Sandy Koufax

The most dominant five-year stretch in pitching history — three Cy Young Awards, four no-hitters including a perfect game.

Sanford Koufax was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1935. Brooklyn Dodgers signed him in 1955. His 12-season career was divided between mediocrity in his first six seasons and absolute dominance in his final five. From 1962 to 1966 he was the most dominant pitcher in baseball history: four Cy Young Awards during a period when only one was given to the entire major leagues, four no-hitters (including a perfect game against the Chicago Cubs in September 1965), and a career ERA of 2.76 in an era of relatively low run scoring. He won three World Series championships with the Dodgers (1959, 1963, 1965) and the World Series MVP twice (1963, 1965). He struck out 2,396 batters in his career, leading the league in strikeouts four times. He won the pitching Triple Crown three times — leading the league in wins, ERA and strikeouts simultaneously. He retired in 1966 aged 30 because of severe arthritis in his left elbow — a decision made to preserve his health before permanent damage occurred. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972 at 36 — the youngest position player or pitcher ever inducted at the time. He is considered by historians to have had the greatest peak pitching performance in baseball history.

Power pitcher with devastating curveball and blazing fastball

One of the greatest pitchers in baseball history, retired early due to arthritis

• World Series Champion 3x (1959, 1963, 1965)
• Cy Young Award 3x (1963, 1965, 1966)
• World Series MVP 2x
• Hall of Fame (1972)
• 4 no-hitters