It's always been a mystery as to why the award was given Cy Young's name, since few people in 1956 would have named him the best pitcher of all time. As has been pointed out here, he didn't even make the first HOF cut, whereas Walter and Matty did. I'd guess it was because he had just died when they created the award, and Ford Frick thought it would be a nice honor. But it's never really made sense. As for the greatest pitcher, that's impossible to say, since there are about 10 or so for whom a substantial case can be made. But if I had one game to play, and could pick from all the greats in history, I would be very happy to see Walter Johnson on the mound, at around 25 years old, ready to start throwing those smoke balls in one after the other. Cobb said they "hissed with danger," and Sam Crawford told how "they had a 'swish' to them as they passed by you." Yeah, I'll take that guy.
|