used in his day were crude and primitive. In a time before Tommy John surgery, the stalwart Koufax endured agonizing pain and disfigurement in his throwing arm. As we make one final comparison, we leave this essay with an asterisk as we do not know the final chapter of our last comparison.

Jacob deGrom’s trajectory is much like those of Koufax, Guidry, and Santana, with clear ramp-up, high performance, and apparent decline at a young age. Although in 2024 we were not sure if deGrom’s sunset was final, his injuries in the ’20s suggest we may have seen the best and last of deGrom. His rise included switching from the field to the mound in college, where he became a top prospect. After being signed to the Mets, he had Tommy John surgery while still in the minors. He won back-to-back Cy Young Awards in 2018 and 2019 with the Mets, and a had low ERA that rivaled Koufax, Guidry, and Santana in their primes. The four-time All-Star made a World Series appearance, although the Mets were not victorious. With his pitch mix including a lightning four-seamer and slider, deGrom served up a buffet of unhittable fare. As age and time have marched on, he has had a litany of injuries. Many questioned the high price he fetched in his move in 2023 to the Texas Rangers, who paid so much for an aging and injury-prone former All-Star. Early in the 2023 season these arguments gained traction. deGrom was shut down in early June, when it was reported that he would have surgery to repair his UCL for the second time in his career. In 2024 the verdict was still out as to whether deGrom would make a full recovery and return to pitching.

SCOTT MARTIRE was born and raised in the Philadelphia suburbs and has been a member of SABR since 2022. He holds the Level One SABR Analytics Certification. This is Scott’s first article for SABR and he looks forward to writing many more. He has particular interest in the business side of baseball and the catcher position. With a background in education, finance, and real estate, Scott currently works in lumber and building materials sales. He enjoys skiing, music, reading about history, and being outdoors.

 

SOURCES

The author consulted Baseball-Reference.com as well as the BioProject biographies of Sandy Koufax and Ron Guidry, and the following:

Rymer, Zachary D. “Retelling Johan Santana’s MLB Journey from Untouchable to Unfixable,” BleacherReport.com, March 29, 2013. https://bleacherreport.com/articles/1585844-retelling-johan-santanas-mlb-journey-from-untouchable-to-unfixable.

Stetson University, gohatters.com: https://gohatters.com/sports/baseball/roster/jacob-degrom/3594.

Jacob DeGrom injuries, FoxSports.com, https://www.foxsports.com/mlb/jacob-degrom-player-injuries.

 

NOTES

1 Marc Z. Aaron, “Sandy Koufax,” SABR BioProject, https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/sandy-koufax/.

As Willie Mays once said, “For (Sandy Koufax) to do all those things in five years, what guys take 20 years to do, that’s remarkable.” (SABR-Rucker Archive)

 

From time to time during his career, Sandy Koufax went head-to-head against other eventual Hall of Fame pitchers. Perhaps none was as significant as the last such regular-season confrontation.

Afterward, Koufax called it “the biggest ballgame of my life.”1

It was the final game of the 1966 regular season, and his Los Angeles Dodgers had to win to capture the last of their three National League titles in the decade. It was also the last regular-season game of Koufax’s career and his final victory, as only he and a very select few knew that he had decided to retire after that season because of his injured left elbow.

“It did cross my mind that it might be my last game if we lost,” Koufax said. “But it wasn’t about me, really.”2

It came on October 2 in the second game of a doubleheader against the Phillies in Philadelphia’s Connie Mack Stadium.3 Los Angeles had lost the first game and the San Francisco Giants had defeated Pittsburgh to pull to within a game of the Dodgers. A Dodgers loss in the nightcap would leave them just a half-game ahead. If that happened, San Francisco would make up a rained-out game against Cincinnati, and a Giants victory then would tie them with Los Angeles and force a tiebreaker.

So it was up to Koufax, working on only two days’ rest, to get the Dodgers across the finish line.

His mound opponent was future Cooperstown inductee Jim Bunning, trying for his 20th victory of the season. The two had started against each other twice before, each getting a no-decision in a Phillies victory on August 18, 1965, and in a Dodgers win July 27, 1966–the latter a classic duel in which both went 11 innings before exiting. The only other time they pitched in the same game was May 24, 1964, when Bunning went seven innings in a loss and Koufax pitched the last three innings to earn a save.

At first Koufax wasn’t sure if he’d be needed on this day, but the Giants-Pirates outcome wasn’t decided until past the start time of the Dodgers-Phillies contest, so he pitched.

Bunning, who said, “I just didn’t have it that day,”4 was done after five innings, having allowed four runs, all earned, on five hits and two walks.

Koufax injured his back while pitching in the fifth inning. Trainers labored between innings to work out the kink, and, though it continued to bother him, he pitched through it. “You could see him wince,” Philadelphia shortstop Bobby Wine said, “but nothing more than that.”5

Los Angeles led 6-0 going into the Phillies’ half of the ninth. At that point, Koufax said, “I guess I sort of ran out of gas,”6 as the Phillies rallied to trail 6-3 with no one out. But according to Dodgers first baseman Wes Parker, “I swear I saw that inner fire in his eyes. He was not going to let this game get away from him.”7

Indeed, Koufax retired the next three hitters to end the game and clinch the NL title.

After the team returned to Los Angeles, Koufax told a reporter that the victory “was bigger than my pennant clincher last year, or winning the seventh game of the World Series against the [Minnesota] Twins [in 1965].”8

In a reflective moment 50 years later, he said, “I always wanted to finish a win, and I wanted to finish my career with a win. So, yes, I’m tremendously proud of that game. But the reason I said that then was because of the team. I just wanted to make sure all of us got World Series shares. That money wouldn’t seem like much now, but it was important to us then.”9

The Dodgers were swept by Baltimore in the World Series, each Dodger receiving a loser’s share of $8,189.36.

KOUFAX vs. BOB GIBSON

Koufax was 4-1 in five such matchups against Bob Gibson with three shutouts and a 0.92 earned-run average. There was also a game in May 1962 in which Koufax started and got a no-decision. Gibson earned a win with five innings of relief after Koufax left.

Koufax pitched complete games in each of his four victories vs. Gibson, the first on May 25, 1961, when he “announced himself in May with a 1-0 victory … in St. Louis, a taut three-hitter decided by Tommy Davis’s seventh-inning home run.”11

The others came on June 18, 1962, July 3, 1963, and April 26, 1966. Gibson was almost the equal, pitching complete games in two defeats and going eight innings in the third matchup. Two of the games ended 1-0, and the third was 4-2. Both pitchers were fated to pitch much of their careers for teams not known for offensive prowess.

In the 1962 matchup, “Koufax teamed up with Tommy Davis to beat [Gibson] again. Another 1-0 loss for Gibson, another game-winning home run for Davis. For the first time in his career, Koufax pitched a complete game and walked no one.”12

Gibson beat Koufax on September 24, 1961, going 6⅓ innings in an 8-7 victory while Koufax lasted just three innings.

Of note, the two were scheduled to battle each other on September 21, 1962, but fate intervened. During batting practice, Gibson fractured a bone above his right ankle. Koufax was making his first start in nearly two months because of an injured pitching hand–said to be a crushed artery in the palm. He was pulled with two out in the first inning, already trailing 4-0 after walking the bases loaded and giving up a grand slam to Charlie James.13

KOUFAX vs. JUAN MARICHAL

Koufax and Marichal started against each other four times, and there was another game in May 1965 in which Marichal got the win in relief but came into the game after Koufax had exited. The two most significant of the head-to-head matchups came on May 11, 1963, when Koufax pitched the second of his four no-hitters, and on August 22, 1965–the infamous game in which Marichal attacked Dodger catcher John Roseboro with a bat.14

In the 1963 no-hitter, Koufax struck out an uncharacteristically few four batters and walked two in front of a crowd of 49,807 at Dodger Stadium. He had a perfect game until he walked Giants’ catcher Ed Bailey on a full count with one out in the eighth inning. The Dodgers had actually led by just 1-0 before striking for three runs in the sixth inning off Marichal.

“The fellows on the bench didn’t say anything about [the] no-hitter,” Koufax said afterward, “but I knew it all the time and also knew I was close to a perfect game. That must be the ultimate thing for a pitcher.”15 Koufax, of course, achieved the “ultimate” with a perfect game two years later against the Chicago Cubs.

“It’s hard to describe, but the game (against the Giants) gave me more satisfaction [than his first no-hitter the season before against the expansion New York Mets] because I felt I’d overcome my wildness problem.”16 Against the Mets, he had walked five batters.

There were a few hard-hit balls – by Harvey Kuenn, Felipe Alou, Willie Mays, and Orlando Cepeda – but none dropped for hits.

Interestingly, Tommy Lasorda – later the Dodgers manager but then a scout – had been asked the day before to catch a bullpen session to test Koufax’s shoulder, which had been stiff and kept him out of action for a couple of weeks. Lasorda said later that he told Koufax, “With stuff like that, tomorrow you’ve got to throw a no-hitter.” Lasorda didn’t see his prediction come true, however, because of a dinner meeting that night. He learned that Koufax was close to making history only when he turned on his transistor radio while at the dinner table.17

The second key matchup also made history, but not in a joyful sense. The longtime heated rivals were in a tight pennant race and this was the finale of a tense four-game series at San Francisco’s Candlestick Park. Marichal and Koufax had already traded high-and-tight pitches to opposing hitters when Roseboro deliberately threw a ball back to Koufax that Marichal claimed had clipped his ear. He and Roseboro confronted each other, and then Marichal clubbed Roseboro with his bat. Marichal was ejected, suspended for eight game days and fined a then-record $1,750.

When the game resumed, Koufax walked two batters and then gave up a three-run homer to Mays that gave the Giants a 4-2 lead. San Francisco eventually won, 4-3. Koufax, who began the game with a 21-4 mark, also lost his next two starts before rebounding to finish 26-8, win the second of his three Cy Young Awards, and clinch the World Series with a Game Seven victory over Kaat and the Minnesota Twins.18

After missing two starts because of his suspension, Marichal went 3-4 over his final nine appearances to finish at 22-13. His ERA was 1.78 before the altercation and 3.55 after it.19

The other two occasions in which Koufax and Marichal competed directly against each other came on June 3, 1961, and May 24, 1963. In the 1961 contest, both pitched complete games, and Koufax came out on top in a 4-3 Dodgers victory. Neither was at the top of his game, Koufax giving up seven hits and walking five, while Marichal gave up nine hits and struck out just four. In the 1963 game, Marichal was superior in a 7-1 Giants win. He gave up just four hits and a walk, while striking out 10. Koufax, meanwhile, lasted just one-third of an inning, allowing five runs on five hits and two walks.

KOUFAX vs. WARREN SPAHN

Koufax and Spahn, the winningest left-handed pitcher in major-league history, went against each other four times during the former’s glory years, with Koufax winning three times and Spahn once.

Spahn pitched a complete game in a 4-2 Milwaukee Braves win on September 2, 1961. Koufax went seven innings and gave up four runs, just two earned. In a rematch 13 days later, it was Koufax who pitched a complete game while Spahn lasted just one inning in an 11-2 Dodgers victory. On June 13, 1962, Los Angeles defeated Milwaukee 2-1 on a three-hitter by Koufax. Spahn went eight innings in that game.20

On June 20, 1965, when Spahn was briefly with the New York Mets, the two matched up with the Dodgers winning, 2-1. Koufax pitched a complete-game one-hitter–the only hit a solo home run by Jim Hickman in the fifth inning–while Spahn went seven strong innings, allowing just four hits and one walk.

KOUFAX vs. GAYLORD PERRY

Koufax and the Giants’ Gaylord Perry pitched against each other three times, but only one was a straight matchup. That came on May 9, 1965. The Giants won 6-3, with Koufax taking the loss and Perry getting a no-decision. Koufax went seven innings and Perry 7⅓, but interestingly it was Marichal who got the win with 1⅓ innings of relief after San Francisco scored four runs in the bottom of the eighth.

On July 26, 1964, Koufax pitched a complete game in a 5-2 loss, with the Giants scoring four times in the ninth inning. The big hits were a run-scoring double by Mays and a two-run home run by Jim Ray Hart, but all the runs were officially unearned because of an error by shortstop Maury Wills on Harvey Kuenn’s groundball. Perry pitched the last inning for San Francisco and got the save.

Koufax and Perry also pitched on June 25, 1964, but against each other for only one inning. Koufax started and went nine innings of an eventual 13-inning game that San Francisco won 2-1. Perry entered the game in the ninth inning, pitched the last five, and got credit for the victory.

KOUFAX vs. JIM KAAT

Koufax and Kaat faced each other in Games Two, Five, and Seven of the 1965 World Series, with Kaat winning the first and Koufax the last two. Koufax famously did not pitch the Series opener because it took place on the Jewish holy day of Yom Kippur.

In the first matchup–played in a drizzling rain–the Twins won 5-1 behind Kaat’s seven-hit, one-run, one-walk effort. Koufax was removed after six innings despite having allowed just two runs–only one earned–on six hits and having struck out nine batters. The game was scoreless after five innings before Minnesota scored twice against Koufax in the sixth.

“The cold weather didn’t bother me,” Koufax said afterward. “I’ve pitched and had good stuff on colder days. I knew what I wanted to do out there but I just couldn’t do it. If I had had a little better control, or better stuff, I might have gotten away with it. … Kaat and Minnesota just did a better job.”21

Four days later, with the Series tied at two games apiece, the two matched up in Game Five at Dodger Stadium and the Dodgers won 7-0. This time, Koufax pitched a complete-game, four-hit shutout with 10 strikeouts while Kaat lasted just 2⅓ innings.22

That set up the finale, in which both pitchers started on just two days of rest. Koufax again went the distance, giving up just three hits and striking out 10 in a 2-0 Dodgers victory. Kaat was chased in the fourth inning after giving up both runs.

What made Koufax’s performance even more amazing was that his arm was hurting so much, he couldn’t control his curveball. So he threw nothing but fastballs from the third inning on.

“I didn’t have a curve ball at all,” Koufax said. “When I threw it I couldn’t get it over. And those first few innings I really didn’t know how long I was going to last. Then I seemed to get my second wind. In the last three, the fastball seemed to move better, and I got stronger.”23

KOUFAX vs. WHITEY FORD

The two Hall of Fame left-handers competed directly just twice–in Games One and Four of the Dodgers’ surprising World Series sweep of the Yankees in 1963.24

In the opener at Yankee Stadium, Koufax set a Series record of 15 strikeouts–later surpassed by Bob Gibson with 17 in the first game of the 1968 Series–and held the Yankees to just six hits in a 5-2 victory. Ford, who had led the American League with 24 victories that season, gave up five runs in the first three innings and lasted just five innings.

Game Seven at Dodger Stadium hung in the balance much longer before the Dodgers won 2-1.

Ford gave up just two hits but one was a fifth-inning solo home run by Frank Howard. Mickey Mantle tied the game in the seventh with a homer off Koufax, but the Dodgers got the deciding run in the bottom of the seventh when Willie Davis hit a sacrifice fly to score Jim Gilliam.

One thing not revealed at the time was that Koufax had an open sore between the last two toes of his left foot, the one he used to push off the mound. A corn had torn off two days before and had not healed. He got a shot of Novocain in the affected area, and that apparently did the trick as he gave up just six hits, walked no one, and struck out eight.25

KOUFAX vs. JIM PALMER

The final game of Koufax’s career came on just three days of rest after the pennant-clinching victory over Bunning and the Phillies, and it was against another eventual Hall of Fame inductee26–the not-quite-21-year-old Jim Palmer, who had won 15 games in his second season.

The result was the opposite of that in Philadelphia.

The Orioles broke a scoreless tie with three unearned runs in the fifth inning, thanks in large part to three errors by Los Angeles center fielder Willie Davis. Koufax was lifted after the sixth inning, having allowed six hits, walked two batters, and struck out two. Palmer, meanwhile, went on to throw a four-hit shutout.

A Sports Illustrated retrospective said that “Sandy, pitching his third big game in eight days, gave up only one earned run in six innings … but it was a weak performance for Koufax, who failed to impress the Baltimore hitters. He looked tired, he was forcing his pitches. …”27

In short, it was not a fitting end to one of the most dominant six-season stretches in major-league baseball history.

CARTER CROMWELL spent 11 years as a sportswriter for daily newspapers–covering athletics at the high school, collegiate, and professional levels–and followed that with a career in corporate public relations. Currently he works with an independent pro baseball team in the U.S., writes for baseball-related websites, and has contributed to multiple projects of SABR. His other passions include family, world travel, and rescue dogs.

• Game recaps: Click here to find SABR Games Project stories on Sandy Koufax’s most memorable games

 

SOURCES

In addition to the sources in the Notes, the author utilized baseball-reference.com for information contained in this article.

For more detailed information on how about how Koufax’s career statistics compare with those of Hall of Famers Gibson and Marichal, refer to Larry DeFillipo’s article in this volume titled “First Among Equals.”

 

NOTES

1 Steve Wulf, “Sandy Koufax’s Final Victory Might Have Been His Best,” ESPN.com, September 30, 2016: https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/17671148/los-angeles-dodgers-pitcher-sandy-koufax-relives-finest-game.

2 Wulf.

3 See the Games Project account of this game by Jake Bell, which is presented elsewhere in this publication.

4 Wulf.

5 Wulf.

6 Wulf.

7 Wulf.

8 Wulf.

9 Wulf.

10 Jane Leavy, Sandy Koufax: A Lefty’s Legacy (New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 2002), 120.

11 Leavy, 114. See Tim Odzer’s Games Project writeup of the game, presented elsewhere in this publication.

12 Leavy, 116. An account of the June 18, 1962, game by Thomas J. Brown Jr. is also presented in this publication.

13 “Bob Gibson vs. Sandy Koufax: Grand game for Charlie James,” retrosimba, August 31, 2012 (updated October 7, 2020): https://retrosimba.com/2012/08/31/gibson-vs-koufax-a-grand-game-for-charlie-james/.

14 Marc Z Aaron has written the May 11, 1963, game account, presented elsewhere in this publication.

15 Kevin Stone, “Koufax’s Nearly Perfect in No-Hitter vs. Giants,” National Baseball Hall of Fame website, no date provided: https://baseballhall.org/discover/inside-pitch/koufax-pitches-

second-career-no-hitter-vs-giants. Article accessed on May 12, 2023.

16 Kevin Stone.

17 Mark Langill, “OTD: Sandy’s Second No-No,” Dodger Insider, May 11, 2020: https://dodgers.mlblogs.com/otd-sandys-second-no-no-782a3c27d304.

18 The Games Project account of Koufax’s Game Seven victory has been written by Norm King and appears elsewhere in this publication.

19 Stone.

20 See Tim Otto’s account of the June 13 game.

21 Jon Weisman, “Remembering ’65: World Series Game 2,” Dodger Insider, October 7, 2015: https://dodgers.mlblogs.com/remembering-65-world-series-game-2-be26ca5211e4.

22 Norm King has written both Game Five and Game Seven, which are presented elsewhere in this publication.

23 Houston Mitchell, “Greatest Moments in Dodger History, No. 14: Sandy Koufax’s Shutout in Game 7 of 1965 World Series,” Los Angeles Times, March 24, 2021: https://www.latimes.com/sports/newsletter/2021-03-24/world-series-sandy-koufax-dodgers-dugout.

24 Andy McCue has written Games One and Four, and those accounts appear elsewhere in this publication.

25 Andy McCue, “October 6, 1963: Koufax Stifles Yankee Bats Again as Dodgers Sweep World Series,” SABR Games Project, https://sabr.org/gamesproj/game/october-6-1963-koufax-stifles-yankee-bats-again/.

26 Mark Kanter’s account of Game Two of the 1966 World Series is presented elsewhere in this publication.

27 Jack Mann, “Those Happy Birds!” Sports Illustrated, October 17, 1966: https://vault.si.com/vault/1966/10/17/those-happy-birds.

Asked what it was like to face Sandy Koufax, Cubs Hall of Famer Ernie Banks said, “It was frightenin’.” (SABR-Rucker Archive)

 

Sandy Koufax faced 512 different batters during his Hall of Fame career, from Dick Groat (145 plate appearances, or PA), to Vinegar Bend Mizell (one PA, along with 63 other batters). Along the way, he faced a number of players who have been elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame, including Ron Santo (87 PA against Koufax), Lou Brock (70), Pete Rose (60), and Stan Musial (44). Seven Hall of Famers whose careers paralleled Koufax’s so closely that they had 100 or more plate appearances against the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers ace:

• Ernie Banks–143
• Henry “Hank” Aaron–130
• Willie Mays–122
• Roberto Clemente–122
• Frank Robinson–121
• Bill Mazeroski–109
• Eddie Mathews–102

This essay will review Koufax’s performance against these legends of the game and highlight some key games in which they competed. Also compared are the performances of these Hall of Famers against the two Sandys–the “bonus baby” Koufax of 1955-1960 who compiled a 36-40 record with 6.7 Wins Above Replacement (WAR), and “The Left Arm of God” years of 1961-1966 (129-47, three Cy Young Awards, 46.4 WAR).

The Dominated

Ernie Banks–faced Koufax 143 times between 1955 and 1966:

Ernie Banks was perhaps the best player in the National League during the bonus-baby Koufax years of 1955-1960. He won two MVP Awards (1958-59) and had three additional top-10 MVP finishes, plus a .294 batting average with 248 home runs and 693 RBIs. Banks’ performance against Koufax during these years was more modest. “What was it like facing Koufax?” Banks said, “It was frightenin.’”1

Banks’ batting average of .250 was better than the .225 average that all batters had against Koufax during 1955-60. Banks’ best day was April 12, 1959, when he went 2-for-2 with a triple in a 5-3 Dodgers victory. The wind blowing in at Wrigley Field helped keep Banks’ third-inning drive from leaving the park, and again later in the game when he faced Johnny Klippstein in the fourth with two on.

Banks hit a game-winning home run against Koufax on September 6, 1959, in the first game of a doubleheader sweep that was notable for Koufax’s setting a major-league record in defeat with 41 strikeouts in a three-game stretch.2

The Banks of 1961-1966 was a very good player, but not quite the same as the Banks of 1955-60. During these six years, Banks’ batting average dropped to .264 and his home-run totals dropped to 150. Banks made four All-Star Games and received some MVP votes in 1962. His performance against Koufax was anything but All-Star worthy. Banks hit a triple in his first at-bat vs. Koufax in 1961, one of his three hits against three Dodgers pitchers that day. (Koufax came into the game in relief in the fourth inning.) Banks had only one other hit against Koufax in 1961, a single on June 20, 1961, and faced him twice in 1962, going 1-for-7 with a single in his final 1962 AB against him.

Banks faced Koufax in only two games in 1963 and the second, on June 9, was his best ever, with two home runs in an 11-8 loss. Banks hit a third homer against Larry Sherry in that losing cause. It was almost two years and another 26 appearances before he had another hit against Koufax. Included in that dismal streak were three swinging strikeouts in Koufax’s perfect game on September 9, 1965. “He tried to throw the ball right past us,” eulogized Banks. “And he did.”3 Banks was able to rebound with two singles in 1966, his final hits against the LA ace. Banks finished his time against Koufax with seven hits in six years, including going hitless in 1964 and 1965.

Bill Mazeroski–faced Koufax 109 times between 1957 and 1966:

Bill Mazeroski was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2001, based primarily on his superior defense for the Pittsburgh Pirates (eight Gold Glove Awards between 1958 and 1967) and perhaps the most famous home run of all time that ended the 1960 World Series. “Some critics scoffed at his election, saying his offense (career batting average .260) did not live up to that of others already residing at Cooperstown. Others replied that the caliber of pitchers he faced had to be considered, among them Hall of Fame pitchers like Warren Spahn, Don Drysdale, Sandy Koufax, Bob Gibson, Juan Marichal, Gaylord Perry, Tom Seaver, Steve Carlton, and Ferguson Jenkins.”4 There is some validity to this argument–in the years that both Mazeroski and Koufax were both active, 1956 to 1966, only Nellie Fox (20.6) and Johnny Temple (18.1) had an offensive WAR (oWAR) for second basemen higher than Mazeroski’s of 17.5.

Mazeroski faced a total of 14 Hall of Fame pitchers during his career and, as one would expect, he performed better against the non-Hall hurlers:

Mazeroski debuted with the Pirates in 1956 but did not face Koufax until 1957, when he got two hits in eight at-bats, with both hits resulting in RBIs. The highlight of his 11 plate appearances against Koufax in 1958 were three walks, including two in a row on June 13. Mazeroski continued to struggle against the lefty through 1963, scratching only six hits in 48 appearances. Unlike Banks, however, Mazeroski seemed to figure out Koufax the more he faced him. From 1964 on, Mazeroski had 11 hits in 42 at-bats against Koufax, a .262 average, better than his lifetime average of .260 and considerably better than his .154 batting average against Koufax in his three prior years.

While Mazeroski may have had better success against Koufax the longer he faced him, one thing he could not do was drive in any runs. On July 29, 1961, Mazeroski started a remarkable string of appearances against Koufax with little to no effect on the game. He singled in consecutive at-bats, the second giving the Pirates a 2-1 lead. Mazeroski came up again in the fifth inning with the bases loaded and two out but struck out swinging. This at-bat was the first of 57 consecutive plate appearances in which Mazeroski did not record an RBI against Koufax. There was a runner in scoring position in only eight of these appearances, and in one opportunity Mazeroski was intentionally walked.

Frank Robinson–faced Koufax 121 times between 1956 and 1965:

Frank Robinson was one of the most feared hitters in the National League in his years with the Cincinnati Reds. Debuting in 1956, Robinson won the Rookie of the Year Award; he won his first Most Valuable Player Award in 1961, and played in eight All-Star Games during the Koufax era. For his first years competing against Koufax, Robinson had the better of the matchup. From 1956 through 1961, Robinson hit .367 against Koufax while slugging a robust .776. Robinson homered in his second time facing Koufax, a first-inning shot in a 6-4 Reds victory. His second homer off Koufax was more meaningful. Leading off the eighth inning with the Reds trailing by a run, Robinson homered to tie the score. The Reds won a walk-off victory in the ninth inning, moving to one game behind the Milwaukee Braves for the NL lead. The Reds stayed in contention all season but finished two games behind the Dodgers for the crown.

Robinson continued to have success against Koufax, especially in the Reds’ World Series campaign of 1961. Robinson’s three-run homer tied the April 21 game against the Dodgers that the Reds eventually lost. He doubled twice off Koufax on June 24, the second a bases-loaded shot that gave the Reds the lead in another game they lost. Another double on August 15 tied that game. Robinson eventually had 9 hits in 19 at-bats against Koufax in 1961, with 9 RBIs and an OPS of 1.460, easily the best of any hitter against Koufax that year with more than 10 plate appearances.

And then it was gone. Much like Banks, it was as if a switch was flipped in 1962. In the final years of this matchup, Robinson’s batting average plummeted to .111 and his slugging percentage shrank to .259. Included in these totals was an 0-for-17 stretch in 1964-65. After a home run in July 1965, Robinson finished his time against Koufax going hitless in his last nine at-bats. Robinson, though, had the last laugh, getting a triple in the sixth inning of Game Two of the 1966 World Series, which the Baltimore Orioles swept. Robinson, who was traded to Baltimore after the 1965 campaign, gave his Orioles teammates some advice: “If it starts at the belt, take it because it’s going to choke you.”5

The Enigmas

Eddie Mathews–faced Koufax 102 times between 1955 and 1966:

One of the most feared power hitters in the National League, Mathews struggled against the younger Koufax during the Milwaukee Braves’ glory years of the 1950s, then hit Koufax better than anyone else in this essay during the 1960s. Mathews had a hit in one of this three at-bats against the young Koufax, but then went more than two seasons without another one, albeit in limited appearances (eight total). Seeing Koufax more in 1958 than he did in the three prior seasons combined, he had some success, managing 4 hits in 13 at-bats. Two of those hits came on July 30, when Mathews’ home run on the first pitch leading off the bottom of the eighth inning gave the Braves a 4-3 victory, moving them into first place in the NL, a lead they did not relinquish for the remainder of the campaign. Warren Spahn broke a streak of his own on this night, defeating the Dodgers for the first time since September 25, 1951. Mathews’ next hit off Koufax was more than a year later, and also a home run, on August 17. It was his only hit off Koufax in 1959, the year he led the NL with 46 homers.

After facing Koufax only four times in 1960 (walking three times), Mathews began a stretch of hitting against Koufax that was unlike anyone else in the NL, except for his teammate Henry Aaron (more on him later). Mathews’ .378 batting average against Koufax in 1961-63 compares favorably to the average that hitters against Koufax achieved in these years of .202. Unfortunately for Mathews, 15 of those 17 hits were singles, and he drove in only three runs in this period.

As Mathews’ career wound down, so too did his appearances against Koufax. In 1964 the Braves faced the Dodgers in 18 games and Mathews played in 16 of these affairs but managed to avoid Koufax completely. In fact, Mathews went more than two years between appearances against the lefty. Matthews singled in the second inning against Koufax in what was the Braves’ final home game in Milwaukee, on September 22, 1965, a 7-6 defeat. Mathews managed just one more hit against Koufax, a home run in his final at-bat against him on August 9, 1966, that gave the Braves a walk-off 2-1 victory. The game was new Braves manager Billy Hitchcock’s first after Bobby Bragan was fired. Before the game, Hitchcock said, “I believe (Mathews) still has a lot of sting in his bat,”6 He was right–Mathews hit eight home runs in the final month and a half of the season to bring his total for the Braves to 493 before being traded to the Houston Astros after the 1966 season.

Roberto Clemente–faced Koufax 122 times between 1955 and 1966:

In his 18-year career with the Pirates, Roberto Clemente was one of the most consistent hitters in history. From 1960 until his final season of 1972, Clemente hit under .300 only once (1968), and over .340 five times. He finished in the top 10 of MVP voting eight times (winning in 1966) and missed only one All-Star Game in this period (1968). This consistency was evident against Koufax as well, perhaps not year over year, but over the course of the 12 years of competition between the two.

Koufax and Clemente were both rookies in 1955, and Roberto singled off Sandy in their first meeting, on July 6. They did not face each other very often through 1959, but when they did, Clemente had Koufax’s number, reaching base 13 times in their 29 battles. Clemente’s single in the fifth inning on August 17, 1957, put the Pirates in the lead to stay and gave Koufax his third loss of the season.

Remarkably, in the Pirates’ magical championship year of 1960, Clemente had one of his worst seasons against Koufax, reaching base only four times in 15 appearances, with his only home run providing his lone RBI. That changed in 1961, as Clemente hit .389 against Koufax in 18 at-bats, including a double on June 29 that tied the game in the eighth inning and knocked Koufax out of the game. Koufax held Clement hitless in 1962, but the seasons of 1963 and 1964 were Clemente’s best against the left-hander: .500 over the two seasons combined. Clemente missed a cycle by only the home run on May 17 in the first game of a doubleheader, his fly ball to right field coming up short. Clemente got that homer two weeks later, tying the game on May 31 in the third inning before an eventual Pirates loss.

The final two seasons of competition swung toward Koufax, as Clemente struggled with five total hits in 30 at-bats. In a tight pennant race late in 1966, Koufax beat the Pirates 5-1 to increase the Dodgers’ lead over the Pirates to 3½ games. Noting his unusually low number of strikeouts (five), Bob Bailey said, “Compared with the way he usually throws, he had nothing.”7 Clemente thought otherwise. “When my back hurts, they call me a goldbrick. Koufax says his elbow hurts and they make him a national hero. He threw as hard tonight as he ever has. He can’t have a sore elbow and throw like that.”8 Even with these two offyears, Clemente hit .301 off Koufax in his prime, when the NL as a whole hit only .197 against him.

The Dominators

Willie Mays–faced Koufax 122 times between 1955 and 1966:

Few rankings of all-time greats don’t include Willie Mays as either the best or second-best outfielder to ever play the game. Mays’ .278 lifetime average against Koufax was understandably less than the .313 that he averaged over the time he and Koufax competed against each other. What Mays did better than anyone else was, as Billy Beane said in the movie Moneyball, “He gets on base a lot.”9

Mays faced Koufax only 33 times during first six years of the lefty’s career, less than anyone else in this essay. That his on-base percentage was .576 likely means that Koufax was happy they did not face each other more often. His first plate appearances against Koufax went like this: walk, home run, walk, double, strikeout swinging, single, single, single. He walked four consecutive times in 1958, including a bases-loaded walk that gave the Giants some insurance in a victory on August 10.

As Mays faced Koufax more often in the 1960s, his batting average declined, but he kept getting on base. On August 20, 1961, Mays doubled and homered (and walked) to drive in the first three runs of an 11-8 Giants victory. The loss was the Dodgers’ seventh in a row, their longest streak since they lost eight straight in 1948.10 Mays also homered twice, the first against Koufax in the first inning, in the first game of the three-game tiebreaker series to decide the 1962 NL pennant. The season may have taken its toll on Koufax. “I’ve seen Sandy throw a lot harder. The long layoff hurt him,” Mays said after the game.11

Mays was also there for Koufax’s second ho-hitter, on May 11, 1963. Mays almost broke up the no-hitter with a screaming line drive that was snared by Jim Gilliam at third base. Koufax had not allowed a baserunner to that point. Mays got revenge later in the year, getting a double and home run on September 6, his only hits against Koufax that season in 15 plate appearances. Mays would find his form against Koufax over 1964 and 1965, averaging .385 with an on-base percentage of .484, phenomenal considering that Koufax had overall totals of .184 average against, with an OBP against of .233. Even in their final year together, Mays achieved a .400 OBP thanks to six walks in 20 plate appearances.

Hank Aaron–faced Koufax 130 times between 1955 and 1966:

There are 126 players who faced Sandy Koufax 25 times or more in their careers. (We’ve discussed six of them.) Of those 126 players, three had an OPS of 1.000 or greater against Koufax. Gene Oliver faced Koufax 54 times in his career with the Cardinals and Braves and hit .392 with 4 home runs and an OPS of 1.073. He also struck out 11 times. Hal Smith (the Cardinal, not the Pirate) faced Koufax 36 times, hitting .364 and accumulating an OPS of 1.053. (For the record, the other Hal Smith faced Koufax 37 times, striking out in 11 of them.) Aaron’s 1.077 OPS against Koufax was the best of the seven Hall of Famers with 100 plate appearances against Koufax, and it isn’t even close, with Mays the closest at .962. Aaron’s strikeout-to-plate-appearance rate of 9.2% is also easiest the best of his contemporaries–7.2% better than Mays, 12.4% better than his teammate Mathews. He was the one hitter for whom Koufax confessed he never had a plan.12

Aaron was there at the beginning for Koufax. Sandy debuted in Milwaukee on June 24, 1955, in the bottom of the fifth inning, replacing Jim Hughes. After a bloop single by Johnny Logan, Mathews grounded to Koufax, who threw the ball into center field. Aaron came up next and walked on four pitches. Koufax managed to get out of that situation, striking out Bobby Thomson and getting Joe Adcock to hit into a double play. “A park-packing crowd of 43,068 witnessed the historic occasion, and doubtless was oblivious to it,” Dick Young wrote in the New York Daily News. “To them it was just another guy named Koufax. To the Brook brass, however, it marked the start of what they expect to be a fine career. They sank a $20,000 bonus ($6,000 salary included) into the kid, who won’t be 20 until December.”13 Aaron didn’t get his first hit against Koufax until 1957, but he quickly made up for lost time. Aaron homered and tripled on August 23, 1957, in a game in which the Braves gave up three runs in the bottom of the ninth inning and lost 3-2. The Hammer lived up to his nickname over the next three years–facing Koufax 39 times between 1958 and 1960, Aaron hit .500 with 4 home runs, 8 RBIs, and an OPS of 1.558. In a remarkable stretch from June 24, 1960, through May 16, 1961, Aaron reached base 10 times (five singles, two doubles, a triple, a home run, and one reached on error) in 11 plate appearances.

Koufax would eventually catch up with Aaron–there was likely no way he could have kept up that kind of performance, especially against the post-1960 version of Koufax right after Aaron’s 9-for-11 streak. Koufax went on one of his own, retiring Aaron eight times in nine plate appearances, surrounding just an intentional walk. That was the last great year that Aaron had against Koufax. The years 1963-1965 saw Koufax take over, with Aaron dropping to a .156 batting average and a pedestrian OPS of .438–both figures even lower than Koufax’s totals for everyone in those years of .186 and an OPS of .507. Between August 25, 1963, and the end of the 1965 season, Aaron had an especially tough time–one hit and one walk in 20 plate appearances. The move from Milwaukee to Atlanta did give Aaron a chance for redemption as he hit .400 against Koufax in 1966, with an OPS back to an impressive 1.100. Aaron’s final hit against Koufax was the 424th home run of his career, on July 9, 1966.

A lifelong White Sox fan now living in Cedarburg, Wisconsin, KEN CARRANO works as the business operations manager for SABR. He has been a SABR member since 1992 and has contributed to several SABR publications and the SABR Games Project. Ken and his Brewers fan wife Ann share two children, two golden retrievers, and a mutual disdain for the blue side of Chicago.

 

SOURCES

In addition to the sources cited in the Notes, the author consulted SABR’s Biography Project (BioProject) and Games Project.

All data from baseball-reference.com.

 

NOTES

1 Ira Berkow, “Koufax Is No Garbo,” New York Times, July 3, 1985: B7.

2 Richard Dozier, “Cubs Defeat Dodgers Twice on Homers,” Chicago Tribune, September 7, 1959: 77.

3 Bob Hunter, “Now Sandy Stands Alone on Summit,” The Sporting News, September 25, 1965: 3.

4 Bob Hurte, “Bill Mazeroski,” SABR BioProject, https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/bill-mazeroski/.

5 Jane Leavy, Sandy Koufax: A Lefty’s Legacy (New York: Harper-Collins, 2002), 221.

6 Wayne Minshew, “Cap’n Ed 2, Sandy 1,” Atlanta Constitution, August 10, 1966: 35.

6 Minshew.

7 Leavy, 224.

8 Leavy, 224.

9 https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1210166/characters/nm0000093

10 Frank Finch, “Dodgers Roll 7, but Just Keep Fading,” Los Angeles Times, August 21, 1961: 78.

11 Paul Zimmerman, “Mays, Giants Rout Futile Dodgers, 8-0,” Los Angeles Times, October 2, 1962: 40.

12 Leavy, 86.

13 Dick Young, “Braves win 7th in Row, Diverting Brooks 8-2,” New York Daily News, June 25, 1955: 242.

On the afternoon of Sunday, June 20, 1965, New York Mets announcer Ralph Kiner described for listeners on WHN Radio in New York one of the more awesome sights in major-league baseball in the mid-1960s:

“Sandy Koufax, one of the top left-handers in the history of baseball …”1

Baseball Hall of Fame writer Roger Angell said in a 1999 interview that he’d never seen major-league hitters more overmatched than when Koufax was throwing his “terrific fastball and deadly curveball.” Angell recalled hitters looking out at Koufax on the mound as if they were wondering what they were facing. Batters sat in their dugout, said Angell, completely riveted by Koufax.2

In this Father’s Day doubleheader Koufax dueled the man who at the time was statistically the greatest lefty in the game’s history, Warren Spahn. The twin bill was critical to the pennant hopes of the Dodgers, who at 41-24 led the Milwaukee Braves by 3½ games and the Cincinnati Reds by 4 games.

Koufax versus Spahn was a classic mound matchup, and the game, historical as it was in that it marked the first time that Koufax and Don Drysdale started in the same doubleheader, lived up to expectations.

Amid near-perfect 68-degree weather, the two legendary lefties matched one another pitch for pitch–Koufax’s flame belching fastballs and 12-to-6 curves mystifying the Mets while Spahn’s sinking fastballs, screwballs, sliders, and knuckleballs were dazzling the Dodgers.

Claude Osteen, the number-three starter on the 1965-66 Dodgers, said in a 1998 interview that to call Koufax’s curveball “outstanding” was not a good enough word for it. Koufax’s curve dropped straight down, Osteen remembered, and his fiery fastball flared upward. Osteen said Koufax didn’t have a great changeup, but he didn’t need one, since his curve and fastball were otherworldly.3

Osteen recalled Koufax having huge hands and long fingers, the latter allowing him to exert extra spin on the ball. By adjusting his grip on the ball, he could deliver flaring fastballs estimated at between 95 and 100 mph and 85 mph power curves that broke in on right-handed hitters and away from lefties.

Ed Roebuck, a former Dodger teammate of Koufax, said in an interview that the pitcher’s long fingers allowed him to put extra spin on the ball and thus aided in his ability to throw his exceptional fastball and curve.4

Angell noted that with Koufax, one could see where all the heat was coming from on his pitches. It was generated by the bowed back, powerful arm, and powerful legs. It was very exciting, said Angell.5

Koufax’s duel with Spahn moved along briskly. At 1 hour and 52 minutes it was the third quickest contest the Dodgers played in 1965. Koufax’s 2-1 victory was reminiscent of a mound meeting he and Spahn engaged in nearly three years to the day earlier, June 13, 1962, in Milwaukee, Koufax allowing just three hits in another 2-1 victory.6

Decades later, Koufax would joke at a gathering of baseball greats for the All-Century Team that Spahn was the best southpaw pitcher in the room that day. Not because Spahn was so good, Koufax said tongue-in-cheek, but because he pitched “the whole damn century.”7

In LA, Koufax ignored an arthritic left elbow that caused him constant pain and went the distance, surrendering one hit and two walks while striking out 12. He faced just three batters over the minimum for a nine-inning game and improved his record to 11-3. The victory was his fifth straight in as many outings, a streak he eventually pushed to 11 as the Dodgers fought for their pennant lives.

The blazing National League race in the summer of ’65 emerged as one of the most suspenseful ever. The see-saw summer in ’65 saw six teams–Cincinnati, Los Angeles, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and San Francisco–spend time atop the standings.

That the Dodgers were in contention might have surprised some. The 1963 World Series champions plummeted to sixth place in ’64, the result of inconsistent play and injuries. The offseason saw the Dodgers bolster their mound rotation but weaken their offense when they acquired Osteen for slugger Frank Howard in a seven-player deal.

The Dodgers’ offense grew even more anemic one month into the 1965 campaign, their top hitter Tommy Davis breaking his ankle sliding into second base to break up a double-play attempt in a May 1 game against the Giants in Los Angeles. Davis didn’t return to the lineup until the final game of the regular season, and that in a pinch-hit role.

The injury might have doomed the Dodgers if not for the clutch play and pleasing personality of his replacement, Lou Johnson. Called Sweet Lou by teammates for his infectious good humor, Johnson was a journeyman outfielder who had played for the Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Angels, and Milwaukee Braves.

The injury to Tommy Davis was one of many endured by the Dodgers in ’65. Willie Davis, Ron Fairly, John Roseboro, and Maury Wills all missed playing time because of injuries. That the ’65 Dodgers did not produce a player with more than 12 home runs or 70 RBIs shows how important pitching was for this team.

Osteen, Drysdale, Johnny Podres, and a deep bullpen headed by relief ace Ron Perranoski picked up the slack, but it was Koufax who proved to be LA’s most artful Dodger. It hadn’t always been that way. Sportswriter Dave Anderson covered Koufax’s signing with the Dodgers for the Brooklyn Eagle newspaper in 1955 and recalled in a 1999 interview that Koufax was “a nice kid” but also just the 25th guy on the roster. Even as a rookie, Koufax could throw the ball through a brick, Anderson said, but he often couldn’t find the brick because of his lack of control.8

By 1965 Koufax was the best pitcher in baseball, but his success came at a costly price from a physical standpoint. The day on which he was scheduled to pitch saw Koufax apply the heating ointment Capsolin to his left arm to loosen the muscles. Capsolin was so hot it would nearly cause the skin to blister, but its effect was to stimulate the circulation beneath the skin.

Minnesota Twins ace southpaw Jim Kaat, who faced Koufax three times in the 1965 World Series, remembered in a 1998 interview standing next to Koufax for pregame publicity photos and having his eyes water from the strong smell of the Capsolin. The ointment heated up the arm, said Kaat, and killed the pain. After the game, Dodgers trainers filled a small plastic tub with crushed ice, dropping the water temperature to 35 degrees, and Koufax would submerge his pitching arm in the freezing water for 35 to 45 minutes.9

Eight days before defeating Spahn and the Mets on June 20, Koufax had taken the mound on a sunlit Saturday in Shea Stadium seeking his 11th victory in 12 career starts against New York. By the game’s end, his 5-0 shutout had raised his career mark against the Mets to 11-0 and lowered his career ERA against them to 1.00. He told reporters that he didn’t have a good curveball that afternoon; instead, he challenged the Mets with his fastball.10

When the Mets mounted even a modest rally, Koufax, according to Joseph Sheehan of the New York Times, “put an end to that nonsense.”11

Five days after his victory over Spahn, Koufax returned to the Dodger Stadium mound and again allowed just one run and struck out 12 in beating Bob Friend and Pittsburgh. Four days later Koufax climbed the hill in San Francisco’s Candlestick Park, struck out 10, including future Hall of Fame sluggers Willie Mays and Willie McCovey, and won 9-3.

On Saturday night, July 3, Koufax fanned 10 to beat the Astros beneath the plastic sky of the new Houston Astrodome. It was his fourth straight game of 10 or more strikeouts and his seventh consecutive complete-game victory.

The All-Star break found the Dodgers trailing the first-place Reds by three percentage points. The hotly contested race saw San Francisco 3 games back of Cincinnati, Philadelphia 3½, and Milwaukee 5½ games out.

Koufax’s remarkable streaks of consecutive complete games and strikeouts ended abruptly in his next outing, a 7-6 defeat on July 7, which saw Cincinnati score five runs in the first two innings at Crosley Field and drive Koufax off the mound in the fifth. Because the Dodgers rallied to tie the game at 6-6 in the eighth inning, Koufax was not the pitcher of record at game’s end.

The defeat dropped the Dodgers into a first-place tie with the Reds. Four days later, in the first game of a Sunday doubleheader in Pittsburgh, Koufax survived a two-run first inning and then slammed the door on the Pirates. Koufax got a run back in the third with an RBI single and the Dodgers added two more runs in the fourth and one in the eighth to claim a 4-2 win.

The complete-game victory, in which Koufax struck out 10, raised his record to 15-3 and allowed the Dodgers to remain tied for first place. Returning to Dodger Stadium, Koufax kept LA tied with Cincinnati with a four-hit shutout of Chicago on July 16, and his 3-2 victory over Houston four days later allowed the Dodgers to increase their cushion atop the standings to 3½ games. Once again Koufax helped his own cause. With the Dodgers tied with the Astros at 2-2 in the ninth inning, LA manager Walter Alston allowed Koufax to bat rather than be pinch-hit for, and Koufax singled to left, scoring Jim Lefebvre with the winning run.

The superlative pitching of Koufax and the rest of the Dodgers’ staff was crucial, since LA ranked ninth in the league in runs scored, due in part to the mounting injuries the club continued to suffer. The Dodgers’ bench grew so short that Alston had his pitchers hit for themselves in clutch situations and used Drysdale as a pinch-hitter. That Drysdale often came through is evident by his batting average of .300 and slugging average of .508 that season.

The Dodgers dropped decisions in each of Koufax’s next two outings, though he took the loss in only one. With LA’s lead melting in the summer months, Koufax went the route in a 3-2 win in St. Louis as the calendar flipped to August. The Dodgers led the Reds by 1½ games and were 3½ ahead of the Braves and 4 games in front of the Giants.

On August 8 the Dodgers made national headlines with an 18-0 loss in Cincinnati. Koufax returned his team to normalcy in his next outing, a complete-game 4-3 win in which he fanned 14 Mets and won his 20th game for the second time in his career.

Koufax improved to 21-4 in his next mound appearance, a 1-0 victory over the Pirates on August 14 in which he struck out 12, did not walk a batter, and scattered five hits. Four days later, Koufax matched up against Jim Bunning but neither great pitcher figured in the decision in a 6-3 Phillies win.

On Sunday, August 22, Koufax and Giants ace Juan Marichal opposed one another in a much-anticipated matchup that would result in one of the more infamous games in major-league history. What should have been a memorable mound duel between two all-time greats engaged in a pressure-packed pennant race was marred by one of the sport’s all-time ugliest incidents–Marichal attacking Roseboro with his bat after the catcher buzzed the Giants hitter’s head as he returned the ball to Koufax. Claiming the ball nicked his ear, Marichal bloodied Roseboro before Mays, Koufax, and others restored peace.

The loss started a streak of four straight games in which the Dodgers dropped a game started by Koufax, who may have been still shaken by the Marichal-Roseboro brawl. Four days later, on August 26, Koufax absorbed his second straight defeat, 5-2 in Shea Stadium in a game that future ace reliever Tug McGraw started for the Mets and earned the win. After working seven innings in New York, Koufax was back on the mound two nights later in Philadelphia, pitching the ninth inning to earn a save in an 8-4 win over the fading Phillies in Connie Mack Stadium. The save was his first of the season and the eighth in his career.

The first day of September saw Koufax drop his third straight start, losing to the Pirates 3-2 when Jim Pagliaroni reached him for a two-out double to left field to score Willie Stargell. Stargell’s strikeout in the fourth inning was number 307 on the season for Koufax, the most by a National League pitcher in 73 years.12

The game featured an intriguing pitcher-hitter duel between Koufax and Roberto Clemente in the bottom of the sixth. According to the Pittsburgh Press, Clemente fouled off “at least 15 pitches” from Koufax before going down on a swinging strikeout.13

Koufax struck out 10 in 11 innings in a game rescheduled from the day before due to rain, but the afternoon loss left LA tied for first with the Reds. In the post-mortem, Koufax told reporters that he threw a bad pitch and Pagliaroni hit it good.

Another one-run defeat in that night’s game dropped the Dodgers into second place, one percentage point behind Cincinnati.

The NL race listed five teams within 2½ games of first place. Opposing fellow future Hall of Fame pitcher Robin Roberts in the Astrodome on Sunday, September 5, Koufax worked seven innings but did not get a decision in a 4-2 win. The pressure of a pennant race now in its stretch run was such that even the usually unflappable Koufax was affected. After the game Koufax reportedly stormed into the Dodgers locker room, overturned a training table, and threw it against the wall.

When Koufax strode to the Dodger Stadium mound for a Thursday night game against the Cubs on September 9, LA was on a two-game losing streak and had fallen a half-game out of first place. Once again, he was called upon to be the Dodgers’ stopper. Leading off for Chicago and making his major-league debut was center fielder Don Young. Koufax got Young on a pop fly to second baseman Jim Lefebvre, and then fanned both Glenn Beckert and Billy Williams looking.

Though the mound matchup looked like a mismatch–the 21-7 Koufax versus the 2-2 Bob Hendley–the Cubs southpaw matched the legendary lefty pitch for pitch, inning by inning. Koufax had five strikeouts through the first four frames; Hendley, on the other hand, retired the Dodgers on a series of groundouts and fly outs. Each had a no-hitter heading into the fifth inning, and the Dodgers broke up the scoreless tie without benefit of a base hit. Johnson led off with a walk, was sacrificed to second, stole third, and scored on catcher Chris Krug’s throwing error.

Johnson’s walk ended Hendley’s perfect-game bid, and his two-out double past first baseman Ernie Banks in the seventh broke up the no-hitter. Koufax, meanwhile, kept the Cubs in check and he said afterward that the seventh inning was when he felt he had a shot at a perfect game.14

Koufax whiffed Ron Santo, Banks, and Byron Browne in the eighth. On the verge of baseball history, he finished with a flourish, striking out the side–Krug, Joey Amalfitano, Harvey Kuenn–in the ninth.

“The last three innings I had the best stuff I threw all night, and perhaps all year,” Koufax told reporters.15

He said he used high heat to set up his breaking pitches. “I had a real good fastball, and that sort of helps your curve,” Koufax remarked to reporters.

Frank Finch wrote in the next day’s Los Angeles Times that Koufax was “[a] Michelangelo among pitchers.”16

Koufax and Hendley produced more drama five days later in Wrigley Field, though it was the Cubs hurler outpitching the Dodgers’ ace with a complete-game 2-1 win. Koufax’s no-hit streak lasted one-third of an inning before Beckert doubled to right field.

The loss left the Dodgers 3½ games out of first place, and another loss the next day, the team’s third straight, dropped them 4½ games back in mid-September. The season was expiring, and so were the Dodgers’ dreams of the pennant. Koufax helped halt the slide the following day, claiming his second save of the season by working the ninth inning in a 2-0 victory over the Cubs. The victory sparked a win streak that eventually reached 13.

Two days later, on September 18, Koufax blanked the defending World Series champion Cardinals 1-0 in Busch Stadium. His complete-game four-hitter kept the Dodgers at 3½ games back with 13 to play.

On September 22 Koufax toed the rubber in Milwaukee’s County Stadium and was knocked out in the third inning against the Braves, giving up five runs on six hits. It was one of his shortest starts of the season, but the Dodgers rallied to win 7-6 in 11 innings. The dramatic victory allowed LA to cut its deficit to two games, and three days later Koufax overcame pain and fatigue to fan 12 in a 2-0 win over the Cardinals.

In a day game in Dodger Stadium on September 29, Koufax contributed to Cincinnati’s slide with a 5-0 victory that gave him his second straight shutout. Fanning 13, he fired a complete-game two-hitter that lifted LA to a two-game lead over San Francisco with four games to go in the torrid race.

The Dodgers’ next to last game of the regular season had them hosting the Braves before a Saturday afternoon crowd of 41,574. Pitching through pain once again, Koufax overcame his chronic sore elbow and a Milwaukee lineup featuring Hank Aaron, Felipe Alou, and Joe Torre. The dangerous trio went a combined 0-for-10 with five strikeouts as Koufax threw his third straight complete-game victory. Striking out 13 for the second straight time, Koufax with his four-hit, 3-1 win clinched the Dodgers’ second pennant in three seasons.

After Johnson caught Denis Menke’s fly ball to left field for the game’s final out, Finch wrote in the LA Times that the “magnificent Sandy Koufax” had made the anemic offense provided by the Dodgers–two hits, both by Lefebvre–stand up.

The Dodgers’ stretch drive had seen them win 14 of their final 15 games and turn a 4½-game deficit into a two-game margin of victory. Koufax contributed four complete-game victories and a save to the streak, and he finished the regular season by leading the league in wins (26), winning percentage (.765), ERA (2.04), complete games (27), innings pitched (335 2/3”), and strikeouts (382).

It was enough to earn him his second Cy Young Award in three seasons. In an era when the award was given to only one pitcher across the major leagues, Koufax claimed all 20 first-place votes. He finished second to Mays in the MVP balloting, totaling 177 vote points to Mays’ 224.

Koufax continued his dominance in the World Series. After losing Game Two, 5-1, to fellow future Hall of Famer Kaat in Minnesota, he returned to the Dodger Stadium mound and blanked the Twins 7-0 in Game Five to give LA a 3-2 Series lead. Three days later, amid partly sunny and cool conditions on October 14, Koufax pitched what is arguably the signature game of his great career in Game Seven.

Facing Kaat again in Metropolitan Stadium in the rubber match between the two, Koufax overcame an arthritic elbow aching from extreme fatigue and an ineffective curveball and challenged the Twins’ top hitters–Harmon Killebrew, Tony Oliva, Don Mincher, et al.–with his blazing fastball. With the World Series on the line, a weary, injured Koufax struck out 10, walked three, and allowed only three hits in a 2-0 victory.

Oliva faced many great pitchers in his career but recalled in a 1999 interview that Koufax was something special. Oliva said Koufax’s pitches did something different from other pitchers. Everyone knew Koufax threw hard, said Oliva, but the fact that he threw every pitch from the same over-the-top motion made it difficult to pick up his pitches. Oliva said the Twins realized what their National League counterparts already knew, and that was that Koufax’s curve went straight down, and his high-90s fastball seemed to sail upward. Every delivery was the same, said Oliva, and every pitch was off the same motion.17

Oliva was a professional hitter, owning quick wrists and excellent bat control. But he remembered struggling to catch up to Koufax’s fastball, which Oliva believed approached 100 mph with great movement. Koufax threw hard, Oliva remembered, and he said there weren’t too many hitters who could hit a fastball that had as much movement as the ones fired by Koufax.

Killebrew recalled being impressed by Koufax’s outstanding fastball and great control. He said Koufax’s curveball looked like his fastball before dropping straight down, and what he and some of the other hitters on the American League championship squad sought to do against the Dodgers ace was the opposite of what teams like the Giants and Pirates did in the National League.18

Hall of Fame second baseman Bill Mazeroski remembered in a 1998 interview that the Pittsburgh Pirates would look for the fastball because even if they looked to hit Koufax’s curve they still struggled to connect.19

Killebrew said the Twins took the opposite approach and laid off Koufax’s high fastball since they didn’t believe they could catch up to it.

Kaat, a decent hitting pitcher who batted .247 in 1965, couldn’t recall being able to put the ball in play or even hitting a foul ball against Koufax in the World Series. His fastballs, Kaat said, were a blur. Kaat said the feeling in the Twins’ dugout as Koufax mowed down one batter after another was almost a feeling of sorrow for the next man up.

The Twins were experiencing what the New York Yankees had dealt with two years earlier, when Koufax won Games One and Four to highlight a stunning sweep of the two-time defending World Series champions. Second baseman Bobby Richardson, a clutch World Series player for the Yankees, remembered in a 1998 interview that Koufax’s fastball took off so quickly that he was able to throw it past the Yankees hitters. Richardson recalled Koufax’s curve dropping as though it was rolling off a cliff. The Yankees won Series in 1961 and ’62, but in ’63, Richardson said, Koufax took the wind out of their sails.20

The 1965 World Series champions followed a similar path to the pennant in ’66. Koufax and Drysdale staged a celebrated joint holdout in spring training over contract disputes, but both signed just before the start of the regular season. While Drysdale followed with a sub-.500 season, Koufax won his first three decisions, including a 4-2 victory over Bob Gibson on April 26 under the lights in Dodger Stadium.

From May 10 to June 10, Koufax won eight straight starts, all of them complete games, to raise his record to 11-1. A 3-0 loss to Houston on June 14 snapped the win streak, but Koufax resumed his winning ways in his next outing, a 3-2 complete-game decision over the Giants.

The Dodgers ace amped up his intensity in the summer. Complete-game victories in his next two outings improved Koufax’s record to 14-2. He was 15-4 at the time of the All-Star Game on July 12, and was hugely responsible for the Dodgers not trailing the league-leading Giants by more than five games.

In the 1967 documentary Portrait of Willie Mays, aired on ABC-TV and narrated by sportscaster Chris Schenkel, the Giants’ superstar said that when Koufax was a young hurler in Brooklyn, he threw hard but couldn’t control his pitches. Mays said Koufax now made batters hit his pitch. Willie looked for the breaking ball but said Koufax more often than not challenged him with his fastball.

Norm Sherry, a catcher with the Dodgers from 1959 to ’62, said in a 1999 interview that Koufax’s transition from being a pitcher who struggled with control to one who could pinpoint them with power and accuracy was startling. Sherry recalled Koufax in his peak years, 1963-66, being able to place his pitches wherever he wanted.21

Mays told Schenkel that he loved to face Koufax because he felt he hit well against the Dodgers’ ace. He believed that even though Koufax threw hard, his overhand delivery made it easier for Mays to see the pitch and decipher if it was a fastball or breaking ball. Mays said his plan against Koufax was to get on base any way he could and use his speed to try to disrupt Sandy’s pitching rhythm and the Dodgers’ infield defense.

Koufax’s 4-2 win in Shea Stadium in the Dodgers’ first game after the All-Star break trimmed their deficit to four games, and by the end of July they were tied for first place in the blistering race. Koufax went 4-3 in August and the Dodgers were three games back entering the regular season’s final month. On September 11, Koufax’s 4-0 win over Houston in the first game of a Sunday doubleheader in LA lifted the Dodgers into sole control of first place for the first time since June 11.

As he had in 1965, Koufax ratcheted up his game in the season’s stretch run. Severe muscle spasms caused his back to seize up in pain on the mound, but Koufax soldiered on as the summer gave way to a golden fall. A 5-1 win over Pittsburgh on September 16 increased the Dodgers’ lead to 3½ games. An 11-1 final against the Phillies on September 20 gave Koufax his 25th victory of the summer. A 2-1 loss to Ken Holtzman and the Cubs followed before Koufax equaled his personal best with win number 26, a 2-1 decision over the Cardinals in Busch Stadium.

In the final games of the regular season, the Dodgers were in Connie Mack Stadium for a doubleheader against the Phillies. Koufax was warming up on the mound for the second game amid darkening, overcast skies when he heard the crowd roar behind him. He stopped and turned to look at the cause of the commotion and saw that the stadium scoreboard showed the Giants had won in Pittsburgh. San Francisco’s victory meant Koufax had to beat Bunning to nail down the pennant. Pushing himself to the limits of his pain and endurance, Koufax threw so hard that he fell off the mound.

For eight innings Koufax shut out the Phillies on four hits as the Dodgers gave him a six-run lead. But he was exhausted by the ninth inning and the Phillies plated three runs with no outs. Manager Alston visited the mound and told the tired Koufax to stick it out. Cameras captured Koufax going through his mannerisms as he prepared to meet the challenge–touching the back of his blue cap with his left hand and tugging on the bill before rubbing the ball with both hands, staring in for the sign, and then rocking and delivering the pitch.

Firing fastballs in dramatic fashion through the deepening shadows, Koufax retired the side and then raced off the mound in celebration when he fanned Jackie Brandt for his 10th strikeout to end the game.

Koufax’s 6-3 win gave him career bests in victories (27) and ERA (1.73). His 41 starts and 27 complete games matched his personal bests from the season before. Koufax led the league for the second straight season in wins, ERA, games started, complete games, innings pitched (323), and strikeouts (317), and paced the NL in shutouts (5) for the third time in four years.

Koufax claimed his second consecutive Cy Young Award and was runner-up in the MVP voting for the second straight year, this time to Clemente.

The excellence Koufax achieved on the mound did not surprise former teammate and fellow pitcher Carl Erskine. In a 1999 interview, Erskine recalled that even in Koufax’s early years he had shown spurts of greatness. On any given day, Sandy could be awesome, said Erskine, who added that the potential for consistent dominance on the mound was always there.22

As he had the year before, Koufax started Game Two of the World Series, this time facing the Baltimore Orioles, surprise champion of the American League. Just as they had against the Twins in the ’65 fall classic, the Dodgers trailed in the World Series 1-0 and looked for Koufax to be their stopper. For the second year in a row, Koufax lost Game Two. The “Kiddie Corps” Orioles scored four runs in six innings, though only one run was earned as the Dodgers committed six errors on the sun-soaked afternoon.

Making his third pressure start in just eight days, the workhorse Koufax was undoubtedly fatigued. Writing in Sports Illustrated, Jack Mann thought Koufax “looked tired, he was forcing his pitches.” Mann added that the tiring Koufax “failed to impress the Baltimore hitters.”23

Yet Jim Palmer, a 20-year-old future Hall of Fame pitcher making his World Series debut that day, recalled Koufax’s flashing fastballs.

“Radio fastballs,” Palmer called them in a 1999 interview. He could hear them, Palmer remembered, but he couldn’t see them. Everybody says the ball doesn’t jump, that you can’t get it to rise, said Palmer. “Well, his ball jumped six to eight inches.”24

Koufax’s rising fastballs were a rising tide that helped lift the Dodgers to league titles in the bruising NL pennant races in 1965 and ’66. His arthritic elbow forced his retirement after the ’66 World Series, ending an era of dominance.

Boston sportswriter George Sullivan was in Michigan to cover college football’s latest “Game of the Century” in November 1966 when Koufax announced his stunning retirement. Sullivan recalled it decades later as the sports equivalent to Pearl Harbor in December 1941, one of those days where people would remember exactly where they were and what they were doing when they heard the news.25

ED GRUVER has been a sportswriter for four decades, covering the Philadelphia Philles and Baltimore Orioles, the World Series, playoffs, and All-Star Games. He is the author of 12 sports books, including two on baseball – Koufax and Hairs vs. Squares: The Mustache Gang, the Big Red Machine, and the Tumultuous Summer of ’72. He is a contributor to SABR’s BioProject and Games Project as well as more than 30 sports books.

 

NOTES

1 Roger Angell phone interview with the author, 1999.

2 Angell interview.

3 Claude Osteen phone interview with the author, 1998.

4 Ed Roebuck phone interview with the author, 1999.

5 Angell.

6 Associated Press, “Spahn Is Beaten in Pitching Duel: Koufax Limits Braves to 3 Hits and Strikes Out 6 in Gaining 9th Victory,” New York Times, June 14, 1962.

7 Associated Press, “Koufax Considers Spahn Best Lefty,” South Florida Sun Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale), October 25, 1999.

8 Dave Anderson phone interview with the author, 1999.

9 Jim Kaat interview with the author, 1998.

10 Joe Trimble, “LA’s Koufax Blanks Mets, 5-0, to String 11-0 Mark,” New York Daily News, June 13, 1965: 144.

11 Joseph Sheehan, “Dodgers Triumph Over Mets by 5-0,” New York Times, June 13, 1965: S1.

12 Lester J. Biederman, “Stargell Fans as Koufax Sets Record,” Pittsburgh Press, September 2, 1965: 45.

13 Biederman.

14 “Koufax Eyed ‘Perfection’ All the Way,” Chicago Tribune, September 10, 1965: 53.

15 Charles Maher, “Even Koufax Admits Game ‘Nearly Perfect,’” Los Angeles Times, September 10, 1965: 53.

16 Frank Finch, “Hendley Loses, 1-0, on 1-Hitter,” Los Angeles Times, September 10, 1965: 45.

17 Tony Oliva phone interview with the author, 1999.

18 Harmon Killebrew phone interview with the author, 1999.

19 Bill Mazeroski phone interview with the author, 1999.

20 Bobby Richardson phone interview with the author, 1999.

21 Norm Sherry phone interview with the author, 1999.

22 Carl Erskine phone interview with the author, 1999.

23 Jack Mann, “A Practical Demonstration of Palmer’s Law,” Sports Illustrated, October 17. 1966: 34.

24 Jim Palmer in-person interview with the author, 1999.

25 George Sullivan phone interview with the author, 1999.

Sandy Koufax posted a career-low 1.73 ERA and struck out 317 batters in his final season with the Dodgers in 1966. (SABR-Rucker Archive)

 

The fact that Sandy Koufax had arthritis in his left elbow was well known for the final two years of his career. He woke up after a spring-training game in 1965 unable to straighten his pitching arm and was flown back to Los Angeles for testing. Koufax made no secret of the fact that he’d been diagnosed with “traumatic arthritis.” It was reported in the Los Angeles Times as early as April 4 of that year1 and was mentioned later that year in the broadly syndicated columns of Jim Murray2 and Dick Young.3

In short, everyone knew about it for two years before Koufax announced his retirement. So why, in November of the following year, was the news of his retirement reported as a “bombshell”4 that left people “stunned?”5

The answer likely lies in the fact that he was still pitching better than anybody in baseball. As Jane Leavy said in her wonderful biography of Koufax, “No, what was disconcerting, revolutionary even, was the idea. Athletes don’t quit, certainly not after their best season. They don’t walk away. They limp away.”6

Leavy may have overstated her case a bit, because 1966 likely wasn’t Koufax’s best year. According to Fangraphs WAR, it was his third best, behind 1965 and 1963. According to WAR on Baseball-Reference.com, it was his second best, behind 1963. According to traditional statistics, Koufax did, by the barest of margins, win the most games and have the lowest ERA of his career in 1966, but he also had his worst winning percentage and fewest shutouts since 1962, and his lowest strikeout rate since the Dodgers’ first season in Los Angeles, 1958.

Yet Leavy’s main point is valid. Koufax was still pitching brilliantly, easily the best pitcher in baseball yet again. He won his third Cy Young Award, and, like the first two, the vote was unanimous. He did not just have a great final season but went out with five successive seasons as the ERA leader, something no other retiree can claim. In addition, he led the league in innings pitched his final two seasons.

Since 1966 proved to be his final season, the question has long been asked if it’s the finest final season anyone has ever had.

As with most things in life, the answer is: “It depends.”

What it depends upon lies in how we choose to define our terms. For instance, are we only talking about baseball players? Because, if we’re not, then Koufax may not even have had the best final season among athletes whose final game was played in 1966. Jim Brown’s final season with the Cleveland Browns was 1965 (his final game was played on January 2, 1966), and all he did was lead the NFL in rushing, total yards, and touchdowns while winning his fourth league MVP award.

Because it’s virtually impossible to compare a baseball season to a football season, it makes sense to limit the discussion to just the one sport that Koufax played.

That still leaves us with a few terms to define. Do we mean a player’s final full season, excluding any part-time years that may have finished his career? If so, it might be hard to surpass someone like Dick McBride of the 1875 Philadelphia Athletics, who won 44 games that season, his final full year in baseball. He pitched in just four games the next year before calling it quits.

That situation seems to be outside the spirit of the exercise though, doesn’t it? Koufax walked away after 1966. He didn’t come back, pitch four ineffective games in 1967, and then retire. So let’s stick with the same standard when comparing him to others.

Speaking of Dick McBride, and other players from baseball’s earliest days, what about timeframe? When we say best final season “ever,” do we mean in the full statistically recorded history of baseball, all the way back to the nineteenth century, when pitchers were routinely posting preposterous innings-pitched totals, it took six balls to walk a batter, the fielders had no gloves, and batters were out if a foul ball was caught on a bounce?

If we choose to go back that far, it seems impossible for Koufax’s final season to be considered superior to Jim Devlin’s. As the only pitcher on the roster of the Louisville Grays of the National League in 1877, Devlin threw 559 innings, started and completed all 61 games the team played, won 35 of them, led the league in ERA+, and had a WAR total of 13.2, a mark that has been surpassed in a single season only by Babe Ruth, Walter Johnson, and a few other nineteenth-century pitchers.

That was Devlin’s final year as a player because, after the season ended, he confessed to purposely losing games and was banned for life. Still, a final season is a final season, and Devlin’s numbers would put him well beyond Koufax in 1966. It’s hard for any modern pitcher, even a workhorse like Koufax, to compete with the numbers that can be compiled by the only pitcher on a decent team’s roster.

In keeping with the spirit of our other definitions, and the attempt to compare apples to apples (or baseballs to baseballs) on as level a playing field as possible, it seems that nineteenth-century pitchers played under such different circumstances than Koufax that they shouldn’t be included in the discussion.

There’s another tricky situation to address. Many Negro League players continued their playing careers in leagues that still aren’t considered major league. That means some of them had their final official “major league” season when they were in the prime middle years of their careers. Should we be considering those as “final” seasons?

For instance, Charlie “Chino” Smith had a remarkable year in 1929 for the New York Lincoln Giants of the American Negro League. The 28-year-old Smith was in his prime, entering that season with a career major-league batting average of .379. Playing in 66 of the Giants’ 68 league games, he led the league with 86 runs scored, 29 doubles, 22 homers, and a batting line of .451/.551/.870. His 1.421 OPS is nearly identical to Barry Bonds’ mark in 2004. His WAR total of 5.9 extrapolated to a 162-game season would stand at 14.1, the exact mark Babe Ruth posted in 1923, his only MVP season. It’s one of the most spectacular seasons in major-league history, and it’s the final major-league season Smith played.

So does that count as one of the great final seasons? We could count it, but the problem is that Smith did nothing to stop playing major-league baseball. In fact, at the time, he wasn’t even aware that he was playing “major league” baseball, because the American and National Leagues were the only ones considered “major” at that time by both “organized baseball” and the public in general. Only in 2020 was the American Negro League finally categorized as “major.”

Smith kept right on playing when the ANL dissolved after that season, and still for the New York Lincoln Giants. He batted .417 in 1930 and led the Giants to a 37-13 record and a place in a postseason series against the Homestead Grays. In the finale of that series, Smith was injured in a collision with Walter “Rev” Cannady, effectively ending his career.7 He died in January 1932 at the age of just 30, and for years it was believed that Smith’s injury and a case of yellow fever contracted while playing in Cuba led to his death, but more recent research points to cancer of the stomach and pancreas as the cause.8

It would be very hard to claim that Koufax’s final season in 1966 was better than Smith’s season of 1929, but Smith’s year was “final” only by technicality. He wasn’t retired or injured or banned or even demoted. His team continued as before, just outside the league structure that allows it to be viewed as a major-league team. He continued to play top-caliber baseball past 1929, so this, too, is a type of season that seems to fall outside the point of the discussion.

That leaves us with a field of prospects consisting of baseball players from 1900 forward who were playing in their final season on the field at any level. We still must decide one more term, and that is “finest.” When we say a player’s final season was the “finest,” are we speaking of the finest quantitative performance, i.e., he posted the best statistics, or the most recognized performance, i.e., he received the most accolades?

Looking at just one likely doesn’t provide a full picture of the season. There have been wonderful statistical seasons that went virtually unrecognized at the time, (John Valentin in 1995, for example9), just as there have been seasons rewarded with various honors that likely didn’t deserve them (such as Pete Vuckovich in 1982).10 To get the clearest possible picture of the quality of the season in historical context, and in the context of how it was viewed at the time, we need to look at both.

First, the statistics.

Since 1900, only five pitchers have won at least 20 games in their final season: Koufax, 27 in 1966; Lefty Williams, 22 in 1920; Henry Schmidt, 22 in 1903; Eddie Cicotte, 21 in 1920; and Mike Mussina, 20 in 2008. Clearly, Koufax has a big advantage here, even before noting that two of his competitors, Williams and Cicotte, should lose a few accolade points since they were banned by baseball for throwing the 1919 World Series. Of these five, Koufax also had the lowest ERA, started the most games, completed the most games, and had the most strikeouts, best ERA+, and highest WAR.

Pitcher wins are somewhat out of vogue now and are certainly harder to come by given modern pitcher usage, so let’s shift to ERA, and more particularly ERA+ since that accounts for the differences between ballparks and run-scoring eras. Searching for pitchers in their final major-league season who threw at least 100 innings, had an ERA of 2.50 or better, and an ERA+ of 150 or better, we find just 10 men besides Koufax. Six of them–Max Manning, Bill Byrd, Leon Day, Amos Watson, Roy Welmaker, and Dick Matthews–pitched in the Negro Leagues and all but Matthews pitched after their “final” major-league season, either in Black leagues not currently considered major, Mexican baseball, or the minor leagues. There is no known record of Matthews pitching again, but his 2.17 ERA and 161 ERA+ don’t approach Koufax’s marks of 1.73 and 190, respectively, and didn’t lead his league as Koufax did.

Of the four remaining pitchers–Larry French, J.R. Richard, Ned Garvin, and John Tudor–French’s 180 ERA+ in 1942 came the closest to Koufax, but he did it in almost 200 fewer innings. Ned Garvin’s 1.72 ERA in 1904 was a point better than Koufax’s mark, but in 130 fewer innings and in a much lower run-scoring environment as indicated by his much lower ERA+ of 159. None of the 10 men led their respective leagues in either ERA or ERA+ as Koufax did.

Let’s move on to strikeouts. Koufax fanned 317 hitters in 1966, leading the National League. The next closest pitcher was José Fernández, who had 253 strikeouts in 2016 before tragically dying in a boating accident at the end of that season. No other pitcher surpassed even 200 strikeouts in his final season, and the only pitchers to lead their league in strikeouts in their final season, as Koufax did, were Leon Day in 1946, and Jim LaMarque in 1948, and both continued their careers elsewhere after those seasons.

Shifting to WAR from baseball-reference.com, we find no pitcher anywhere near Koufax’s mark of 10.3 in his final season. The closest was José Leblanc in 1921, when he had 6.2 WAR to lead the Negro National League, but he pitched after that season in Cuba. Other pitchers also led their respective leagues in WAR, but they were all Negro Leagues pitchers, too, and all played somewhere after their final “major league” season, except for the aforementioned Dick Matthews, whose 3.8 WAR in the Negro Southern League, for a team that played just 48 league games, would extrapolate to 12.8 WAR over a 162-game season, so we shouldn’t simply ignore it. On the other hand, it’s a record posted by a pitcher who was never heard from again, playing in a league that existed for just one season, and we must project performance to put him in the same class as Koufax. It seems safe to go ahead and pass him over as a candidate.

Moving along to accolades, this is a pretty short discussion when it comes to pitchers. There have been 124 Cy Young Awards handed out through the 2022 season. Just one of those was given to a pitcher who was playing his final season–Koufax in 1966. ’Nuff said.

It’s clear that no pitcher in the modern era had a final season as good as Koufax had. If we’re going to find a player to challenge him, it will have to be a position player. We’ll examine the Triple Crown statistics first.

Just eight players have hit as many home runs in their final season as Koufax had wins, 27. The most was 38 by David Ortiz in 2016, but he fell considerably short of leading the league, as Koufax did in wins. Ortiz finished tied for eighth, nine homers behind Mark Trumbo. If we were considering Charlie Smith, we’d have to account for the fact that he led the American Negro League with 22 homers, which projects to 52 for a 162-game season, but we’ve already noted that 1929 wasn’t really Smith’s final season. Bill Pierce, Willard Brown, Tom Finley, and Lester Lockett, who led their respective leagues in homers in their final major-league seasons, are all eliminated for the same reason.

But a different Negro Leagues legend is in the running. Josh Gibson led the Negro National League with 13 homers in 1946, his final season before tragically dying that winter of a stroke. He played in just 48 of the Homestead Grays’ 77 league games, so his homer total projects to 27 over a 162-game season. Impressive enough to lead that league, but not a particularly notable figure by itself. Gibson’s ongoing health issues were already taking a toll on his performance. Other than homers and slugging, he didn’t lead the league in any offensive categories, and his 2.4 WAR projects to just 5.0 for 162 games, less than half of Koufax’s mark in 1966.

Shifting to RBIs, the case for David Ortiz in 2016 becomes stronger. He led the American League with 127 RBIs, the most ever compiled in a final big-league season. Some Negro Leagues players who weren’t actually playing their final seasons also managed to lead their league, but the only player besides Ortiz to lead his league in RBIs in his final year was Turkey Stearnes in 1940, when he drove home 33 runs to lead the Negro American League. That projects to just 107 in a 162-game year, well short of Ortiz’s mark, and the rest of his numbers that year weren’t particularly noteworthy.

So how strong a candidate is Ortiz for the title of having the finest final season ever? His homerun and RBI totals are impressive, and he also led the American League with 48 doubles, a .620 slugging percentage, and an OPS of 1.021. But he totaled just 5.2 WAR due to his complete lack of defense as a designated hitter, and even his offensive WAR only wasn’t in the top 10 in the league. He finished sixth in the MVP voting that season, compared to Koufax winning the Cy Young and finishing second in MVP voting. Overall, we’d have to conclude that Ortiz’s final year, though impressive, falls short of Koufax.

There have been some remarkable batting averages posted in players’ final seasons, like Charlie Smith’s .451 mark in 1929 and Tetelo Vargas’s .471 average in 1943, but most of them were achieved by Negro Leagues players who continued their careers in non-major-league venues, including all three of the players who won batting titles in their final big-league seasons. But there is one noteworthy player who hit .382 in his final season that we need to examine more closely.

Joe Jackson, of Black Sox infamy, was third in the AL with that .382 average in 1920. He also led the league with 20 triples, and had an OPS+ of 172, short of Koufax’s ERA+ of 190 in his final year, but still impressive and good for third in the league. He finished the season with 7.5 WAR (or 7.9 in a 162-game year), well behind several other players in 1920, but still the highest WAR total for any hitter in his final season. Others, like the seemingly omnipresent Charlie Smith, posted marks that project to a higher total, but remain ineligible for the title due to their continued careers.

So Jackson may have the best claim so far, but he has the obvious drawbacks of falling short of Koufax in accolades (there was no MVP award that year) and in league-leading performances, plus whatever negative points we care to assign for being banned for life after the season due to his involvement in the Black Sox scandal. Ultimately, we’d have to say that Shoeless Joe isn’t a contender for the title either.

Speaking of the MVP award, no one has ever won the award in their final season. The closest anyone has come was … Koufax, who finished second in 1966.

All things considered, given the parameters we established at the beginning, the answer to the question of who had the finest final season in major-league history seems obvious. Everyone is free to determine their own standards, though, so if you feel nineteenth-century players deserve consideration, then crown Jim Devlin or Dick McBride or some other candidate. Or include Negro Leaguers even if they continued playing elsewhere when their “major league” careers ended. Granting Charlie Smith, for instance, this small dose of attention and fame certainly wouldn’t be inappropriate given the lack of attention he received in life.

But until those rules are redefined, baseball’s finest final season belongs to Sandy Koufax.

PAUL WHITE, a SABR member since 2001, is a native of Boston and lifelong fan of the Red Sox. He writes a daily newsletter on baseball history at www.lostinleftfield.com, and has contributed several entries to the SABR Games Project and the SABR BioProject, including a contribution to the recent SABR publication One-Win Wonders. His book Cooperstown’s Back Door: A History of Negro Leaguers in the Baseball Hall of Fame, will be published by McFarland Books in February 2025. Paul and his wife live near Kansas City.

 

SOURCES

In addition to the sources cited in the Notes, the author consulted Baseball-Reference.com and Fangraphs.com for any pertinent information, including career statistics.

 

NOTES

1 Sid Ziff, “Say It Isn’t So,” Los Angeles Times, April 4, 1965: D-3.

2 Jim Murray, “Arm & Hammer,” Los Angeles Times, May 14, 1965: 43.

3 Dick Young, “Young Ideas,” New York Daily News, August 12, 1965: 283.

4 Alex Kahn, “Dodgers Need a New Star,” Los Angeles Evening Citizen News, November 19, 1966: 10.

5 “Arthritis Finally K’s Koo’s Career,” New York Daily News, November 19, 1966: 251.

6 Jan Leavy, Sandy Koufax: A Lefty’s Legacy (New York: Harper Perennial, 2003), 238.

7 John Holway, “Charlie ‘Chino’ Smith,” SABR Baseball Research Journal, 1978. Retrieved from https://sabr.org/journal/article/charlie-chino-smith/.

8 Gary Ashwill, “The Death (And Life) of Charles ‘Chino’ Smith,” Agate Type, www.agatetype.typepad.com, April 7, 2011. Retrieved from https://agatetype.typepad.com/agate_type/2011/04/the-death-and-life-of-charles-chino-smith.html.

9 In 1995 Valentin had one of the most unrecognized great seasons in recent memory, displaying both power (27 homers) and speed (20 steals in 25 attempts) while playing excellent defense at shortstop. He led the AL in both overall WAR (8.3) and defensive WAR (3.0), yet wasn’t selected as an All-Star, didn’t win a Gold Glove, and finished just 9th in MVP voting while his teammate, Mo Vaughn, was given the award. See Mark Feinsand, “This Was a Divisive MVP Choice, So We Re-Voted…” MLB.com, April 2, 2020. Retrieved from https://www.mlb.com/news/re-vote-for-1995-al-mvp-award.

10 Andrew Stoeten, “How Dave Stieb Was Robbed of the 1982 AL Cy Young Award, and What It’s Still Costing Him Today,” The Athletic, November 7, 1982. Retrieved from https://theathletic.com/1317127/2019/11/07/how-dave-stieb-was-robbed-of-the-1982-al-cy-young-award-and-what-its-still-costing-him-today/.