Cy Young Profile: Denny McLain, 1969

Pitcher, Detroit Tigers 

Age:  25

6^th season with Tigers

Bats – Right, Throws – Right

Height: 6’1”    Weight: 185

Prior to 1969:

A Chicago native, McLain grew up in the suburb of Markham, where he played youth baseball. He received a baseball scholarship to attend Chicago’s Mount Carmel High School where he pitched his way to a 38-7 record. Upon graduation in 1962 he was signed by the Chicago White Sox for a $10,000 bonus. Initially assigned to the Harlan Smokies of the Class D Appalachian League he threw a no-hitter in his first professional start while striking out 16 batters. In two games with Harlan he went 1-1 with 32 strikeouts over 18 innings. Promoted to Clinton of the Midwest League McLain was 4-7 with a 3.56 ERA and 93 strikeouts over 91 innings. During his first minor league season he also began to exhibit the carefree and reckless behavior that would become more pronounced over time. Drafted away from the White Sox by Detroit in the offseason, he pitched with teams at the Class A and AA level in 1963 and was 18-6 with a 2.89 ERA and 239 strikeouts. Called up to the Tigers in September, McLain pitched a complete game for a win in his debut against the White Sox on his way to a 2-1 record in his first taste of major league action with a 4.29 ERA. He started the 1964 season with the Syracuse Chiefs of the Class AAA International League and, after getting off to a 3-1 start, he was promoted to the Tigers in June, joining the starting rotation, and going 4-5 with a 4.05 ERA the rest of the way. After a good performance playing winter ball in Puerto Rico, McLain followed up in 1965 with a 16-6 mark and a 2.61 ERA with 192 strikeouts. With command of a high fastball, curve, and changeup he got off to a 13-4 start in 1966 and was an All-Star for the first time. His performance declined during the second half of the season as he became prone to giving up home runs and his final record was 20-14 with a 3.92 ERA and 192 strikeouts. McLain became known for his flamboyant and brash personality and he also was an organist, playing solo and with groups. His 1967 season was ultimately disappointing as he produced a 17-16 tally with a 3.79 ERA and 161 strikeouts. With the Tigers locked in a wild four-team pennant race, McLain was winless in September when he missed time with a foot injury and Detroit came up a game short at season’s end. Detroit did not falter in 1968, winning the pennant in impressive fashion while McLain contributed a 31-6 record and 1.96 ERA. In addition to becoming the first major league 30-game winner since 1934, he was the AL MVP and Cy Young Award winner. LHP Mickey Lolich was the hero of the come-from-behind World Series victory over the St. Louis Cardinals, with three wins, but McLain kept the Tigers alive by winning Game 6.

1969 Season Summary

Appeared in 42 games

[Bracketed numbers indicate AL rank in Top 20]

Pitching

Games – 42

Games Started – 41 [1]

Complete Games – 23 [2]

Wins – 24 [1]

Losses – 9

PCT - .727 [6]

Saves – 0

Shutouts – 9 [1]

Innings Pitched – 325 [1]

Hits – 288 [1]

Runs – 105 [9, tied with Mel Stottlemyre, Joe Horlen & Dave Boswell]

Earned Runs – 101 [3, tied with Chuck Dobson & Tom Murphy]

Home Runs – 25 [9, tied with Ray Culp & Stan Williams]

Bases on Balls – 67

Strikeouts – 181 [7]

ERA – 2.80 [7]

Hit Batters – 4

Balks – 2 [2, tied with Bob Locker, Jim Bouton & Mike Cuellar]

Wild Pitches – 5

League-leading games started were +1 ahead of runner-up Dave McNally

League-leading wins were +1 ahead of runner-up Mike Cuellar

League-leading shutouts were +3 ahead of runner-up Jim Palmer

League-leading innings pitched were +22 ahead of runner-up Mel Stottlemyre

League-leading hits surrendered were +21 ahead of runner-up Mel Stottlemyre

Midseason Snapshot: 14-5, ERA - 2.50, SO - 113 in 198.1 IP 

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Most strikeouts, game – 12 (in 9 IP) at Oakland 5/29

10+ strikeout games – 1

Fewest hits allowed, game (min. 7 IP) – 2 (in 7 IP) vs. California 5/25,

(in 9 IP) at NY Yankees 9/15

Batting

PA – 125, AB – 106, R – 5, H – 17, 2B – 0, 3B – 0, HR – 0, RBI – 8, BB – 4, SO – 41, SB – 0, CS – 0, AVG - .160, GDP – 2, HBP – 0, SH – 13 [1], SF – 2

Fielding

Chances – 52

Put Outs – 26

Assists – 24

Errors – 2

DP – 1

Pct. - .962

Awards & Honors:

AL Cy Young Award: BBWAA (co-winner)

AL Pitcher of the Year: Sporting News

All-Star

6^th in AL MVP voting (85 points, 25% share)

AL Cy Young voting:

Denny McLain, Det.: 10 of 24 votes, 42% share

Mike Cuellar, Balt.: 10 votes, 42% share

Jim Perry, Min.: 3 votes, 13% share

Dave McNally, Balt.: 1 vote, 4% share

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Tigers went 90-72 to finish second in the AL Eastern Division, 19 games behind the division-winning Baltimore Orioles. The pitching staff led the league in complete games (55), shutouts (20, tied with Baltimore), and strikeouts (1032). Unable to keep pace with the Orioles, the Tigers settled for second place in the new AL East.

Aftermath of ‘69:

During the offseason, an investigative report in Sports Illustrated linked McLain to mob bookmaking activities leading to his suspension by Commissioner Bowie Kuhn for the first half of the 1970 season. He received further disciplinary action following his return to action and ended up with a 3-5 tally over 14 starts and a 4.63 ERA. In the offseason McLain was traded to the Washington Senators as part of an eight-player transaction. In an ineffective year with the Senators, he led the league only in losses with his 10-22 record along with a 4.28 ERA, while he battled with manager Ted Williams. With the Senators becoming the Texas Rangers in 1972, McLain was dealt to Oakland where he performed poorly both at the major and minor league levels. Following a similar brief trial with Atlanta, McLain, who had a sore arm, was out of condition, and had put on weight, found himself out of baseball at age 29. For his briefly brilliant major league career, he produced a 131-91 record with a 3.39 ERA and 1282 strikeouts over 1886 innings pitched that included 105 complete games and 29 shutouts. With the Tigers he was 117-62 with a 3.13 ERA and 1150 strikeouts. In addition to being AL MVP once and a two-time Cy Young Award winner, McLain was a three-time All-Star. After his baseball career he encountered significant financial and legal problems that caused him to spend several years in prison. Talented and determined to live life according to his own rules, his fall from the pinnacle of baseball stardom was most abrupt.

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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.