November 27, 2003 [LINK]

R.I.P. Warren Spahn

The greatest left-handed pitcher in baseball history died this week at the age of 82. Like his teammate on the Boston/Milwaukee Braves, Eddie Mathews*, Warren Spahn never got as much recognition as he deserved, partly because he was modest, and partly because his team was from a small media market and only made it to the World Series three times during his 21-year career. Spahn was awarded a medal for heroism during the Battle of the Bulge, and won 363 games before retiring in 1963, a lifetime achievement that no one since has come very close to matching. Tom Boswell pays appropriate tribute to Spahn in yesterday's Washington Post.

* I just revised the Milwaukee County Stadium page to correct the spelling of the last name of Eddie Mathews, which my brother Chris pointed out to me.