Spud Chandler

Spurgeon Ferdinand "Spud" Chandler (September 12, 1907 - January 9, 1990) was an American right-handed starting pitcher in major league baseball, who played his entire career for the New York Yankees from 1937 through 1947. He was named the American League's Most Valuable Player in after anchoring the team's pitching staff with 20 wins and only 4 losses as New York won its third consecutive pennant; his 1.64 earned run average in that season was the lowest by any major league pitcher between 1920 and 1967, and remains a Yankees team record. In eleven seasons, he never suffered a losing record; with a total of 109 wins and 43 losses, his career winning percentage of .717 is the highest of any pitcher with at least 100 victories since 1876.

Biography

Chandler attended the University of Georgia, near his birthplace and hometown of Royston, Georgia, and played football as a halfback, throwing a touchdown pass to help defeat Yale in a 1929 game dedicating a new stadium. He also pitched for the baseball team and competed on the track team. He was a brother of the Alpha Gamma Rho fraternity and graduated with a degree in agriculture. He spent five seasons in the Yankees organization after signing with the team, his favorite since boyhood. Chandler finally made his major league debut at age 29 on May 6, 1937, and went 7-4 that season with a 2.84 ERA and six complete games (including two shutouts). The following year he was 14-5, and in 1939 he was 3-0 in 11 relief...
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