Whitey Ford: Looking Back at the Career of a Baseball Legend

While not as well known as Babe Ruth, Hank Aaron, or other players discussed during the 2006 "home run watch" season, baseball legend Whitey Ford is famous in his own right, as the Hall of Famer was no stranger to controversy on the field. Edward "Whitey" Ford began his career with the New York Yankees in1950. After that season, he enlisted in the military, as the Korean War was underway. His service lasted two years, after which he again joined the Yankees organization from 1953-1967. In addition to being a player, Ford also was a coach for four seasons. As a player he was given the nicknames "The Chairman of the Board" and "Slick". His other nickname, "Whitey" came from the fact that his light blonde hair color was so light; it was often mistaken for being white.

As a player, Ford was very strong winning the World Series Most Valuable Payer Award in 1961. He was also a part of the All Star team in 1953, and from 1955-1962. As a pitcher, Ford received one of the most prestigious awards in baseball, the Cy Young Award. Unfortunately, as Ford's career progressed, his once-great pitching abilities that he had, began to decline. Towards the end of his career, Ford was caught cheating by doctoring baseballs. His catcher was also caught in the act with him, as once Ford threw the ball, the catcher would make sure the ball ended up in dirt, to cover any evidence of a doctored ball. While this compromised the integrity of games and player averages, baseball still had respect for Ford. He was ranked #52 out of 100 on The Sporting News' 100 Greatest Baseball Players, and was nominated to the All Century Team. In 1974, Ford was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. His number 16 jersey has been retired by the Yankees since 1974. The Yankees also honored him with a plaque located at Yankee Stadium in remembrance of one of their greatest left-handed pitchers. Some of Ford's record-noting accomplishments include:

Number of wins as a pitcher - 236 (55th place overall)
Winning percentage as a pitcher- .690 (3rd place overall)
Number of games as a starting pitcher - 438 (79th place)
Number of shut-outs as a pitcher - 45 (tied for 29th place overall)
Number of walks pitched - 1086 (76th place overall)
Number of strikeouts pitched - 1956 (67th place overall)
Earned run average as a pitcher - 2.75 (tied for 60th place)
Opponent batting average as a pitcher - .235 (tied for 47th place overall)