Juan Marichal

Juan Marichal was born on October 20, 1937, in the small farming village of Laguna Verde, Dominican Republic, the youngest of Francisco and Natividad Marichal's four children.[6] He has two brothers, Gonzalo and Rafael, and a sister, Maria. His father died of an unknown illness when Marichal was three years old.[6] His house did not have electricity, but food was plentiful since his family owned a farm.[7] As a child, Marichal worked on the farm daily and was responsible for taking care of his family's horses, donkeys, and goats.[7] He lived near the Yaque del Norte River and often spent time swimming and fishing.[8] One day while Marichal was playing by the river, he fell unconscious owing to poor digestion and was in a coma for nine days.[9] Doctors did not expect him to survive, but he slowly regained consciousness after his family gave him steam baths by doctor's orders.[9]

His older brother Gonzalo instilled a love of baseball in young Marichal and taught him the fundamentals of pitching, fielding, and batting.[10] Every weekend, Marichal played the sport with his brother and friends. For their games, they found golf balls and paid the local shoemaker one peso to sew thick cloth around the ball to make it the proper size.[11] They employed branches from a wassama tree for bats and canvas tarps for gloves.[11] Among his childhood playmates were the Alou brothers, Felipe, Jesús, and Matty, who all later played with Marichal on the San Francisco Giants.[11] From the age of six, Marichal aspired to become a professional baseball player, but his mother discouraged this, instead urging him to get an education.[12] At the time, there were no players from the Dominican Republic in Major League Baseball, and his goal was viewed to be unrealistic.[12] At age 11, he briefly held a job cutting sugar cane for the J.W. Tatem Shipping conglomerate.

In 1954, sixteen-year-old Marichal joined a summer league in Monte Cristi, playing for a team called Las Flores.[10] Although he began at shortstop, Marichal switched to pitcher after taking inspiration from Bombo Ramos of the Dominican national team.[10] He left high school after being recruited to play for the United Fruit Company team in 1956.[13]

Marichal's delivery was renowned for one of the fullest windups in modern baseball, with a high kick of his left leg that went nearly vertical (even more so than Warren Spahn's delivery).[3] Marichal maintained this delivery his entire career, and photographs taken near his retirement show the vertical kick only diminished. The windup was the key to his delivery in that he was consistently able to conceal the type of pitch until it was on its way.

Marichal was discovered by Ramfis Trujillo, the son of late Dominican dictator Rafael Leónidas Trujillo. Ramfis was the primary sponsor of the Dominican Air Force Baseball Team (Aviación Dominicana), against which Marichal pitched a 2–1 victory game in his native Monte Cristi. From the very moment the game ended, Marichal was a member of Aviación Dominicana team, enlisted to the Air Force right on the spot by Ramfis's orders.[14]

Marichal in 1962

Marichal was promoted to the major leagues for the first time in July of 1960.[15] He entered the major leagues on July 19, 1960 as the second native pitcher to come from the Dominican Republic. He made an immediate impression: in his debut, on July 19, 1960 against the Philadelphia Phillies, he took a no hitter into the eighth inning only to surrender a two-out single to Clay Dalrymple.[16] He ended up with a one-hit shutout, walking one and striking out 12.[17] His game score of 96 was the highest for any pitcher in his Major League debut.[18] He started 10 more games that season, finishing at 6–2 with a 2.66 ERA.[15][1] Injuries affected him in 1961,[19] but he still made 27 starts and won 13 games for the Giants.[1] In 1962, the Giants and Dodgers battled each other in a tight pennant race. A sprained ankle kept Marichal out of action between September 5 and 22, and the Giants lost his last two regularly-scheduled starts of the year.[20][21] The teams finished the season tied and faced off in a best-of-three tie-breaker series to determine the league champion.[22] Starting the decisive Game 3, Marichal held the Dodgers to one run until the sixth, when Tommy Davis hit a two-run home run to give Los Angeles a 3–2 lead. When Marichal exited to start the bottom of the eighth, the Dodgers led 4–2, but San Francisco rallied in the ninth to win the game 6–4.[23] Marichal won 18 games in 1962 before finally cracking the 20-victory plateau in 1963, when he went 25–8 with 248 strikeouts and a 2.41 ERA.[1] He appeared in every All-Star game of the 1960s beginning in 1962. In May 1966, he was named NL Player of the Month with a 6–0 record, a 0.97 ERA, and 42 SO. On July 14, 1967, he surrendered the 500th Home Run of Eddie Mathews' career.

From 1963 through 1969 season, Marichal had more than 20 victories in every season except 1967 and never posted an ERA higher than 2.76, which author James S. Hirsch calls one "of the finest pitching performances in history."[1][24] He led the league in victories in 1963 and 1968 when he won 26 games.[25][26] His 30 complete games paced the league, the most thrown by any pitcher in a season in the decade.[27] In 1968, he also finished in the highest rank of his career in MVP voting, finishing fifth behind Bob Gibson, Pete Rose, Willie McCovey, and Curt Flood. He and Sandy Koufax were the only two Major League pitchers in the post-war era (1946–present) to have more than one season of 25 or more wins; both pitchers had three such seasons in their careers.

Marichal won more games during the decade of the 1960s (191) than any other major league pitcher,[3] but did not receive any votes for the Cy Young Award until 1970, when baseball writers started voting for the top three pitchers in each league rather than one per league (or, until 1967, only the top pitcher in MLB). Marichal finished in the top 10 in ERA seven consecutive years, starting in 1963 and culminating in 1969, in which year he led the league.[28] During his career, he also finished in the top 10 in strikeouts six times, top 10 in innings pitched eight times (leading the league twice), and top 10 in complete games 10 times, with a career total of 244.[29] He led the league twice in shutouts, throwing 10 of them in 1965.[28][30]

Marichal exhibited exceptional control. He had 2,303 strikeouts with only 709 walks,[1] a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 3.25 to 1. This ranks among the top 20 pitchers of all time, ahead of such notables as Bob Gibson, Nolan Ryan, Steve Carlton, Sandy Koufax, Don Drysdale, Walter Johnson and Roger Clemens, who each have strikeout-to-walk ratios of less than 3:1. Over his career, he led the league in the fewest walks per nine innings four times, and finished second three times – totaling eleven years in which he finished in the top 10, all while also finishing in the top 10 for strikeouts six years.

Roseboro incident

Marichal in 1965

Marichal is also remembered for a notorious incident that occurred with John Roseboro during a game between the Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers at Candlestick Park on August 22, 1965.[36][37] The Giants-Dodgers rivalry was, at the time, the fiercest in baseball—a rivalry which began when both teams played in New York City.[38] As the 1965 season neared its climax, the Giants were involved in a tight pennant race, entering the game trailing the Dodgers by a game and a half while the Milwaukee Braves were one game behind the Dodgers.[38][39] During the second game of the series the day before, a Dodger hitter went to first base after an umpire ruled that Giants catcher Tom Haller interfered with his swing; Haller claimed the Dodgers were holding their bats farther back than usual, and Matty Alou responded by doing the same, receiving a warning from Roseboro after his bat actually made contact with the Dodger catcher.[40]

Maury Wills led off the game with a bunt single off Marichal and scored when Ron Fairly hit a double.[41] Marichal, a fierce competitor, viewed the bunt as a cheap way to get on base and took umbrage with Wills.[37][39] When Wills came up to bat in the second inning, Marichal threw a pitch directly at Wills, sending him sprawling to the ground.[37] Willie Mays then led off the bottom of the second inning for the Giants and Dodgers' pitcher Sandy Koufax threw a pitch over Mays' head as a token form of retaliation.[37][39] In the top of the third inning with two outs, Marichal threw a fastball that came close to hitting Fairly, prompting him to dive to the ground.[39] Marichal's act angered the Dodgers and home plate umpire Shag Crawford warned both teams any further retaliations would not be tolerated.[39]

Marichal came to bat in the third inning expecting Koufax to throw at him. Instead, Marichal was startled when, after the second pitch, Roseboro's return throw to Koufax either brushed his ear or came close enough for Marichal to feel the breeze off the ball.[38] Marichal screamed "Why did you do that?" to Roseboro, who came out of his crouch with his fists clenched.[38][42] Marichal later said he thought Roseboro was about to attack him. Giants captain Willie Mays said Roseboro "brushed [Marichal]. Maybe it was a swing."[42] Marichal raised his bat, striking Roseboro at least twice on the head, opening a two-inch gash that sent blood flowing down the catcher's face. Roseboro later required 14 stitches.[38][43] Koufax raced in from the mound to attempt to separate them and was joined by the umpires, players and coaches from both teams.[38]

A 14-minute brawl ensued on the field before Koufax, Mays and other peacemakers restored order.[37] Marichal was ejected from the game and afterwards, National League president Warren Giles suspended him for eight games (two starts), fined him a then-NL record US$1,750[36][44] (equivalent to $14,200 in 2019),[45] and also forbade him from traveling to Dodger Stadium for the final, crucial two-game series of the season.[38] Roseboro filed a $110,000 damage suit against Marichal one week after the incident, but eventually settled out of court for $7,500.[38]

Many people thought Marichal's punishment was too lenient, since it would cost Marichal only two starts.[38] Fans booed him for the rest of the season whenever he pitched a road game.[46] The Giants were in a tight pennant race with the Dodgers (as well as the Pirates, Reds, and Braves) and the race was decided with only two games to play. The Giants, who ended up winning the August 22 game and were down only a half-game afterward, eventually lost the pennant to the Dodgers by two games. Ironically, the Giants went on a 14-game win streak that started during Marichal's absence and by then it was a two-team race as the Pirates, Reds, and Braves fell further behind. But then the Dodgers won 15 of their final 16 games (after Marichal had returned) to win the pennant. Marichal won in his first game back, 2–1 vs. the Astros on September 9 (the same day Koufax pitched his perfect game vs. the Cubs), but lost his last three decisions as the Giants slumped in the season's final week.[47][48] "Marichal's actions might have cost us the pennant," Mays speculated, noting that the relief pitchers had to work more in the absence of Marichal, who usually completed his starts.[49]

Marichal didn't face the Dodgers again until spring training on April 3, 1966. In his first at bat against Marichal since the incident, Roseboro hit a three-run home run.[50] San Francisco General Manager Chub Feeney approached Dodgers General Manager Buzzy Bavasi to attempt to arrange a handshake between Marichal and Roseboro. However, Roseboro declined the offer.[50]

Years later, Roseboro stated that he was retaliating for Marichal having thrown at Wills.[38] He explained that Koufax would not throw at batters for fear of hurting them due to the velocity of his pitches.[38] He further stated that his throwing close to Marichal's ear was, "standard operating procedure", as a form of retribution.[38] After years of bitterness, Roseboro and Marichal became close friends in the 1980s, getting together occasionally at old-timers' games, golf tournaments and charity events.[38]

Marichal at the 2008 All-Star Game Red Carpet Parade

Juan Marichal's number 27 was retired by the San Francisco Giants in 1975.

Marichal was passed over for election to the Baseball Hall of Fame during his first two years of eligibility, by all accounts because the Baseball Writers' Association of America voters still held his attack on Roseboro against him. However, after a personal appeal by Roseboro, Marichal was elected in 1983, and thanked Roseboro in his induction speech.[43][56] When Roseboro died in 2002, Marichal served as an honorary pallbearer at his funeral and told the gathered, "Johnny's forgiving me was one of the best things that happened in my life. I wish I could have had John Roseboro as my catcher."[59]

In 1975, the Giants retired Marichal's uniform number 27.[60] In 1990, Marichal, who was working as a broadcaster for Spanish radio, was on hand to see his son-in-law at the time, José Rijo, win the World Series Most Valuable Player Award. In 1999, he ranked #71 on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players, and was a finalist for the Major League Baseball All-Century Team.[61][62] He was honored before a game between the Giants and Oakland Athletics with a statue outside AT&T Park in 2005, and was named one of the three starting pitchers on Major League Baseball's Latino Legends Team. In 1976, sportswriter Harry Stein published an "All Time All-Star Argument Starter", consisting of five ethnic baseball teams. Marichal was the right-handed pitcher on Stein's Latin team. The Giants also honored him by wearing jerseys that said "Gigantes." Marichal was inducted into the Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum Hall of Fame on July 20, 2003, in pregame on field ceremony at Pac Bell Park.[63] In 2015 the Estadio Quisqueya in his home country was renamed Quisqueya stadium Juan Marichal after him.[64][65]

Marichal became engaged to Alma Rosa in the early 1960s. Following the assassination of Rafael Trujillo in 1961, conditions became dangerous in the Dominican Republic, and Marichal sought to marry Rosa during 1962 spring training so he could bring her and her family to the United States. Dark not only consented to Marichal leaving camp, but he even gave the pitcher two plane tickets.[19]

In 2008, Marichal was filmed at a cockfight in the Dominican Republic along with New York Mets pitcher Pedro Martínez. The incident caused controversy in the United States, but Martinez defended their attendance at the cockfight by saying, "I understand that people are upset, but that is part of our Dominican culture and is legal in the Dominican Republic". He added, "I was invited by my idol, Juan Marichal, to attend the event as a spectator, not as a participant."[66]

• Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame
• List of Major League Baseball career wins leaders
• List of Major League Baseball annual ERA leaders
• List of Major League Baseball annual wins leaders
• List of Major League Baseball career strikeout leaders
• List of Major League Baseball no-hitters

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Juan Marichal.

• Juan Marichal at the Baseball Hall of Fame

• Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball-Reference (Minors), or Retrosheet
• Juan Marichal at Baseball Library
• Baseball Hall of Fame: Marichal Tops Cooperstown's Cy-Less List
• Juan Marichal at SABR (Baseball BioProject)