Today's player for my ongoing 1972 "Missing In-Action" stars is Jim
"Catfish" Hunter. Future Hall of Famer and stalwart of the Oaklnad A's
dynasty of the mid-1970's.
Take a look:
Hunter was coming off of his first of what would be five
consecutive 20-win seasons, his last one as a member of the New York
Yankees after signing with them as one of the game's first big-time free
agents.
What a class-act Hunter was.
A down-to-earth dude who didn't let stardom sidetrack him, it was
sad that he'd have to retire from the game at the age of 33 because of
arm troubles, but downright tragic that he would pass away in 1999 from
ALS (Lou Gehrig's Disease) at the young age
of 53!
By the time he retired in 1979, he posted 224 wins, a 3.26 earned
run average, 2012 strikeouts, and most importantly, FIVE championships:
three with Oakland and two with the Yankees.
In 1987 Cooperstown came calling and elected him in, forever enshrined in baseball's all-time history.
