Whitey Ford Knew What It Took to Win

Whitey Ford was called The Chairman of the Board, and for good reason. The left-hander knew how to win, putting together a lifetime record in 16 New York Yankee seasons of 236-106 for a .690 winning percentage. Although he had good stuff, what made him special was his outstanding control and his keen knowledge of how and when to change speeds. Whatever he had to do on the mound, Ford and his catchers knew how to do it. He pitched 45 shutouts.

He was at his best in World Series competition, setting a record for consecutive scoreless innings with 33. Babe Ruth, pitching for the Red Sox in his early major league years, had held the record with 29 innings. Ford’s scoreless streak came to an end on a two-out bunt base hit by Jose Pagan that scored Willie Mays from third base in the 1962 Series opener. Ford was a complete-game 6-2 winner in that effort, too.

Now 56, he lives in Lake Success, N.Y. He remains with the Yankees as a spring-training instructor and does public relations work for Fundamental Brokers, a Wall Street company.

“I had signed for $7,000 in 1946. Lefty Gomez, who was managing the Binghamton farm club, hung the nickname Whitey on me. I guess he couldn’t remember my name. After three seasons in the minors, I got to my first big-league training camp in 1950. I had never been higher than Class A ball, and I was awestruck. Growing up in Astoria (a section of New York City), I had rooted for the Yankees ever since I knew anything about baseball. I used to run to the store to get the paper and check the boxscore to see how many hits DiMaggio had. I was in awe of those guys, although I almost made the club in spring training in 1950.

“They wound up sending me out to Triple-A in Kansas City (Mo.) and calling me back up around the start of July. DiMaggio was only hitting around .240. Then he got hot as hell, and I think wound up the season hitting over .300 (.301 with 122 RBI). Things went well for me, and I finished with a 9-1 record, the only loss coming in a game where I relieved Eddie Lopat. In fact I was fortunate. I got off to a good start the next year, and it wound up near a year before I lost a game as a starter for the Yankees.

“That rookie year, 1950, was also my first World Series. You kept reading how Yankee power was going to destroy the Phillies (in the Series). We did win four straight, but the scores were 1-0, 2-1, 3-2 and 5-2. I started the laugher, the last game, and had a shutout until two outs in the ninth when Gene Woodling dropped a fly ball and they scored two runs.

“I think I wound up buying 73 tickets for that game I started in Yankee Stadium to distribute to friends and relatives. World Series tickets were cheap then. I think they sold for $6 each. But I was a rookie and made sure I got my money back. I was in the service the next two years. But of my first 13 seasons with the Yankees, we were in the World Series 11 times. It was like we were supposed to be there. My wife thought so, anyway. She began to think of the Series check as part of my salary.

“Playing the Dodgers when they were in Brooklyn was fun. All you had to do was get in the bus and ride over there. It depended on which side of the Brooklyn Bridge you were on, how the fans reacted to you. I didn’t have that much success pitching in Ebbets Field (the Dodgers’ park). I lost there to the other guy from Astoria -- Billy Loes. That was the year after he said he lost the ground ball in the sun. That was a funny statement from Loes, but pitchers know it can happen.

“I was rooting for a Subway Series (between the Mets and Yankees) again, but I guess it wasn’t meant to be this year. Maybe some time. They’re special.”