Carl Hubbell
Carl Hubbell was the finest left-hander in the National League in the late 1920s and 1930s. He was nicknamed "King Carl" by his adoring fans and "The Meal Ticket" by his appreciative teammates, who relied on him heavily in big games. His patented screwball helped the New York Giants to three pennants and one World Series title, where he won four games behind a 1.79 ERA. He retired with 253 wins and was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1947.
Played For
New York Giants (1928-1943)
All-Time Rankings
Carl Hubbell ranks #15 among the Top 50 all-time at SP. Rankings ⇒
Best Season: 1933
He won his first MVP Award and led the Giants to the World Series title. His numbers: 23-12, 1.66 ERA, 308+ innings, five saves, and ten shutouts. On July 2, he pitched a complete-game 18-inning shutout over the Cardinals, allowing just six hits and striking out 12. He set an NL-record with 44 straight shutout innings and five of his shutouts were by a 1-0 score.
Factoids
Carl Hubbell is the only pitcher in major league history to win exactly 11 games in four consecutive seasons (1939-1942).
Born
Carl Owen Hubbell was born on June 22, 1903, in Carthage, MO.
Died
November 21, 1988, Scottsdale, AZ
Batted: Right
Threw: Left
Primary Position: P
Primary Team: NY1
Major League Debut
July 26, 1928
Nine Other Players Who Debuted in 1928
Al Lopez
Bill Dickey
Chuck Klein
Rollie Hemsley
Pepper Martin
Mel Harder
Carl Hubbell
George Earnshaw
Clint Brown
Nicknames
King Carl, The Meal Ticket
Uniform Numbers
#10 (1932), #11 (1933-1943)
Similar Players
Juan Marichal
Related Players
Gabby Hartnett was the catcher in the 1934 All-Star Game when Hubbell set down five straight future Hall of Famers on strikes... Hubbell gave up a home run to Babe Ruth in the Babe's first National League game, on April 16, 1935, in Boston.
| Hall of Fame Voting |
| Year |
Election |
Votes |
Pct |
| 1945 |
BBWAA |
24 |
9.7% |
1946 |
BBWAA |
75 |
28.5% |
1946 |
Nominating Vote |
101 |
50.0% |
1947 |
BBWAA |
140 |
87.0% |
|
No-Hitter
5/8/1929: For NYN (N) vs. PIT (N), 2-0 at NYN. 9 innings pitched.
Post-Season Appearances
1933 World Series
1936 World Series
1937 World Series
Awards and Honors
1933 NL MVP
1936 NL MVP
Feats
In the 1934 All-Star Game played in the Polo Grounds on July 10, Hubbell struck out future Hall of Famers Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, and Jimmie Foxx to end the first inning. He started off the second inning by fanning Al Simmons and Joe Cronin, two more batters destined for Cooperstown. Thus, he struck out five straight Hall of Famers. His final totals for that memorable All-Star appearance were three shutout innings, six strikeouts, two hits and a walk.
Milestones
Like Lefty Grove, Hubbell was talented enough to be in the big leagues well before he made it. Had he gotten a chance with Detroit, who had him in camp in 1923 when Ty Cobb was their manager, he most likely would have racked up 300 wins.
Milestones
- June 26, 1938: 200th Win...
Pitching Feats
All-Star Selections
1933 NL
1934 NL
1935 NL
1936 NL
1937 NL
1938 NL
1940 NL
1941 NL
1942 NL
Replaced
Hubbell helped fill the void left by Burleigh Grimes and Virgil Barnes, both of whom fell out of the Giants' rotation in 1928.
Replaced By
Hubbell was 40 years old in 1943, his final season. There were a bunch of guys there to take Hubbell's starts, most of whom, like Ken Chase and Johnnie Wittig, wouldn't have been in the majors had it not been for the war.
Best Strength as a Player
Command of his screwball and fastball. Hubbell had amazing control. From 1933-1936 he pitched more than 1,200 innings and walked less than 200 batters.
Largest Weakness as a Player
He did allow more home runs than the average pitcher, but so few guys were on base that it really never hurt him.
Learn More about Carl Hubbell
Search Amazon.com for Books about Carl Hubbell ⇒
Search for Carl Hubbell at Google ⇒
View a map of his hometown at Mapquest ⇒
