On July 1, 1966, in his ninth start in the majors, Woodie Fryman allowed a leadoff single to the Mets' Ron Hunt. After Hunt was caught stealing, Fryman proceeded to retire the next 26 batters, narrowly missing a perfect game in the Pirates 12-0 victory. That flirtation with perfection came in his rookie year helped him record a 12-9 record, one of the few times he had a winning mark in his career. In the middle of the 1972 season he was waived by the Phillies and picked up by Detroit. He proceeded to pitch brilliantly for the Tigers, going 10-3 with a 2.06 ERA. Without his efforts, the Tigers wouldn't have captured the division title. It was his last hurrah as a starting pitcher, however, and by his mid-30s, the stocky southpaw was in the bullpen, where he resurrected his career with the Expos, pitching until he was 43 years old.
Teams Woodie Fryman Played For
Pittsburgh Pirates (1966-1967) Philadelphia Phillies (1968-1972) Detroit Tigers (1972-1974) Montreal Expos (1975-1976) Cincinnati Reds (1977) Chicago Cubs (1978) Montreal Expos (1978-1983)
Best Season: 1972 Withou Fryman's efforts, the Tigers would not have won the American League East division title. After he was waived by the Phillies (he was 4-10 with a 4.36 ERA, but had tossed a couple shutouts), Tigers GM Jim Campbell snatched Fryman for the stretch run. Facing a slew of AL batters who had never seen his left-handed slants, Fryman thrived, winning three games in August, and six in September, including two against rival Baltimore. On the next-to-the-last day of the season, he defeated Boston's Luis Tiant, 3-1, to clinch the division title. He had gone 10-3 with a 2.06 ERA in 16 games for the Tigers. Unfortunately, he lost both of his starts in the playoffs against Oakland.
Born Woodrow Thompson Fryman was born on April 15, 1940, in Ewing, KY.
Batted: Right Threw: Left
Primary Position: P
Primary Team: MON
Major League Debut April 15, 1966 ... Fryman didn't sign a professional contract until he was 25 years old, but he made up for lost time. After just 12 minor league games in 1965, he made the Pirates major league roster out of spring training the following year. After 9 1/3 innings out of the bullpen in which he allowed just two earned runs and four hits, manager Harry Walker inserted Fryman into the rotation. He pitched a complete game to defeat the Dodgers and was essentially in the rotation the rest of the year. At one point he tossed three straight shutouts, including the one-hitter against the Dodgers on July 1, in which he retired 26 straight batters. Over those three games, Fryman surrendered just seven hits, and one walk, while fanning 20.
Similar Players Ray Sadecki, Stan Bahnsen, Bob Knepper
Hall of Fame Voting
Year
Election
Votes
Pct
1989
BBWAA
0
%
Post-Season Appearances
1972 American League Championship Series
1981 National League Division Playoffs
1981 National League Championship Series
Notes Fryman pitched four one-hitter sin his career.
Transactions July 6, 1965: Signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates as an amateur free agent; December 15, 1967: Traded by the Pittsburgh Pirates with Harold Clem (minors), Bill Laxton, and Don Money to the Philadelphia Phillies for Jim Bunning; August 2, 1972: Selected off waivers by the Detroit Tigers from the Philadelphia Phillies; December 4, 1974: Traded by the Detroit Tigers to the Montreal Expos for Tom Walker and Terry Humphrey; December 16, 1976: Traded by the Montreal Expos with Dale Murray to the Cincinnati Reds for Tony Perez and Will McEnaney; October 31, 1977: Traded by the Cincinnati Reds with Bill Caudill to the Chicago Cubs for Bill Bonham; June 9, 1978: Traded by the Chicago Cubs to the Montreal Expos for a player to be named later. The Montreal Expos sent Jerry White (June 23, 1978) to the Chicago Cubs to complete the trade; November 10, 1982: Granted Free Agency; December 23, 1982: Signed as a Free Agent with the Montreal Expos; October 7, 1983: Released by the Montreal Expos.
All-Star Selections
1968 NL
1976 NL
Best Strength as a Player Fryman was tough on left-handed batters. In slightly more than 500 career innings against LHB, Fryman allowed just 23 home runs.
