Bob Gibson, the Hall of Fame St. Louis Cardinals pitcher, has passed away at age 84. Gibson had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
Gibson was a fierce competitor, scowling and intimidating on the mound, working fast, sportscaster Vin Scully once said, "as though he’s double parked." He had 251 wins, and drove the Cards to a pair of World Championships, in 1964 and 1967, and was named the World Series MVP both times.
Perhaps Tim McCarver, the sportscaster who caught Gibson for much of his career, put it best: "Bob Gibson is the luckiest pitcher in baseball. He is always pitching when the other team doesn’t score any runs."
- KC's View:
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You may remember that a couple of weeks ago, in a piece about writer Roger Angell, I referred you to a piece in The New Yorker that he did about Gibson. It is pure poetry, pure pleasure … and you can read it here.
