Don Larsen facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Don Larsen |
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Larsen in 1956
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| Pitcher | |||
| Born: August 7, 1929 Michigan City, Indiana, U.S. |
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| Died: January 1, 2020 (aged 90) Hayden, Idaho, U.S. |
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| debut | |||
| April 18, 1953, for the St. Louis Browns | |||
| Last appearance | |||
| July 7, 1967, for the Chicago Cubs | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Win–loss record | 81–91 | ||
| Earned run average | 3.78 | ||
| Strikeouts | 849 | ||
| Teams | |||
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| Career highlights and awards | |||
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Don James Larsen (born August 7, 1929 – died January 1, 2020) was a famous American baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 15 years, from 1953 to 1967. During his career, he played for seven different teams. These teams included the St. Louis Browns / Baltimore Orioles, New York Yankees, Kansas City Athletics, Chicago White Sox, San Francisco Giants, Houston Colt .45's / Astros, and Chicago Cubs.
Don Larsen is best known for pitching a perfect game in Game 5 of the 1956 World Series. This amazing event happened on October 8, 1956. It was the first and only perfect game in World Series history. A perfect game means no batter from the other team reaches base for any reason during the entire game. This incredible achievement helped him win the World Series Most Valuable Player Award and the Babe Ruth Award in 1956.
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Don Larsen's Early Life and Baseball Start
Don Larsen was born in Michigan City, Indiana. In 1944, his family moved to San Diego, California. There, his mother worked as a housekeeper, and his father was a salesman. Don went to Point Loma High School. He was a talented athlete, playing both basketball and baseball. He was even offered college scholarships for basketball.
However, baseball was his true calling. A St. Louis Browns scout named Art Schwartz noticed Don's skills while he played for a local American Legion team. In 1947, Don signed a contract with the Browns to play for one of their minor league teams. He received an $850 signing bonus, which was a good amount of money back then.
Playing in the Minor Leagues
Don Larsen began his professional baseball journey in 1947 with the Aberdeen Pheasants. He played in 16 games that year. The next season, he won 17 games for the Pheasants. Over the next few years, he moved up through different minor league teams. These included the Globe-Miami Browns, Springfield Browns, Wichita Falls Spudders, and Wichita Indians.
Serving in the Military
In 1951, Don Larsen was drafted into the United States Army. He served during the Korean War for two years. He had non-combat jobs during his time in the Army. After his service, he was discharged in 1953. He then joined the St. Louis Browns team for the start of the 1953 season.
Don Larsen's First Years in Major League Baseball
Playing for the St. Louis Browns and Baltimore Orioles
Don Larsen made his first MLB appearance on April 17, 1953, for the St. Louis Browns. He pitched five innings in that game. About a month later, on May 12, he earned his first career win. In his first season, Don finished with 7 wins and 12 losses. He also had 96 strikeouts. He led his team in innings pitched and complete games.
After the 1953 season, the St. Louis Browns team moved to Baltimore and became the Baltimore Orioles. In 1954, Don Larsen had a tough season. He won only 3 games and lost 21. This was the fewest wins for a pitcher with at least 20 losses in a very long time. The Orioles were not a strong team that year, winning only 54 games. Two of Don's three wins that season were against the powerful New York Yankees.
Joining the New York Yankees
In 1954, the New York Yankees wanted to improve their pitching staff. Their main pitchers were getting older. Yankees general manager George Weiss and manager Casey Stengel were very impressed with Don Larsen. They believed he had great potential.
So, at the end of the 1954 season, Don Larsen was part of a big 17-player trade. He was traded from the Baltimore Orioles to the New York Yankees. Other players like Billy Hunter and Bob Turley also went to the Yankees. In return, the Orioles received players like Gus Triandos and Gene Woodling. The Yankees hoped Don Larsen would become a key pitcher for their team.
Don Larsen's Time with the New York Yankees
Don Larsen played for the New York Yankees from 1955 to 1959. Manager Casey Stengel used him as both a starting pitcher and a relief pitcher. During his five seasons in New York, Don won 45 games and lost 24. He started 90 games and appeared in 128 games overall.
The 1955 Season
Don Larsen started the 1955 season with a sore shoulder. He didn't pitch well at first and was sent to a minor league team, the Denver Bears. After a short delay, he joined the Bears. Don spent most of the first four months of the season with them. He only played in five games for the Yankees during that time. For the whole 1955 season, he played in 19 games, starting 13 of them. He had a good record of 9 wins and 2 losses. He also pitched a shutout against the Detroit Tigers on August 5, 1955.
The Amazing 1956 Season
In 1956, Don Larsen had a strong season, winning 11 games and losing 5. He also had a career-best 107 strikeouts. He pitched in 38 games, starting 20 of them. He started the season a bit slowly, but he improved a lot as the year went on. By the end of the season, he was pitching very well. He even pitched a four-hit shutout against his old team, the Orioles, on September 3.
The 1956 World Series Perfect Game
Don Larsen's most famous moment happened in Game 5 of the 1956 World Series. He was pitching for the New York Yankees against the Brooklyn Dodgers on October 8, 1956. He pitched the only perfect game in World Series history. This means no batter from the Dodgers reached base at all during the entire game. It is one of only 23 perfect games in all of MLB history.
Before this game, Don had started Game 2 of the series. He didn't pitch well in that game and was taken out early. But for Game 5, he was ready. He only needed 97 pitches to complete his perfect game. Only one Dodgers batter got a three-ball count against him. Don later said, "I had great control. I never had that kind of control in my life."
The Yankees scored two runs in the game. Mickey Mantle hit a home run in the fourth inning to break a 0-0 tie. In the ninth inning, with two outs, Don faced pinch hitter Dale Mitchell. Don threw a called third strike, and the umpire called Mitchell out. After the final pitch, Yankees catcher Yogi Berra famously leaped into Don Larsen's arms to celebrate. This moment became one of the most iconic images in baseball history. Don's incredible game earned him the World Series Most Valuable Player Award.
1957–1959 Seasons
In 1957, Don Larsen had a record of 10 wins and 4 losses. He again had a slow start to the season but improved later on. In the 1957 World Series against the Milwaukee Braves, he pitched well in relief in Game 3, earning a win. He also started Game 7 of that series.
Don Larsen won Game 3 of the 1958 World Series. This series also went to a seventh game, and Don started it for the Yankees. The Yankees won the World Series that year. In 1959, Don's performance dipped slightly, with 6 wins and 7 losses. After the 1959 season, he was traded to the Kansas City Athletics as part of a trade that brought Roger Maris to the Yankees.
Don Larsen's Later Baseball Career
In 1961, Don Larsen played for both the Kansas City Athletics and the Chicago White Sox. He had a good year, winning 8 games and losing 2. He was traded to the White Sox in June 1961.
After the 1961 season, Don was traded again, this time to the San Francisco Giants. With the Giants, he became a full-time relief pitcher. He helped the Giants win their league championship in 1962. In the 1962 World Series, Don won Game 4 while pitching in relief. During his time with the Giants, his teammates nicknamed him "Froggy" because he enjoyed hunting frogs and cooking them for his friends.
In 1964, Don Larsen was sold to the Houston Colt .45s. He returned to a starting role there and pitched well. In 1965, he was traded back to the Baltimore Orioles. The Orioles released him before the 1966 season, and he played in the minor leagues. Don Larsen had a short return to the major leagues in 1967 with the Chicago Cubs, pitching only four innings. He then finished his career in the minor leagues, retiring in the summer of 1968.
Don Larsen was also a good hitter for a pitcher. He finished his career with a .242 batting average. He hit 14 home runs and had 72 runs batted in. He even hit a grand slam (a home run with the bases loaded) in 1956, the same year as his perfect game! His managers sometimes used him as a pinch hitter because he was so good at batting.
Life After Baseball
After retiring from baseball, Don Larsen tried a few different jobs. He worked for a paper company, helping farmers in California.
In 1964, he was honored by the San Diego Hall of Champions. This hall recognizes great athletes from San Diego.
Don Larsen also wrote an autobiography called The Perfect Yankee: The Incredible Story of the Greatest Miracle in Baseball History, which was published in 1996.
He was present at Yankee Stadium for two of baseball's perfect games: his own in 1956, and David Cone's in 1999. Before Cone's perfect game, Don Larsen threw out the ceremonial first pitch to Yogi Berra. Don later said that Cone's game was the first complete game he had watched in person since he retired from playing.
Personal Life and Passing
Don Larsen married his second wife, Corrine, and they were together for over 60 years. They lived in Hayden Lake, Idaho. In 2012, it was reported that he put the uniform he wore during his perfect game up for auction. He did this to help pay for his grandchildren's college education.
Don Larsen passed away on January 1, 2020, at the age of 90. He died from esophageal cancer.
Images for kids
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Don Larsen at a Yankees fan fair in 2007.
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Roy Halladay and Don Larsen, the only two pitchers to throw solo postseason no-hitters in MLB history.
