2020 Topps Stadium Club #290 Sandy Koufax Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball Card. [132], Koufax with the Los Angeles Dodgers, c. 1965, Baseball Anecdotes by Daniel Okrent and Steve Wulf, Harper and Row Publishers, 1989, The play-by-play data from which these averages were calculated are only available starting in 1957. [43], In early 1960, Koufax asked Dodgers general manager Buzzie Bavasi to trade him because he was not getting enough playing time. A numbness developed in the index finger on his left hand, and the finger became cold and white. Koufax's numbers were that of a struggling lefty trying to find his way. The problem is not to figure out why Sandy Koufax was a great pitcher. 1955 Topps Sandy Koufax #123 PSA Mint 9 ($204,000 USD) At $204,000 USD through Heritage Auctions this rookie Sandy Koufax card sold on March 23, 2017. leader four times, setting a single-season mark with 382 in 1965, and had the most wins three times, with totals Bid on Sandy Koufax Autographed Baseball at MLB Auctions. "use strict";(function(){var insertion=document.getElementById("citation-access-date");var date=new Date().toLocaleDateString(undefined,{month:"long",day:"numeric",year:"numeric"});insertion.parentElement.replaceChild(document.createTextNode(date),insertion)})(); Subscribe to the Biography newsletter to receive stories about the people who shaped our world and the stories that shaped their lives. To win. In 1965 he set a major league record with 382 strikeouts; it was broken in 1973 by Nolan Ryan, but remains the top mark for NL pitchers and left-handers. LOS ANGELES (AP) When Sandy Koufax joined the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1955, he was in awe of being on the same team with Jackie Robinson. [46], A day later, Koufax was pitching for the "B team" in Orlando. Before tenth grade, Koufax's family moved back to the Bensonhurst section of Brooklyn. Years later he recalled, "That winter was when I really started working out. vs. PHI 9.0 IP, 7 H, 10 SO, 1 BB, 2 ER, W. Hall of Fame: Inducted as Player in 1972. Sandy Koufax Official THE OFFICIAL WEBSITE OF SANDY KOUFAX About Us Welcome sports fans and collectors to SandyKoufax.com, the first and only authorized and approved website by Sandy Koufax. The Dodgers won the pennant, and Koufax won the first of three pitchers' Triple Crowns, leading the league in wins (25), strikeouts (306) and ERA (1.88). The majority of the proceeds from the sales off this site will go to charity. At the age of thirty-six, he became the youngest player to get elected for Basketball hall of fame. Koufax ended up getting $125,000 and Drysdale $110,000 (equivalent to $0.92million in 2021). He and Oscar Robertson are neck-and-neck in the debate over the greatest UC athlete of all time. SUMMARY He is considered one of the greatest pitchers of all time, and his records include six All-Star Appearances four World Series titles, three Cy Young Awards, and two no-hitters. $1,895.00. (National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum), Claude Osteen (center) celebrates with Don Drysdale (right) and Sandy Koufax (left) after Sandy leads the Dodgers to a 7-0 victory over the Minnesota Twins in Game 5 of the 1965 World Series. Sabermetrician Rob Neyer called it the best curve of all time. 3 Sandy Koufax Quotes About Life "There is among us a far closer relationship than the purely social one of a fraternal organization because we are bound together not only by a single interest but by a common goal. This Month in Sports ReferenceFind out when we add a feature or make a change. Do you have a sports website? With the Dodgers out of the pennant race he did not pitch again, ending the season with a 195 record[73] and leading the NL with a 1.74 ERA. He was the greatest pitcher of his time in baseball, said writer Jimmy Cannon. [122] He was the final player chosen in the inaugural Israel Baseball League draft in April 2007, picked, at 71 years old, by the Modi'in Miracle. He is the inspiration for my site's whimsical "Sabbathmetrics" series (examining whether Jewish ballplayers do better or worse on the Sabbath). Throughout his career, Koufax relied heavily on two pitches. Sanford "Sandy" Koufax, one of the greatest pitchers in baseball, was referred to as the "man with the golden arm." He established one record after another as he went through an 11-year career as a pitcher with the Brooklyn Dodgers. On July 20 he hit the second and last home run of his career, coincidentally again in Milwaukee, a three-run shot to propel the team to a 5-4 win; it was his only game with three runs batted in. October 2, 1966 He started playing basketball for the Edith and Carl Marks Jewish Community House of Bensonhurst local community center team. Despite the blazing speed of his fastball, Koufax continued to struggle with his control. Finally, on his way out the door in 1966, Koufax finished 27-9, the most victories in any of his 12 seasons. award was presented to one pitcher, rather than one in each league . [16][17] Bill Zinser, a scout for the Brooklyn Dodgers, sent the Dodgers front office a glowing report that apparently was filed and forgotten. He was one of six pitchers who's fastball velocities were measured. With an overworked pitching staff there was no one else, as Drysdale and Johnny Podres had pitched the prior two days. Family (1) Spouse Kimberly Francis (1985 - 9 December 1998) (divorced) Tired of constantly taking medication and concerned about his future health, Koufax stunned the baseball world by announcing his retirement on November 18, 1966. [2] The top pitchers of the era future Hall of Famers Drysdale, Juan Marichal, Jim Bunning, Bob Gibson, Warren Spahn - and above all Koufax significantly reduced the walks-given-up-to-batters-faced ratio for 1963 and subsequent years. If there was any magic formula, it was getting to pitch every fourth day. If not, then nothing to worry about this. LOS ANGELES Sandy Koufax was 19 years old when he stepped into the home clubhouse of the team he'd grown up in Brooklyn watching, the one that by the time Koufax turned 22 would move to Los . Smilin' Sandy is back and better yet, they are very easy to pick up online for a pretty reasonable price. On March 31, the morning after pitching a complete spring training game, Koufax awoke to find that his entire left arm was black and blue from hemorrhaging. They demanded $1 million (equivalent to $8.4million in 2021), divided equally over the next three years, or $167,000 (equivalent to $1.39million in 2021) each for each of the next three seasons. After four weeks, Koufax gave Drysdale the go-ahead to negotiate new deals for both of them. He threw the ceremonial first pitch to Bench from in front of the base of the mound. Famously private, he renounced his ties to the Dodgers when a New York Post article insinuated that he was gayNews Corporation owned both the Dodgers and the Post at the timebut he returned to the team as a spring training instructor in 2013 following a change in ownership. He played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers from 1955 to 1966. In August of 1972 Cooperstown welcomed a star-studded group of inductees for the Class of 1972. In. Instead, Koufax made a living on a baseball diamond, becoming one of the most dominating left-handers of all time. Pitching is the art of instilling fear. [126], Koufax has been described by Sports Illustrated writer John Rosengren as a secular Jew. He was knocked out in the second inning, after giving up home runs to future Hall of Famer Willie Mays and Jim Davenport. 99. He was the strikeouts [2][102] Koufax and Juan Marichal are the only two pitchers to have more than one 25-win season in the post-World War II era, with each man recording three. Kerlan also told Koufax that he would eventually lose full use of his arm. Koufax's role includes attending a portion of Spring Training to work with Dodger pitchers and consulting with the team throughout the year . Sandy Koufax: A Lefty's Legacy by Jane Leavy 6,337 ratings, 4.06 average rating, 276 reviews Open Preview Sandy Koufax Quotes Showing 1-6 of 6 "In the immortal words of Willie Stargell, trying to hit Koufax was like "trying to drink coffee with a fork." Jane Leavy, Sandy Koufax: A Lefty's Legacy 3 likes Like Former. Sandy Koufax. [128] Regardless, his decision to not pitch on Yom Kippur in 1965 was highly significant for Jewish-Americans. Third Party Auction sites are flooded with fake and unlicensed items. first pitcher inducted into the Hall of Fame (1972) who had more strikeouts than innings pitched . When he did play college baseball the scouts came in droves. https://www.biography.com/athlete/sandy-koufax. Sandy Koufax Baseball Cards In Review Sandy Koufax was the first major league pitcher to pitch four no-hitters and only the eighth pitcher at the time to pitch a perfect game in baseball history. 11,275th in major league history) Hall of Fame first baseman Lou Gehrig played for the New York Yankees in the 1920s and 1930s, setting the mark for consecutive games played. University of Cincinnati (Cincinnati, OH). Koufax made his debut for the Dodgers in 1955. Out of those two transitionary years, 1961-62, Sandy Koufax the master-of-all-time, baseball's Leonardo, arrived. He is also the first pitcher to win the award by a unanimous votea recognition which he accomplished twice more. [131], Koufax serves as a member of the advisory board of the Baseball Assistance Team, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping former major league, minor league, and Negro league players through financial and medical difficulties. Facing the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field, Koufax struck out 13 while pitching his first complete game in almost two years. In 1959, Koufax struck out 18 Giants in nine innings and set a major league record for strikeouts in two games with 31. His mother was remarried when he was nine, to Irving Koufax. Koufax had an older stepsister, Edith, who died in November 1997. by Jane Leavy. He led the Miami Heat to NBA titles in 2012 and 2013 and won another championship with Cleveland in 2016, before joining the Los Angeles Lakers in 2018. [119], In 1999, The Sporting News placed Koufax at number 26 on its list of "Baseball's 100 Greatest Players". In his 12-season major league career, Koufax had a 16587 record with a 2.76 ERA, 2,396 strikeouts, 137 complete games, and 40 shutouts. Koufax was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Evelyn and Jack Braun. [51], In 1962, the Dodgers moved from the Los Angeles Coliseum, which had a 250-foot (75m) left-field line an enormous disadvantage to lefthanded pitchers to pitcher-friendly Dodger Stadium. Though most saw him as too raw and out of control. Lasorda would later joke that it took Koufax to keep him off the Dodger pitching staff. Koufax also won the Hickok Belt a second time, the first time anyone had won the belt more than once. While batting in April, he had been jammed by a pitch from Earl Francis. "[68] In Game 4, Koufax completed the Dodgers' series sweep with a 21 victory over Ford, clinching the Series MVP Award for his performance. Both players were represented by an entertainment lawyer, J. William Hayes, which was unusual in an era when players were not even represented by agents. He had six exemplary seasons in the 1960s. [86][87] At the time, Willie Mays was the highest paid player in the major leagues at $125,000 (equivalent to $1.04million in 2021) per year, and multi-year contracts were extremely unusual. In the second game of a doubleheader, Koufax faced Jim Bunning for the second time that season,[90] in a match-up between perfect game winners. Sandy Koufax: A Lefty's Legacy. Despite winning three of his next five with a 2.90 ERA, Koufax did not get another start for 45 days. But this past summer, almost 60 years after the Hall of Fame pitcher sat out a World Series game to observe . His overhand curveball, spun with the middle finger, dropped vertically 12 to 24inches due to his arm action. The need to create the site and offer real products is long overdue. We strive for accuracy and fairness. Koufax was born Sanford Braun on December 30, 1935, in Brooklyn, New York. Sandy Koufax. 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