Pitcher, New York Yankees
Age: 28 (Aug. 28)
2nd season
with Yankees
Bats – Left,
Throws – Left
Height: 5’11” Weight: 161
Prior to 1978:
A Cajun native
of Lafayette, Louisiana, Guidry started out pitching in Little League and advanced
to American Legion baseball. A track sprinter in high school in addition to
baseball, he received a baseball scholarship to the Univ. of Southwestern
Louisiana. As a college freshman in 1969, he posted a 5-1 record with a 1.57
ERA. Thanks to his outstanding fastball he recorded 87 strikeouts over 80
innings pitched as a sophomore in 1970. Guidry missed most of his junior year
due to tendinitis in his throwing arm but was still selected by the Yankees in
the third round of the 1971 amateur draft. First assigned to Johnson City of
the Rookie-level Appalachian League, the 20-year-old Guidry started seven games
and produced a 2-2 record with a 2.11 ERA and 61 strikeouts over 47 innings
pitched, although he also walked 27 batters as he struggled with his control. Promoted
to Fort Lauderdale of the Class A Florida State League in 1972, he appeared in
15 games (13 of them starts) and went 2-4 with a 3.82 ERA and 61 strikeouts
with 50 walks over 66 innings. He spent 1973 with Kinston of the Class A
Carolina League and posted a 7-6 mark with 97 strikeouts and 70 walks over the
course of 101 innings. Shifted primarily to the bullpen in 1974 with West Haven
of the Class AA Eastern League, Guidry appeared in 37 games (8 of them starts)
and was 2-4 with a 5.26 ERA while striking out 79 batters and walking 53 over
77 innings pitched. Moving on to Syracuse of the Class AAA International League
in 1975, he was used exclusively as a reliever and was 6-5 with 14 saves and a
2.90 ERA and 76 strikeouts with 37 walks issued in 42 games pitched that
covered 62 innings. In a brief stint with the Yankees, Guidry was 0-1 with a
3.45 ERA in 7 appearances, all but one of them in relief. He also obtained the
nickname “Gator”, due to his being from Louisiana, and learned how to throw a
slider from star reliever Sparky Lyle. After spending spring training with the
Yankees in 1976 Guidry was sent back down to Syracuse. Called back up to the
Yankees in May, he was a rarely utilized member of the bullpen (he went unused
for a 46-day stretch at one point) and was ready to quit when sent back to
Syracuse in July. Overall, in Class AAA he produced a 5-1 tally in 22 relief
appearances with a 1.13 ERA and 50 strikeouts in 40 innings pitched. In 7 games
pitched with the Yanks, he had no record and a 5.63 ERA. Moving into the
starting rotation in 1977, he broke out with a 16-7 record, which included 7 of
his last 8 starts and a 2.82 ERA with 176 strikeouts while pitching 210.2
innings for the pennant-winning Yankees. With his outstanding fastball and
slider, much greater things were to come in 1978.
1978 Season Summary
Appeared in 37 games
P – 35, PR – 2
[Bracketed
numbers indicate AL rank in Top 20]
Pitching
Games – 35
Games Started –
35 [9, tied with Dennis Eckersley, Ed Figueroa & Geoff Zahn]
Complete Games
– 16 [7, tied with Dennis Eckersley, Ferguson Jenkins & Milt Wilcox]
Wins – 25 [1]
Losses – 3
PCT - .893 [1]
Saves – 0
Shutouts – 9 [1]
Innings Pitched
– 273.2 [7]
Hits – 187
Runs – 61
Earned Runs – 53
Home Runs – 13
Bases on Balls
– 72
Strikeouts – 248
[2]
ERA – 1.74 [1]
Hit Batters – 1
Balks – 1 [18,
tied with many others]
Wild Pitches – 7
[18, tied with five others]
League-leading
wins were +3 ahead of runner-up Mike Caldwell
League-leading win
percentage was +.093 ahead of runner-up Larry Gura
League-leading
shutouts were +3 ahead of runners-up Mike Caldwell & Jim Palmer
League-leading
ERA was -0.53 lower than runner-up Jon Matlack
Midseason
Snapshot: 13-1, ERA – 1.99, SO – 127 in 140 IP
---
Most
strikeouts, game – 18 (in 9 IP) vs. California 6/17
10+ strikeout
games – 8
Fewest hits
allowed, game (min. 7 IP) – 2 (in 9 IP) at Boston 9/9, (in 9 IP) vs. Boston
9/15, (in 9 IP) at Cleveland 9/24
Fielding
Chances – 60
Put Outs – 14
Assists – 44
Errors – 2
DP – 1
Pct. - .967
Postseason
Pitching:
G – 2 (ALCS vs.
KC Royals – 1 G; World Series vs. LA Dodgers – 1 G)
GS – 2, CG – 1,
Record – 2-0, PCT – 1.000, SV – 0, ShO – 0, IP – 17, H – 15, R – 2, ER – 2, HR
– 0, BB – 8, SO – 11, ERA – 1.06, HB – 0, BLK – 0, WP – 0
Awards & Honors:
AL Cy Young
Award: BBWAA
MLB Player of
the Year: Sporting News
AL Pitcher of
the Year: Sporting News
All-Star
2nd in
AL MVP voting (291 points, 8 first place votes, 74% share)
AL Cy Young
voting (top 5):
Ron Guidry, NYY:
140 pts. – 28 of 28 first place votes, 100% share
Mike Caldwell,
Mil.: 76 pts. – 54% share
Jim Palmer,
Balt.: 14 pts. – 10% share
Dennis
Eckersley, Bos.: 10 pts. – 7% share
Rich Gossage,
NYY: 4 pts. – 3% share
---
Yankees went 99-63 to finish tied for first in the AL Eastern Division with the Boston Red Sox, which necessitated a season-extending single-game playoff. They defeated the Red Sox 8-3 as Guidry won his 25th game of the season, to clinch the AL East title with a final record of 100-63. The pitching staff led the league in ERA (3.18), saves (36), fewest hits allowed (1321), and fewest earned runs allowed (516). The Yankees started slowly and were 14 games behind the Red Sox in July, but following the replacement of Billy Martin as manager by Bob Lemon the club finished out at 48-20 to move into first in mid-September and Boston then needed an 8-game winning streak to force the climactic playoff. Guidry’s stunning first half that included a 13-game winning streak was topped off by a 6-1 tally in September/October, including the playoff. Won ALCS over the Kansas City Royals, 3 games to 1. Won World Series over the Los Angeles Dodgers, 4 games to 2, after losing the first two games.
Aftermath of ‘78:
The Yankees
dropped to fourth place in the AL East in 1979, but the pitcher known as
“Louisiana Lightning” again topped the league in ERA, even though it was a full
run higher than in 1978 at 2.78 to go along with an 18-8 record with 201
strikeouts over 236.1 innings. The team returned to the top of the division in
1980 and Guidry contributed a 17-10 tally with a 3.56 ERA and 166 strikeouts.
He also helped out in the bullpen and picked up a save as a result. During the
strike-interrupted 1981 season he posted a solid 11-5 record with a 2.76 ERA
and 104 strikeouts in 127 innings pitched. Guidry was an All-Star in 1982,
despite struggling with inconsistency on his way to a 14-8 mark with a 3.81 ERA
and 162 strikeouts. Additionally, he won a Gold Glove for his fielding prowess
for the first time. He went 21-9 in 1983 with a league-leading 21 complete
games, 3.42 ERA, and 156 strikeouts. He struggled through a rough season in
1984, during which he spent time on the disabled list with a rib injury and
finished at 10-11 with a 4.51 ERA. Nevertheless, in a game against the White
Sox he struck out three batters on just nine pitches. Guidry rebounded in 1985
to compile a 22-6 record with a 3.27 ERA and 143 strikeouts while pitching 259
innings. With his fastball losing velocity Guidry became more of a finesse
pitcher, using breaking pitches to maintain his effectiveness. However, the
wear on the 35-year-old pitcher’s arm began to show in 1986 as he started only
30 games and went 9-12 with a 3.98 ERA. The decline continued in 1987 and ’88,
after which he underwent surgery for a bone spur in his left elbow. Sent to
Class AAA in 1989, Guidry retired following a 1-5 start with Columbus of the
International League. For his major league career that was played entirely with
the Yankees, he compiled a 170-91 record with a 3.29 ERA and 95 complete games,
including 26 shutouts. He also recorded 1778 strikeouts over 2392 innings
pitched. In addition to three 20-win seasons, he led the AL in ERA and winning
percentage two times apiece. Appearing in 10 postseason games, Guidry went 5-2
with a 3.02 ERA, three complete games, and 51 strikeouts over 62.2 innings. He
was a four-time All-Star and five-time Gold Glove recipient. Guidry later
returned to the Yankees as a pitching coach and spring training instructor. His
#49 was retired by the team.
--
Cy Young Profiles feature pitchers who were recipients of
the Cy Young Award by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (1956 to
present). The award was presented to a single major league winner from its
inception through 1966 and from 1967 on to one recipient from each major
league.
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