Allegany County MD Archives News.....Robert Moses "Lefty" Grove, Baseball Player, 1981
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File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by:
Shawn McGreevy [shawnmcgreevy@geatz.com]


Chronicle Telegram, Elyria, Ohio, 10 Jul 1981: 
"One word described Lefty Grove's fast ball: 'Smoke' By Maury Allen. 
Modern baseball fans, those who got into the game after World War II 
think of only one name when they discuss blazing left-handed speed: 
Sandy Koufax.  For those who go a little further back, to the 1930s 
and late 1920s, there was a left-hander who was the Sandy Koufax of 
his time.  Lefty Grove-who lived in Norwalk from 1961 until his 
death in 1975-was the hardest thrower of his era and one of the most 
successful all-around pitchers with a fast ball that probably would 
have registered over 100 miles per hour if the currently used radar 
gun had been in existence then.  Grobe was the pitcher all hitters 
tried to avoid and he had just enough control trouble to intimidate 
most batters. He was a fiery competitor who would think nothing of 
berating himself, or a teammate, an umpire, or a manager if he 
thought he was wronged.  One afternoon, shortly before his 70th 
birthday, he was sitting quietly in a lounge chair at an inn near 
the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. I approached him and began asking 
about the great hitters he'd faced.  "Damn it," he suddenly exploded, 
"there isn't a man playing the game I can't strike out."  But, Mr. 
Grove," I gently reminded him, "you are nearly 70 years old."  "That 
don't matter," he said. "The hitters know my reputation." Every 
hitter knew Grove's reputation. Even Ted Williams, who played with 
Grove in Boston as a young kid outfielder, was saying some 40 years 
later that Grove was the hardest thrower he had ever seen.  "I only 
caught him at the end," Williams said, "but nobody could throw a 
baseball any harder."  Grove used that fast ball, a crackling curve, 
and his later acquired control to win 300 games on the button, lose 
only 140, and strike out 2,266 hitters in 17 seasons. He had a 
legendary season of 31-4 with a league-leading 2.06 ERA in 1931. He 
had eight seasons with 20 or more wins and led the league in ERA 
nine years and was the leader his first seven seasons, a feat never
matched in baseball.  Robert Moses "Lefty" Grove was born March 6, 
1900, at Lonaconing, Md., outside of Baltimore. He left school early, 
worked in the coal mines and on the railroads and as a glass blower. 
His flaming personality caused many squabbles and he lost several 
jobs over it.  Playing baseball on weekends and late afternoons, he 
was soon signed by the local professional club in 1920.  From there 
he went to the Baltimore Orioles, the famed farm team near his home. 
He won 27 games twice and 25 games once for the Orioles.  The 
Philadelphia A's quickly purchased him from Baltimore for more 
(?unreadable).  He had a couple of slow seasons at the beginning 
with a 10-12 rookie year and a 13-13 sophomore season.  Then he hit 
his stride with Connie Mack's A's, winning 20 games in 1927 in a 
season dominated by Babe Ruth's 60 homers.  With his curve ball and 
control improving, Grove then recorded six straight and ultimately 
seven out of eight 20-game seasons. After his first season be would 
never again lose more games than he won, ending with a 7-7 mark in 
1941 for Boston at the age of 41.  In 1933 Mack decided to break up 
his great Philadelphia teams, which had won pennants in 1929 1930, 
and 1931, by selling off the key stars for profit. Grove was shipped 
to Boston in a five-player deal. The Red Sox gave the A's two players 
and $125,000 for Grove and two others.  The four traded players were 
dealt even up with the money being obtained by the A's in exchange 
for Grove.  His fast ball no longer scared (?unreadable) but was 
effective in Fenway.  Grove won 20 games for the Red Sox in 1935 and 
then won 17, 17, 14 and 15 in the next four seasons. After his 1941 
season he retired December 7th, as the Japanese were bombing Pearl 
Harbor. He lived a comfortable, quiet retirement and was named 
baseball's greatest living left-handed pitcher in 1969. He died in 
1975. Long after he was gone, the legend of Lefty Grove remained. 
Smoke."



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