LOS ANGELES — Mike Marshall, who became the first reliever to win the Cy Young Award when he set a major league record by pitching 106 games in a season for the Los Angeles Dodgers, has died. He was 78.
Marshall died Monday night at home in Zephyrhills, Florida, where he had been receiving hospice care, according to the Dodgers, who spoke Tuesday to his daughter, Rebekah. She said he had been in hospice care, but did not give a cause of death.
The team had a moment of silence for Marshall before a game against St. Louis.
Marshall pitched in the majors from 1967 to 1981 for nine teams, compiling a record of 97-112 and 3.14 ERA. He recorded 880 strikeouts and 188 saves.
Marshall won the NL Cy Young Award in 1974, going 15-12 with a 2.42 ERA and 21 saves. The right-hander nicknamed “Iron Mike” set major league records that season for most appearances, relief innings (208 1/3), games finished (83) and consecutive games pitched (13).
He was an All-Star with the Dodgers in 1974 and ’75. He jogged to the mound from the bullpen, common for relievers today, rather than be driven in a cart as was customary then.
In the 1974 postseason, Marshall pitched in two NL Championship Series games and all five World Series games, in which the Dodgers lost 4-1 to Oakland. He saved the Dodgers’ lone win, preserving a 3-2 victory in Game 2 by picking off speedy pinch-runner Herb Washington at first base in the ninth inning.
Marshall still holds the American League record for games pitched in a season with 90 for the Minnesota Twins in 1979. He led his league in games pitched four times, saves three times and games finished five times.
He was known for throwing the screwball, an elusive pitch that breaks in the opposite direction of a slider or curveball. Depending on the pitcher’s arm angle, the ball could also have a sinking action. Fernando Valenzuela later won the Cy Young throwing the same difficult pitch for the Dodgers.
Born Michael Grant Marshall on Jan. 15, 1943, in Adrian, Michigan, he began his big league career with the Detroit Tigers in 1967. They sent him back to the minors in 1968, when he was drafted by the expansion Seattle Pilots. He pitched a single season for the Houston Astros in 1970.
He pitched for the Montreal Expos from 1970-73, when he began to flourish with a 1.78 ERA in 1972. The following year, he led the NL in both saves and games pitched.
He was traded after the 1973 season to the Dodgers for outfielder Willie Davis and pitched for Los Angeles for three years. Marshall is not related to outfielder Mike Marshall, who won World Series titles with the Dodgers in 1981 and ’88.
Marshall moved to the Atlanta Braves from 1976-77 before switching to the American League with the Texas Rangers in 1977. He pitched for Minnesota from 1978-80 and finished his career with the New York Mets in 1981.
At 17, Marshall was signed by the Philadelphia Phillies as an amateur free agent in 1960. He didn’t pitch professionally until 1965 in the minors. He was purchased by Detroit Tigers the following year.
Marshall eventually earned a doctorate in kinesiology at Michigan State while with the Twins. In the months leading up to his record-setting 1974 season, he nearly retired to focus on school. Instead, he decided to pitch for the Dodgers.
He later advocated a pitching method he developed that he believed could eradicate arm injuries. Marshall thought many pitchers’ arm rotations led to ulnar collateral ligament injuries that required Tommy John surgery, named after Marshall’s former Dodgers teammate. It was Marshall who encouraged John, a 31-year-old left-hander at the time, to undergo the still experimental procedure that repaired his elbow and preserved his career.
Marshall is survived by wife Erica. He was preceded in death by first wife Nancy, who died April 30 in Minnesota at age 78. The couple had daughters Deborah, Rebekah and Kerry.
MARINERS: The Seattle Mariners placed outfielder Kyle Lewis on the 10-day injured list with a torn meniscus in his right knee.
This is the second time this season the Mariners have placed last year’s American League Rookie of the Year on the injured list.
Lewis appeared to get injured while trying to run down a fly ball from Sean Murphy in the eighth inning of the Mariners’ victory Monday over Oakland. Lewis made a leaping attempt on the deep drive and left the game before the start of the ninth inning.
Lewis started the season on IL after suffering a deep bone bruise in his knee late in spring training. He missed the first three weeks of the regular season before debuting April 20. After a slow start, Lewis had come on of late, hitting .303 with two doubles and two home runs over the past nine games.
Seattle recalled outfielder Taylor Trammell from Triple-A Tacoma to take Lewis’ spot.
TUESDAY’S GAMES
INDIANS 6, WHITE SOX 5: AL MVP Jose Abreu grounded out with the bases loaded to blunt a ninth-inning rally giving Shane Bieber and Cleveland a win at home.
Bieber (6-3) allowed two earned runs in seven innings, striking out seven to beat the AL Central-leading White Sox for the second time this season.
BLUE JAYS 5, MARLINS 1: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. keyed a career-best four-hit outing with his major league-leading 17th home run and Toronto celebrated the return to its temporary Buffalo home by beating Miami.
The Blue Jays are unable to play in Toronto for a second straight season because of Canadian health restrictions due to COVID-19.
After opening the season 10-11 playing at their spring training site in Dunedin, Florida, the Blue Jays escaped the heat and humidity to return to Buffalo, where they went 17-9 last year and clinched their first playoff berth since 2016.
ORIOLES 7, TWINS 4: Cedric Mullins got two hits, scored two runs and made a sensational catch in center field, helping host Baltimore snap its 14-game losing streak.
Pedro Severino and Maikel Franco both homered for the Orioles, who also ended a 16-game head-to-head skid against Minnesota. Baltimore’s Bruce Zimmermann (3-3) allowed two runs and six hits in 5 1/3 innings, striking out a career-high seven.
PHILLIES 17, REDS 3: Odubel Herrera and Andrew McCutchen each hit two of Philadelphia’s seven home runs and the visiting Phillies pummeled Cincinnati to end a three-game losing streak.
Matt Joyce capped the rout with a grand slam in the ninth off Reds infielder Alex Blandino, who was on the mound to help spare the bullpen.
After the slam, Cincinnati infielder Mike Freeman got the call to relieve and the next batter, pitcher Archie Bradley, mercifully stood with the bat on his shoulder until Freeman could get three called strikes.
Herrera, McCutchen and Rhys Hoskins all connected as the Phillies broke it open with a six-run sixth inning. McCutchen’s second homer, a three-run shot, came in the eighth as the Phillies avenged an 11-1 pounding by Cincinnati on Monday.
YANKEES 5, RAYS 3: Clint Frazier hit a game-ending, two-run homer with two outs in the 11th inning after making a game-saving catch in the eighth, and slumping New York beat Tampa Bay to end a four-game losing streak.
New York beat Tampa Bay in the Bronx for the second time in 11 tries since the start of last season. The AL East-leading Rays remained 4 1/2 games ahead of the Yankees with two games left in this four-game series.
CUBS 4, PADRES 3: Patrick Wisdom hit his third homer in two games, Willson Contreras also went deep and Chicago beat visiting after Padres star Fernando Tatis Jr. left with an injury.
Tatis exited because of right oblique tightness. He hit a fly to left field in the sixth inning and was replaced at shortstop in the bottom half by Ha-Seong Kim.
NATIONALS 11, BRAVES 6: Ryan Zimmerman and Juan Soto each hit a two-run homer and Washington overcame Stephen Strasburg’s early exit to win at Atlanta.
Soto had three hits, drove in four runs and scored four times to lead Washington’s 14-hit outburst.
The Nationals snapped their five-game losing streak even though Strasburg lasted only 1 1/3 innings. The right-hander left the game after William Contreras’ liner hit his left arm near his glove. Strasburg’s glove appeared to absorb at least some of the blow.
Strasburg picked up the ball and threw out Contreras at first base, but he was pulled following a visit from Manager Dave Martinez and trainer Paul Lessard.
TIGERS 10, BREWERS 7: Eric Haase and Jonathan Schoop each hit two home runs, Miguel Cabrera had three RBI as visiting Detroit ended Milwaukee’s five-game winning streak.
Milwaukee’s Kolten Wong and Tyrone Taylor also hit two homers apiece in a game that saw nine home runs.