Baseball Guru
06-24-2001, 04:50 PM
Not like I haven't posted things about Walter before but it's been awhile so I though I'd refresh everyones memory on the greatest pitcher to ever take to the mound...:biggrin:
"In the 1924 World Series, Bill Dinneen, the umpire, confessed to me that Walter was so fast that he was doing some lively guessing on where the ball crossed or didn't cross the plate. That's a big admission for an umpire. I didn't tell Bill to get his eyes open. I was having enough trouble with Walter's speed myself." -Muddy Ruel, 1924 Washington Senators Catcher.
There have been many great pitchers throughout the history of baseball. Lefty Grove, Christy Mathewson, Grover Cleveland Alexander, Warren Spahn, heck even Greg Maddux. But, none were the calibar pitcher that Walter Johnson was. He was, bar none, the fastest pitcher ever to step onto a mound. Grove had great control and was extremely fast, but Johnson was still faster. Mathewson and Maddux each have great control, but Johnson was faster. What separates Walter from his peers in his era was that he pitched in the powerful American League. Johnson pitched to many great hitters the NL never faced, Ty Cobb, Tris Speaker, "Shoeless" Joe Jackson, George Sisler, Nap Lajoie, Eddie Collins, and Home Run Baker to name a few.
http://members.aol.com/tycobb1911/johnson/johnson3.gif
In 1907, Walter Johnson made a name for himself as a high school standout in his home state of Idaho. One reporter spotted his pitching talent and stated, "This Walter Johnson has a pitch that is faster than Amos Rusie's and control that is better than Mathewson's. He throws so fast you can't see'em, and he knows where he is throwing, because if he didn't, there would be dead bodies all over Idaho." He was then about ready to sign with the Pittsburgh Pirates, but was refused a $9 signing bonus. He signed with the Senators and agreed to terms that the ballclub would pay his way back home if he didn't make in the Major Leagues. On August 2nd, 1907 he made his Major League debut against the Tigers, throwing a 5-hitter, but still lost 3-2. Before the game, Tiger hitters poked fun at the lanky right-hander. Ty Cobb, however, scouted him out in his warmups and stated "Have everybody stand deep in the box today. This farmer throws out of his hip pocket so fast that you can't follow it."
In Cobb's first at bat against Johnson, he learned that the long, lanky right-hander with a slingshot delivery was the fastest pitcher he had ever seen, by far. He then relied on the bunt to reach base on Johnson and the rookie misplayed them. After the game, Cobb remarked to Tiger owner Frank Navin, "Get this kid even if he costs you twenty-five thousand dollars. That's the best arm I've ever seen. He's so fast it scared me. When he learns a curve nobody can stop him." Navin refused to buy Johnson and it turned out to be a big mistake. As Cobb noted later on "All he did for the next twenty years was beat Detroit."
Throughout the entire Dead Ball Era, Johnson's ERA was above 2.00 only twice (1909 and 1917) and in 1913 Johnson won the AL MVP with an incredible record of 36-7, an ERA of 1.14, and 11 shutouts. He also pitched 56 consecutive scoreless innings that year, a record which stood until 1968 when Don Drysdale broke it. In 1910 and 1912, Johnson fanned over 300 hitters, and from 1910-1915 fanned over 200 hitters. He also had seven straight seasons with an ERA under 2.00 from 1910-1916 and three times in that span had an ERA under 1.40 (1.36 in 1910, 1.39 in 1912, and 1.14 in 1913). He won his 2nd American League MVP award in 1924 with a 23-7 record, an ERA of 2.72, and 6 shutouts. That year the Washington Senators won their 1st American League pennant and headed to the World Series.
In 1924, Walter Johnson and his Senators finally won a World Series, but it took a genuine Walter Johnson effort to pull off the World Series victory. He lost twice to the Giants, but his team fought their way to a 3-3 Series tie heading into a final Game 7. With Game 7 tied up in the 8th inning, the Senators brought in Johnson as a reliever. He pitched four scoreless innings of relief and the Senators won Game 7 by a score of 4-3 in twelve innings. A year later, in 1925, the Senators returned to the World Series and Johnson won two games against the Pirates. However, he gave up four unearned runs in his final game and the Pirates beat the Senators.
When Johnson retired, his numbers and rankings were simply incredible. He won 417 games, 2nd all-time to Cy Young (511 wins). He finished with a career ERA of 2.17, seventh best all-time, with 3,509 strikeouts. He is 5th all-time in complete games with 531, and third in innings pitched with 5,923. His most astonishing feat is a record 110 shutouts. He also led the AL in ERA five times, and had an ERA under 2.00 eleven times. He led the AL in strikeouts twelve times, led the AL in shutouts seven times, and led the AL in wins six times. One of the most remarkable things about Johnson was of his 279 career losses, 27 of them were losses by a score of 1-0 and 65 of them were losses in which his team was shutout.
Lefty Grove once stated, "I think Johnson was the greatest that I ever saw, and his curve was faster than Feller's fastball." 1927 was Johnson's final year, and retired after that season from an injury to his leg from being hit during batting practice. He tried to pitch again with an iron brace, but didn't have much success. In 1936, Johnson was rewarded for his fabulous career by being inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame along with Ty Cobb, Honus Wagner, Babe Ruth, and Christy Mathewson. He died in 1946.
"In the 1924 World Series, Bill Dinneen, the umpire, confessed to me that Walter was so fast that he was doing some lively guessing on where the ball crossed or didn't cross the plate. That's a big admission for an umpire. I didn't tell Bill to get his eyes open. I was having enough trouble with Walter's speed myself." -Muddy Ruel, 1924 Washington Senators Catcher.
There have been many great pitchers throughout the history of baseball. Lefty Grove, Christy Mathewson, Grover Cleveland Alexander, Warren Spahn, heck even Greg Maddux. But, none were the calibar pitcher that Walter Johnson was. He was, bar none, the fastest pitcher ever to step onto a mound. Grove had great control and was extremely fast, but Johnson was still faster. Mathewson and Maddux each have great control, but Johnson was faster. What separates Walter from his peers in his era was that he pitched in the powerful American League. Johnson pitched to many great hitters the NL never faced, Ty Cobb, Tris Speaker, "Shoeless" Joe Jackson, George Sisler, Nap Lajoie, Eddie Collins, and Home Run Baker to name a few.
http://members.aol.com/tycobb1911/johnson/johnson3.gif
In 1907, Walter Johnson made a name for himself as a high school standout in his home state of Idaho. One reporter spotted his pitching talent and stated, "This Walter Johnson has a pitch that is faster than Amos Rusie's and control that is better than Mathewson's. He throws so fast you can't see'em, and he knows where he is throwing, because if he didn't, there would be dead bodies all over Idaho." He was then about ready to sign with the Pittsburgh Pirates, but was refused a $9 signing bonus. He signed with the Senators and agreed to terms that the ballclub would pay his way back home if he didn't make in the Major Leagues. On August 2nd, 1907 he made his Major League debut against the Tigers, throwing a 5-hitter, but still lost 3-2. Before the game, Tiger hitters poked fun at the lanky right-hander. Ty Cobb, however, scouted him out in his warmups and stated "Have everybody stand deep in the box today. This farmer throws out of his hip pocket so fast that you can't follow it."
In Cobb's first at bat against Johnson, he learned that the long, lanky right-hander with a slingshot delivery was the fastest pitcher he had ever seen, by far. He then relied on the bunt to reach base on Johnson and the rookie misplayed them. After the game, Cobb remarked to Tiger owner Frank Navin, "Get this kid even if he costs you twenty-five thousand dollars. That's the best arm I've ever seen. He's so fast it scared me. When he learns a curve nobody can stop him." Navin refused to buy Johnson and it turned out to be a big mistake. As Cobb noted later on "All he did for the next twenty years was beat Detroit."
Throughout the entire Dead Ball Era, Johnson's ERA was above 2.00 only twice (1909 and 1917) and in 1913 Johnson won the AL MVP with an incredible record of 36-7, an ERA of 1.14, and 11 shutouts. He also pitched 56 consecutive scoreless innings that year, a record which stood until 1968 when Don Drysdale broke it. In 1910 and 1912, Johnson fanned over 300 hitters, and from 1910-1915 fanned over 200 hitters. He also had seven straight seasons with an ERA under 2.00 from 1910-1916 and three times in that span had an ERA under 1.40 (1.36 in 1910, 1.39 in 1912, and 1.14 in 1913). He won his 2nd American League MVP award in 1924 with a 23-7 record, an ERA of 2.72, and 6 shutouts. That year the Washington Senators won their 1st American League pennant and headed to the World Series.
In 1924, Walter Johnson and his Senators finally won a World Series, but it took a genuine Walter Johnson effort to pull off the World Series victory. He lost twice to the Giants, but his team fought their way to a 3-3 Series tie heading into a final Game 7. With Game 7 tied up in the 8th inning, the Senators brought in Johnson as a reliever. He pitched four scoreless innings of relief and the Senators won Game 7 by a score of 4-3 in twelve innings. A year later, in 1925, the Senators returned to the World Series and Johnson won two games against the Pirates. However, he gave up four unearned runs in his final game and the Pirates beat the Senators.
When Johnson retired, his numbers and rankings were simply incredible. He won 417 games, 2nd all-time to Cy Young (511 wins). He finished with a career ERA of 2.17, seventh best all-time, with 3,509 strikeouts. He is 5th all-time in complete games with 531, and third in innings pitched with 5,923. His most astonishing feat is a record 110 shutouts. He also led the AL in ERA five times, and had an ERA under 2.00 eleven times. He led the AL in strikeouts twelve times, led the AL in shutouts seven times, and led the AL in wins six times. One of the most remarkable things about Johnson was of his 279 career losses, 27 of them were losses by a score of 1-0 and 65 of them were losses in which his team was shutout.
Lefty Grove once stated, "I think Johnson was the greatest that I ever saw, and his curve was faster than Feller's fastball." 1927 was Johnson's final year, and retired after that season from an injury to his leg from being hit during batting practice. He tried to pitch again with an iron brace, but didn't have much success. In 1936, Johnson was rewarded for his fabulous career by being inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame along with Ty Cobb, Honus Wagner, Babe Ruth, and Christy Mathewson. He died in 1946.