The Scariest Pitchers In Baseball History

Dodgers Legend Sandy Koufax once said that pitching is the art of instilling fear that is true some of the best pitchers ever to take the mound have also been the best at scaring the hell out of any bat who stepped in against them and there's not much more horrifying in sports than an intimidating pitcher with Elite stuff as at times it seems like there's an equal chance that could strike you out or just outright put you into an eternal Slumber with one wild pitch what's it like to face some of these guys someone wants said of another Dodgers Ace the imposing Don Drysdale that he would consider an intentional walk a waste of three pitches if he wants to put you on base he can hit you with one Slugger Oscar gamble once said that a good game against the Fearsome Nolan Ryan was going over four and not getting hit in the head hey Karen one of the best hitters of all time didn't mix words about what it was like to square off against the intimidating Bob Gibson don't stare at him don't smile at him don't talk to him Aaron said he doesn't like it you don't dig in against Bob Gibson he'll knock you down he knocked down his own grandmother if she dared to challenge him and with that cold as heck line we're brought to our topic of today examining some of the scariest pictures in baseball history so step right up but don't get too comfortable in that box picture number one Randy Johnson let's start with the Towering and glower Johnson what made The Big Unit so intimidating let's start with the big part few hurdlers have ever stood out so much on a baseball mound Miss Johnson when the 6 foot 10 Southpaw debuted the Montreal expos in 1988 he became the tallest player in major league history at the time but it wasn't just his height that made his presence on the mound so intimidating it was the scowl the brooding countenance the acne scars the mustache and yes the iconic mullet and Johnson wasn't just physically imposing he was also bringing it Johnson's triple digit fastball seemed even faster than it was because of how long his stride the plate was it could at times feel like he was just handing the ball to the catcher added that a filthy exploding slider and a nearly sidearm delivery and the lengthy Lefty appeared almost unhittable most of the time you know what else was so intimidating and sometimes total lack of control in his first season with the Expos he walked as many men as he struck out and he continued to have major controls this first few seasons of the Seattle Mariners young man he was wild erratic inconsistent and all the more imposing as a result teammates refused to stand in against him in bullpen sessions a department store mannequin had to be added to the payroll in their place Johnson at times also had trouble controlling something else his temper when things weren't going well in the mouth the big left-hander it was wise to give him a wide berth in The Dugout and let him take out his rage and other things like bat racks and water coolers and even once Johnson learned to control his pitches better later in his career the looming possibility that he could lose control at any moment hung over the batter's box like a dark cloud terrifying hitters if Johnson let go of a fastball over your head as he did to John Kruk at the 1993 All-Star Game it didn't really matter if it was intentional or accidental he was in your head and the at-bat was pretty much over crook for one didn't stand a chance after his intimidation Johnson's total dominance and intimidating presence became almost laughable at times as when his former expo's teammate Larry Walker encountered his own John crook moment at the 1997 All-Star Game and promptly turned his helmet around and marched the other batter's box what could you do in the face of such an imposing threat but try to laugh what could you do when Johnson's fastball even proved lethal as they did when a poor Dove chose to fly in front of Home Plate during 2001 Spring Training Game Johnson managed to stretch his imposing career over 22 Seasons striking fear into the hearts of hitters and route to 303 career victories and 4875 strikeouts few pitchers have reigned over the game for so long until they were as old as The Big Unit was when he finally hung up his cleats picture number two Bob Gibson perhaps no hurdler ever stared down batters quite like Bob Gibson the St Louis Cardinals Ace had a ferocity that only if you like Johnson have ever come close to equaling on the mound Gibson didn't just glared hitters he scowled at them and the baddest didn't just respect him they outright feared it that's because Gibson had a bite every bit as menacing as his bark when he wound up the six foot two right-hander swung his entire body around before exploding at the batter and ending in his distinctive follow-through hurling fastballs that would more than likely managed during the mid 90s today and what's more hitters knew that was just as likely to go with their head as pink the outside corner Gibson brought an intense competitive fire to the mound every time he pitched he had joined the Cardinals just a decade after Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier and there was still very few black pitchers in the big leagues as Gibson put it himself failure wasn't an option Gibson's fire fuel performances that led him to dominate the national league for a decade the 60s were a hurler's paradise thanks to the high-pitching Mounds and cavernous fields and no one leveraged the advantage better than Gibson it was a time when pitchers owned the inside part of the plate considered it their personal property in his autobiography Gibson said that he threw nine different pitches after all two different fastballs two sliders a curve a change up knock down brush back and hit batsman ouch but Gibson's reputation for throwing up batters belied the amount he actually did it he never led the league in hbps and struck only 102 batters into 17-year career how about six per season clearly the ones he did hit made an impression and the legend just grew and grew batters often said that Gibson may not have actually hit that many but he would constantly knock them intentionally Gibson later called that ridiculous he said if I threw at a batter I hit him part of Gibson's ferocious Mystique came from his utter unwillingness to engage with the Enemy he never shook hands with an opponent never fraternized hell he wouldn't say word was on teammates on Daisy pitched he was tough as nails and would never show any weakness once in 1967 Pirates like Roberto Clemente lined the pinchback of Gibson it broke his fibula Gibson stayed in the game long enough to pitch to three more Pirates hitters Bob's competitiveness helped him win 251 games and two Cy Youngs while striking out 3117 in 1968 he won the National League MVP when he finished with a mind-boggling 112 era the modern record in nine career World Series starts he threw eight complete games including attending victory over the New York Yankees it simply wasn't fair to me that intimidating and that good when Major League Baseball lowered the mound in 1969 and reduced the height of the strike zone from a batter's armpit to the Jersey letters the changes were known simply as the Gibson rules though small stature 5 foot 11 and 170 pounds Paige Martinez became one of the most imposing power pitchers in the history of the game with three world-class pitches a tailing High 90s fastball a wicked curve and a nasty change Martinez could practically toy with hitters and Beyond his three Stellar offerings Martinez also enjoyed Elite control command and confidence his willingness to come inside could also leave opposing hitters often tasting dirt and make no mistake despite his Elite movement this was purely intentional I'm not afraid of hitting anyone he once said because I can put the ball where I want to and sometimes we wanted to put it was in your ear in his first few years in the big leagues in Montreal Martinez earned the reputation as a Headhunter they called him seeing or plunk Pedro had a knack for hitting batters during tension-filled moments as well touching off countless bench clearing brawls the rail thin right-hander was sometimes downright proud of this intimidating tactic after Yankees 8's Roger Clemens once drilled his Red Sox teammate Kevin Millar Martinez watching from The Dugout said he was going to quote file that at the top of his to-do list what exactly was this new item on his list plunking both Derek Jeter and Alfonso Soriano in response the next time you face them both players had to leave early to have x-rays taken Martinez joked to teammates at least I gave him a discount at an ambulance they both got to go in the same one that's one of the coldest lines I've ever heard at times Senor plung's competitive fire got the best of him like in the 2003 ALCS after Martinez threw behind Yankee's outfielder Korean Garcia Roger Clemens retaliated by throwing at Red Sox Slugger Manny Ramirez when the bench is cleared the 32 year old Martinez grabbed the Yankees 72 year old bench coach Don Zimmer in a baseball takedown that would live in infamy Martinez later called it the only thing he would like to erase from his career but with the repertoire that included such dazzling stuff as well as his Cutthroat intimidation and his little wander that the Dominican pitcher won 219 games and three Cy Youngs over his 18 Seasons putting up over 3000 K's while pitching predominantly in an era in which oversized Sluggers like Mark Maguire Barry Bonds and Sami Sosa were dominating baseball to some his prime years in the 90s or even are the best in the history of baseball picture number four Sandy Koufax Pedro Martinez's total dominance over his Rivals was often compared to Sandy koufax's Reign Over the national league during the 60s for six years the left-handed Los Angeles Dodger pitched like a man possessed or from another planet making big league hitters look like minor Leaguers Colfax was so dominant the Phillies once called the game for Reign where there are only a few sprinkles just to avoid facing him Hall of Fame Orlando Cepeda said that kofax's triple digit fastball was so fast and so noisy it scared you and just like our other imposing left-hander Randy Johnson Koufax struggled to control it early in his career in his first six seasons with the Dodgers kofex walked over five batters per nine four times and constantly through wild pitches he hit so many batters one spring training that one teammate complained taking batting practice against him was like playing Russian roulette with five bullets a kofax's blazing fastball wasn't even his best pitch after all his devastating curveballs undoubtedly among the best offerings ever thrown we don't tend to think of curveballs as intimidating but in kopax's case it was perhaps even more paralyzing to batters than his heater it had a sharp sudden break as if an invisible hand had given it a tap right for home plate even the best hitters were left stunned in silence as it left them Frozen in the Box in game one of the 1963 World Series Koufax faced no less than the Yankee slug on Mickey Mantle the book on mantle was to avoid throwing curveballs anywhere near the plate even if he was cool he was so strong and so good at keeping his hands back that he could still crush them and so in his first shot on against mantle cutbacks to him only fastballs and struck him out when mantle came up a second time Koufax again got two strikes on fastballs at this point everyone in the ballpark including mantle and kopex's catcher was thinking fastball Koufax shook off the fastball signal twice and then he Uncorked the pitch that he'd been told never to throw mantle the pitch came in at eye level and then right before it reached home it just Dove Crossing at Mantle's knees mantle faces Colfax in the second inning and it's rolled out on price Nikki obviously is your friend mantle flinched and never moved his Bat strike three mantle just stood there and then turned to The Catcher And said how the bleep is anybody supposed to hit that bleep stories like that just surround Colfax once when he was 45 years old and had been retired for years he was pitching batting practice to the legendary Dodger lineup of the 1980s including the likes of Dusty Baker Steve Garvey and Ron say one of the hitters asked the old man to throw his curveball kopefax indulged him the curve dropped like a stone through water he couldn't touch it he told his laughing teammates that they should try hitting it and one after another some of the best hitters in baseball who know a curveball is coming stepped up to the plate against the 45 year old not a one of them could hit it Koufax sadly retired after the 1966 season at just age 30 after battling constant pain and injuries including an arthritic elbow one Marvel's at the stats he could have put up if he had played longer Hall of Famer Hank Aaron would go on to say the best thing about kofax's retirement was that he no longer had to face him picture number five Nolan Ryan there's never been a pitcher quite like Ryan with his hide leg kicking in Sage stride length Ryan felt like he was right on top of imposing hitters before even let go of the pitch making his eventual 100 mile per hour plus fastball look even faster than it was as a result he was absolutely horrifying to face thanks to that fastball on his sick curve he struck out more batters than any hurler ever has and probably ever will he do more no-hitters pitch more Innings do more pitches and through all of it Ryan never gave in to a hitter never took a pitch off even down in the count he was still trying to throw unhinnable pitches he wanted to strike out every battery he faced and make them look bad in doing it imaginary pitching coach Dave Duncan once said a guy like Ryan doesn't just get you out he embarrasses you thanks to his ferocity the typical Nolan Ryan game featured a lot of strikeouts a lot of walks and very few hits Ryan not only struck out the most hitters ever he walked the most 2795 in his career more than 50 percent more than Steve Carlton the next player on the list the Ryan Express also threw the most wild pitches and hit 158 matters during his career his lack of control as evidenced by the fact that he walked more than a hundred batters in the season 11 times only served to intimidate hitters more and when Ryan was truly on batters had pretty much no chance once when Ryan Was Won out from one of his seven no-hitters Detroit Tigers Slugger Norm cash walked up to the plate not with a bat but with a wooden table leg that had been ripped off a table in the tiger Clubhouse check his Bat Brian shot it from the mound at the Homeland umpire who after a good laugh asked cash to grab a real bat cash responded why I'm not going to get hit anyway and he didn't cash got a real bat popped up and Ryan had his no-hitter perhaps Ryan's single most intimidating moment came right at the tail end of his career it was a Hot August day in Texas in 1993. Robin Ventura the White Sox 26 year old All-Star third baseman strove to the plate against the 46 year old Ryan he'd already singled against Brian in the game Nolan brought the heat up and in beating young Robin Ventura dropped his Bat tossed his helmet and charged the mound big mistake Ryan Hogg tied the young whippersnapper and Hammer in with a volley of punches to the Head what was later called the Texas haircut the whole ordeal made it clear yet again that there are at least two things you don't mess with Texas and Nolan Ryan picture number six Aroldis Chapman he's been called the Cuban Missile the Sultan of Swift the Viceroy of velocity he is officially the hardest throwing pitcher ever Aroldis Chapman at six foot six is one menacing presence on the mound and when you throw in some control issues as well as a suspension for abuse he incurred back in 2016 you really do have a bona fide Boogeyman Chapman's left arm was blessed by the gods he and it burst onto the scene the Cincinnati Reds in 2010 and since then Chapman has been one of the most electric and erratic closers in the big leagues did I mention he was once clocked at 105.1 miles per hour in one of his first Big League games yeah on September 24th 2010 this happened the pitch was the fastest ever recorded in mle history and it almost being Andrew McCutchen Chapman later hit 105 again with the Yankees in 2016. pitches like that don't need a PRT they're pretty much in hittable and can't help but intimidate batters even the best in the world so what's it like to see a 105 mile per hour fastball Slugger Andrew McCutchen said that trying to hit Chapman's fastball is like trying to catch a fly not a fly ball an insect like Mr Miyagi as with Randy Johnson and Sandy Koufax facing Chapman as even more of a nightmare for lefties when once asked what it was like to face Chapman from the left-handed battles box Matt Carpenter said scary just scary he coils up like a snake and he throws 100 miles an hour and it just seems like it's going to be right by your face and it might be and in case anyone ever forgot what he's capable of Chapman's got a tattoo in his left wrist where 105.1 miles per hour is Inked below a flame-tailed fastball and for those of you going to comment that he's washed up today his up to 104 mile per hour heaters this year might just make you want to rethink those statements lastly no list of intimidating Heroes would be complete without a few honorable mentions first up Sam McDowell the six foot five left-hander had a devastating fastball and lived hard and fast both on the field and off on the hill he claimed five straight strikeout titles from 1965 to 1970 twice topping 300ks off the field he described himself as the biggest most hopeless and most violent drunk in baseball this erratic-ness along with its legendary heat and sometimes suspect command combined to make him one of the most feared fireballers in the game's history during the late 70s Astros Ace J.R Richard was one of the most dominant pitchers in the majors Not only was Richard six foot eight and 220 pounds looking more like a center than a pitcher he could throw his fastball over a hundred and his slider in the mid 90s at a time when this was extremely rare like Nolan Ryan he believed in letting it fly all the time with little regard to where it was going he also had something of a reputation as a Headhunter unfortunately his career was cut short by a stroke in 1980 just as he was really coming into his own but none less you left behind a hell of a legacy especially in the minds of the hitters he faced at the time nicknamed The Mad Hungarian for his madman appearance and on the mount Persona albrosky turned batter intimidation into performance art during his 12 Major League Seasons he would jaw with umpires hitters including those on deck and could be counted on for a good beanbong soothing brawl at least a couple times per season and finally the rocket Roger Clemens with over 4 000 career K's and 300 wins while spending a decent portion of his career pumped up on roids his reputation really did precede it aside from his thick body and menacing stare Clemens was a master of intimidation his actions as well he didn't forget this moment from the 2001 series not content to just shatter Mike piazza's bat with an inside heater Clemens picked up the barrel and fired it at them as catcher somehow he wasn't rejected to the game maybe even that day's umpire was too scared to take him on so what have you learned from baseball's most fearsome pictures about how to intimidate hitters first it helps to have a dynamite fastball and sometimes better if it's not at all clear where it's going at times it's even more scary if you know where it's going and that presumed destination is at you sometimes a filthy off speed pitch can be equally daunting or a simulated psychotic episode or hey how about a real one all these combined to give us our formula Proud To Be An intimidating pitcher in the animals of baseball history thanks for watching this video and coming soon the scariest hitters in baseball history please leave a comment below telling us who you'd like to see feature in that video finally leave a like if you enjoy and make sure to click this playlist for other essay videos just like this one have a great day everyone

Channel: Made The Cut

Views: 867,429

Keywords: MLB, baseball, 2022, mlb baseball, baseball videos, braves, sf giants, mlbscores, stlouis cardinals, houstonastros, espn mlb, shohei ohtani, mlb schedule, babe ruth, ohtani, cubs schedule, red sox schedule, phillies schedule, yankees schedule, mlb rumors, dodgers, dodgers schedule

Id: z4gGW_HduYQ

Length: 17min 22sec (1042 seconds)

Published: Sun Apr 30 2023