{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"History Remixed: Where History Meets Music","title":"Sudden Sam McDowell - Legends of the Mound","html":"","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":204,"description":"Samuel Edward Thomas McDowell (born September 21, 1942) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a starting pitcher from 1961 to 1975, most notably for the Cleveland Indians. A six-time All-Star, McDowell led the American League in strikeouts five times. Tall (6 feet, 5 inches) and powerful, his left-handed fastball was delivered with an unusually calm pitching motion which led to his memorable nickname, \"Sudden Sam\".Early life[edit]McDowell was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on September 21, 1942, one of six siblings. His father Thomas was a heat inspector for U.S. Steel.[1] He attended Pittsburgh Central Catholic High School, where he played baseball, basketball, football and track, graduating in 1960.[1][2] He had an 8–1 won–loss pitching record his senior year (though it has also been stated he was 8–0[1]), with 152 strikeouts in 63 innings and no earned runs. McDowell had a total of 9 no-hitters in high school.[3][1] He pitched in the Colt World Series in 1960, throwing two no-hitters and a one-hitter.[1] In 1960, he was considered the top baseball prospect in the country,[3] and had signing bonus offers from all 16 major league teams.[4]With the Indians[edit]1960–61: Major league debut[edit]During the 1960 season, as a high school graduate, McDowell signed with the Indians for a $75,000 bonus.[5] McDowell made the signing announcement at the conclusion of his appearance in the third segment of To Tell the Truth aired on June 16, 1960.[6]He spent the 1960 season with the Class-D Lakeland Indians, where he had a 5–6 record, with a 3.35 earned run average (ERA). He struck out 100 batters in 104.2 innings pitched, but also had 80 bases on balls. He picked off 43 base runners, modeling his technique on Hall of fame left-handed pitcher Warren Spahn,[7] who had given McDowell pickoff tips when he was in Pittsburgh.[8][4]In 1961, McDowell was promoted to the Triple-A Salt Lake City Bees of the Pacific Coast League....","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/6lB07FZs16IZ1hlaku6jaI_IoRq7cTKcUjriypY9_S8/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS9hNmU1/M2U4Mzk2NzI4MzVm/NTE4Y2ViNTM5Yzhm/NDI1OC5wbmc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}