Bob Gibson Marquee Hall of Fame 1981

b. November 9, 1935 · St. Louis Cardinals 1959–1975

Bob Gibson pitched all 17 of his seasons for St. Louis, won 251 games with 3,117 strikeouts and a 2.91 earned run average, and threw 56 shutouts. What he is remembered for is one year.

In 1968 he went 22-9 with an earned run average of 1.12, the lowest anyone has managed in a full modern season, with 13 shutouts and 28 complete games in 34 starts. Pitching had become so dominant across both leagues that the rules were changed the following winter: the mound was lowered and the strike zone shrunk.

He struck out 17 Detroit hitters in the opening game of that year's World Series, which is still the record for a World Series game. He worked fast, would not speak to opposing hitters, and pitched inside without apology. The Hall of Fame elected him in 1981.

Honors

Award	Times	Years
All-Star selection	8	1962, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1972
Gold Glove	9	1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973
Cy Young Award	2	1968, 1970
The Sporting News All-Star	2	1968, 1970
The Sporting News Pitcher of the Year	2	1968, 1970
World Series MVP	2	1964, 1967
Babe Ruth Award	1	1964
Most Valuable Player	1	1968

Batting, season by season

Year	Team	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	SB	AVG
1959	STL	21	26	1	3	2	0	0	1	0	10	0	.115
1960	STL	40	28	4	5	1	0	0	1	0	7	0	.179
1961	STL	40	66	4	13	5	0	1	10	3	23	0	.197
1962	STL	42	76	11	20	0	0	2	5	4	28	0	.263
1963	STL	41	87	12	18	3	1	3	20	8	35	0	.207
1964	STL	40	96	8	15	3	1	0	4	3	38	0	.156
1965	STL	42	104	14	25	2	0	5	19	3	26	2	.240
1966	STL	46	100	11	20	4	0	1	8	3	35	3	.200
1967	STL	27	60	7	8	0	0	0	3	8	26	0	.133
1968	STL	35	94	3	16	5	0	0	6	7	32	1	.170
1969	STL	37	118	11	29	6	0	1	8	3	36	5	.246
1970	STL	40	109	14	33	3	1	2	19	8	25	0	.303
1971	STL	31	87	5	15	0	1	2	10	3	24	1	.172
1972	STL	34	103	12	20	6	0	5	12	1	25	0	.194
1973	STL	25	65	8	12	0	0	2	8	3	17	1	.185
1974	STL	33	81	6	17	4	1	0	6	3	19	0	.210
1975	STL	22	28	1	5	0	0	0	4	3	9	0	.179
Career	—	596	1328	132	274	44	5	24	144	63	415	13	.206

Pitching, season by season

Year	Team	W	L	G	GS	SV	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA
1959	STL	3	5	13	9	0	75.2	77	28	39	48	3.33
1960	STL	3	6	27	12	0	86.2	97	54	48	69	5.61
1961	STL	13	12	35	27	1	211.1	186	76	119	166	3.24
1962	STL	15	13	32	30	1	233.2	174	74	95	208	2.85
1963	STL	18	9	36	33	0	254.2	224	96	96	204	3.39
1964	STL	19	12	40	36	1	287.1	250	96	86	245	3.01
1965	STL	20	12	38	36	1	299.0	243	102	103	270	3.07
1966	STL	21	12	35	35	0	280.1	210	76	78	225	2.44
1967	STL	13	7	24	24	0	175.1	151	58	40	147	2.98
1968	STL	22	9	34	34	0	304.2	198	38	62	268	1.12
1969	STL	20	13	35	35	0	314.0	251	76	95	269	2.18
1970	STL	23	7	34	34	0	294.0	262	102	88	274	3.12
1971	STL	16	13	31	31	0	245.2	215	83	76	185	3.04
1972	STL	19	11	34	34	0	278.0	226	76	88	208	2.46
1973	STL	12	10	25	25	0	195.0	159	60	57	142	2.77
1974	STL	11	13	33	33	0	240.0	236	102	104	129	3.83
1975	STL	3	10	22	14	2	109.0	120	61	62	60	5.04
Career	—	251	174	528	482	6	3884.1	3279	1258	1336	3117	2.91

On this day & linked events

1935

Born November 9, 1935

Omaha, NE, USA

2020

Died October 2, 2020

1959

Major-league debut: Bob Gibson

Bob Gibson made a major-league debut on April 15, 1959.

1968

Gaylord Perry's No-Hitter

Gaylord Perry threw a no-hitter for the San Francisco Giants against the St. Louis Cardinals on September 17, 1968, winning 1–0.

1971

Bob Gibson's No-Hitter

Bob Gibson threw a no-hitter for the St. Louis Cardinals against the Pittsburgh Pirates on August 14, 1971, winning 11–0.

1975

Final major-league game: Bob Gibson

Bob Gibson played a final major-league game on September 3, 1975.

Image: Monowi, CC BY-SA 3.0