Steve Carlton

Steve Carlton

Birthdate	12/22/1944
Death Date
Debut Year	1965
Year of Induction	1994
Teams	Phillies
Position	Pitcher

Steve Carlton won 27 games for the 1972 last-place Phillies; he accounted for 46% of his team’s 59 victories that season.

Steve Carlton was a first-ballot selection for the Hall of Fame

Steve Carlton signed this contract to appear on Fleer baseball cards for the 1965 season. The cards were never produced. At the time the contract was executed, the 20-year old Carlton had yet to throw his first Major League pitch. During his career he became the first pitcher to win four Cy Young aw

Steve Carlton was the first hurler to earn four Cy Young Awards

Steve Carlton had a season for the ages in 1972. He won the pitching Triple Crown by leading the league in wins, ERA, and strikeouts. The writers made him their unanimous choice for the Cy Young Award. Lefty again captured the honor in 1977. That season he led the NL with 23 wins and pushed the Phil

Carlton received the Cy Young Award in a pregame ceremony on 4/15/73

Steve Carlton was the unanimous choice for the Cy Young Award in 1972. Leading the league in wins (27), ERA (1.97), and strikeouts (310) commands it. Former National League president Warren Giles presented the award to Carlton on April 15, 1973. On a sunny Sunday at Philadelphia’s Veterans Stadiu

Carlton took the loss in MLB's first pitching matchup of 200-game winners with 3,000 Ks

On August 18, 1981, Tom Seaver of the Reds and Steve Carlton of the Phillies faced off at Riverfront Stadium. It was a historic pitching matchup, the first time in baseball history both starters had 200 wins and 3,000 strikeouts. Seaver entered with 252 wins and 3,041 strikeouts, while Carlton had 2

Carlton set the Senior Circuit mark for career strikeouts in 1981, a record he still holds

When Steve Carlton fanned his 3,128th batter on September 21, 1981, he surpassed Bob Gibson as the National League’s all time leader in strikeouts. Lefty was far from done. By the time he hung up his spikes in 1989, Carlton has exactly 4,000 strikeouts as a Senior Circuit hurler. His NL record

In 1923 Walter Johnson founded the 300-win/3,000-strikeout club; Carlton joined in 1983

Only ten hurlers in the history of the game have tallied 300 wins and 3,000 strikeouts. The milestone club includes the game’s greatest pitchers. On September 23, 1983, Steve Carlton earned his 300th victory to join their ranks. Half of the 300/3,000 crew put themselves on the list in the 1980

Lefty founded the 300-win/4,000 strikeout club in 1986

Steve Carlton became the first 300-game winner to strikeout out 4,000 batters on August 5, 1986. Four years later on July 30, 1990, Nolan Ryan earned his 300th win to join Lefty. In a double-milestone performance, Roger Clemens got both his 300th win and his 4,000th strikeout in the same June 13th s

The Phillies honored Carlton and Mike Schmidt in consecutive years on their Wall of Fame

Steve Carlton and Mike Schmidt teamed up with the Philadelphia Phillies from 1972-1986. The year after each player retired the Phillies honored them with induction into their Wall of Fame. On the mound Carlton was a dominating Phillies presence. His 241 wins and 3,031 strikeouts with the club are fr

May 28th, 2021 Leave a comment

Warren Giles gives the Cy Young to Steve Carlton

Steve Carlton’s 1972 season is one of the greatest performances by a pitcher in the last 100 years. The National League Cy Young Award winner, Carlton went 27-10 for a last-place Phillies team that finished 37 1/2 games out of first place.

Any way you measure it, Lefty’s season was one of the ages.

Carlton won the National League’s pitching Triple Crown by leading the Senior Circuit in wins, ERA and strikeouts. He completed 30 of his 41 starts.

SABRmetrics are predictably kind to Carlton’s season. He posted the highest single-season WAR by a pitcher since Walter Johnson in 1913. Lefty also led the majors in ERA+ and fielding-independent pitching.

Many feel his 1972 performance is vastly underappreciated.

It’s plain to see, the career year for one of baseball’s best pitchers was one of the ages.