Juan Pizarro, 1937 - 2021

Lefthander Juan Pizarro spent the prime years of his career, 1961 to 1966, with the White Sox, and pitched for the Cubs from 1970 to 1973. He tossed a one-hit shutout for the Sox on August 11, 1965, and repeated the feat for the Cubs on August 5, 1971. He passed away Thursday at his home in Puerto Rico.

 
    

     Pizarro was rather small for a pitcher, standing 5-feet-11 and weighing 170 pounds as a young man, but he had a very live arm that kept him in the major leagues for 18 seasons. He weighed at least 200 pounds in the latter part of his career. “I came to the end of the road a lot quicker because I loved to eat,” he said after retiring. 

     Pizarro came up to the major leagues with the Milwaukee Braves at the age of 20 in 1957. He played in the World Series in both 1957 and 1958, but never again. His career really took off when he was traded to the White Sox. “When Pizarro first joined the club in 1961,” manager Al Lopez said, “he was fooling around with a screwball. Here was a young pitcher with control trouble, so I told him to concentrate on finding the plate with his fastball and curve and forget about the screwball. He had enough stuff without it.” Pizarro led the club in wins, innings pitched, complete games, strikeouts, and earned-run average that year, then continued on from there.

     Pizarro worked over 200 innings in each of the next three seasons and was an All-Star in 1963 and 1964. He joined Gary Peters, Joe Horlen, and John Buzhardt to comprise the best starting rotation in the American League as the Sox contended for the pennant every year but never quite got there. Pizarro made only 18 starts in 1965, losing much of the season to a salary holdout and then a sore arm. In 1966, he was reduced to pitching in long relief and making an occasional spot start. He was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates after the season for Wilbur Wood, who (of course) ultimately became one of the greatest pitchers in franchise history. 

     Pizarro went 75-47 with a 3.05 ERA in 1,037 innings during his time with the South Siders. As it turned out, more than half of his career victories and innings were logged for the Sox. From then on, he bounced around to six different teams and spent a fair amount of time back in the minor leagues. Pizarro’s admitted love of the night life probably contributed to his uneven later career. “I only remember the parties, the women, the hot times,” he said in a candid post-retirement interview.

    

When Pizarro hooked on with the Cubs in 1970, manager Leo Durocher – quite a carouser himself – took a liking to him. But in those days of four-man rotations, the Cubs’ outstanding quartet of Fergie Jenkins, Milt Pappas, Bill Hands, and Ken Holtzman limited Pizarro’s opportunities. 

     Late in the 1971 season, Pizarro finally was given a regular turn in the rotation, and he took full advantage of it. His first five starts in August yielded four complete-game victories, including the one-hitter mentioned above. In mid-September, he pitched back-to-back complete-game shutouts. In the second of these, a home run by Pizarro himself accounted for all the offense in a 1-0 win over Tom Seaver and the Mets at New York. It was later suggested that this game and Pizarro’s 3-2 victory against Seaver on August 1 cost “Tom Terrific” the Cy Young Award and clinched it for Jenkins. 

     After his big-league career ended in 1974, Pizarro pitched in the Mexican League for several years and continued pitching in the Puerto Rican Winter League, as he had done since 1955. For his entire professional career, he won about 400 games. His regular season count of 392 includes 197 in the U.S. (131 in the majors and 66 in the minors), 38 in Mexico, and 157 in the winter league. He also won an undetermined number of postseason and exhibition games in Puerto Rico. Pizarro was elected as a charter member of the Puerto Rican Baseball Hall of Fame in 1991. 

 

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'Twas Forty Years Ago: Chicago Sports Memories of 1971

    

GALE SAYERS

     In 1971, two of the all-time great Chicago athletes called it a career within three weeks of each other. Ernie Banks played the last of his 2,528 games for the Cubs on September 26, and Gale Sayers played the last of his 68 games for the Bears on October 17. Sadly, both players finished up as mere shadows of their former selves. Banks, 40, had only 83 at-bats for the season, hitting .193 with three homers and six runs batted in. Sayers, just 28, played in two games and rushed for 38 yards on 13 carries before conceding that this latest comeback from a succession of knee surgeries had run its course.
     Neither man would have to wait long for the call to join his sport's Hall of Fame.

     The Blackhawks took an immediate liking to their new home in the NHL's Western Division, where they were the only established franchise among six four-year-old expansion teams. The Hawks won 26 and tied 5 of their first 37 games. They did not lose on home ice until January 6, compiling a home record of 16-0-2 prior to that. They ended up at 49-20-9, racking up 107 points to win the division going away. Mainstays of the club were goalie Tony Esposito, center Stan Mikita, forwards Bobby Hull and Dennis Hull, and defensemen Bill White and Pat "Whitey" Stapleton.
     In the playoffs, the Hawks dispatched the Philadelphia Flyers (four games to none) and the New York Rangers (four games to three) to advance to the Stanley Cup finals against the Montreal Canadiens. The Hawks won the first two games at home, dropped the next two at Montreal, then won again at home--in a 2-0 shutout by Esposito--to draw tantalizingly close to capturing the Cup. But the Canadiens won the next game in Montreal to even the series again.
     In Game 7 at the Stadium on May 18, Dennis Hull tallied in the last minute of the first period on a power play and Danny O'Shea lit the lamp seven minutes into the second to give the Hawks a 2-0 lead. The home team was closing in on the championship, and the old barn was rocking. Alas, the Canadiens scored three unanswered goals--two in the second period and one in the third--to win 3-2. As Montreal captain Jean Beliveau hoisted the Cup, the standing-room-only crowd of heartbroken Hawks fans politely applauded the champions. The Cup that Beliveau held in his hands would remain beyond the Hawks' grasp for 39 more years.

     In their fifth year of existence, the Bulls had their first 50-win season in 1970-71. They played an intense, physical style of ball that mirrored the pugnacious personality of their coach, Dick Motta, and they had the Stadium turnstiles spinning. Forwards Bob Love and Chet Walker were All-Stars, guard Jerry Sloan was named second-team All-Defense, and Motta was voted Coach of the Year. Although the Bulls lost a hard-fought first-round playoff series to the Los Angeles Lakers in seven games, with the home team winning each game, the future was still bright. They won 50 or more games in each of the next three seasons, and they proved that a pro basketball franchise could not only survive but thrive in Chicago.

     The Cubs plodded to an 83-79 mark in Banks's 19th and final season, finishing tied for third place in the National League East, 14 games behind the Pittsburgh Pirates. The lanky and elegant 28-year-old righthander Fergie Jenkins went 24-13 with a 2.77 earned-run average and 277 strikeouts to earn the Cy Young Award. It was the fifth of six consecutive seasons in which Jenkins won 20 or more times. The future Hall of Famer was joined in the All-Star Game by second baseman Glenn Beckert, shortstop Don Kessinger, and third baseman Ron Santo.

     After bottoming out with a 56-106 record the year before, the White Sox welcomed a new manager, Chuck Tanner, and a new broadcaster, Harry Caray, and then welcomed a return to respectability. The Sox finished at 79-83, and attendance at Comiskey Park nearly doubled. Tanner and pitching coach Johnny Sain converted knuckleballing lefty reliever Wilbur Wood into a starter, and the experiment proved a success, to say the least. Wood went 22-13 with a 1.91 ERA while logging 334 innings. He finished third in Cy Young balloting and established himself as the South Siders' ace for the next several years. Wood and 25-year-old third baseman Bill Melton, who led the American League (and tied his own club record) with 33 home runs, represented the Sox in the All-Star Game.

     After several years of mediocrity, the Bears galvanized fans by winning six of their first nine games. On November 14 against the Washington Redskins, a 40-yard touchdown run by Cyril Pinder tied the score 15-15 late in the fourth quarter. On the extra-point attempt, the snap went awry, but holder Bobby Douglass (also the Bears' quarterback) picked up the ball, scrambled around a while, and then fired a strike to Dick Butkus (of all people) in the corner of the end zone to give the Bears a dramatic 16-15 win.
     At 6-3, the Bears seemed headed for the playoffs, but they lost the next five games--four of them by very lopsided scores--to finish 6-8. Head coach Jim Dooley was fired after compiling a record of 20-36 for four seasons; he would be replaced by Abe Gibron, who didn't fare much better.
     The Bears' game at Detroit on October 24 was marred by the on-field death of Lions receiver Chuck Hughes from an apparent heart attack.

White Sox WARs

WILBUR WOOD

     Of the many new statistics which have inundated baseball fans over the past decade or two, perhaps the most interesting is WAR (wins above replacement). This stat seeks to measure a player's value to his team by determining the number of wins he was responsible for. A WAR of 5.0, for example, means that the team won five more games with the given player in the lineup than it would have won with an average player in his place.
     Not including 19th-century pitchers who appeared in almost every game, the highest single-season WAR of all time was Babe Ruth's 14.7 in 1923. The Bambino is also the career leader in WAR with 190.0.
     What about White Sox WARs? In 1971, lefty knuckleballer Wilbur Wood went 22-13 with an earned-run average of 1.91, completed 22 of his 42 starts, tossed seven shutouts, and allowed exactly one baserunner (hits and walks combined) for each of his 334 innings. His performance on the mound earned him a WAR of 10.7, the highest figure for any pitcher or position player in club history.
     Alas, in those days before the designated hitter, Wood's contributions at the plate left something to be desired. He went 5-for-96 (.052), with no doubles, no triples, no homers, and no runs batted in. His WAR as a batter, even though it was measured against other pitchers, was minus 0.7, reducing his overall figure for the season to 10.0. In the list of all-time leading White Sox WARs below, we've cut Wilbur and his fellow hurlers some slack, listing their figures as pitchers only, and not docking them for their lack of hitting prowess.
     Among position players, unsung shortstop Ron Hansen cracked the top ten single-season White Sox WARs in 1964, largely on the strength of his 2.8 figure on defense. Hansen's 4.6 on offense gave him a total WAR of 7.4, tied for seventh place among all position players in club history. On the other side of the coin, Dick Allen, Frank Thomas, and Albert Belle all tallied negative scores on defense, but these were more than offset by their offensive production.

Top Ten White Sox WARs, single season (pitchers)

  1. Wilbur Wood (1971), 10.7
  2. Eddie Cicotte (1917), 10.0
  3. Red Faber (1921), 9.9
  3. Ed Walsh (1912), 9.9
  5. Wilbur Wood (1972), 9.7
  6. Ed Walsh (1908), 9.5
  7. Eddie Cicotte (1919), 8.8
  8. Ed Walsh (1910), 8.7
  9. Thornton Lee (1941), 8.2
10. Ed Walsh (1911), 8.2


Top Ten White Sox WARs, single season (position players)

  1. Eddie Collins, 2B (1915), 10.1
  2. Dick Allen, 1B (1972), 9.3
  3. Minnie Minoso, LF (1954), 8.3
  4. Eddie Collins, 2B (1920), 8.0
  5. Luke Appling, SS (1936), 7.7
  6. Frank Thomas, 1B (1992), 7.6
  7. Albert Belle, LF (1998), 7.4
  7. George Davis, SS (1905), 7.4
  7. Ron Hansen, SS (1964), 7.4
  7. Joe Jackson, LF (1920), 7.4
  7. Frank Thomas, 1B (1991), 7.4


Top Ten White Sox WARs, career (pitchers)

  1. Ted Lyons (1923-1942), 58.8
  2. Red Faber (1914-1933), 55.2
  3. Ed Walsh (1904-1916), 55.0
  4. Billy Pierce (1949-1961), 50.3
  5. Wilbur Wood (1967-1978), 44.9
  6. Eddie Cicotte (1912-1920), 43.1
  7. Mark Buehrle (2000-present), 42.9
  8. Doc White (1903-1913), 29.9
  9. Thornton Lee (1937-1947), 28.0
10. Tommy John (1965-1971), 22.5


Top Ten White Sox WARs, career (position players)

  1. Frank Thomas, 1B-DH (1990-2005), 70.6
  2. Luke Appling, SS (1930-1950), 69.3
  3. Eddie Collins, 2B (1915-1926), 66.0
  4. Nellie Fox, 2B (1950-1963), 42.7
  5. Minnie Minoso, OF (1951-1957, 1960-1961, 1964, 1976, 1980), 42.7
  6. Robin Ventura, 3B (1989-1998), 38.8
  7. Fielder Jones, OF (1901-1908), 35.1
  8. George Davis, SS (1902, 1904-1909), 33.4
  9. Luis Aparicio, SS (1956-1961, 1968-1970), 31.5
10. Carlton Fisk, C (1981-1993), 29.6

Chuck Tanner, 1929 - 2011

    

CHUCK TANNER, 1971

     Chuck Tanner played for the Cubs, managed the White Sox, and approached everything he did with infectious optimism. He passed away last Friday at the age of 81.
     Tanner made his big-league debut as a player for the Milwaukee Braves on Opening Day in 1955, cracking a home run on the very first pitch he saw. The blow did not portend greatness, however, for Tanner's eight-year career produced totals of 21 homers, 98 runs scored, and 105 runs batted in, to go with a .261 batting average. More than half of Tanner's hits, homers, and RBIs came in a two-year stint with the Cubs in 1957 and 1958.
     Tanner resurfaced in the majors when he was named skipper of the White Sox late in the 1970 season. After 17 consecutive winning seasons from 1951 to 1967, the Sox had fallen on hard times. They bottomed out in 1970, losing a club-record 106 games while drawing only 495,000 fans to Comiskey Park. The Sox went 3-13 under Tanner as they limped to the finish line.
     It looked like more of the same in 1971, as the White Sox lost 38 of their first 60 games and occupied last place into July. But the Sox went 12 games over .500 for the rest of the way to finish at a respectable 79-83. Tanner's positive attitude and relentless cheerleading helped, but not as much as his decision to convert knuckle-balling lefty reliever Wilbur Wood into a starter. Wood won 22 games and finished third in the voting for the Cy Young award (for the rest of Tanner's tenure as manager, Wood led the league in games started every year; he won 106 games in five seasons). A pair of 20-year-olds, lefty Terry Forster and righty Rich "Goose" Gossage, anchored the bullpen, and third baseman Bill Melton led the league with 33 home runs.
     Thanks to the Sox' improved play on the field and the arrival of the ultimate baseball-and-beer salesman, Harry Caray, in the broadcast booth, attendance increased nearly 70 percent.
     In 1972, first baseman Dick Allen was acquired in a trade for pitcher Tommy John. Having worn out his welcome with three other clubs in the past three years, Allen flourished with the White Sox. He skipped batting practice, traveled separately from his teammates, and smoked on the bench, but Tanner didn't mind. He blithely admitted that he had one set of rules for Allen and another for the rest of the team. The moody slugger responded with a then-club-record 37 homers to go with 113 RBIs and a .308 average and won the Most Valuable Player award as the Sox finished just five and a half games behind the Oakland A's, who won the world championship. Tanner was named American League Manager of the Year.
     A particular highlight of that season was a doubleheader sweep of the Yankees on June 4 before a Bat Day crowd of 51,904 at Comiskey Park. In the nightcap, the Sox were trailing 4-2 in the bottom of the ninth when Allen blasted a three-run pinch-hit homer into the upper deck in left field.
     The White Sox were relevant again. Attendance ratcheted up to 1.17 million in 1972 and 1.3 million (third highest in club history at the time) in 1973.
     Tanner was let go when Bill Veeck reacquired the franchise after the 1975 season. He managed the A's for one season, then piloted his hometown team, the Pittsburgh Pirates, for nine years, winning the World Series in 1979. He concluded his career with the Atlanta Braves in 1988. Phil Garner, who played for Tanner with the Pirates and later became a manager himself, said, "Chuck Tanner taught me nearly all I know about baseball."