Whitey Ford
Whitey Ford | |
---|---|
Manhattan, New York, U.S. | |
Died: October 8, 2020 Lake Success, New York, U.S. | (aged 91)|
Batted: Left Threw: Left | |
MLB debut | |
July 1, 1950, for the New York Yankees | |
Last MLB appearance | |
May 21, 1967, for the New York Yankees | |
MLB statistics | |
Win–loss record | 236–106 |
Earned run average | 2.75 |
Strikeouts | 1,956 |
Teams | |
Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Member of the National | |
Baseball Hall of Fame | |
Induction | 1974 |
Vote | 77.8% (second ballot) |
Edward Charles "Whitey" Ford (October 21, 1928 – October 8, 2020),
Ford signed with the Yankees as an amateur free agent in 1947 and made his major league debut in 1950. Following a two-year sojourn to serve in the
In the wake of Yogi Berra's death in 2015, George Vecsey of The New York Times suggested that Ford was now "The Greatest Living Yankee".[4] Ford died on October 8, 2020, at the age of 91.
Early life
Ford was born in
In 1951, Ford married Joan at St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Astoria.[7] They lived in Glen Cove, New York on Long Island for a period during the 1950s, and had two sons and a daughter together.[8]
Professional career
Early years
Ford was signed by the New York Yankees as an amateur free agent in 1947 and played his entire career with them. While still in the minor leagues, he was nicknamed "Whitey" for his light blond hair.[9]
Ford began his Major League Baseball career on July 1, 1950, with the Yankees. He won his first nine decisions before losing a game in relief. Ford received a handful of lower-ballot
During the Korean War era, in 1951 and 1952, Ford served in the United States Army.[11] He rejoined the Yankees for the 1953 season, and the Yankee "Big Three" pitching staff became a "Big Four", as Ford joined Allie Reynolds, Vic Raschi, and Eddie Lopat.[12][13] Ford wore number 19 in his rookie season,[14] but upon his return he changed to number 16, which he wore for the remainder of his career.[15]
Ford eventually went from the number-four pitcher on a great staff to the universally acclaimed number-one pitcher of the Yankees. He became known as the "Chairman of the Board" for his ability to remain calm and in command during high-pressure situations. He was also known as "Slick", a nickname given to him,
In 1955, Ford led the American League in complete games and games won; in 1956 in earned run average and winning percentage; in 1958, in earned run average; and in both 1961 and 1963, in games won and winning percentage.[15] Ford won the Cy Young Award in 1961; he likely would have won the 1963 AL Cy Young, but this was before the institution of a separate award for each league, and Ford could not match Sandy Koufax's numbers for the Los Angeles Dodgers of the National League (NL).[17]
Some of Ford's totals were depressed by Yankees' manager Casey Stengel, who viewed Ford as his top pitching asset and often reserved his ace left-hander for more formidable opponents such as the
In May 1963, after pitching a shutout, Ford announced he had given up smoking. He said, "My doctor told me that whenever I think of smoking, I should think of a bus starting up and
Final years and retirement
Ford ended his career in declining health. In August 1966, he underwent surgery to correct a circulatory problem in his throwing shoulder.[18] In May 1967, Ford lasted just one inning in what would be his final start,[15] and he announced his retirement at the end of the month at age 38.[17]
After retiring, Ford admitted in interviews to having occasionally doctored baseballs. Examples were the "mudball", used at home in Yankee Stadium. Yankee groundskeepers would wet down an area near the catcher's box where the Yankee catcher
Ford described his illicit behavior as a concession to age:
I didn't begin cheating until late in my career when I needed something to help me survive. I didn't cheat when I won the twenty-five games in 1961. I don't want anybody to get any ideas and take my Cy Young Award away. And I didn't cheat in 1963 when I won twenty-four games. Well, maybe a little.[7]
Ford admitted to doctoring the ball in the 1961 All-Star Game at Candlestick Park to strike out Willie Mays. Ford and Mantle had accumulated $1,200 ($12,087 today) in golf pro shop purchases as guests of Horace Stoneham at the Giants owner's country club. Stoneham promised to pay their tab if Ford could strike out Mays. "What was that all about?" Mays asked. "I'm sorry, Willie, but I had to throw you a spitter," Ford replied.[19]
Career statistics
Ford won 236 games for the New York Yankees (career 236–106), still a franchise record.[20] Ford is tied with Dave Foutz for the fourth-best winning percentage in baseball history at .690.[21]
Ford's 2.75 earned run average is the third-lowest among starting pitchers whose careers began after the advent of the
As a hitter, Ford posted a .173
World Series and All-Star Games
During his MLB career, Ford had 10 World Series victories, more than any other pitcher. Ford also leads all starters in World Series losses (8) and starts (22), as well as innings, hits, walks, and strikeouts. In 1961, he broke Babe Ruth's World Series record of 29+2⁄3 consecutive scoreless innings. The record eventually reached 33+2⁄3, although MLB rule-makers retroactively reduced the record to 33 innings since Ford did not complete a full inning before allowing the streak-ending run. It is still a World Series record, although Mariano Rivera broke it as a postseason record in 2000.[23] Ford won the 1961 World Series MVP Award. He appeared on eight AL All-Star teams between 1954 and 1964.[15]
Honors and legacy
In 1974, Ford and
In 1984, Ford was elected to the Long Island Sports Hall of Fame.[26]
In 1987, the Yankees dedicated plaques for Monument Park at Yankee Stadium for Ford and Lefty Gomez.[27]
In 1999, Ford ranked 52nd on The Sporting News List of Baseball's Greatest Players.[28] He was nominated that year for the Major League Baseball All-Century Team.[29]
In 1994, a road in Mississauga, Ontario, was named Ford Road in his honor. The north-central area of Mississauga is known informally as "the baseball zone", as several streets in the area are named for Hall of Fame baseball players.[30]
In 2000, the ballfield overlooking the East River on 26th Avenue, between 1st and 2nd Streets in Astoria, Queens, was named Whitey Ford Field at a Yankee Stadium ceremony.[31]
Post-playing career
Ford was the Yankees
In 1977, Ford was part of the broadcast team for the first game in
In 2002, Ford opened "Whitey Ford's Cafe", a sports-themed restaurant and bar next to
As of 2015, the 86-year-old Ford was splitting his time between his homes in Long Island and Florida.[4]
Ford died on October 8, 2020, at his home in Lake Success on Long Island at the age of 91, 13 days before his 92nd birthday. He was watching the Yankees play in Game 4 of the 2020 American League Division Series on television, and was surrounded by his family.[12] The cause of death was not immediately announced, but he had suffered from dementia for several years.[12][43] When he died he was the second-oldest living member of the Hall of Fame, after Tommy Lasorda.[12] He was the last surviving member of the 1956 World Champion New York Yankees.
Representation in other media
- Ford and Mantle made cameo appearances on a 1984 episode of Remington Steele starring Pierce Brosnan.[44]
- In 1997, Ford was depicted in The Simpsons episode "The Twisted World of Marge Simpson", where he is knocked unconscious by pretzels thrown by an angry crowd at a baseball game. Homer later suggests that Marge could call the pretzels "Whitey Whackers."
- In 1998, Everlast released a CD entitled Whitey Ford Sings the Blues, and assumed "Whitey Ford" as a nickname.[45]
- Ford was portrayed by Anthony Michael Hall in the HBO movie, 61* (2001), about Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle's 1961 quest to break Babe Ruth's single-season home run record. It was directed by Billy Crystal.[46]
- Ford is one of two central figures in The Night Game", the other being fellow Hall of Fame left-hander Sandy Koufax.[47]
See also
- List of Major League Baseball annual ERA leaders
- List of Major League Baseball annual wins leaders
- List of Major League Baseball career ERA leaders
- List of Major League Baseball career shutout leaders
- List of Major League Baseball career strikeout leaders
- List of Major League Baseball career wins leaders
- List of Major League Baseball players who spent their entire career with one franchise
- List of World Series starting pitchers
References
- ^ Feinsand, Mark (October 9, 2020). "Whitey Ford, 'Chairman of the Board,' dies". MLB.com. MLB Advanced Media. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
- ^ Some sources, such as Retrosheet, claim a 1926 birthdate.
"Whitey Ford". Retrosheet. Retrieved October 22, 2008. - ^ "1970–1979 Baseball Hall of Fame | 1974 Induction Class". National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. Retrieved September 14, 2020.
- ^ a b Vecsey, George (September 25, 2015). "Whitey Ford, a Six-Time Champion, Can Add a Title: Greatest Living Yankee". The New York Times. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
- ^ Berkow, Ira. "ON BASEBALL; Ford Highlight Film Started Early", The New York Times, August 17, 2000. Accessed November 3, 2007. "Vivid in my memory is Stengel's shrug, palms up at his sides, gesturing in response to the mixture of cheers for Ford and boos for his removal. It was a display of sympathy for the kid from Astoria, Queens, who just a few years earlier was playing in street stickball games, and now under a national spotlight and World Series pressure had pitched so beautifully."
- ^ Travers, Bill (January 20, 1974). "Whitey's Old Teammates Recall Early Triumphs". New York Daily News. p. 116NL – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c Ford, Whitey. Slick: My Life In And Around Baseball, New York: William Morrow, 1987.
- ^ "Whitey Ford photos". Newsday. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
- ^ "They Came from Queens", Queens Tribune. Retrieved on November 4, 2007. "He once lived in Little Neck and attended Aviation High School."
- Binghamton Press. November 13, 1950. p. 16 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Blum, Ronald (October 9, 2020). "Whitey Ford, 91, pitcher who epitomized mighty Yankees, dies". Associated Press. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
- ^ a b c d Goldstein, Richard (October 9, 2020). "Whitey Ford, Beloved Yankees Pitcher Who Confounded Batters, Dies at 91". The New York Times. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
- ISBN 9781493038930.
- ISBN 9781101911747.
- ^ a b c d e f "Whitey Ford Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
- ^ Terrell, Roy (March 17, 1958). "Part 1: Sal Maglie on the Art of Pitching". SI.com. Sports Illustrated. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f Rogers III, C. Paul. "Whitey Ford". Society for American Baseball Research. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
- ^ "26 Aug 1966, 22 - York Daily Record at". Newspapers.com. August 26, 1966. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
- ISBN 0671632922.
- ^ "New York Yankees Top 10 Career Pitching Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com.
- ^ "Career Leaders & Records for Win–loss %". Baseball-Reference.com.
- ^ "Career Leaders & Records for Earned Run Average". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved February 7, 2023.
- ^ Coverdale, Miles Jr. (2006). Whitey Ford: A Biography. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company. p. 155.
- ^ Bock, Hal (January 17, 1974). "Mickey Mantle and Whitey Ford Reach Baseball's Hall of Fame". The Danville Register. p. 3-D – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Anderson, R.J. (October 9, 2020). "Whitey Ford, Yankees legend and Hall of Fame pitcher, dies at age 91". CBSSports.com. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
- ^ "Sports Briefs". UPI. Retrieved August 19, 2022.
- ^ Parker, Rob (August 5, 1987). "Ward shuns PH label despite success". New York Daily News. p. 58 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "100 Greatest Baseball Players by The Sporting News : A Legendary List by Baseball Almanac". Baseball-almanac.com. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
- ^ "The All-Century Team | MLB.com". Mlb.mlb.com. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
- ^ "google.com". Google Maps. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
- ^ "Whitey Ford Field : NYC Parks". Nycgovparks.org. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
- ^ "Yanks Name Ford Coach of Pitchers". Eugene Register-Guard. Associated Press. November 15, 1963. Archived from the original on January 24, 2013. Retrieved August 25, 2009.
- ^ "Coach Howard Rejoins Yanks, Replacing Ford". St. Petersburg Times. Associated Press. October 23, 1968. Retrieved August 24, 2009.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "9 Jan 1974, 98 – Daily News at". Newspapers.com. January 9, 1974. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
- ^ "30 Dec 1975, Page 8 – Wellsville Daily Reporter at". Newspapers.com. December 30, 1975. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
- ISBN 0-14-023978-2
- ^ "16 Jul 2008, 33 – The Dispatch at". Newspapers.com. July 16, 2008. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
- ^ "American Professional Slo-Pitch League (1977-1980)". September 24, 2022.
- ^ "Softball challenge - OOTP Developments Forums".
- ^ Details of Whitey Ford's Cafe from Yahoo! Local.
- ^ Peter M. Gianotti, Review of White Ford's Cafe[permanent dead link] from Newsday, October 13, 2002.
- ^ Conversation with present owner of Gasho of Japan restaurant, former site of Whitey Ford's Cafe.
- ^ Madden, Bill (October 9, 2020). "Whitey Ford, the Yankees' famous 'Chairman of the Board,' dies at age 91". New York Daily News. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
- ^ Siegel, Ed (October 23, 1984). "Pierce Brosnan & Whitey Ford in 'Remington Stelle'". The Boston Globe. p. 36 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Mukherjee, Tiarra (September 29, 1998). "Everlast's White Boy Blues". Rolling Stone. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
- ^ Gross, Andrew (April 24, 2001). "Borghese's new role: Being Berra". The Journal News. p. 1C, 3C – via Newspapers.com.
- PBS News Hour. October 22, 2002.
External links
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors), or Retrosheet
- Whitey Ford at the Baseball Hall of Fame
- Whitey Ford at the SABR Baseball Biography Project