Meet Lefty Gomez

LEFTY GOMEZ

"Goofy"

Positions: Pitcher

Full Name: Vernon Louis Gomez

Bats: Left - Throws: Left

Born: November 26, 1908, in Rodeo, California
Died: February 17, 1989, in Greenbrae, California

Organizations: New York Yankees (13), Washington Senators (1)

LEFTY GOMEZ'S WALL OF GLORY

HONORS AND AWARDS

• Hall of Fame: Inducted as a Player in 1972, by Veterans Committee
• All-Star: 7 (1933, 1934, 1935, 1936, 1937, 1938, 1939)
• World Series Rings: 5 (1932, 1936, 1937, 1938, 1939)

PITCHING

• Wins Leader: 2 (1934, 1937)
• ERA Leader: 2 (1934, 1937)
• SO Leader: 3 (1933, 1934, 1937)
• W-L% Leader: 2 (1934, 1941)
• CG Leader: 1 (1934)
• SHO Leader: 3 (1934, 1937, 1938)
• IP Leader: 1 (1934)
• WHIP Leader: 1 (1934)

FIELDING

• Assists as P: 1 (1938)

WHO?

Vernon "Lefty" Gomez was an American left-handed pitcher, who played in MLB between 1930 and 1934. Known for his humor and colorful personality, he was also a great pitcher, winning 2 pitching triple crowns and 5 World Series with the New York Yankees. After his retirement, he became a popular public speaker.

Gomez won 20 games four times. In the first All-Star Game, he was the winning pitcher (AL) and had the game's first RBI. Lefty Gomez was the starting pitcher in 5 of the 7 All-Star Games he was selected and holds the MLB record for most innings pitched in a single All-Star Game (6 innings, 1934).

Lefty Gomez won the pitching Triple Crown in 1934 and 1937, leading the AL in wins, ERA and SO (plus SHO). His .649 career winning percentage ranks him 15th in MLB history (among pitchers with 200 or more decisions).

In 1940, Gomez got an arm injury. In 1941 played well (15-5 W-L, 3.74 ERA), but after a subpar next season (1942: 6-4 W-L, 4.28 ERA) and just 1 game pitched in 1943 with the Washington Senators (in which he pulled a shoulder muscle), Lefty retired from baseball. He had 189-102 W-L career record, 1,468 SO and 3.34 ERA in 2,503 innings, after just 14 seasons. 

MY COMMENT:

An early incarnation of Yogi Berra.

That was exactly what I thought when I read some of his funny comments about his own playing and other players. 

Not just he was a great pitcher, with 2 triple crowns and a record of 6-0 in World Series, but he was also quite colorful.

To illustrate this, here is the first of his funny quotes I read:

"I had been having trouble with my eyes. One day my glasses fogged up while I was pitching, but when I cleaned them and looked at the plate and saw (Jimmie) Foxx clearly, it frightened me so much I never wore them (the glasses) again."

Clearly, Jimmie Foxx impressed Gomez very much. He dedicated a couple more of his quotes to "Double X" 

Year	Age	Tm	Lg	W	L	W-L%	ERA	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	WHIP
1931	22	NYY	AL	21	9	.700	2.67	40	26	17	1	3	243.0	206	88	72	7	85	150	1.198
1932	23	NYY	AL	24	7	.774	4.21	37	31	21	1	1	265.1	266	140	124	23	105	176	1.398
1933	24	NYY	AL	16	10	.615	3.18	35	30	14	4	2	234.2	218	108	83	16	106	163	1.381
1934	25	NYY	AL	26	5	.839	2.33	38	33	25	6	2	281.2	223	86	73	12	96	158	1.133
1937	28	NYY	AL	21	11	.656	2.33	34	34	25	6	0	278.1	233	88	72	10	93	194	1.171

Note: If you are using a cell phone to look at this table, put it horizontally for a better experience


What do you think? If it were not because of his injuries, would Lefty Gomez be able to win 300 games? Share your thoughts!