Robin Roberts (1976)


Date of Birth: 9/30/1926
Date of Death: 5/6/2010
Birthplace: Springfield, Illinois
College: Michigan State University

Robin Roberts loved sports as a child, and at the age of 12, he joined his first organized baseball team. In high school, he played baseball, basketball, and football. He was a basketball player and baseball pitcher at Michigan State University. In 1947, the Detroit Press named him the Michigan Collegiate Player of the Year. He graduated from the University of Michigan with a degree in physical education.

Philadelphia Phillies

Roberts signed with the Philadelphia Phillies prior to the 1948 season. In the off-season, he continued to play basketball with the Robin Roberts All-Stars.

In 1948, his first season with the Phillies, Roberts pitched 146.2 innings and he had a 7-9 record and a 3.19 ERA in 146.2 innings in 20 games. He had control issues, striking out 84 batters and walking 61. The following season, he continued to struggle with control, walking 75 batters while striking out 95. He finished the 1949 season with 15 wins and 15 losses and a 3.69 ERA in 226.2 innings in 43 games.

Roberts pitched much better in 1950, finishing with a 3.02 ERA in 40 games. He had 20 wins and 11 losses and 146 strikeouts to 77 walks in 304.1 innings. He led the NL in innings pitched in 1951 with 315.0. He had 21 wins and 15 losses, 127 strikeouts to 64 walks, and a 3.03 ERA in 44 games.

In 1952, Roberts was named the Sporting News Pitcher of the Year. He led the National League in wins, innings pitched, and complete games. He had a career high 28 wins to 7 losses, 148 strikeouts to 45 walks, and a career low ERA of 2.59 in 330.0 innings in 39 games. He pitched 30 complete games in 1952.

Roberts led the NL in wins, strikeouts, innings pitched, and complete games in 1953. That season he had a 23-16 record with a career high 198 strikeouts to 61 walks in 44 games. He had a 2.75 ERA in a career high 346.2 innings. He pitched 33 complete games that year.

In 1954, Roberts again led the NL in wins (23 to 15 losses), strikeouts (185 to 56 walks), innings pitched (336.2), and complete games pitched (26). He had a 2.97 ERA in a career high 45 games.

Roberts was named the Sporting News Pitcher of the Year in 1955. He again led the NL in wins, innings pitched, and complete games. He finished the season with 23 wins and 14 losses, 160 strikeouts to 53 walks, and a 3.28 ERA in 305.0 innings in 41 games. He pitched 26 complete games.

Roberts again led the NL in complete games pitched in 1956 with 22. However, his ERA jumped up to 4.45 that year. He had 19 wins and 18 losses and 157 strikeouts to 40 walks in 297.1 innings in 43 games.

From 1957 trhough 1960, Roberts ERA bounced up and down, going from a low of 3.24 in 1958 to a high of 4.27 in 1959. He finished the 1957 season with 10 wins and 22 losses, 128 strikeouts to 43 walks, and a 4.07 ERA in 249.2 innings in 39 games. The next year, he had 17 wins and 14 losses in 35 games. In 1959, he had 15 wins and 17 losses in 35 games, and in 1960, he had 12 wins and 16 losses, again in 35 games.

Roberts pitched in just 26 games in 1961. He struggled badly that season, finishing with just one win and 10 losses and a 5.85 ERA in 117.0 innings.

Baltimore Orioles

After 14 years with the Phillies, Roberts' contract was sold to the New York Yankees, but he never played for them. The Yankees released him on May 21, 1962, and he signed with the Baltimore Orioles that same day.

Roberts first season with the Orioles was a good one, and a huge improvement over his 1961 season. He had 10 wins and 9 losses, 102 strikeouts to 41 walks, and a 2.78 ERA in 191.1 innings in 27 games. He won the Lou Gehrig Memorial award in 1962.

Roberts pitched in 35 games in 1963, and he had a 3.33 ERA with 14 wins and 13 losses. The following season, his win-loss record was 13-7 and he had a 2.91 ERA in 31 games.

Final Years as a Player

The Orioles released Roberts on July 31, 1965. He signed with the Houston Astros on August 6th. He finished the season with 10 wins and 9 losses, 97 strikeouts to 30 walks, and a 2.78 ERA in 20 games with the Orioles and 10 games with the Astros.

Roberts pitched in 13 games with the Astros in 1966, before they released him on July 4th. He signed with the Chicago Cubs on July 13th, and he pitched in 11 games with them. He finished the season with 5 wins and 8 losses and a 4.82 ERA in 112.0 innings.

Roberts major league career ended when the Cubs released him on October 4, 1966.

Awards and MLB Records

  • Sporting News Pitcher of the Year (2 times)
  • Lou Gehrig Memorial award
  • Led NL in wins (4 times)
  • Led NL in strikeouts (2 times)
  • Led NL in innings pitched (5 times)
  • Led NL in complete games (5 times)

Career Statistics

Statistics for Roberts in 19 seasons (1948-1966) in the major leagues include:

  • 6 seasons with 20 or more wins, with a high of 28 wins in 1952
  • 4 seasons with over 150 strikeouts, with a high of 198 in 1953
  • 6 seasons with an ERA under 3.00, with a low of 2.59 in 1952

Career pitching statistics for Roberts include:

  • 676 games played
  • 4,688.2 innings pitched
  • 286-245 win-loss record
  • 2,357 strikeouts to 902 walks
  • 3.41 ERA

Post Playing Career

After retiring as a major league pitcher, Roberts pitched in the minor leagues in 1967.

In 1977, Roberts became a coach for the University of South Florida's baseball team. He held that position from 1977 through 1985.

Roberts was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1976 on the fourth ballot with 86.9% of the vote.

Sources for Information
Wikipedia - Robin Roberts
ESPN - Robin Roberts
Baseball Reference - Robin Roberts
SABR - Robin Roberts

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