Celebrated MLB Pitcher Dead at 84

Former White Sox knuckleball pitcher Wilbur Wood has died. He was 84. Per The New York Times, Wood passed away on Saturday, Jan. 17, at a hospital in Burlington, MA. A cause of death has not been named. Wood's widow, Janet Wood, confirmed his death.

Wilbur Wood Spent Nearly Two Decades in MLB

Wood was born in Cambridge and was a star baseball player for Belmont High School before he began his professional career in 1961. He spent a total of 17 years with the MLB, including 12 years with the White Sox, and finished with a 164–156 record. He also played with the Red Sox and the Pirates throughout a career which saw him twice leading the league in games pitched; and four games started.

In 1972, while playing for the White Sox, Wood set the record for the most innings thrown by a pitcher, throwing 376 ⅔  innings for the team that season and making 49 starts that year. Prior to Wood, the previous holders for both records notched their accomplishments in 1917 and 1908, respectively. Those records have not been matched since Wood did so.

'A Real Hot-Shot Pitcher'

“He was a real hot-shot pitcher,” recalled Roland Hemond, a former Sox executive who became a minor-league director for the Milwaukee Braves, to the The Chicago Tribune. “I first met Wilbur in 1960 when our scout Jeff Jones sent him to Milwaukee for a tryout right after he had graduated from high school. He was a fuzzy-faced, chubby little guy who didn’t throw very hard. I watched him throw batting practice but I couldn’t get very excited about him.

“After his workout, I brought him up to the press room in County Stadium with my wife, and we fed him hot dogs,” Hemond continued. “We did discover he had a good appetite. He was such a likable little guy, it was tough to tell him he didn’t throw hard enough and we weren’t interested.”

Wood Worked for Pharmaceutical Company After Retirement

Throughout his career, Wood was thrice named American League All-Star. He also recorded four 20-win seasons. After leaving the MLB, Wood dramatically shifted careers and went to work at a pharmaceutical company. “I was lucky because when I came to the Sox, Hoyt Wilhelm was still with them — probably the greatest knuckleball pitcher of all,” Wood said, per the Tribune. “He told me if I was going to throw the knuckleball, I should junk the rest of my pitches. I wasn’t doing any good with them anyway, so I took his advice. I had nothing to lose.”

Wood is survived by his wife, Janet; and his three children—Wendy Wood-Yang, and Derron and Christen Wood Dolloff—from a previous marriage.