Whitey Ford
⭐ Hall of Fame 1974
Born: 10/21/1928 in New York, NY, USA
Died: 10/8/2020 in Lake Success, NY, USA
MLB Debut: 1950-07-01 | Final Game: 1967-05-21
Bats: L | Throws: L | Height: 5'10" | Weight: 178 lbs
Full name: Edward Charles Ford
Biography
Whitey Ford, born in 1928, was a dominant pitcher in Major League Baseball, whose career spanned from July 1, 1950, to May 21, 1967. Known for his exceptional control and finesse on the mound, Ford played the entirety of his career with the New York Yankees, where he became a cornerstone of the team's success during the 1950s and 1960s. He finished his career with an impressive record of 236-106 and an earned run average (ERA) of 2.75, which underscored his effectiveness as a starting pitcher. Over his 16 seasons, Ford recorded 1,956 strikeouts and notched 10 saves, showcasing his versatility and durability in a changing game.
Ford's accolades reflect his significant impact on baseball; he was a ten-time All-Star and earned the TSN Rookie of the Year, Cy Young Award, and World Series MVP honors during his illustrious career. His ability to perform in high-pressure situations helped lead the Yankees to numerous championships, cementing his legacy as one of the greatest pitchers in the franchise's storied history. Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1974, Ford's contributions to the game continue to resonate, as he is remembered not only for his remarkable statistics but also for his poise and skill during one of baseball's most competitive eras.
Career Pitching Statistics
| W | L | G | GS | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | ER | HR | BB | SO | ERA | Pitcher PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 236 | 106 | 498 | 438 | 156 | 45 | 10 | 3170.3 | 2766 | 967 | 228 | 1086 | 1956 | 2.75 | 0 |
Season-by-Season Pitching
| Year | Team | Lg | W | L | G | GS | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA | Pitcher PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | NYY | AL | 9 | 1 | 20 | 12 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 112.0 | 87 | 35 | 52 | 59 | 2.81 | - |
| 1953 | NYY | AL | 18 | 6 | 32 | 30 | 11 | 3 | 0 | 207.0 | 187 | 69 | 110 | 110 | 3.00 | - |
| 1954 | NYY | AL | 16 | 8 | 34 | 28 | 11 | 3 | 1 | 210.7 | 170 | 66 | 101 | 125 | 2.82 | - |
| 1955 | NYY | AL | 18 | 7 | 39 | 33 | 18 | 5 | 2 | 253.7 | 188 | 74 | 113 | 137 | 2.63 | - |
| 1956 | NYY | AL | 19 | 6 | 31 | 30 | 18 | 2 | 1 | 225.7 | 187 | 62 | 84 | 141 | 2.47 | - |
| 1957 | NYY | AL | 11 | 5 | 24 | 17 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 129.3 | 114 | 37 | 53 | 84 | 2.57 | - |
| 1958 | NYY | AL | 14 | 7 | 30 | 29 | 15 | 7 | 1 | 219.3 | 174 | 49 | 62 | 145 | 2.01 | - |
| 1959 | NYY | AL | 16 | 10 | 35 | 29 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 204.0 | 194 | 69 | 89 | 114 | 3.04 | - |
| 1960 | NYY | AL | 12 | 9 | 33 | 29 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 192.7 | 168 | 66 | 65 | 85 | 3.08 | - |
| 1961 | NYY | AL | 25 | 4 | 39 | 39 | 11 | 3 | 0 | 283.0 | 242 | 101 | 92 | 209 | 3.21 | - |
| 1962 | NYY | AL | 17 | 8 | 38 | 37 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 257.7 | 243 | 83 | 69 | 160 | 2.90 | - |
| 1963 | NYY | AL | 24 | 7 | 38 | 37 | 13 | 3 | 1 | 269.3 | 240 | 82 | 56 | 189 | 2.74 | - |
| 1964 | NYY | AL | 17 | 6 | 39 | 36 | 12 | 8 | 1 | 244.7 | 212 | 58 | 57 | 172 | 2.13 | - |
| 1965 | NYY | AL | 16 | 13 | 37 | 36 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 244.3 | 241 | 88 | 50 | 162 | 3.24 | - |
| 1966 | NYY | AL | 2 | 5 | 22 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 73.0 | 79 | 20 | 24 | 43 | 2.47 | - |
| 1967 | NYY | AL | 2 | 4 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 44.0 | 40 | 8 | 9 | 21 | 1.64 | - |
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 500 | 1023 | 91 | 177 | 19 | 0 | 3 | 69 | 3 | 113 | 224 | 0.173 | 0.256 | 0.200 | 0.457 | -5013.9 |
Season-by-Season Batting
| Year | Team | Lg | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | NYY | AL | 20 | 36 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 0.194 | 0.0 |
| 1953 | NYY | AL | 33 | 75 | 10 | 20 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 9 | 13 | 0.267 | -137.6 |
| 1954 | NYY | AL | 34 | 62 | 7 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 9 | 15 | 0.161 | -400.3 |
| 1955 | NYY | AL | 39 | 86 | 9 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 11 | 16 | 0.163 | -529.1 |
| 1956 | NYY | AL | 31 | 78 | 9 | 17 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 9 | 14 | 0.218 | -314.7 |
| 1957 | NYY | AL | 24 | 42 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 0.143 | 0.0 |
| 1958 | NYY | AL | 30 | 73 | 10 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 10 | 0.205 | -379.7 |
| 1959 | NYY | AL | 35 | 65 | 6 | 15 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 12 | 11 | 0.231 | -3.6 |
| 1960 | NYY | AL | 33 | 53 | 4 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 14 | 0.151 | -287.5 |
| 1961 | NYY | AL | 39 | 96 | 11 | 17 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 12 | 17 | 0.177 | -598.0 |
| 1962 | NYY | AL | 38 | 85 | 5 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 8 | 22 | 0.118 | -778.6 |
| 1963 | NYY | AL | 38 | 92 | 5 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 22 | 0.141 | -633.5 |
| 1964 | NYY | AL | 39 | 67 | 5 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 23 | 0.119 | -463.0 |
| 1965 | NYY | AL | 38 | 82 | 4 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 26 | 0.183 | -488.6 |
| 1966 | NYY | AL | 22 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 0.000 | 0.0 |
| 1967 | NYY | AL | 7 | 13 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0.154 | 0.0 |
Postseason Statistics
Playoff Career Batting
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 22 | 49 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 14 | 0.082 |
Playoff Batting by Year
| Year | Round | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1964 | WS | NYA | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1.000 |
| 1963 | WS | NYA | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.000 |
| 1962 | WS | NYA | 3 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0.000 |
| 1961 | WS | NYA | 2 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.000 |
| 1960 | WS | NYA | 2 | 8 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0.250 |
| 1958 | WS | NYA | 3 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0.000 |
| 1957 | WS | NYA | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.000 |
| 1956 | WS | NYA | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0.000 |
| 1955 | WS | NYA | 2 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0.000 |
| 1953 | WS | NYA | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.333 |
| 1950 | WS | NYA | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.000 |
Playoff Career Pitching
| W | L | G | GS | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | 8 | 22 | 22 | 0 | 146.0 | 132 | 44 | 34 | 94 | 2.71 |
Playoff Pitching by Year
| Year | Round | Team | W | L | G | GS | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1964 | WS | NYA | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5.3 | 8 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 8.44 |
| 1963 | WS | NYA | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 12.0 | 10 | 6 | 3 | 8 | 4.50 |
| 1962 | WS | NYA | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 19.7 | 24 | 9 | 4 | 12 | 4.12 |
| 1961 | WS | NYA | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 14.0 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 0.00 |
| 1960 | WS | NYA | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 18.0 | 11 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 0.00 |
| 1958 | WS | NYA | 0 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 15.3 | 19 | 7 | 5 | 16 | 4.11 |
| 1957 | WS | NYA | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 16.0 | 11 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 1.12 |
| 1956 | WS | NYA | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 12.0 | 14 | 7 | 2 | 8 | 5.25 |
| 1955 | WS | NYA | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 17.0 | 13 | 4 | 8 | 10 | 2.12 |
| 1953 | WS | NYA | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 8.0 | 9 | 4 | 2 | 7 | 4.50 |
| 1950 | WS | NYA | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 8.7 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 0.00 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | 498 | 396 | 173 | 630 | 33 | 49 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | NYA | P | 20 | 0 | 7 | 17 | 0 | 1 |
| 1953 | NYA | P | 32 | 0 | 8 | 35 | 1 | 3 |
| 1954 | NYA | P | 34 | 28 | 7 | 39 | 2 | 3 |
| 1955 | NYA | P | 39 | 33 | 10 | 41 | 1 | 1 |
| 1956 | NYA | P | 31 | 30 | 9 | 57 | 1 | 6 |
| 1957 | NYA | P | 24 | 17 | 6 | 28 | 2 | 5 |
| 1958 | NYA | P | 30 | 29 | 7 | 44 | 6 | 2 |
| 1959 | NYA | P | 35 | 29 | 15 | 49 | 1 | 5 |
| 1960 | NYA | P | 33 | 29 | 12 | 38 | 1 | 2 |
| 1961 | NYA | P | 39 | 39 | 12 | 45 | 5 | 5 |
| 1962 | NYA | P | 38 | 37 | 25 | 58 | 3 | 4 |
| 1963 | NYA | P | 38 | 37 | 20 | 38 | 5 | 3 |
| 1964 | NYA | P | 39 | 36 | 18 | 47 | 1 | 2 |
| 1965 | NYA | P | 37 | 36 | 7 | 53 | 0 | 4 |
| 1966 | NYA | P | 22 | 9 | 7 | 26 | 4 | 2 |
| 1967 | NYA | P | 7 | 7 | 3 | 15 | 0 | 1 |
Career Games by Position
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Pitcher | 498 |
Awards & Honors
Award Voting History
| Year | Award | League | Finish | Points Won | Points Max | Votes First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1964 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 21th | 7.0 | 280 | 0 |
| 1963 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 3rd | 125.0 | 280 | 3 |
| 1962 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 26th | 6.0 | 280 | 0 |
| 1961 | Cy Young Award | ML | 1st | 9.0 | 18 | 9 |
| 1961 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 5th | 102.0 | 280 | 0 |
| 1957 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 19th | 4.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1956 | Cy Young Award | ML | 3rd | 1.0 | 16 | 1 |
| 1956 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 12th | 33.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1955 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 15th | 21.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1953 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 20th | 8.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1950 | Most Valuable Player | AL | 21th | 7.0 | 336 | 0 |
| 1950 | Rookie of the Year | AL | 2nd | 6.0 | 24 | 6 |