MVP Profile: Johnny Bench, 1972

Catcher, Cincinnati Reds

Age:  24

5^th season with Reds

Bats – Right, Throws – Right

Height: 6’2”    Weight: 195 

Prior to 1972:

Bench, a native of Oklahoma, was an All-State performer in both baseball and basketball in high school and was his class valedictorian as well. He was chosen by the Reds in the first amateur free agent draft in 1965 and followed up a promising season with Tampa of the Class A Florida State League by achieving Player of the Year recognition after batting .294 with 22 home runs with the Peninsula Grays of the Class A Carolina League in 1966. Following promotion to Class AAA Buffalo, he suffered a broken thumb that ended his ’66 campaign. Returning to Buffalo in 1967 Bench hit 23 home runs while batting .259 and impressed with his defensive play behind the plate. He was selected as Minor League Player of the Year by The Sporting News after the season and was promoted to the Reds for the last month of the ’67 season, hitting a meager .163 with a home run and 6 RBIs in 26 games. Impressive in his first full season in 1968, Bench was an All-Star for the first time and became the first catcher to receive Rookie of the Year honors after batting .275 with 40 doubles, 15 home runs, and 82 RBIs. He also received a Gold Glove for his play behind the plate. Bench followed up in 1969 with 26 home runs, 90 RBIs, and a .293 batting average, again receiving an All-Star selection and Gold Glove. He broke out in a big way in 1970, leading the NL in home runs (45) and RBIs (148) and being chosen as league MVP. The heavy-hitting Reds won the NL pennant as well. In a lesser season for the Reds in 1971, Bench batted .238 with 27 home runs and 61 RBIs while continuing his Gold Glove play defensively.

1972 Season Summary

Appeared in 147 games

C – 129, RF – 17, 1B – 8, 3B – 4

[Bracketed numbers indicate NL rank in Top 20]

Batting

Plate Appearances – 653 [10]

At Bats – 538

Runs – 87 [10, tied with Lee May, Nate Colbert & Ralph Garr]

Hits – 145

Doubles – 22

Triples – 2

Home Runs – 40 [1]

RBI – 125 [1]

Bases on Balls – 100 [3]

Int. BB – 23 [1]

Strikeouts – 84

Stolen Bases – 6

Caught Stealing – 6

Average - .270

OBP - .379 [10]

Slugging Pct. - .541 [3]

Total Bases – 291 [3]

GDP – 18 [3, tied with Ted Simmons, Doug Rader & Tommie Agee]

Hit by Pitches – 2

Sac Hits – 0

Sac Flies – 12 [1]

League-leading home runs were +2 ahead of runner-up Nate Colbert

League-leading RBIs were +3 ahead of runner-up Billy Williams

League-leading int. bases on balls drawn were +3 ahead of runner-up Billy Williams

League-leading sac flies were +2 ahead of runner-up Tommy Helms

Midseason snapshot: HR - 24, RBI - 72, AVG - .283, SLG - .556, OBP - .377

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Most hits, game – 4 (in 6 AB) at Montreal 6/11, (in 4 AB) vs. Pittsburgh 7/11

Longest hitting streak – 12 games

Most HR, game – 2 (in 5 AB) at Houston 5/30, (in 7 AB) at Philadelphia 6/2 – 17 innings, (in 4 AB) vs. Pittsburgh 7/12, (in 5 AB) vs. Atlanta 9/26

HR at home – 16

HR on road – 24

Multi-HR games – 4

Most RBIs, game – 5 at Atlanta 8/14, at Atlanta 9/12

Pinch-hitting – No appearances

Fielding (C )

Chances – 797

Put Outs – 735

Assists – 56

Errors – 6

DP – 9

Pct. - .992

Postseason Batting: 12 G (NLCS vs. Pittsburgh 5 G; World Series vs. Oakland 7 G)

PA – 48, AB – 41, R – 7, H – 12, 2B – 2, 3B – 1, HR – 2, RBI – 3, BB – 6, IBB – 3, SO – 8, SB – 4, CS – 0, AVG - .293, OBP - .375, SLG - .537, TB – 22, GDP – 0, HBP – 0, SH – 0, SF – 1

Awards & Honors:

NL MVP: BBWAA

Gold Glove

All-Star (Started for NL at C)

 

Top 5 in NL MVP Voting:

Johnny Bench, Cin.: 263 points – 11 of 24 first place votes, 78% share

Billy Williams, ChiC.: 211 points – 5 first place votes, 63% share

Willie Stargell, Pitt.: 201 points – 2 first place votes, 60% share

Joe Morgan, Cin.: 197 points – 5 first place votes, 59% share

Steve Carlton, Phila.: 124 points – 1 first place vote, 37% share

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Reds went 95-59, to finish first in the NL Western Division by 10.5 games over the Los Angeles Dodgers & Houston Astros while leading the league in stolen bases (140), bases on balls drawn (606), and on-base percentage (.330, tied with the Cubs) The Reds started the strike-delayed season slowly but surged in late May and took over first place in the NL West to stay on June 25, boosted by Bench’s home run heroics that included a stretch of 7 homers in a span of five games. Won NLCS over the Pittsburgh Pirates, 3 games to 2, with Bench tying the decisive 5^th game with a ninth-inning home run followed by OF George Foster scoring on a wild pitch to win the game and series. Lost World Series to the Oakland Athletics, 4 games to 3.

Aftermath of ‘72:

Bench followed up with another solid, if less spectacular, season with the division-winning Reds in 1973, batting .253 with 25 home runs and 104 RBIs. He placed tenth in league MVP voting. With outstanding ability behind the plate that included an excellent throwing arm, Bench won 10 Gold Gloves and was selected to 14 All-Star Games over the course of a career that lasted until 1983 and included being part of two World Series-winning Cincinnati squads. Capable of playing at first base and in the outfield to reduce wear on his body from catching, Bench ultimately ended up appearing primarily at third and first base in the final stages of his Hall of Fame career (he was elected in 1989).  Overall, in a tenure spent entirely with the Reds, who retired his #5, he hit 389 home runs with 1376 RBIs and a .267 batting average. Bench had another 10 home runs and 20 RBIs in 45 postseason games and was named MVP of the 1976 World Series.

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MVP Profiles feature players in the National or American leagues who were winners of the Chalmers Award (1911-14), League Award (1922-29), or Baseball Writers’ Association of America Award (1931 to present) as Most Valuable Player. 

 

Cy Young Profile: Steve Carlton, 1972

Pitcher, Philadelphia Phillies

Age:  27

1^st season with Phillies

Bats – Left, Throws – Left

Height: 6’4”    Weight: 210

Prior to 1972:

A native of Miami, Florida Carlton played basketball as well as baseball at North Miami High School. Moving on to Miami-Dade College he was signed by the St. Louis Cardinals. In 1964 he was first assigned to Rock Hill of the Class A Western Carolinas League where he excelled by compiling a 10-1 record in 11 games with a 1.03 ERA and 91 strikeouts over 79 innings pitched. He was sent next to Winnipeg of the advanced Class A Northern League where he went 4-4 with a 3.36 ERA in 12 appearances. Carlton finished up the year with Tulsa of the Class AA Texas League where he was 1-1 with a 2.63 ERA. He moved up to the Cardinals in 1965 in order to protect him from being taken by another team in the Rule 5 draft. Encountering arm trouble, he was used sparingly and appeared in 15 games, almost exclusively in relief, and had no decisions and a 2.52 ERA. Carlton opened the 1966 season in Tulsa and was 9-5 with a 3.59 ERA when he was promoted back to the Cardinals. For the remainder of the season he started nine games and went 3-3 with a 3.12 ERA and 25 strikeouts over the course of 52 innings pitched. He joined the starting rotation in 1967, a year in which the Cards won the NL pennant and World Series. He contributed a 14-9 record and 2.98 ERA while striking out 168 batters over 193 innings pitched. He also benefited from his proximity to ace RHP Bob Gibson and his fierce approach to pitching. Carlton lost his only start in the World Series against the Red Sox while giving up three hits and an unearned run over six innings. The Cardinals won the NL pennant again in 1968 and Carlton was an All-Star for the first time on his way to compiling a 13-11 tally with a 2.99 ERA and 162 strikeouts. He added a slider to his pitching repertoire that already included a rising fastball and curve in 1969 and improved to 17-11 with a 2.17 ERA and 210 strikeouts, including 19 in a loss to the Mets which set what was then the major league record for a nine-inning game. Once more an All-Star he sought a significant raise from his $26,000 salary and he held out in 1970 for a large part of spring training. He had a down year in ’70, with a 10-19 record and 3.73 ERA. Carlton bounced back in 1971 going 20-9 with a 3.56 ERA and 172 strikeouts while pitching 273.1 innings and completing 18 games. An All-Star for the third time he demanded a significant raise and antagonized owner Gussie Busch, who ordered that he be traded during spring training of 1972. He was dealt to the Phillies for RHP Rick Wise.

1972 Season Summary

Appeared in 41 games

[Bracketed numbers indicate NL rank in Top 20]

Pitching

Games – 41

Games Started – 41 [1]

Complete Games – 30 [1]

Wins – 27 [1]

Losses – 10

PCT - .730 [2]

Saves – 0

Shutouts – 8 [2]

Innings Pitched – 346.1 [1]

Hits – 257 [1]

Runs – 84 [18, tied with Bob Moose, Carl Morton & Bill Singer]

Earned Runs – 76 [18, tied with Bob Gibson]

Home Runs – 17 [19, tied with Ken Reynolds & Wayne Simpson]

Bases on Balls – 87 [7]

Strikeouts – 310 [1]

ERA – 1.97 [1]

Hit Batters – 1

Balks – 2 [3, tied with twelve others]

Wild Pitches – 8 [14, tied with eight others]

League-leading games started were +4 ahead of runner-up Steve Arlin

League-leading complete games were +7 ahead of runners-up Ferguson Jenkins & Bob Gibson

League-leading wins were +6 ahead of runner-up Tom Seaver

League-leading innings pitched were +57 ahead of runner-up Ferguson Jenkins

League-leading hits allowed were +3 ahead of runner-up Phil Niekro

League-leading strikeouts were +61 ahead of runner-up Tom Seaver

League-leading ERA was -0.02 lower than runner-up Gary Nolan

Midseason Snapshot: 14-6, ERA - 2.48, SO – 201 in 196.1 IP

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Most strikeouts, game – 14 (in 9 IP) at San Francisco 4/25

10+ strikeout games – 9

Fewest hits allowed, game (min. 7 IP) – 1 (in 9 IP) at San Francisco 4/25

Batting

PA – 130, AB – 117, R – 6, H – 23, 2B – 3, 3B – 1, HR – 1, RBI – 8, BB – 5, SO – 31, SB – 0, CS – 0, AVG - .197, GDP – 0, HBP – 1, SH – 7, SF – 0

Fielding

Chances – 47

Put Outs – 8

Assists – 37

Errors – 2

DP – 3

Pct. - .957

Awards & Honors:

NL Cy Young Award: BBWAA

NL Pitcher of the Year: Sporting News

All-Star

5^th in NL MVP voting (124 points, 1 first place vote, 37% share)

NL Cy Young voting (Top 4):

Steve Carlton, Phila.: 120 pts. – 24 of 24 first place votes, 100% share

Steve Blass, Pitt.: 35 pts. – 29% share

Ferguson Jenkins, ChiC.: 23 pts. – 19% share

Mike Marshall, Mon.: 8 pts. – 7% share

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Phillies went 59-97 to finish sixth (last) in the NL Eastern Division, 37.5 games behind the division-winning Pittsburgh Pirates in the season that started late and lost games to a players’ strike. Carlton accounted for a record 45.8 % of the team’s wins. Runner-up among the pitching staff to Carlton’s 27 wins was Darrell Brandon, who went 7-7.

Aftermath of ‘72:

Carlton dropped to 13-20 with a 3.90 ERA in 1973, although he again led the league with 18 complete games and 293.1 innings pitched. By the end of the season he had stopped speaking to reporters, a position he upheld for the remainder of his career. He improved to 16-13 with a 3.22 ERA and a NL-leading 240 strikeouts in 1974 and was 15-14 with a 3.56 ERA and 192 strikeouts in 1975. During this period Carlton developed a workout regimen with trainer Gus Hoefling designed to improve his concentration and stamina, building upon his established interests in martial arts and Eastern religion. His efforts bore fruit in 1976 with a 20-7 record and 3.13 ERA and 192 strikeouts for a Phillies team that topped the NL East. He was 23-10 in 1977 with a 2.64 ERA and 198 strikeouts and won his second Cy Young Award as the Phils again finished atop the division. They did once more in 1978 while their eccentric pitching ace known as “Lefty” compiled a 16-13 record with a 2.84 ERA and 161 strikeouts. He had an 18-11 tally for the fourth place Phils in 1979 with a 3.62 ERA and 213 strikeouts. The Phillies rebounded in 1980 to win the NL East and the league pennant as well as a franchise-first World Series. Carlton produced a 24-9 record and 2.34 ERA while also leading the league in innings pitched (304) and strikeouts (286). His performance earned him a third Cy Young Award. In the World Series vs. the Royals he won two games including the decisive sixth contest. In the strike-shortened 1981 season he was 13-4 with a 2.42 ERA and 179 strikeouts over 190 innings pitched and placed third in NL Cy Young Award balloting. Carlton followed with another outstanding season in 1982 in which he led the NL in wins with a 23-11 record as well as complete games (19), shutouts (6), and strikeouts (286). He was honored with a fourth Cy Young Award. In 1983, another pennant-winning year for Philadelphia, Carlton’s record dropped to 15-16 with a 3.11 ERA although he topped the league with 283.2 innings pitched and 275 strikeouts. He had a fair, but not outstanding, performance in 1984 that produced a 13-7 record and 3.58 ERA along with 163 strikeouts over 229 innings. He slipped considerably in 1985 at age 40, finding himself on the disabled list with a strained rotator cuff on his way to a 1-8 tally and 3.33 ERA in only 16 starts. He lasted until June in 1986 when he was released by the Phillies with a 4-8 record and 6.18 ERA in 16 starts. Signed by the San Francisco Giants, the situation showed no improvement as he went 1-3 with a 5.10 ERA prior to being let go in August, shortly after recording his 4000^th career strikeout. Carlton announced that he was retiring but ended up finishing the season with the Chicago White Sox. He was 4-3 in 10 starts for his third club in ‘86 with a 3.69 ERA. Carlton spent 1987 with the Cleveland Indians and Minnesota Twins, generating a combined record of 6-14. Re-signed by the Twins for 1988 Carlton made just four appearances before being released, thus ending his career, although he continued to seek opportunities to catch on with another team. Overall in the major leagues Carlton compiled a 329-244 record with a 3.22 ERA and 4136 strikeouts in 5217.2 innings pitched. With the Phillies he was 241-161 with a 3.09 ERA and 3031 strikeouts over 3697.1 innings pitched. While he pitched 254 complete games that included 55 shutouts, he didn’t pitch any no-hitters although he recorded 6 one-hitters. He was also called for a record 90 balks over the course of his career. In the postseason Carlton went 6-6 with a 3.26 ERA and 84 strikeouts over 99.1 innings pitched. 13 of his 16 appearances came with the Phillies. He was a 10-time All-Star (7 with Philadelphia) and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1994. The Phillies retired his #32 and honored him on their Wall of Fame at Citizens Bank Park, outside of which a statue of him was erected.    

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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.  

Rookie of the Year: Jon Matlack, 1972

Pitcher, New York Mets

Age:  22

Bats – Left, Throws – Left

Height: 6’3”    Weight: 205

Prior to 1972:

A native of West Chester, Pennsylvania Matlack began pitching in Little League. After high school and a successful stint playing American Legion baseball, he was drafted by the Mets in 1967 as the fourth overall pick. In his first brief minor league assignment with Williamsport of the Class AA Eastern League in ’67 he was unimpressive with an 0-1 record and 14.40 ERA in two starts. It got better from there. In 1968 Matlack was with Raleigh-Durham of the Class A Carolina League where he produced a 13-6 tally with a 2.76 ERA and 188 strikeouts in 173 innings pitched. In 1969 he moved up to the Tidewater Tides of the Class AAA International League, where his record was 14-7 with a 4.14 ERA. He spent 1970 with Tidewater as well and went 12-11 with a 4.13 ERA. Matlack started the 1971 season with Tidewater prior to a mid-season stint with the Mets. He had an 0-3 record in 7 major league games and was 11-7 with a 3.97 ERA for Tidewater. Matlack played in Puerto Rico that winter and stuck with the Mets in the spring of ’72.

1972 Season Summary

Appeared in 34 games

[Bracketed numbers indicate NL rank in Top 20]

Pitching

Games – 34

Games Started – 32 [15, tied with Steve Blass]

Complete Games – 8

Wins – 15 [12, tied with four others]

Losses – 10

PCT - .600 [16]

Saves – 0

Shutouts – 4 [6, tied with seven others]

Innings Pitched – 244 [12]

Hits – 215 [12, tied with Tom Seaver & Mike Torrez]

Runs – 79

Earned Runs – 63

Home Runs – 14

Bases on Balls – 71 [16, tied with Rick Wise & Ernie McAnally]

Strikeouts – 169 [10]

ERA – 2.32 [4]

Hit Batters – 2

Balks – 1 [16, tied with many others]

Wild Pitches – 7

Most strikeouts, game – 9 (in 7 IP) vs. St. Louis 6/25, (in 9 IP) vs. San Francisco 7/12, (in 8 IP) at San Francisco 7/22, (in 8 IP) vs. Chicago 9/4, (in 8.1 IP) at Montreal 10/4

10+ strikeout games – 0

Fewest hits allowed, game (min. 7 IP) – 2 (in 8 IP) at San Francisco 7/22

Batting

PA – 93, AB – 78, R – 6, H – 10, 2B – 1, 3B – 0, HR – 0, RBI – 2, BB – 10, SO – 44, SB – 0, CS – 0, AVG - .128, GDP – 1, HBP – 0, SH – 5, SF – 0

Fielding

Chances – 42

Put Outs – 8

Assists – 33

Errors – 1

DP – 1

Pct. - .976

Awards & Honors:

NL Rookie of the Year: BBWAA

NL ROY Voting:

Jon Matlack, NYM.: 19 of 24 votes, 79% share

Dave Rader, SF.: 4 votes, 17% share

John Milner, NYM.: 1 vote, 4% share

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Mets went 83-73 to finish third in the NL Eastern Division, 13.5 games behind the division-winning Pittsburgh Pirates while the pitching staff led the league in strikeouts (1059).   

Aftermath of ‘72:

Matlack suffered a fractured skull during the 1973 season when he was hit in the head by a line drive by Atlanta’s Marty Perez, but he recovered to compile a 14-16 record with a 3.20 ERA and 205 strikeouts. He was at his best from mid-August until the end of the season as he went 5-1 as the Mets surged to the NL East title. He won a game against Cincinnati in the NLCS and was 1-2 with a 2.16 ERA in the World Series loss to Oakland. While his record was a mediocre 13-15 in 1974, Matlack’s ERA was a very respectable 2.41, and he was an All-Star selection who compiled a league-leading 7 shutouts and also struck out 195 batters. He was 16-12 for the 82-80 Mets in 1975 with a 3.38 ERA, again being chosen for the All-Star Game. Matlack went 17-10 in 1976 with a 2.95 ERA, 153 strikeouts, and 16 complete games, representing the Mets in a third straight All-Star Game.  He struggled with a sore shoulder to a 7-15 record with a 64-98 team in 1977 and his ERA rose to 4.21. In the offseason the Mets traded Matlack to the Texas Rangers as part of a four-team deal. In 1978 he bounced back to 15-13 with a 2.27 ERA. Elbow surgery reduced him to 13 appearances and a 5-4 tally in 1979. Matlack was a .500 pitcher in 1980 with a 10-10 record as well as a 3.68 ERA and 142 strikeouts. He dropped to 4-7 during the strike-interrupted 1981 season and lost his spot in the starting rotation to John Butcher in ’82. As a reliever and occasional starter Matlack appeared in 33 games and compiled a 7-7 record with a 3.53 ERA. He played one more season with the Rangers in 1983 with mediocre results and was released, thus ending his career.  Matlack’s overall major league record was 125-126. He totaled 2363 innings pitched with a 3.18 ERA and 1516 strikeouts. With the Mets he went 82-81 with a 3.03 ERA and 1023 strikeouts over the course of 1448 innings pitched and was a three-time All-Star. He later became a minor league pitching coach.     

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Rookie of the Year Profiles feature players who were recipients of the Rookie of the Year Award by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (1947 to present). The award was presented to a single major league winner from its inception through 1948 and from 1949 on to one recipient from each major league.