Redbird Royalty: Bob Gibson (1935-2020)

In a year that has been wracked by death due to COVID-19, it’s been an especially tough year for the Baseball Hall of Fame family, especially for fans of the St. Louis Cardinals. In the span of fewer than 30 days, the Redbirds lost two of their greatest players of all-time, pitcher Bob Gibson and left-fielder Lou Brock. Both legends were first-ballot Cooperstown inductees in the early 1980s. Both men passed away in their 80’s, Brock on September 6th (at the age of 81), Gibson on October 2nd (at 84) after losing his battle with pancreatic cancer.

Gibson and Brock were teammates for 12 years in St. Louis. They were both key contributors to two World Series championships in 1964 and 1967. Gibson won two Cy Young Awards and was responsible (in 1968) for one of the greatest pitching seasons in the history of baseball. Brock set the all-time single-season and career records in stolen bases (until Rickey Henderson surpassed him).

In this, the first of what will eventually be a two-part tribute to these Redbird royals, we’ll start with Gibson, a complete player who not only dominated hitters with his arm but was also an excellent fielder and very good hitter. RIP, Bob Gibson.

Cooperstown Cred: Bob Gibson (SP)

• Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1981 (1st year on the ballot, 84.0% of the vote)
• St. Louis Cardinals (1959-75)
• Career: 251-174 (.591), 2.86 ERA
• Career: 127 ERA+, 81.7 WAR (Wins Above Replacement)
• 3,117 career strikeouts (14th most in Major League Baseball history)
• 56 career shutouts: 11th most in the modern game (since 1901)
• Won 20 or more games 5 times
• 2-time Cy Young Award winner (1968 & 1970)
• Also won 1968 N.L. MVP Award (22-9, 1.12 ERA, 268 SO, 258 ERA+, 11.2 WAR)
• 2-time World Series MVP (1964 & 1967)
• Career postseason: 7-2, 1.89 ERA (92 strikeouts, 17 walks in 81 IP)
• 17 strikeouts in Game 1 of the 1968 World Series (most ever in postseason history)
• 9-time All-Star; 9-time Gold Glove Award winner

(cover photo: MLB)

Bob Gibson Career Highlights

Pack Robert Gibson was born on November 9, 1935, the last of 7 children born to Pack and Victoria Gibson. The elder Pack Gibson died of tuberculosis a few months before Gibson was born; he was named Pack Robert in honor of his late father. (Having never liked the name “Pack,” he later officially changed his first name to “Robert”). In high school, Gibson starred in baseball, basketball, and track; he earned a scholarship at Creighton University to play hoops. To this day, Gibson is in the top five in Creighton history in scoring average (20.2 ppg) and free throws made (418). On the diamond, Gibson didn’t just pitch. He caught and played third base.

In 1957, his first year as a professional athlete, Gibson remained a two-sport star, playing in the minor leagues for the St. Louis Cardinals and also basketball for the Harlem Globetrotters. After spending four months with the Globetrotters, Gibson agreed to a contract to focus solely on baseball. At 21 years of age, Gibson’s first minor league experience was in his hometown of Omaha (with the Redbirds’ AAA affiliate). Per his SABR bio by Terry Sloope, his first professional manager (Johnny Keane) decided that Gibson should focus on pitching. Sloope notes that Gibson was impressed that Keane had “no prejudices regarding my color,” and that he was the “closest thing to a saint that I ever came across in baseball.” (Keane would later manage Gibson and the Cardinals from 1961 to ’64). Gibson didn’t get to stay in Omaha long, however; after 10 appearances he was sent to Columbus, Georgia in the South Atlantic League. In Columbus, there were few “saints”; Gibson experienced the worst racism he ever endured in his life.

After spending the 1958 season in Omaha and Rochester, New York, on April 15, 1959, Gibson made his debut with the Redbirds (in Los Angeles) out of the bullpen. He made two more appearances in relief before returning to Omaha. A little over three months later (July 30th), Gibson returned to the Major Leagues and promptly pitched an 8-hit shutout against the Cincinnati Reds at Crosley Field. That was Gibby’s best outing of the year; he went 2-5 with a 3.52 ERA in his last 9 appearances as a rookie.

Splitting time between starting and relieving, Gibson struggled in the majors in the 1960 campaign (3-6, 5.61 ERA), and he was shuttled back and forth to Rochester.

At 25, Bob Gibson Finally Becomes a Full-Time Major Leaguer

Bob Gibson emerged as the future Hall of Famer he would eventually become in the 1961 campaign, in which he went 13-12 with a 3.24 ERA. This was also the year in which Keane became the team’s skipper: he was hired in early July to replace Solly Hemus. Unlike Keane, Hemus had not been color-blind and his firing on July 6th was referred to by Sloope as “Independence Day” for the team’s African-American players. With Keane at the helm and a solid core of talented black players (Gibson, Curt Flood, and Bill White), the Cardinals became one of the model franchises for harmony between the races. That harmony translated into wins: the Redbirds were 33-41 under Hemus but 47-33 under Keane.

Gibson made his first All-Star team in 1962, a campaign in which he went 15-13 with a 2.85 ERA while leading the majors with 5 shutouts and the N.L. with his park-adjusted 151 ERA+. In fact, he made the All-Star squad twice (there were two Mid-Summer Classics between 1959-62). The hard-throwing right-hander had another strong campaign in 1963 (18-9, 3.39 ERA), followed by a stronger effort in ’64 (19-12, 3.01). Aided by the June acquisition (theft) of left fielder Lou Brock and MVP campaign of third baseman Ken Boyer, the Cardinals won the N.L. pennant in ’64, giving them a World Series matchup against the New York Yankees.

The Redbirds were in a pennant race right down to the wire with the Cincinnati Reds and Philadelphia Phillies. This was the year in which Gene Mauch’s Phillies famously lost 10 games in a row down the stretch to blow a 6.5-game lead with just 12 games left in the season. While the Phillies were losing all of those games, the Redbirds won 8 in a row and 9 out of their final 11 contests to win the pennant by a single game. Gibson was indispensable down the stretch: in his final 10 starts, he went 8-2 with a 1.64 ERA. On the final day of the regular season, facing the New York Mets at home, Keane brought Gibson out of the bullpen on one day of rest to snuff out a 5th inning rally. Gibson finished the game for his 19th victory and sealed the pennant for St. Louis.

The 1964 World Series

The Cardinals won Game 1 of the World Series, with 20-game winner Ray Sadeki besting future Hall of Famer Whitey Ford (who also passed away this fall at the age of 90). Gibson, on 3 days’ rest, was given the ball for Game 2, matched up against rookie sensation Mel Stottlemyre at Busch Stadium. The young Yankees’ hurler bested Gibson (8 IP, 4 ER) by authoring a complete game victory (won 8-3 by New York thanks to four 9th inning runs after Gibby had been lifted for a pinch-hitter).

The teams split the next two games, setting up a Game 5 rematch between the young fireballers at Yankee Stadium. Gibson was again pitching on 3 days of rest and was also battling flu symptoms. It didn’t show on the mound. Through 8 innings, Gibson was positively brilliant, having given up no runs on just 4 hits with 2 walks and 11 strikeouts. Thanks to his own one-out 5th inning single and a pair of RBI singles by Brock and White, Gibson had a 2-0 lead coming into the bottom of the 9th. The leadoff batter (Hall of Famer Mickey Mantle) reached on an error by shortstop Dick Groat. After getting the next two batters out, left fielder Tom Tresh hit a 2-run home run to right-center field to tie the game.

In the top of the 10th, catcher Tim McCarver gave Gibson a reprieve by hitting a three-run blast to right field off reliever Pete Mikkelsen. Gibson came out to pitch the 10th and got Roger Maris on a foul pop fly in which Boyer reached into the stands to secure the out.

After the Yankees won Game 6 at Busch, the legend of Bob Gibson began when he returned to the bump on just 2 days’ rest for Game 7. Again he was matched up against Stottlemyre, also pitching on short rest. Gibby’s teammates gave him a 6-0 lead after 5 innings but Mantle put the game in range by swatting a 3-run opposite-field homer (the 18th and last of his storied World Series career). Gibson’s manager Keane, although seeing that Gibson was tiring, left him in to finish the game, even after giving up two solo home runs in the top of the 9th. With two outs and now just a 7-5 lead, Gibson got Bobby Richardson to pop out for the final out of the game.

Gibson was named the World Series MVP and, when asked why he left his tiring ace on the mound to finish the game, Keane said, “He didn’t pitch only with his arm. He pitched with his heart, and he’s got lots of heart. He gave it all he had, and more.”

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Strangely, both the Yankees and Cardinals had new managers in 1965, six months after their World Series matchup. Keane resigned immediately after the Fall Classic and replaced Yogi Berra as skipper of the Yanks. Red Schoendienst, the future Hall of Famer who was a fan favorite in St. Louis, took over the reins of the Redbirds.

As a team, the Cardinals were disappointing in 1965 and ’66 but Bob Gibson was not. He went 20-12 with a 3.07 ERA in ’65 and followed that up with a 21-12 (2.44 ERA) campaign in ’66. He was an All-Star both years and won the first two of his nine straight Gold Glove Awards.

The 1967 World Series

Bob Gibson won 20 or more games 5 times between 1965 and 1970, only missing out in 1967 when he missed two months due to a fractured right fibula, thanks to a hard line drive off the bat of future Hall of Famer Roberto Clemente. Still, in just 175.1 innings, Gibby logged a 13-7 record to go with a 2.98 ERA; he made his 5th All-Star squad before the injury.

Even with Gibson out of action for two months, Schoendienst’s Cardinals easily won the pennant, thanks to the acquisitions of Maris and MVP Orlando Cepeda along with the emergence of pitchers Steve Carlton, Nelson Briles, and Dick Hughes. On this particular edition of the Redbirds, Gibson’s 13 wins were 4th most and his ERA tied for 3rd best among the 7 pitchers to receive at least 10 starting assignments.

In the World Series, the Cardinals were matched up against the Boston Red Sox, who were led by Triple Crown Winner and MVP Carl Yastrzemski, also a future Hall of Famer. Gibson had come back from his broken leg to start five games in December and, with the Cards winning the pennant by 10.5 games, he was able to start Game 1 on full rest. Schoendienst’s ace did not disappoint: Gibson outpitched Jose Santiago for a 2-1 complete-game victory, all while striking out 10 against just one walk. After the teams split the next two games, Gibson easily won Game 4 (by a 6-0 score), tossing a 5-hit shutout (with 6 SO, 1 BB).

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After Boston won Games 5 and 6, Gibson was tabbed to close it out at Fenway Park against 22-game-winner Jim Lonborg, the eventual A.L. Cy Young Award winner. The Cardinals had a 2-0 lead after 4 innings. In the top of the 5th, Gibson aided his own effort by swatting a home run to left-center field, just to the right of the Green Monster. (Gibson was a good hitter for a pitcher: he hit 24 HR with 144 RBI in 1,489 regular-season plate appearances). Gibby finished the game by striking out George Scott to seal another complete game in the Cards’ 7-2 victory. With 3 wins and a 1.00 ERA in the Fall Classic, Gibson was an easy choice for his 2nd World Series MVP Award.

The “Year of the Pitcher” and the 1968 World Series

The 1968 campaign is famously known as the “Year of the Pitcher.” The 20 pitching staffs in Major League Baseball combined to post a 2.98 ERA for the season, holding the opposing hitters to a .237 batting average, .299 on-base%, and .340 slugging%. Of the 76 pitchers to qualify for their league’s ERA title, 21 had an ERA of 2.50 or better with 7 posting numbers under 2.00.

Bob Gibson was easily the best of the best in this great year for pitching. Although he was “only” 22-9, he posted a microscopic 1.12 ERA (translating to a 258 ERA+). He led the N.L. with 13 shutouts, 268 strikeouts, and a 0.853 WHIP. His 11.2 pitching WAR was by far the best in baseball. His 1.12 ERA was the best for a starting pitcher in the history of the game, better than Walter Johnson‘s 1.27 ERA in 1918, the end of the “dead ball” era. Gibson’s incredible year would earn him both the N.L. Cy Young Award and the MVP trophy.

What’s remarkable about Gibson’s 1968 campaign is that he lost 9 games. Even though the Redbirds were good enough to win 97 games (and another N.L. pennant), they only managed to score 12 runs in Gibson’s 9 losses. The ace right-hander gave up 3 runs or less in all 9 losses (pitching 8 innings or more in each), logging a 2.14 ERA in those starts.

The Redbirds, in their third World Series in five years, drew the Detroit Tigers for the 1968 edition. Thanks to a 31-6 (1.96 ERA) campaign by Cy Young winner Denny McLain, the Tigers won 103 games to win the A.L. pennant by 12 games. Since ’68 was just the second year that the Cy Young Award was awarded separately in the two leagues, Game 1’s matchup of McLain and Gibson was the first postseason contest featuring two pitchers who would go on to win the award in their respective leagues.

McLain was no match for the two-time World Series MVP. He gave up 3 runs in 5 innings while Gibson authored one of the most dominant performances in the history of the Fall Classic. In 9 innings of shutout ball, Gibby yielded just 5 hits with one walk and 17 strikeouts, a record that lasts even to this day. Gibson was known for his 2 fastballs (one with a heavy sink) and hard-biting slider but also featured a killer curveball in this, the signature outing of his storied career.

Gibson’s 17 K’s included three strikeouts against future Hall of Famer Al Kaline (yet another Cooperstown legend who passed away this year) and one against pinch-hitter Eddie Mathews (near the end of his Hall of Fame career). Gibson finished in style, striking out the side in the 9th. If you ever have two and a half hours to spare, you could do far worse than spending that time watching this masterpiece, with Ford Frick Award winners Curt Gowdy and Harry Caray on the call.

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Game 4, another matchup featuring Gibson and McLain, was a laugher. McLain was sent to the showers in the third inning after giving up 4 runs while Gibson gave up just one run in 9 innings of work (with another 10 strikeouts) in the Cards’ 10-1 victory. For the second time in three World Series outings, Gibson homered, this time a solo tater to left field off reliever Joe Sparma.

The Game 4 victory gave the Cardinals a commanding series lead of 3 games to 1. The Tigers, however, won Games 5 and 6 (behind Mickey Lolich and McLain, with McLain’s effort coming on 2 days of rest).

With McLain having pitched 9 innings in Game 6, Tigers manager Mayo Smith tabbed Lolich (also on 2 days’ rest) to pitch Game 7 against Gibson, who had 3 days’ rest. Lolich, a 28-year old left-hander, had had a respectable regular-season. He went 17-9 with a 3.19 ERA but, in the “year of the pitcher,” his 3.19 ERA was actually below average. In this classic underdog story, it was Lolich who prevailed, giving up just one run in 9 innings while the game’s best pitcher was tagged for 4 runs in a crushing 4-1 loss.

1969-75: Bob Gibson’s Final Years

Bob Gibson would have several more superb seasons on the mound for the St. Louis Cardinals but this World Series hero would never appear in the postseason again. Thanks to the overwhelming dominance of pitching throughout Major League Baseball, the pitching mound was lowered by several inches before the 1969 campaign. At the same time, four new teams joined the league and each league split into two divisions. With the lower mound, Gibson wasn’t quite as dominant in 1969 as he was in 1968 but he still managed to post a 20-13 record to go with a 2.18 ERA, which was just .08 behind Juan Marichal and .01 behind his teammate, Steve Carlton.

Because the writers of that era valued pitcher wins above almost all else, the Mets’ Tom Seaver (who also passed away this year) was the Cy Young winner, thanks to a 25-7 record (and a sterling 2.21 ERA of his own). By today’s metrics, Gibson’s 10.4 WAR was the best in all of baseball but that statistic did not exist at the time.

Gibson did win the 1970 Cy Young Award, even though his ERA jumped from 2.18 to 3.12. Again, wins mattered. He went 23-7 and those 23 wins led the N.L. By today’s sabermetrics, he did lead the league again with an 8.9 pitching WAR. (Incidentally, his overall WAR was 10.1, thanks to a .303 BA with a .751 OPS).

In 1971, Gibson went just 16-13 (with a 3.05 ERA). His ERA was an unsightly 4.31 at the end of June, causing him to miss the All-Star Game for the first time since 1964. In this average campaign (by Gibby’s standards) he did pitch the first and only no-hitter of his career, a 10-strikeout effort in mid-August against the eventual World Series Champion Pittsburgh Pirates at Three Rivers Stadium. Even in this, an off-year, Gibson finished 5th in the Cy Young vote.

Gibson had the last dominant campaign of his 17-year career in 1972 when he went 19-11 with a 2.46 ERA (7.1 WAR) while making his 9th and final All-Star squad. After going 12-10 (2.77 ERA) in 1973, Gibson slumped to an 11-13, 3.83 ERA campaign in ’74. In 1975, his age 39 and final season, Gibson posted an unsightly 3-10 record with an equally poor 5.04 ERA. He retired shortly before the end of the season.

Bob Gibson: The Legendary Hall of Famer

Bob Gibson retired with 251 wins, a 2.91 ERA, 56 shutouts, 3,117 strikeouts, and two World Series rings. At the time, his 251 victories were the 2nd most for any pitcher to debut after World War II. His strikeout total was the second-highest (to Walter Johnson) in all of baseball history. His 56 shutouts were (again, at the time) the 9th most ever and the second-most (to Warren Spahn) for any pitcher after the end of the dead-ball era (1919 and beyond).

With a career World Series record of 7-2 with a 1.89 ERA, those 7 victories remain tied for the 2nd most (to Whitey Ford) among all pitchers in the history of baseball. Only Ford’s 94 Fall Classic strikeouts are superior to Gibson’s 92, and Ford did it in 65 more innings!

Gibson was a first-ballot inductee to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown in 1981, earning 84% of the vote. Why such a relatively low total for an obvious Hall of Famer? Well, the writers were stingier back then and there were many who made a big deal about who should have the honor of entering the Hall on the first ballot.

Regardless, Gibson was enshrined on his first try. Even to this day, he is mentioned as one of the most intimidating pitchers and greatest competitors in the history of the game. He said that he never deliberately threw at batters but he would not hesitate to throw high and tight to back a hitter off the plate. Because his longtime battery-made Tim McCarver had such a long career as a national broadcaster, his stories about Gibby’s competitiveness helped to grow his legend.

“For my money, the most intimidating, arrogant pitcher ever to kick up dirt on a mound is Bob Gibson. If you ever saw Gibson work, you’d never forget his style: his cap pulled down low over his eyes, the ball gripped — almost mashed — behind his right hip, the eyes smoldering at each batter almost accusingly.”

— Tim McCarver, Oh Baby, I Love It (1987)

When it came to the players on opposing teams, Gibson was uncongenial. He rarely spoke to opposing players, even during the week of the All-Star Game. Hall of Fame manager Joe Torre, who played with Gibson for six seasons and later hired him (three times) as a pitching coach, put it this way: “Bob wasn’t just unfriendly when he pitched, I’d say it was more like hateful.” He meant it as a compliment.

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