The Pitching Prime of Bert Blyleven of Indians "There were 32 scouts in the stands at the start," he recalls. Possessing both a screwball and a curveball to go with a deceptive palmball, Cuellar was nearly untouchable in the prime of his career. So it seems only fitting that Blyleven is something of a yakker. Blessed with one of the greatest curveballs the game has ever seen, Blyleven stands among the elite in several statistical categories, ranking fifth all-time in strikeouts (3,701), ninth in games started (685) and shutouts (60), and 24th in wins (287). So you know: later this week as induction day nears, Ill have a Bert Blyleven career highlights piece up at THT Live. Blyleven was quoted as saying, "My dad built me a mound in the backyard with a canvas backdrop over our horseshoe pits, and I would go back there and just throw and throw and throw until I developed it, and it became my curveball. The Indians are happy to have him. window") of the runner is at least 30 ft/sec. Patty came out and said, 'Don't you think you should go back?' With the power of the internet, Lederers persistenceand, oh yeah, Blylevens own solid casehell have a nice weekend in upstate New York this year. If I see anymore, I'll fall in love." i surely did my campaigning for blyleven too back in the day. He also became a baseball fan. "O.K., we've got a golf bag and a dozen balls. July 16, 1985: For the second time Blyleven pitches in an All-Star Game. [4] His family moved to Melville, Saskatchewan, when Blyleven was two years old before ultimately settling in Garden Grove, California, in 1957 when Blyleven was five years old. Julio Franco, who had been arrested the previous winter for possession of a gun without a permit, received a toy pistol.
Solving Major League Baseball's Young Person Problem "It was an off year for ties," says Blyleven. Call it sunspots for all I care, it aint run support. [11][12] With the Pirates, he led the team in ERA, strikeouts, and complete games in 1978, and he helped them to a World Series victory in 1979. He earned the moniker "Frying Dutchman" by frequently setting fire to his teammates' shoelaces, a practical joke known as a "hot foot". Mike Jeffcoat. Mike Cuellar was one of the filthiest breaking ball pitchers the game has ever seen. Maglie's numbers are not overly impressive due to his stint in the Mexican League that got him banned from Major League Baseball. He just hasn't played on too many clubs that scored a lot of runs for him.". How hard, in miles per hour, a fielder throws the ball. Blyleven was born in the Netherlands, one of only nine major leaguers to have been born in Holland as of 2020 (several major leaguers were born in the Kingdom of the Netherlands outside Holland). Does it really seem that if you give him a slight increase in run support his wins will shoot up? It was the last out of the inning. [8] He pitched well with the Rangers, posting a 2.76 ERA. by Handedness, 10 things I didnt know about Bert Blyleven, http://www.hardballtimes.com/main/article/forgotten-pennant-push-jim-kaat-1967/. You've got work to do. I checked all pitchers with at least 25 SHO from 1920-2011. One fan posted, "Pete Rose in the Phillies booth "he threw a c**k high fastball". Then there are three guys over 280 winsTommy John, Jim Kaat, and Blyleven himself. Blyleven has a memento from each of his teams, a ball for every win and a replica of the 1979 Series trophy. Says Roy Smith, a rookie pitcher who dressed next to Blyleven last season, "Because his stuff is so good, it really doesn't do me any good to ask him what he throws to certain hitters. It can ruin a career. A Batted Ball Event represents any batted ball that One of his trademarks was circling fans with the telestrator on screen. Bert Blyleven Statcast, Visuals & Advanced Metrics | MLB.com | baseballsavant.com Bert Blyleven P | B/T: R/R | 6' 3" 207LBS | Age: 71 Draft: 1969 | Rd: 3, #55, Minnesota Twins | Santiago HS (Garden Grove, CA) Stats Standard Splits Game Logs Minors Batting Pitching Fielding Visuals Standard MLB Pitching Statistics Terry Kennedy was a young player with St. Louis. Expected Weighted On-base Average (xwOBA). as Active Spin. He tried out for the Twins again in the spring of 1993, but did not make the squad, which made his retirement official. Nolan Ryan and Bert Blyleven had the tightest rotation and velocity combination," Schmidt was quoted as saying in a recent Associated Press story. }, Cronkite School at ASU After just 21 minor league starts, he found himself called up to the Majors at age 19 on June 2, 1970. Then theres Blyleven. All Win Expectancy, Leverage Index, Run Expectancy, and Fans Scouting Report data licenced from TangoTiger.com. Blyleven's display includes his one no-hitter (win No. Blyleven has ridden the curve to a career ERA of 3.00. Free local pickup from Brooklyn, New York, United States. For some reason it has taken Blyleven 3,422 innings, 468 games, 195 wins, 15 years and four teams to be appreciated. From 1971 (his second year in the majors but first full season in a big league rotation) through 1975, Blyleven struck out 200-plus batters each season (224, 228, 258, 249 and 233, respectively).. Others will call it pitching to the score. We'd go from one dugout to the other, our backs pressed against the backstop while we heard the typewriters going in the press box. "Here's a ball autographed by the 1957 Milwaukee Braves. Angels pitcher Bert Blyleven throws a pitch during a game against the Baltimore Orioles on May 3, 1990 . Francisco, come up here. And so he ended his career, waiting and wondering if he would get into the Hall of Fame. Jerry Koosman was a two-time, all-star for the New York Mets and, like most lefties, relied heavily on his curveball for success. The curve ball was something to behold, but the argument that a guy belongs because of the aesthetics of a pitch's arc is simply ridiculous. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. But Gossage and Sutter are relievers, and the Hall is still trying to figure them out.
Rik Aalbert [Bert] Blyleven - New Netherland Institute Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for 1997 Fleer Star Stickers Baseball #10 - Bert Blyleven - Minnesota Twins at the best online prices at eBay! But he did. Hey, wait a minute, Francisco, where are you going? and, on certain types of batted balls, Sprint Speed. "Golf is my life," Anthony keeps saying. Ted Williams called Pascual's curveball the "most feared curveball in the American League for 18 years. That year, he pitched 293.2 innings and completed 24 games, a feat that has not been repeated since. He knows how to pitch. On September 22, 1977, just two weeks after being sidelined with a groin injury, Blyleven no-hit the California Angels 60 at Anaheim Stadium. Finally we'd make like we were playing the outfield and jump over the fence in left.". In 1985 he again led the American League in shutouts with five. A range-based metric of skill that shows how many outs a The Pirates won the World Series in 1979 and Blyleven went 1-0 with a 1.80 ERA in the Fall Classic after throwing a complete game in Game 3 of the NLCS. Thats surprising. And I said, 'Yes.' He won 287 games, 27th-most all-time, and pitched 4,970 innings, 14th-most all-time. It's hard to say anything based on one game, but he looks like he's got a great future ahead of him.". A doting daddy, Blyleven likes to spend time with his sons Timothy (above) and Thomas.
Bert Blyleven - BR Bullpen They have a right to act any way they like.". Lets back up for a second. Call it sunspots for all I care, it ain't run support. ", Blyleven wraps up the evening. Blyleven went to the California Angels in 1989 and pitched a 2.73 ERA for a 175 record in his first season; he led the league for his third and final time in shutouts (5). A curveball can also be thrown with some velocity in an attempt jam a hitter. "It was nice of him to come anyway," says Blyleven. He had looked up the records of Walter Johnson and Cy Young when he was young. In honor of Blyleven, Id like to rip off the column format pioneered here at THT by Bossman Studes, who used to run a regular Ten things I didnt know last week feature. Known for his terrific curveball, pitcher Bert Blyleven won 287 games over a 22-year major league career. This is Anthony's first time on a golf course in 10 years, and second time ever. Drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 3rd round of the 1969 amateur draft. Blyleven was a terrific pitchera dominating pitcher," Hall of Fame third baseman Brooks Robinson once said. Note that since the Neyer Board discussion ten years ago, things have already shifted. Tanner is almost universally beloved, so Blyleven came out as the bad guy in Pittsburgh, especially after Tanner called him "Cryleven." "O.K., I've got a ball here signed by Henry Aaron. "I know that stuff sounds silly," says Smith. raw numbers and as a measurement against average. Friendship may be the tie that binds Blyleven and Scheinblum, but occasionally Bert can get snippy. Blue 90672, raise your hand. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2011 . "And here's a ball signed by the 1984 Cleveland Indians. His miniature car is a favorite. Rik Aalbert (Bert) Blyleven [1951] Bert Blyleven was and still is the only native Dutchman to have made a successful career, as measured by quality of play, in American professional baseball. Richie, you don't even exercise. However, the velocity on his fastball adding to the effectiveness of his curveball. As a player, Blyleven did not have the best reputation. [14] The Pirates traded him to the Cleveland Indians on December 9, 1980. The evening is winding down, and there are only a few more souvenirs left to be auctioned. His wife, Patty, has a sneaking suspicion that he wanted the panda for himself as much as for their four children, Todd, 12, Kimberly, 10, Timothy, 3, and Thomas, 17 months. There's the looping 12-6 curveball, which drops off the table just as the hitter thinks he has a read on it. The Orioles legend has four 20-win seasons, a World Series title and a Cy Young Award to his name. In 2010, Blyleven had 74.2% of the votes, missing admission to the Hall of Fame by only 5 votes (0.8%).[22]. Bert Blyleven (born Rik Aalbert Blijleven, April 6, 1951) is a Dutch-American former professional baseball pitcher who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1970 to 1992, primarily with the Minnesota Twins. Before the game Blyleven went over to the lineup card and changed the spelling of his name from "Blylevan." That may not mean much to you, but Ron Theobald is the only man in baseball history to go into the on-deck circle without his bat. But because Kirkpatrick can see and hear, he watches and listens as Blyleven moves into the final part of the evening's program. Look at his hits to innings pitched [8.10 per nine innings], his walks to strikeouts [7.02 strikeouts and 2.47 walks per nine innings] and his ERA. A little more than three years ago he was in an automobile accident that put him in a wheelchair for life and left him unable to speak clearly. He says, "Mister Paul and Mister Seghi [Mister?] However, his election was a slow curve that was thrown to Blyleven, not being elected by the Baseball Writers Association of America until his 14thseason of eligibility despite 287 victories and 3,701 strikeouts. After all, 17 wins in eight years is a lot.
10 things I didn't know about Bert Blyleven | The Hardball Times window.". pitch. and play-by-play data provided by Sports Info Solutions. In 22 seasons, Blyleven had more than 3,700 career strikeouts, including more than 2,000 of those in 11 seasons with the Twins.
Bert Blyleven Baseball Stats by Baseball Almanac Heres a list, with how much theyd won before the big 3-0: Its easy to forget how young Blyleven debuted, just two months past his 19th birthday. A .264 career batter, Kennedy hit .120 in 25 at bats against Blyleven, collecting three hits while striking out five times.
The worst election by any of 20 guys who had gone on to election was one time Tony Perez finished exactly one vote shy of 50 percent. A 1971 Milwaukee Brewers uniform, No. The Mets got from the Braves Willie Montaez and from the Rangers Tom Grieve and Ken Henderson who was sent to New York to complete the transaction three months later on March 15, 1978. Bert Blyleven was a big part of that championship season and went 1-1 in the World Series. "Bert's always doing things for people," he says. Also, he felt that Tanner was pulling him from games too quickly. Half of them blew their arms out right after turning 30. CLEVELAND'S NETHERLANDS-BORN STAR, PITCHER BERT BLYLEVEN, PUTS HIS PEDAL TO THE METAL ON THE FIELD AND OFF Steve Wulf TABLE OF CONTENTS ORIGINAL LAYOUT Bert Blyleven addresses the ball.. [2] From 1996 to 2020, he was a color analyst for Minnesota Twins television broadcasts.[3].
Bert Blyleven Stats, Fantasy & News | MLB.com These arent items I learned in the last week, but they are things I found out during the course of Blylevens seemingly never-ending Cooperstown candidacy. ", Bert also inherited a love of the Dodgers from his father; he worshiped two in particular, Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale. Everything keyed off the fastball, but I could throw it at any time in the count, 3-2, bases loaded, I could throw it and throw it where I wanted, he said. He throws it a little differently than most pitchers, holding the ball so that every finger except his pinky is touching a seam. Now, in the previous paragraph there are three things going on: 1) Blyleven's RA/9IP, 2) his run support, and 3) well, a third factor that's hard to define. Blyleven did not know his correct name until he was about to get married. Nice. Born in the Netherlands but raised in Southern California, Blyleven would spend many evenings listening to Vin Scullys radio description of what may have been the greatest curveball ever in the game. He is very much at ease on the podium as he describes various raffle prizes, calls off winning numbers and awards golf trophies. Free shipping for many products! He learned that his name actually was Rik Aalbert Blijleven after obtaining a copy of his birth certificate in order to get married.[30]. Blyleven has always had trouble with his name. But since no one close to 280 wins showed up after Blyleven, it helped him rise up over the years. Blyleven had pitched only 21 games in the minors; by comparison, Dwight Gooden, last year's 19-year-old sensation, needed 38 games before he was brought up to the Mets. Blyleven sat out most of the 1982 season with an elbow injury and struggled again in 1983, but he came back in 1984 with one of his best seasons: a 197 record with a 2.87 ERA. That way I know he won't lose it on me like he did that one time. "Here's something special. When the Angels came to nearby Anaheim in 1966, Bert didn't switch his allegiance, although he did become one of the stadium rats. As Blyleven wanders into earshot, Scheinblum says, "Of course, I feel very strongly that a person born in a foreign country should not be allowed to play in the major leagues.". Others will call it pitching to the score. One of the most remarkable things about Blyleven's career marks is that, of the active pitchers who rank ahead of him (Nolan Ryan, Don Sutton, Tom Seaver, Steve Carlton, Tommy John, Jerry Koosman and Phil Niekro), the youngest is nearly five years older than he is. Blyleven became the first Dutch-born player to earn induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame. Most people familiar with Blyleven's case for the HOF know that he stands fifth all-time in strikeouts. Major League and Minor League Baseball data provided by Major League Baseball. Stanky quit on his own. I've had a nice life since, and tried my best never to look back. He repaid some of his debt to Flores this off-season when he hosted a tournament to benefit the Hemophilia Foundation; Flores's grandson has that disease. O.K., I bid $300.
Many new voters had entered the mix, and old ones passed on. Shipping speed. 1996-2023 DIY Baseball LLC All Rights Reserved. I wanted 300 wins, 5,000 innings, and 4,000 strikeouts, he admits, but after shoulder surgery in spring training in 1993, I would pitch four or five innings and my body would say no more. He never surrendered more than 24 home runs in any year before, and after the 198687 campaigns, he averaged 21 allowed homers per season over the course of his career. "A Carl Yastrzemski bat. In the middle of the 1976 season, he was traded to the Texas Rangers, where he threw a no-hitter in his final start for the team. CLEVELAND'S NETHERLANDS-BORN STAR, PITCHER BERT BLYLEVEN, PUTS HIS PEDAL TO THE METAL ON THE FIELD AND OFF, 2023 ABG-SI LLC. Thats easy to figure: Take the difference between his actual win-loss record and what he should have had based on a pythaging of his actual run support and his actual RA/9IP. "We left one month-old piece in there, and I think Chris ate it." He won fewer games than he should have, right? It's one of the hardest things in sports to execute. Blyleven has reigned as the curveball champion longer than either Pascual or Koufax. About 10 years ago, there was a debate at the late, great Rob Neyer Message Board about Blylevens Hall of Fame chances. ", Not only does Blyleven pitch for the Indians, he actually likes being an Indian. Look at Blyleven in that 1974 campaign.
Blyleven was one of baseball's most notorious dugout pranksters during his playing days. In the '60s, Koufax had it. Blyleven received only 17.55% of the vote for Hall of Fame admission in 1998 (his first year of eligibility), and his vote total dropped to 14.1% in 1999. Monte tried to throw a curve, and something in his elbow snapped. The only problem was that his name was published as "Blylevan," which is the way the Twins spelled it in those days. It was 14 years of praying and waiting, but I want to thank the baseball writers for finally getting it right, he said when his election was announced on January 5. The Dodgers were ready to draft him in the first round in 1969, but in one of his last high school games, Blyleven got shelled. MLB Advanced Media, LP. I was a kid listening on the radio when Blyleven was in his short stint with the Rangers, and I loved his confidence in throwing that curve when everyone in the stadium and listening on the radio knew what was coming. You've got to be kidding. Digging a little deeper into the numbers, it looks like it really was just luck, because Blyleven was at his best when it counted the most. How much did this cost him? In fact, he never came close. Wes Ferrell won three games after his age-30 season. Brian yeah, if you look at pre-1920 guys its really nuts. He always goes out and buys me a new one. Ron Necciai is one of the most dominating pitchers that never materialized in the Major Leagues. 28, "Longtime Twins broadcaster Bert Blyleven hangs up the mic", June 2, 1976: Minneapolis Tribune column on Blyleven's trade to Texas Rangers. Played in the Big Leagues from 1971-1990 and 1992. "Bert got six of mine last year," says DiBiasio. "We have a beautiful cutlery set. He played three seasons for the California Angels before retiring. That, of course, would belong to Sandy Koufax.
BASEBALL'S DUTCH TREAT - Sports Illustrated Vault | SI.com Of course, it's never as nice as the one he cut.". Its that second wind that makes his career numbers impressive. Statcast refers to the spin that contributes to movement This isn't a tournament along the ropes of, say, the Hope or the Crosby. Esteban Loaiza made two. The in/out line for the Hall has never been 300 wins. Watching him, one of his partners said, "He seems like a great guy. Blyleven's first two full seasons back with the Twins produced major league records for home runs allowed in a single season (50) and in back-to-back seasons (96). and 32 degrees. Many out there in THTs readerland believe its all just luck and random variation, and we may as well do away with W-L records.
Bert Blyleven - The RBI Baseball Database Former Twins pitcher Bert Blyleven on 1987 World Series, today's game "[19], By 2006, his total had increased to 53.33%. Now he owes the Indians and the city of Cleveland something in return.".
Bert Blyleven's Top 10 moments - MLB.com He can't speak Dutch, but to this day he still understands a little of it. He went out and used it to dominate high school hitters, and by age 19 found himself winning 10 games in the major leagues as a rookie for the Minnesota Twins, the start to a career that would last until he was 41. So how many wins did Blyleven lose solely due to his run support?