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The White Sox signed Gary Peters as a left-handed pitcher, but his first minor-league teams also made good use of his bat. In 1963, he had pitched for the White Sox for parts of four seasons and had a 19-8 record and a league-leading 2.33 ERA. In 243 innings, Peters had 189 strikeouts and tossed four shutouts. He also batted .259 and hit three home runs. His breakout performance earned him a Top 10 finish in the MVP vote, and he also won the AL Rookie of the Year Award. Proving that he was no one-season wonder, Peters led the AL with 20 wins in 1964 against just eight losses. In 1966 he won his second ERA title, leading the AL with a 1.98 mark. In 1968 he was unable to maintain his effectiveness after five excellent seasons. After the 1969 season, Peters was traded to the Red Sox, and in 1970 went to one of the better offenses in the league. He was never again the dominant pitcher he had been during his peak and his ERA for three seasons in Boston was 4.23. The Red Sox had enough returning veteran pitchers and younger talent that Peters was moved to the bullpen in 1972. He also was busy as the Boston player representative during the first players’ strike in MLB history. Rather than see if the veteran could work a couple more years as a reliever, the Red Sox released him in November. Peters signed with the Kansas City A’s over the offseason but failed to land a job with the team in 1973. He never pitched professionally again. Gary Peters died on January 26, 2023 at the age of 85. |
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