Gibson, "Bob" (Robert)
Baseball
b. Nov. 9, 1935, Omaha, NE
Gibson had one of the greatest seasons ever for a pitcher in 1968. He set a major league record with a 1.12 ERA, had 13 shutouts in a 22-9 season and led the NL in strikeouts with 268 in 304 innings while walking only 62. He won the NL's Cy Young and most valuable player awards.
That was just one season in a long stretch when Gibson was a dominating pitcher who helped lead the St. Louis Cardinals into three World Series and two world championships. After appearing with St. Louis for parts of the 1959 and 1960 seasons, he became a full-time starter in 1961.
The right-handed Gibson led the league with 5 shutouts in 1962. He was 19-12 with a 3.01 ERA in 1964, when set a World Series record with 31 strikeouts in 27 innings, winning 2 and losing 1 in the Cardinals' seven-game victory over the New York Yankees.
Gibson went 20-12 and 21-12 in the next two seasons, again leading the NL with 5 shutouts in 1966. He seemed on his way to another 20-victory season in 1967 before a line drive broke his right leg. However, he was ready for the World Series against the Boston Red Sox, winning 3 complete games and giving up just 3 runs.
After his incredible 1968 season, Gibson won the first and fourth games of the World Series against the Detroit Tigers, setting a record of 7 consecutive series wins. Gibson also broke his own record with 35 strikeouts, but he lost the seventh game 4-1, in part because of a misplayed fly ball that led to 3 Detroit runs.
Gibson won a second Cy Young Award in 1970, when he had a 23-7 record and a 3.12 ERA. He spent his entire career with the Cardinals, retiring after the 1975 season with a 251-174 record, 56 shutouts, and a 2.91 ERA. He struck out 3,117 hitters and walked 1,336 in 3,884 innings.
The 6-foot-2, 195-pound Gibson was an intimidating pitcher, always willing to throw inside to back a hitter off the plate. An outstanding all-around athlete, he once played basketball with the Harlem Globetrotters, had a career .206 batting average with 24 home runs, and won Gold Gloves for his fielding nine years in a row, from 1965 through 1973.