Juan Marichal

Juan Marichal was a Dominican Hall of Fame right-hander for the San Francisco Giants known for his signature high leg kick.

Juan Antonio Marichal Sánchez was born on October 20, 1937, in Laguna Verde, a small rural town in the Dominican Republic. Raised in modest circumstances, Marichal developed his craft on local sandlots before signing with the San Francisco Giants organization and making his major league debut on July 19, 1960 — becoming, in time, the first Dominican-born pitcher to achieve major stardom in the big leagues and an inspiration to generations of Latin American players who followed him, including countryman David Ortiz decades later. Marichal's signature high leg kick, in which his front foot rose above his head before delivery, along with his ability to throw from multiple arm angles and mix an unusually wide variety of pitches, made him nearly impossible for hitters to time. He announced himself on the national stage on July 19, 1960 — his major league debut — by retiring the first 19 batters he faced and carrying a no-hitter into the eighth inning. His signature season came in 1963, when he went 25-8 with a 2.41 ERA, leading the National League in innings pitched, and on June 15 of that year threw a no-hitter against the Houston Colt .45s. He won 20 or more games in a season six times between 1963 and 1969, posting an ERA below 2.50 and striking out more than 200 batters in every one of those seasons — a level of consistency matched by very few pitchers in any era. Across the 1960s as a whole, Marichal won more games — 191 — than any other pitcher in baseball, edging out contemporaries Sandy Koufax and Bob Gibson despite pitching in the same offense-starved decade. He was named the All-Star Game MVP in 1965 and made 10 All-Star teams over his career. Remarkably, for all his dominance, Marichal never won a Cy Young Award, in part because he shared an era and a rotation-mate's spotlight with Koufax. Marichal finished his 16-year career, spent mostly with the Giants before brief stints with the Boston Red Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers, with 243 wins, a 2.89 ERA, and 2,303 strikeouts — for decades the most wins of any pitcher born in the Dominican Republic. The Giants retired his No. 27, and in 1983, in his third year of eligibility, Marichal was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, becoming the first Dominican-born player enshrined in Cooperstown.

Right-handed pitcher with exceptional control and variety

First Dominican pitcher in Baseball Hall of Fame

• HOF 1983
• 10x All-Star