James Alvin Palmer, an American former professional baseball pitcher who spent 19 years with the Baltimore Orioles in Major League Baseball (MLB), was born on October 15, 1945. With 186 victories, Palmer had the most wins of any MLB pitcher in the 1970s.
He also won three Cy Young Awards, four Gold Gloves, and at least 20 games in eight seasons. He now holds the Orioles record with 268 career victories. He was one of the select few pitchers who never allowed a grand slam in a major league game.
He was a six-time American League (AL) All-Star. Palmer made eight playoff appearances and was a crucial component of three World Series champions, six American League pennants, and seven Eastern Division champions.
He is the first pitcher to triumph in three World Series games. In 1966, nine days before turning 21, he became the youngest pitcher to ever toss a full-game shutout in a World Series, defeating Sandy Koufax in Koufax’s final game.
He was a starter in the 1971 team’s final rotation, including four 20-game winners in a calendar year. In 1990, he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Palmer has worked as a color commentator on MLB game telecasts for ABC, ESPN, and the Orioles on Home Team Sports (HTS), Comcast SportsNet (CSN) Mid-Atlantic, and the Mid-Atlantic Sports Network since his retirement as an active player in 1984.
Additionally, he has served as a well-known spokesperson, most notably for Jockey International, for almost 20 years. In the 1960s, he earned the moniker “Cakes” for his practice of eating pancakes for breakfast the mornings he pitched.
Jim Palmer Net Worth: How Rich is He In 2023?
Former professional baseball player Jim Palmer has a $3 million dollar net worth. With the Baltimore Orioles, he made his Major League debut in 1965, and he went on to become one of the best pitchers in MLB history.
Till 1984, he was an Orioles player. He was selected to the All-Star team six times along the road. He received four Gold Glove Awards and three American League Cy Young Awards between 1973 and 1976.
He pitched a no-hitter in August 1969 and oversaw three World Series victories for the Baltimore Orioles. His uniform number, 22, was retired in 1985 and he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1990.
He has served chiefly as a color analyst and publicist after his retirement. In the early 1990s, he made one comeback attempt but soon returned to retirement.
Muct Check
When Did Jim Palmer Start His Profession?
Palmer, a high-kicking pitcher with a very fluid delivery, earned his first major-league victory on May 16, 1965, against the Yankees at home while pitching in relief. In the fourth inning of that game, he blasted the first of his three major league home runs, a two-run shot, off Yankees starter Jim Bouton.
Palmer had a 5-4 record at the end of the year. Palmer entered the starting lineup in 1966. Due to Frank Robinson’s MVP and Triple Crown season, Baltimore won the pennant. Palmer defeated the Kansas City Athletics in his decisive game to win the AL pennant.
He pitched a shutout in Game 2 of the World Series at Dodger Stadium, defeating the defending champion Dodgers 6-0, making him the youngest pitcher (20 years, 11 months) to do so.
Over a Los Angeles squad that included Sandy Koufax, Don Drysdale, and Claude Osteen, the underdog Orioles won the series in straight games. The Orioles pitchers’ string of 33+13 consecutive scoreless innings set a World Series record.
In the third inning of Game 1, the Dodgers scored their last run against Moe Drabowsky. Dave McNally, Wally Bunker, and Palmer threw complete games in the next three games. Palmer experienced arm issues throughout the following two seasons.
In 1966, he hurt his arm while using a paint roller in his brand-new Baltimore home. He could pitch for the remainder of the season and the World Series because of cortisone injections, but in 1967 his arm remained heavy.
On May 12, he launched a one-hit game against the New York Yankees, but five days later, following a terrible start against the Boston Red Sox, he was sent to the minor leagues.
Palmer let up the lone grand slam of his entire professional career to Johnny Bench of the Buffalo Bisons in Niagara Falls, New York, while he was trying to get back with the Rochester Red Wings. He pitched only three more games for the Orioles in 1967.
He played in just 10 minor league games in 1968 and never once for the Orioles. Palmer thought about abandoning baseball to go to college or trying to be a position player because his professional prospects were so poor.
In the expansion draught one month after being placed on waivers in September 1968, he was left unprotected for the Kansas City Royals and Seattle Pilots but was not claimed.
The Orioles sent him to pitch for the Santurce Crabbers in the Puerto Rican Winter League after he had previously pitched for a team in the Instructional League.
However, Palmer sat next to Marv Foxxman, a pharmaceutical salesman, at a Baltimore Bullets game before departing for Santurce, who advised him to take Indocin. Palmer’s arm stopped hurting at Santurce, and his fastball resumed hitting 95 mph.
It’s almost time for. @Yellowstone!! GiddyUp!!@CowboyPajamasTx @realbenmcdonald pic.twitter.com/G5ocIgqk7l
— Jim Palmer (@Jim22Palmer) December 12, 2022
As far as I was concerned, Palmer thought it was a miracle. In 1969, Palmer fully recovered and joined the Orioles rotation, including 20-game winners Dave McNally and Mike Cuellar.
He spent six weeks on the disabled list, missing the month of July, but it wasn’t due to arm issues; instead, it was a ruptured back muscle. Just four days after being activated from the injured list on August 13, Palmer pitched a no-hitter against Oakland.
It was his lone career no-hitter. He had a record of 16-4, 123 strikeouts, a 2.34 ERA, and a.800 winning percentage at the end of the season. In Game 3 of the 1969 World Series, the New York Mets defeated the Orioles, who were widely favored.
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Emma is a Master of Science candidate at the California Institute of Technology. Since approximately four years ago, she has been a freelance writer, producing content for newspapers, magazines, blogs, and the internet