Books and articles about Wilbur Wood

Overweight Wilbur Wood was one of the busiest and most effective lefthanders of the 1970s. Signed out of a Massachussetts high school by the Red Sox in 1960, he struggled in the Boston and Pittsburgh farm systems, throwing a fastball and a curve that flattened out when it reached the plate. He had learned the knuckleball from his father, and had occasionally used it in high school, but it wasn't until 1967, his first year with the White Sox, that he made it his bread-and-butter pitch. Chicago teammate and knuckleball master Hoyt Wilhelm advised Wood to forget everything else and go with the knuckler.

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Wood quickly established himself as a top reliever, throwing the knuckleball with exceptional control and leading the AL in appearances in 1968-70. He helped himself with a deceptive and effective pickoff move. He was named Fireman of the Year in '68, winning 12 in relief, saving 16, and setting an AL record by pitching in 88 games.

In 1971 Chicago manager Chuck Tanner and pitching coach Johnny Sain moved Wood into the starting rotation. Wood was so successful that he was soon pitching regularly on two days' rest. He became the first White Sox pitcher to record 20 or more victories in four consecutive seasons. In 1972 he was named TSN AL Pitcher of the Year, tying for the league lead with 24 wins. He also set the ML season record for most strikeouts by a pitcher as a batter (65). For the second straight year in 1973, he led the AL in innings pitched, again recording a league-high 24 victories. Each year from 1972 through 1975, he started more games than any AL pitcher. In 1973, he even started both ends of a doubleheader, but was hit hard by the Yankees.

Wood dropped to 16-20 in 1975, leading the league in losses. His ERA, which had increased each year since his 1.91 in 1971, ballooned to 4.11. He was pitching well early in 1976 when a line drive hit by Detroit's Ron LeFlore shattered his kneecap. He sat out the rest of the season, but came back to pitch two more. (RL)

FROM THE BASEBALL CHRONOLOGY » June 1, 1963: The Boston Red Sox release pitcher Ike Delock and recall pitcher Wilbur Wood from Seattle. » September 6, 1964: The Red Sox sell pitcher Wilbur Wood to the Pirates. The knuckleballer was 0–5 last year and had no decision in four appearances this year. The Bucs will pass Wood along to the White Sox in 1967 where he'll blossom. » October 12, 1966: The White Sox send sore-armed Juan Pizarro to the Pirates for knuckleballer Wilbur Wood, who spent the 1966 season with Columbus (International). » November 28, 1966: The Pirates purchase P Juan Pizarro from the White Sox, completing a deal that sends P Wilbur Wood to Chicago. The knuckleballing Wood was 14–8 for Columbus in 1966 after going 1–3 for the Pirates over the previous two years. » September 29, 1968: White Sox relief P Wilbur Wood ends his season with a 7–6 win at California and a major-league record 88 appearances. » June 24, 1969: The White Sox sweep a pair from the Pilots, winning 6–4 and 7–6 with reliever Wilbur Wood winning both games. In game 2, Bill Melton hits three consecutive homers, in the 2nd, 4th and 6th innings, but it takes a homer by Ed Herrmann in the 9th to win it. Reliever Wilbur Wood is the winner in both games, giving up a hit in three 2/3 innings in Game One and a hit in two innings of game 2. Jim Bouton pitches in both games for Seattle without allowing a run in three 2/3 innings. » August 14, 1969: In a 3–2 win over the White Sox, the Yankees Horace Clarke triples with two on in the 9th, then scores the winning run on a passed ball. Wilbur Wood takes the loss while Jack Aker is the winner. » July 24, 1970: Chicago's Bill Melton ties the major-league record by striking out seven times in a doubleheader split with Detroit. Melton will strike out his first three times up in his next game, in Baltimore on the 28th, before flying out in the 9th. The Sox win the opener today, 5–2 with six straight singles and five runs in the 9th. The Tigers win the nitecap, 5–4, in the 9th when Don Wert draws a walk from Wilbur Wood with the sacks full. » October 31, 1972: Gaylord Perry wins the AL Cy Young award by a 64-58 margin over Chicago's Wilbur Wood. Perry won 24 games for the 5th-place Indians. » April 17, 1973: Relief hurler Eddie Fisher, trying to become "another Wilbur Wood," beats the Rangers 10–5 in his first complete game in 10 years. It is only the 6th CG of his long career. » May 28, 1973: Chicago's rubber-armed knuckleballer Wilbur Wood wins the completion of a suspended game, then shuts down Cleveland in the regularly scheduled contest. After the White Sox' first 40 games, Wood's record is a remarkable 13-3. » July 20, 1973: Chicago's Wilbur Wood starts and loses both games of a doubleheader with the Yankees 12–2 and 7–0. » July 29, 1973: Wilbur Wood wins his 20th game of the season as the White Sox beat the Twins 8–6. » April 5, 1974: Streakers and strippers highlight the Opening Day game at Chicago's Comiskey Park. The Angels beat the White Sox 8–2. Despite handing out 10 walks, Nolan Ryan is the winner over Wilbur Wood, with help from Leron Stanton, who homers. For Wood, it is the first of his AL high 42 starts, the 3rd of four years in a row the knuckler will lead in that category. » July 17, 1975: For the second consecutive White Sox game, Wilbur Wood is the starter, and he tosses his 2nd straight shutout, beating Detroit, 5–0. The two starts were broken up by the All-Star game. » May 9, 1976: White Sox P Wilbur Wood suffers a fractured kneecap in a 4–2 win over the Tigers. Wood will miss the rest of the season. » September 10, 1977: White Sox knuckleballer Wilbur Wood hits three batters in the first inning on the way to a 6–1 loss to the Angels. All of Wilbur's plunks are consecutive, tying a record set by Dock Ellis three years ago. » September 26, 1979: Atlanta's Phil Niekro notches his 20th win of the season by beating his brother Joe, the National League's only other 20-game winner in 1979, 9–4. The Niekro brothers are the second pair (the other was Jim Perry and Gaylord Perry) to win 20 games in the same year, and Phil Niekro, who finishes at 21-20, is the first pitcher since Wilbur Wood in 1973 to win and lose 20 games the same year, and the first NL pitcher to do so since 1905. » August 3, 1998: Houston pitcher C.J. Nitkowski hits three consecutive Marlin batters with pitches in the 8th inning: Dock Ellis (1974) and Wilbur Wood (1977) are the only other pitchers since 1900 to hit three batters in a row. The three plunks in an inning ties the ML record. Nitkowski gives up a hit and four runs in Florida's 11–3 win. » May 22, 1999: Mo Vaughn's single in the 8th snaps a tie and rescues Steve Sparks wild knuckler as the Angles beat the Devil Rays, 8–6. In the 3rd inning, Sparks hits Paul Sorrento to load the bases, then plunks the next two batters with a knuckler. He is the 4th pitcher to hit three batters in a row, joining Houston's C.J. Nitkowski (1988), White Sox Wilbur Wood (1977) and Pittsburgh's Dock Ellis (1974). He also plunks Jose Canseco in the 1st inning to tie the ML mark for HPB. Sparks only allows five hits, but walks six in addition to hitting 4.