Gibson, Bob

Gibson, Bob (Pack Robert Gibson), 1935–2020, American baseball player, b. Omaha, Nebr. Gibson, a right-hander with a reputation for being both intense and intimidating, was one of baseball's most dominating pitchers, winning 251 games in 17 seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals. After playing basketball and baseball at Creighton Univ., he played basketball with the Harlem Globetrotters for one season, then joined the St. Louis's minor league team (1957). During his major-league career (1959–75), he helped the Cardinals win the World Series in 1964 and 1967 and was named most valuable player both years. He had an earned run average of 1.92, threw 56 shutouts (including a 1971 no-hitter against the Pittsburgh Pirates), and won the Cy Young Award twice (1968, 1970). He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1981.

See his autobiography (with L. Wheeler, 1994).

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