Lefty Gomez

Vernon Louis "Lefty" Gomez (November 26, 1908 – February 17, 1989) was an American left-handed major league pitcher who played in the American League for the New York Yankees between 1930 and 1942. Considered one of the great pitchers of the day, Gomez was a seven-time All-Star and a five-time World Series Champion with the Yankees. He was also known for his colorful personality and humor throughout his career and life.

Background

Gomez was born in Rodeo, California. His father, Francisco Gomez, had been born in California to a Spanish father, Juan Gomez, and a Portuguese mother, Rita. His mother, Lizzie Herring, was an American of Welsh-Irish descent.^[1] He played sandlot baseball in Oakland while attending Richmond High School. It was during that timeframe that he was recruited by the San Francisco Seals.^[2] The New York Yankees purchased Lefty from the Seals for an estimated $39,000.^[3]

Marriage

On February 26, 1933 ,^[4][5] Lefty married June O’Dea (born Eilean Frances Schwarz on December 18, 1912 in Revere, Massachusetts; died December 5, 1992 in Novato, California ^[6]). A Broadway headliner who starred in Of Thee I Sing, she gave up her career in 1936. By 1937 the marriage was on shaky ground. Apparently in an effort to rekindle their relationship, they sailed to Bermuda in January, returning to New York aboard the Monarch of Bermuda on the twenty-seventh.^[7] It evidently didn’t help much, as Lefty traveled to Hollywood that April and June returned to Massachusetts to stay with family. Through the tabloids, she learned in December that Lefty was filing divorce papers in Mexico, charging incompatibility. Being a devout Catholic, June refused a divorce but agreed to a formal separation, citing abandonment and cruel and inhuman treatment.^[8] Publicly, Lefty said the whole idea of divorce was absurd, but after the first of the year he moved to Reno to get a six-week divorce. It was his intention for the divorce to be finalized by the time he began spring training in Florida.^[9] Separation proceedings continued for months, but were called off in May 1938.^[10] Lefty and June went on to have two daughters, Vernona and Sharon, and two sons, Gery and Duane.^[11]

Career

A 20-game winner four times and an All-Star every year from 1933 to 1939, Gomez led the league twice each in wins, winning percentage and ERA, and three times each in shutouts and strikeouts. In the historic first major league All-Star Game (July 6, 1933), Gomez not only was the winning pitcher for the American League, but also drove in the first run of the game. This was out of character for him, as he was, even by the standards of pitchers, notorious for poor hitting. "I never broke a bat until I was 73 years old," he said. "And that was from backing the car out of the garage." His career OPS+ of -7 is the fifth-worst in baseball history among players with at least 1,000 plate appearances. [2] Gomez holds the record for the most innings pitched in a single All-Star game (six, in 1934).

1934 was considered Lefty's best season, as he won 26 games and lost just five. In both 1934 and 1937, he won pitching's "Triple Crown" by leading the league in wins, ERA and strikeouts; he also led the AL both seasons in shutouts. His .649 career winning percentage ranks 15th in major league history among pitchers with 200 or more decisions; and among pitchers who made their ML debut from 1900–1950, only Lefty Grove, Christy Mathewson and Whitey Ford have both more victories and a higher winning percentage than Gomez.

Gomez also set a pair of World Series records: winning six games without a loss (1932-1, 1936-2, 1937-2, 1938-1); and most walks received by a batter in the same inning (6th, on October 6, 1937).

In one game, he came up to bat when it was slightly foggy. Bob Feller was on the mound and Gomez struck a match before stepping into the batter's box. "What's the big idea?" growled the umpire. "Do you think that match will help you see Feller's fast one?" "No, I'm not concerned about that," Lefty said. "I just want to make sure he can see me!"

Another example of Gomez' quick wit came with a group of reporters. Noted for his accurate and frequent brushback pitches (also known as "throwing" at the hitter), one of the reporters asked Gomez- "Is it true that you'd throw at your own mother." Gomez replied- "you're damn right I would, she's a good hitter." (This has also been said of Early Wynn.)

In 1940, Lefty suffered an arm injury, which left him up for grabs by another team, but in 1941 he played fairly well, winning 15 and losing 5. During that season, he was said to be a great starting pitcher, but won through the support of Johnny Murphy, who relieved him in later innings. After the 1942 season ended, Lefty took a job as a dispatcher with the General Electric River Works, a defense plant in Lynn, Massachusetts, which only paid $40 a week. Then on January 27, 1943, the Yankees sold Lefty to the Boston Braves for $10,000.^[12]

Lefty never appeared in a game with the Braves, as later in the year he was released from his contract and signed with the Washington Senators. He pitched just one game before retiring from the game. In his career, almost entirely spent with the Yankees, he had a 189-102 record with 1468 strikeouts and a 3.34 ERA in 2503 innings pitched. Known for his great wit, Gomez often remarked, "I'd rather be lucky than good."

After baseball

In retirement, Gomez became a sought-after dinner speaker known for his humorous anecdotes about his playing days and the personalities he knew. He was a bit of a screwball, nicknamed "El Goofy" or "Goofy Gomez" (a likewise-alliterative counterpart to his contemporary, Dizzy Dean), and delighted in playing practical jokes on everyone from teammates to umpires. He once stopped a World Series game to watch an airplane fly overhead. He came up with the idea of a revolving goldfish bowl to make life easier for older goldfish.

During the 1960s, he often coached children at the Carquinez Grammar School in Crockett, California, just east of Rodeo. At the time, Rodeo didn't have a school but he wanted to do something for the kids. Nearing sixty, he had not lost his sense of humor and entertained the children as much with his anecdotes as his coaching and lectures on sportsmanship.^[13] On one occasion, Joe Grokett, a first grade student, decided to steal first base, which he did, zigzagging around the outfield with the base close to his chest until the other kids caught up with him. They pounded him half to death while Lefty, seated calmly on the bleachers, monitored the incident with interest. After the beating, Lefty waved Grokett over to him to lecture him on good sportsmanship. Grokett listened intently, and then remarked to the veteran ballplayer, "Shouldn't you be telling that to them?" ^[14] On February 2, 1972, the Veterans Committee unanimously inducted Gomez into the National Baseball Hall of Fame, along with Giants outfielder Ross Youngs and former American League President Will Harridge. The Committee noted that Lefty pitched in seven World Series games with no losses and five wins. Wearing a Yankee cap, Gomez became the second Hispanic player (of Hispanic descent) to be inducted.

The 1983 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was dedicated to Gomez; as he was one of the last surviving players from the 1933 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, he threw out the ceremonial first pitch.

On August 2, 1987, he and Whitey Ford were honored with plaques to be placed in Monument Park at Yankee Stadium. Gomez's plaque says he was "Noted for his wit and his fastball, as he was fast with a quip and a pitch." Despite advancing age, he was able to attend the ceremony. Although he was honored with the plaque, his uniform #11 has not been retired, and has since been worn by Joe Page, Johnny Sain, Héctor López, Fred Stanley, Dwight Gooden, Chuck Knoblauch, Gary Sheffield, Doug Mientkiewicz, Morgan Ensberg and Brett Gardner.

Lefty spent the last years of his life in Novato, California, and died of congestive heart failure on February 17, 1989, in Marin General Hospital in Larkspur.^[15] A decade later, he ranked #73 on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players, and was a nominee for the Major League Baseball All-Century Team.

See also

• List of Major League Baseball leaders in career wins
• List of Major League Baseball ERA champions
• Triple Crown
• List of Major League Baseball strikeout champions
• List of Major League Baseball wins champions
• Major League Baseball titles leaders
• Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame

Footnotes

External links

• Official website for Lefty Gomez
• Lefty Gomez at the Baseball Hall of Fame
• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference
• Lefty Gomez at Find a Grave