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I wondered how anyone could pitch 7,000 innings like Cy Young. The curveball has been around for ages and has taken many forms throughout the history of baseball. Note that since the Neyer Board discussion ten years ago, things have already shifted. He pitched for the MLB All-Stars in the 1993 World Port Tournament in Rotterdam. Rik Aalbert (Bert) Blyleven [1951] Bert Blyleven was and still is the only native Dutchman to have made a successful career, as measured by quality of play, in American professional baseball. Blyleven pitched very well for the Indians in the strike year of 1981 (11-7, 2.89 ERA), but in the first game after play resumed, he hurt his right elbow. Catfish Hunter lasted only a few months more. They have a right to act any way they like.". He became interested in baseball as a young boy watching Sandy Koufax pitch for the Los Angeles Dodgers and listening to Vin Scully and Jerry Doggett announce the Dodgers' radio broadcasts. He was 17-5 for the Angels last season, allowing only 14 home runs. This was especially pronounced in his first seven full seasons, 1971-77, when he was in his prime. To me, that was the characteristic that made him an unquestionable HOFer. Blyleven is rightPhil Seghi looks uncannily like Chief Wahoo. Blyleven mingled easily with the other parents. "I have to say this for him, though. Given another five years of success, Blyleven will have Hall of Fame credentials. Even the guys who didnt completely implode aged poorly. Weve already figured out what Blylevens record should be based on pythaging his RA/9IP and league-average run support. Blyleven starred on the Santiago High School baseball team, also running cross country to build up his stamina and leg strength. Bert Blyleven (born Rik Aalbert Blijleven, April 6, 1951) is a Dutch-American former professional baseball pitcher who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1970 to 1992, primarily with the Minnesota Twins. Yeah, over his career. xERA is a simple 1:1 translation of xwOBA, converted to The Hulk, whose wife wonders where the galleries are, quits after two holes because his shoes are wet. Arguments for inducting Bert Blyleven into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. To answer the question, I went to my usual modus operandi: I looked at recent historical trends. Blyleven debuted in major league baseball in 1970, right at the end of a great run of workhorse pitchers. Hmmm, no cork in it. "An autographed picture of Fernando Valenzuela. Ron Necciai is one of the most dominating pitchers that never materialized in the Major Leagues. I remember talking to scout Jesse Flores and Ed Roebuck, the pitcher, about the rotation. In his last game with the Twins in 1976 before being traded, he made an obscene gesture to the crowd while walking off the mound. Subscriptions support ongoing public baseball research and analysis in an increasingly proprietary environment. According to Matt Welch of Reason Magazine, "there had long been a strong case that the Dutch-born curveballista was the most deserving player on the outside of Cooperstown looking in. 1.18 ERA 184 Fastball Speed 165 Regular Speed 160 Slowball Speed 10 Left Curve 6 Right Curve 9 Drop Rating 54 Endurance Bio Born Rik Aalbert Blyleven on April 6, 1951 in Zeist, Holland. "One curve I'll always remember was when I was pitching for Pittsburgh, Blyleven once recalled. He argued vehemently with the official scorer and later phoned the league office when outfielder George Vukovich wasn't given an error on a play on which two earned runs scored. After I ran off the mound, I looked over at the St. Louis' dugout. He later wished he could have erased the 3-2 fastball he threw to the first batter he faced, Lee Maye. "And here's a ball signed by the 1984 Cleveland Indians. Now he throws an excellent change, an occasional slider, an assortment of fastballs and, of course, his curve. I just wish we had more fans. Naturally, he sinks all the birdie putts. [2] From 1996 to 2020, he was a color analyst for Minnesota Twins television broadcasts.[3]. CLEVELAND'S NETHERLANDS-BORN STAR, PITCHER BERT BLYLEVEN, PUTS HIS PEDAL TO THE METAL ON THE FIELD AND OFF Steve Wulf TABLE OF CONTENTS ORIGINAL LAYOUT Bert Blyleven addresses the ball.. I threw him an 0-2 curve and it snapped. Actually, Blyleven was suffering from a groin pull and eventually took himself out of the game. But bleep them. Blue 90672, raise your hand. Blyleven wanted $85,000, which seems like a piddling sum now, and the Twins were offering $65,000. Bert Blyleven. Then he filled out, picked up some speed on his fastball and wowed batters in rookie and A ball. Bert knew what had happened right away and got Monte's elbow in a bucket of ice. They had a profound disagreement over how often Blyleven should pitch; he wanted to go every fourth game, and Tanner gave him the ball every fifth. Stanky quit on his own. A banquet in a Riviera dining room follows the golf tournament, and Blyleven, nattily dressed in a camel's hair sports coat, navy blue trousers, blue shirt and uncut tie, is the master of ceremonies. "We have a beautiful cutlery set. 4.9. "Thirty-one of them must have left by the third inning." Blyleven's first two full seasons back with the Twins produced major league records for home runs allowed in a single season (50) and in back-to-back seasons (96). Enjoy this run through the 10 best curveballs in the history of baseball. It's hard to say anything based on one game, but he looks like he's got a great future ahead of him.". 1. Koufax combined his rising fast ball with an overhand 12-6 curveball that embarrassed hitters. So you know: later this week as induction day nears, Ill have a Bert Blyleven career highlights piece up at THT Live. I'm thrilled to see Blyleven in the HOF. "I would like to say to my family, to my fans, to all the Puerto Rican people and . He really helped the 1976 Rangers make a run for the pennant. He also suggested publicly that the Indians might be better off trading him to a contender for younger talentas they would soon do with his friend Rick Sutcliffe. raw numbers and as a measurement against average. "Two pitchers that I know about who held it the way I do," says Blyleven, "were Koufax and Bob Feller.". "Aw bleep, that was for him [Griffith] and his family." Julio Franco, who had been arrested the previous winter for possession of a gun without a permit, received a toy pistol. So how many wins did Blyleven lose solely due to his run support? Kid Nichols is the all-time champ. Jack Brickhouse, a Chicago Cubs broadcaster, described the pitches Paige threw as "not quite legal but not quite illegal.". In 1985 he again led the American League in shutouts with five. Blyleven and his Villa Park neighbors could probably win the American League West. He keeps a collection of baseball memorabilia in his study. The only thing Blyleven hates more than pitch counts is the use of . Vin Scully and Jerry Doggett would be describing Koufaxs curve that he threw off that high mound, Blyleven recalled. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for 1974 TOPPS BASEBALL #98 BERT BLYLEVEN MINNESOTA TWINS V.G. As a player, Blyleven did not have the best reputation. Well, if its not luck, youre saying in so many words that the guy choked or lacked mental toughness. Blyleven's display includes his one no-hitter (win No. Buyer pays for return shipping. During the winter there are many of these Monday events in the Los Angeles area. Bert Blyleven belongs in the Hall Of Fame because he pitched nearly 5000 innings, struck out 3700 batters, threw 60 shutouts, and compiled a career 3.31 ERA which was 18 percent better than the league . Blyleven made his major league debut at age 19 for the Twins. After getting his 18th win, Blyleven talked Cleveland Manager Pat Corrales into letting him pitch again with only three days' rest, and he won No. You have a half-dozen 300 game winnersGaylord Perry, Phil Niekro, Steve Carlton, Don Sutton, Nolan Ryan, and Tom Seaver. Ill be looking for it, Chris, and will pass the link on; youve got more than a few fans over at the WGOM. Blyleven's curve breaks so quickly and so far that some batters swear they can hear it change direction. Free shipping for many products! Again last season he got embroiled in a couple of controversies. While down with an arm injury in 1982, Blyleven coached a Little League team, and gave the kids chewing tobacco so theyd look more like real pros. This past baseball season he merely cut up American League batters, finishing as the third-leading vote getter in the Cy Young Award balloting, behind relievers Willie Hernandez and Dan Quisenberry. (Milo Stewart Jr./National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum) "I always played for my island," Alomar said in his induction speech. People in and out the game lauded Blyleven for having the games best curveball, but he was also temperamental. Of course, that might be half-baked psychoanalysis, but it does make one wonder. Blyleven was inducted to the Hall of Fame in 2011 after receiving 79.7% of the vote on his 14th attempt. You don't need this. Nolan Ryan and Bert Blyleven had the tightest rotation and velocity combination," Schmidt was quoted as saying in a recent Associated Press story. But Gossage and Sutter are relievers, and the Hall is still trying to figure them out. Others will call it pitching to the score. Steve Farr. In the middle of the 1976 season, he was traded to the Texas Rangers, where he threw a no-hitter in his final start for the team. Blyleven sat out most of the 1982 season with an elbow injury and struggled again in 1983, but he came back in 1984 with one of his best seasons: a 197 record with a 2.87 ERA. Blyleven, just 19, was called up to replace him. This is Anthony's first time on a golf course in 10 years, and second time ever. Hall of Fame third baseman Mike Schmidt became something of an expert on the curveball during his career. Popular categories from this store. Tom Waddell. A renowned curveball pitcher, Blyleven was also a two-time All-Star and World Series champion. Kirkpatrick, 40, is sitting in the back of the dining room with his wife, Judy. Free shipping for many products! And now he has a little more command. At which point Richie Scheinblum yells across the room to his wife, "We already have a Koufax ball!" He won his first World Series with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1979. You cant do a simplistic, reductionistic system. OK, now lets figure out what Blylevens record should be based on pythaging his actual RA/9IP and his actual run support. Brown ticket 58456? Blyleven has reigned as the curveball champion longer than either Pascual or Koufax. He went out and used it to dominate high school hitters, and by age 19 found himself winning 10 games in the major leagues as a rookie for the Minnesota Twins, the start to a career that would last until he was 41. No takers? ", In a list full of "Uncle Charlies" (a common nickname for a curveball), Doc Gooden's deuce is "Lord Charles.". But nobody really cared. But someone with a far greater mind than any scientist put the optical illusion theory to rest. The Dodgers were ready to draft him in the first round in 1969, but in one of his last high school games, Blyleven got shelled. 5.0. Even back in 1969 Blyleven had his sensational curve. the ERA scale, A measurement of a player's top running speed, expressed Even alone Blyleven is a terror, whether he's giving a hotfoot, tying clothes in knots, cutting neckties or pulling down McMahon's pants. I'll have to admit that was a hell of a curveball.". But since no one close to 280 wins showed up after Blyleven, it helped him rise up over the years. Blyleven has often been labeled a troublemaker. And then when everybody was gone, we'd go out to the mound and make believe. The curve ball was something to behold, but the argument that a guy belongs because of the aesthetics of a pitch's arc is simply ridiculous. [21] In 2009, he gained only two votes, for a total of 338, 62.7%. For some reason it has taken Blyleven 3,422 innings, 468 games, 195 wins, 15 years and four teams to be appreciated. Blyleven was recently inducted into the baseball Hall of Fame after recording over 3,700 strikeouts in his career. Cleveland president Gabe Paul said, "Bert Blyleven isn't going anywhere. Rik Aalbert Blyleven was born in Zeist, the Netherlands on April 6, 1951. For a batter, Best Speed is an average of 50% of his hardest hit balls. "Thanks everyone for coming, and good night. In his parting shot, Blyleven called the Twins' fans "bleep bleep" and said, "They're behind you when you do good, and they turn on you when things go wrong. I assumed Blyleven had no chance with the current BBWAA. He has had only one 20-win season, in 1973, the first year of the DH, when 12 American League pitchers won 20 or more. See all categories. However, his election was a slow curve that was thrown to Blyleven, not being elected by the Baseball Writers Association of America until his 14thseason of eligibility despite 287 victories and 3,701 strikeouts. In the '60s, Koufax had it. That way I know he won't lose it on me like he did that one time. "Here's something special. Only 16 other pitchers have at least 3,000 career strikeouts. In the world of baseballan image comes to mind here of a white planet with red seams and American League president Bobby Brown's signature on itlabels are very easy to put on and very hard to take off. Don Drysdale was done two weeks after his 33rd birthday. I used to say about myself that I knew the day I would have to grow up and get a real job- it was the day, in Babe Ruth League in Seattle in the summer of 1957, when a guy named Ron Waara threw me a curveball that scared the living daylights out of me. All Win Expectancy, Leverage Index, Run Expectancy, and Fans Scouting Report data licenced from TangoTiger.com. Robin Roberts hung on a long time but was a shell of himself for many years. Blyleven recorded 3,701 career strikeouts, the fifth-most in MLB history. "Golf is my life," Anthony keeps saying. No two curveballs have the same rotation speed, velocity toward the hitter, arm delivery angle, or break. Bah! Now he owes the Indians and the city of Cleveland something in return.". For years he thought his first name was Rikaalbert. It was 14 years of praying and waiting, but I want to thank the baseball writers for finally getting it right, he said when his election was announced on January 5. Thats the question. For instance, he referred to Paul and Phil Seghi, the Indians' general manager, as "two old men sitting up in the booth playing checkers." If anyones curious, heres a list of the most 1-0 CG SHO for post-Walter Johnson pitchers: Nice lead for Blyleven. "I told our third baseman, Steve Braun, to watch for a bunt," says Blyleven, "but Spanky laid a perfect one down. "I have here a ball autographed by Sandy Koufax, a pretty fair pitcher. Mary Scheinblum bids $150; do I hear $175?" He also has balls from his 14 complete-game 1-0 victories, which put him third on the alltime list, tied with Christy Mathewson, behind Walter Johnson (an uncatchable 38) and Grover Cleveland Alexander (17). Two words Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson used to describe Bert Blyleven's curveball: "nasty" and "knee-buckling.".