{"id":20843,"date":"2021-06-13T08:17:26","date_gmt":"2021-06-13T13:17:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/?p=20843"},"modified":"2021-06-13T08:17:26","modified_gmt":"2021-06-13T13:17:26","slug":"major-league-baseball-american-leagues-first-black-20-game-winner-black-aces-author-jim-mudcat-grant-dies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/myboysay.com\/blog\/?p=20843","title":{"rendered":"major league baseball american league’s first Black 20-game winner, ‘Black Aces’ author Jim ‘Mudcat’ Grant dies"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Jim \u201cMudcat\u201d Grant, a famed former MLB player, author, musician, and broadcaster, has passed away at 85<\/h1>\n<\/header>\n

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One of Major League Baseball\u2019s remarkable figures has passed away at 85<\/a>. Jim \u201cMudcat\u201d Grant<\/a> played in MLB from 1958-71 with the Indians, Twins, Dodgers, Expos, Cardinals, Athletics, Pirates and Athletics again, making a big mark there. His impact was particularly felt with the Twins in 1965<\/a>, when he became the first Black AL pitcher to win 20 games (he went 21-7) and helped them make the World Series, delivering starting wins in Games 1 and 6 (plus hitting a three-run homer in Game 6 and throwing five innings of relief in Game 5).<\/strong> \"a <\/span> \u00a0\u00a0<\/span> <\/span>During his career, Grant also sang in nightclubs<\/a> with his \u201cMudcat and the Kittens\u201d group, and gained a lot of fame for his musical skills. After his playing days, he went on to be a broadcaster with both the Indians and A\u2019s<\/a>. During his time as a broadcaster, his \u201ca little chin music<\/a>\u201d phrase about high and inside pitches took off. He continued with music as well, playing on TV shows hosted by Johnny Carson and Mike Douglas, singing the national anthem ahead of an A\u2019s game in 1970<\/a>,\u00a0and performing with Count Basie and Duke Ellington<\/a>. He even hosted a TV variety show in Minneapolis.<\/strong>Grant pitched 14 seasons with seven different teams in MLB from 1958-1971. He spent his first seven with the Cleveland Indians<\/a> before joining the Twins in 1964, where he made his greatest impact on the game. He earned his second All-Star bid in 1965 while leading the league with 21 wins en route to the Twins’ first AL pennant.<\/strong>Grant pitched three games in the World Series that year against the Los Angeles Dodgers. He won two, including a complete-game 5-1 win<\/a> in Game 6. He also led the Twins’ offense that game with a three-run home run. The Dodgers won the series with Sandy Koufax on the mound in Game 7.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Grant posted a 145-119 career record with a 3.63 ERA. He tallied 1,267 career strikeouts and 849 career walks in 2,442 innings over 571 appearances. After retirement, he worked as a broadcaster for the Indians and was a vocal advocate for Black participation in sports<\/a>.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Beyond that, Grant shaped efforts to recognize Black pitchers with his 2007 \u201cBlack Aces\u201d book<\/a> (written with Tom Sabellico and Pat O\u2019Brien) and campaign to recognize Black pitchers who had won 20 games in a single MLB season. That became a major cause for him, and it had a significant impact. Here\u2019s more on that from Rhett Bolinger in a 2017 MLB.com piece<\/a>:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cIt was definitely special for me,\u201d Grant said at a recent TwinsFest. \u201cI didn\u2019t know there was never an African-American pitcher who won 20 games in the American League. As the season progressed, I started getting all kinds of mail, and even Howard Cosell called me a couple times when I got to 18 wins. So, it was really special.\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

As Grant got older, he understood the significance of the milestone, and it became his mission to celebrate the accomplishments of the Black Aces (http:\/\/www.theblackaces.com\/<\/a>), African-American pitchers who won at least 20 games. Grant\u2019s book, \u201cThe Black Aces: Baseball\u2019s Only African-American Twenty-Game Winners\u201d, came out in 2007, and since then\u00a0Carsten Sabathia<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0David Price<\/a>\u00a0have joined the exclusive club.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The members are Vida Blue (1971, \u201973, \u201975), Al Downing (\u201971), Bob Gibson (\u201965, \u201966, \u201968-70), Dwight Gooden (\u201985), Grant (\u201965), Ferguson Jenkins (\u201967-72, \u201974), Sam Jones (\u201959), Don Newcombe (\u201951, \u201955, \u201956), Mike Norris (\u201980), J.R. Richard (\u201976), Dave Stewart (\u201987-90), Earl Wilson (\u201967), Dontrelle Willis (2005), Sabathia (\u201910) and Price (\u201912).<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a lot of fun doing that book and doing all that research,\u201d Grant said. \u201cI found out so many things that happened and how African-Americans contributed to Major League Baseball. I think it\u2019s just a wonderful thing.\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Beyond that, Grant was a regular figure advocating for Black history in baseball and working to improve Black participation in the game. As Bill Lubinger of\u00a0The Cleveland Plain Dealer<\/em> wrote<\/a> around a January 2019 Cleveland Cavaliers game where Grant, Jimmy Jackson, Cris Carter and Jim Brown were honored in a \u201cBlack Heritage Celebration\u201d of local athletes, Grant experienced plenty of adversity due to his skin color in both the minors and majors, but also got support from a wide range of teammates. And he spent a large amount of his later years trying to boost Black participation in baseball, including organizing tournaments.<\/strong><\/p>\n

As the number of black players in the majors has shrunk from more than one in four by the mid-70\u2019s to about one in 10 last season, Grant has been out front of an effort to counter the trend.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cDo we just sit here and say, \u2018Well, that\u2019s too bad?\u2019 No, you get out and you do something about it,\u201d he said. \u201cYou provide a place of opportunity where kids can show some skills at an early age and maybe this will get bigger and bigger and we can motivate them to play this game.\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Grant was also a frequent figure at Negro Leagues Baseball Museum events, and president Bob Kendrick delivered a nice tribute to him Saturday:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Absolutely heartbroken over the news of the passing of my dear friend & creator of the Black Aces, Jim \u201cMudcat\u201d Grant! I\u2019ll cherish the many memories & can still hear his voice calling me \u201cEl Presidente!\u201d RIP!?? @MLB<\/a> @MLB_PLAYERS<\/a> @MLBNetworkRadio<\/a> @Twins<\/a> @Royals<\/a> @41actionnews<\/a> RT pic.twitter.com\/DANsJFiEAy<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2014 Bob Kendrick (@nlbmprez) June 12, 2021<\/a><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Some living members of the Black Aces chimed in with tributes to Grant as well, including Fergie Jenkins and Dontrelle Willis:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Saddened to hear about the passing of Mudcat Grant. The first Black Ace and basically wrote the book on pitching. One of my best friends. My thoughts are with the Grant family. You will be missed my friend. pic.twitter.com\/uIKog3Lk7F<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2014 Fergie Jenkins (@fergieajenkins) June 12, 2021<\/a><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Rip to mudcat #blackaces<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/TXxvReWxHv<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2014 Dontrelle Willis (@DTrainMLB) June 12, 2021<\/a><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Things weren\u2019t easy for Grant for much of his life, with his father dying when he was young, his mother having to go to work in a canning factory, and him having to work in a mill himself at 13. Even his \u201cMudcat\u201d nickname came from a bad place. As he once shared, that started with white teammates of his in the minors thinking he was from Mississippi (he was from Florida), and calling him \u201cMississippi Mudcat.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

But the \u201cMudcat\u201d name became one Grant eventually adopted himself over time, and it wound up being a good fit for his combination of athletic and musical skills. And he definitely brought those to the table often, including with this 2011 performance of \u201cWhat A Wonderful World\u201d at a memorial for former teammate Harmon Killebrew:<\/strong><\/p>\n

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