BERT BLYLEVEN

Bert Blyleven was the youngest pitcher in the majors when the Minnesota Twins called him up on June 2, 1970 at the age of 19. The Sporting News named him Rookie of the Year. He hurled a no-hitter for the Texas Rangers against the California Angels on June 22, 1977. Blyleven is best known for his wicked curveball, which he threw with different velocities and arm angles. He had the toughest curveball of his time, and was among the top four curveball specialists in baseball history. It was the curveball and his control that enabled him to establish a record in 1986 for pitching 8 seasons with 200 or more strikeouts. Blyleven ranks 5th among all-time strikeout leaders, 9th in career shutouts and 27 in career wins.

G692 W287 L250 PCT..534 SHO60 IP4970 H4632 SO3701 BB1322 ERA3.31

Text and images courtesy of Dick Perez’s The Immortals - An Art Collection of Baseball’s Best