Steve Carlton

Steve Carlton

Birthdate	12/22/1944
Death Date
Debut Year	1965
Year of Induction	1994
Teams	Phillies
Position	Pitcher

Steve Carlton won 27 games for the 1972 last-place Phillies; he accounted for 46% of his team’s 59 victories that season.

Steve Carlton spent his first seven big league seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals

Steve Carlton made his big league debut for the Cardinals in 1965 at age 20. He spent his first 7 seasons in St. Louis and enjoyed three All Star campaigns. During his time in the Gateway to the West, Carlton became one of the league’s up-and-coming pitchers. In his age-22 season in 1967, the-

In his first year in the City of Brotherly Love Carlton won 27 games for the 97-loss Phillies

Steve Carlton had something to prove in 1972. Despite pitching admirably in St. Louis, owner Gussie Busch instructed GM Bing Devine to get rid of Carlton over a $10,000 contract dispute. Carlton responded with a season for the ages. Pitching for the 97-loss Phillies, he won the pitching Triple Crown

NL president emeritus Warren Giles presented Carlton with the Cy Young Award on 4/15/73

Steve Carlton was the unanimous choice for the Cy Young Award in 1972. Leading the league in wins (27), ERA (1.97), and strikeouts (310) commands it. Former National League president Warren Giles presented the award to Carlton on April 15, 1973. On a sunny Sunday at Philadelphia’s Veterans Stadiu

Carlton's NL-best 23 wins in 1977 helped him get his second Cy Young Award

Steve Carlton’s second Cy Young campaign came in 1977. Lefty topped National League pitchers in wins, was third in ERA+ and complete games, and fourth in strikeouts. For good measure he hit .268 and posted career highs at hits, homers, and RBI. On the offensive side, Philadelphia had a potent

Carlton's 1980 Game 6 effort gave the Phillies their first World Series title in franchise history

Founded in 1883, the Philadelphia Phillies waited nearly a century to win the first title. When they finally won the World Series in 1980, it was Steve Carlton who earned the Series-clinching victory. From their inception until 1975 the team made the postseason only twice, appearing in the 1915 and

A lone first-place vote for Jerry Reuss kept Carlton's third Cy Young from being unanimous

A ten-WAR season as a pitcher reflects utter dominance. From the end the Deadball Era in 1920 until 1980, there were two dozen 10+ WAR pitching seasons in the big leagues. Steve Carlton had two of them. His first came in his initial Cy Young season of 1972. The second came in 1980. That season Carlt

Carlton took the loss in MLB's first pitching matchup of 200-game winners with 3,000 Ks

On August 18, 1981, Tom Seaver of the Reds and Steve Carlton of the Phillies faced off at Riverfront Stadium. It was a historic pitching matchup, the first time in baseball history both starters had 200 wins and 3,000 strikeouts. Seaver entered with 252 wins and 3,041 strikeouts, while Carlton had 2

Carlton set the Senior Circuit mark for career strikeouts in 1981; he still holds the record

When Steve Carlton fanned his 3,128th batter on September 21, 1981, he surpassed Bob Gibson as the National League’s all time leader in strikeouts. Lefty was far from done. By the time he hung up his spikes in 1989, Carlton has exactly 4,000 strikeouts as a Senior Circuit hurler. His NL record

Carlton is one four big league pitchers have as many as four Cy Young Awards

The Cy Young Award was inaugurated in 1956 to recognize pitching excellence. Through 1966 it was given to the singular best twirler in the major leagues. Then in 1967, it was expanded to honor a pitcher in each league. Through the award’s first 70 years four pitchers have been dominant enough to e

In 1923 Walter Johnson founded the 300-win/3,000-strikeout club; Carlton joined him in 1983

Only ten hurlers in the history of the game have tallied 300 wins and 3,000 strikeouts. The milestone club includes the game’s greatest pitchers. On September 23, 1983, Steve Carlton earned his 300th victory to join their ranks. Half of the 300/3,000 crew put themselves on the list in the 1980

In 1986, Lefty became the first 300-game winner with 4,000 strikeout; now there are four

Steve Carlton became the first 300-game winner to strikeout out 4,000 batters on August 5, 1986. Four years later on July 30, 1990, Nolan Ryan earned his 300th win to join Lefty. In a double-milestone performance, Roger Clemens got both his 300th win and his 4,000th strikeout in the same June 13th s

The Phillies honored Carlton and Mike Schmidt in consecutive years on their Wall of Fame

Steve Carlton and Mike Schmidt teamed up with the Philadelphia Phillies from 1972-1986. The year after each player retired the Phillies honored them with induction into their Wall of Fame. On the mound Carlton was a dominating Phillies presence. His 241 wins and 3,031 strikeouts with the club are fr

May 28th, 2021 Leave a comment

Warren Giles gives the Cy Young to Steve Carlton

Steve Carlton’s 1972 season is one of the greatest performances by a pitcher in the last 100 years. The National League Cy Young Award winner, Carlton went 27-10 for a last-place Phillies team that finished 37 1/2 games out of first place.

Any way you measure it, Lefty’s season was one of the ages.

Carlton won the National League’s pitching Triple Crown by leading the Senior Circuit in wins, ERA and strikeouts. He completed 30 of his 41 starts.

SABRmetrics are predictably kind to Carlton’s season. He posted the highest single-season WAR by a pitcher since Walter Johnson in 1913. Lefty also led the majors in ERA+ and fielding-independent pitching.

Many feel his 1972 performance is vastly underappreciated.

It’s plain to see, the career year for one of baseball’s best pitchers was one of the ages.

In the collection:

Steve Carlton spent his first seven big league seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals

In his first year in the City of Brotherly Love Carlton won 27 games for the 97-loss Phillies

NL president emeritus Warren Giles presented Carlton with the Cy Young Award on 4/15/73

Carlton's NL-best 23 wins in 1977 helped him get his second Cy Young Award

Carlton's 1980 Game 6 effort gave the Phillies their first World Series title in franchise history

A lone first-place vote for Jerry Reuss kept Carlton's third Cy Young from being unanimous

Carlton took the loss in MLB's first pitching matchup of 200-game winners with 3,000 Ks

Carlton set the Senior Circuit mark for career strikeouts in 1981; he still holds the record

Carlton is one four big league pitchers have as many as four Cy Young Awards

In 1923 Walter Johnson founded the 300-win/3,000-strikeout club; Carlton joined him in 1983

In 1986, Lefty became the first 300-game winner with 4,000 strikeout; now there are four

The Phillies honored Carlton and Mike Schmidt in consecutive years on their Wall of Fame

A Story about Steve Carlton

Steve Carlton’s 1972 season was one of the best since the Deadball Era

May 28th, 2021 Leave a comment

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