Happy belated birthday to the late and great Warren Spahn. In his 21-year career, 20 of them being with the Braves, he was a 14-time All-Star, 3-time ERA champion, 1957 Cy-Young award winner, threw two no-hitters, won the 1957 World Series, and led the league in Strikeouts four times. He is regarded by many as the greatest left-handed pitcher of all time, being the fifth-winningest pitcher of all time.
You got to give credit to his father, Ed Spahn, who taught him how to follow through with his shoulder and body, throw without any strain, and get the most out of his pitch out of his weight. Warren also told sportswriter Bob Broeg, "He taught me how to roll a curveball, how to let it go off my fingers at the last moment. He taught me how to pass my knee by my right elbow". Being constantly told by his father, "You've got to have control," & "Without control, you're nothing," paid off.
What's great about being a left-handed pitcher is watching any runner on first and avoiding telegraphing whether a pitcher he was delivering to the plate or first base, thereby forcing the runner to stay close to the bag; Spahn used that to his advantage. Spahn was able to adapt when his fastball declined, relying on As his fastball waned, Spahn adapted and relied more on location, having a good screwball and changing speeds. In his 36-40 seasons, he won 106 games and led the league every year in Wins. After his rookie season, he enlisted in the U.S. Army and spent the next three seasons serving his country. Those three years were his age 22, 23, and 24 seasons, and those seasons could've been more prime years for Spahn. Nonetheless, he goes on to win 20 or more games fourteen times.
Warren Spahn Career (1942; 46-65)
363-245 W-L, 3.09 ERA, 5,243.2 IP, 2,583 SO, 1.195 WHIP
17x All-Star
1957 World Series Champion
1957 Cy Young Award
3x ERA Champion
Since 1999, the Oklahoma Sports Museum has presented the "Warren Spahn Award" to the best left-handed pitcher in baseball to honor Warren Spahn, who resided in Oklahoma for many years. Randy Johnson and Clayton Kershaw are not just the best left-handers but among the best pitchers of all time; each won the award four times.
"Hitting is timing. Pitching is upsetting timing."- Warren Spahn.
References:
Warren Spahn Career Statistics via Baseball-Reference https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/s/spahnwa01.shtml
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