On this day, in 1939, Bob Feller became the youngest player in the modern era to reach 20 wins. I am a better writer than I am a statistician, but I did stop when I saw that on my calendar this morning. Feller was 20 years old when he reached 20 victories. 2020. And just like that, I’m a numbers person.
With last week’s recollections and mass of memories of Tom Seaver and previous eras (and ERAs), the conversation about how baseball has transformed has heightened mightily. There are so many “Remember when a guy pitched more than five innings?”, or, “Remember how Cy Young won more games in a single season than any current starter has ever won in his entire career?”
…I’m personally responsible for starting many of these. Baseball fans are insatiable.
We’re not going to have that again. The times have changed. We all know this, and we also all have a tremendous time talking about it. Pitchers have developed differently now. What hasn’t been lost among the statistics and numbers and eras is, fortunately, the humanity of a ballplayer. We have not lost that feeling of admiration and respect and, in rare cases, that immense hope and joy when a pitcher takes the mound; not just because we’re confident he’ll win, but because we’re confident in him.
In Feller’s era of World War II and an immense state of panic across the globe, he was an example of heroism and humanity in the same breath. On Dec. 7, 1941, the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. Bob Feller had a 3-C draft deferment, as he was the sole support of his household. He didn’t have to go right away; the deferment allowed him months to plan before going to war. And yet, two days after the event, he enlisted in the Navy. He was the first American professional athlete to enlist. And he didn’t have to.
In a different sort of worldwide outbreak, we have found different ways to cope via hope. No one’s going off to war, but we are still fighting for what we live for. And Shane Bieber of the Cleveland Indians is a great example of a man who is maintaining that sense of audacity and hope in a beleaguered world.
Not only is Bieber a highlight reel for all of Major League Baseball with his season-long winning numbers and in-game mastery of manipulating every single pitch he executes, he is an immensely likable and charismatic personality. In a directionless society, he gives us something to mark our calendars for.
In this shortened season, Bieber is 7-0 with a 1.25 ERA, with 94 strikeouts in 57.2 innings pitched. In 6 of 9 of his starts, he has struck out double-digit batters.
And, like Feller, he is always smiling.
This season, a Shane Bieber start is an event. Every curveball starts fireworks, every cutter starts a story line, every slider is a surprise.
Bieber pitched five innings on Sunday night, and he took the win. Bob Feller pitched 279 complete games. The times have changed. The character has not. What a wonderful world to have something to look forward to, new characters to embrace, new dates to set for our future “on-this-day” calendars.
