Twice, FERGUSON JENKINS had gotten so close to a Cy Young Award he could really taste it. After finishing in second place for this most prestigious award for any pitcher to receive in 1967 and third in 1970, in 1971 Jenkins finally broke through.

On 3 November 1971, he was named as the National League Cy Young Award winner, becoming the very first Chicago Cubs pitcher and first Canadian-born player to ever receive the award. His 17 first-place votes landed him ahead of New York Mets star pitcher TOM SEAVER, the runner-up, while Los Angeles Dodgers lefty AL DOWNING finished third.

The 28-year-old right-hander had gone 24-13 in 1971, posting a 2.77 ERA, leading the NL with 325.0 innings pitched and throwing a remarkable 30 complete games over 39 starts while earning his second All-Star selection. Upon being told, Jenkins had to hurry from his hometown of Chatham, Ontario, where he had been on a duck hunting trip with teammates C / 1B / 3B J.C. MARTIN and OF / 1B BILLY WILLIAMS, to get to Chicago to accept the award. “ I haven’t considered the Cy Young to be that important,” Jenkins told the Chicago Tribune. “ Of course one likes to win anything he can, but getting into the World Series is something I class ahead of this.”

All these years later he cannot recall if he walked or ran to the mound when he was called in from the bullpen to make his major league debut with the Philadelphia Phillies on 10 September 1965 – 56 years ago. “ I don’t know how I got there,” writes Jenkins in his 2009 biography, Fergie: My Life from the Cubs to Cooperstown. “ It could have been one of those Star Trek things where they say, ‘ Beam me up, Scottie.’ I just got there.”

He had been summoned to relieve future Baseball Hall of Famer Jim Bunning in the eighth inning of a 4-4 tie with the St. Louis Cardinals in front of 16,333 fans at Connie Mack Stadium. “ Bunning was still there [ on the mound ], the catcher was Pat Corrales and manager Gene Mauch was there,” recalls Jenkins in his bio. “ Mauch gave me the ball and said, ‘ Go get’em, kid !’ ” And go get’em the 22-year-old right-hander did.

Jenkins originally signed with the Philadelphia Phillies in 1962, with whom he was primarily a reliever, although after he was traded to Chicago in April 1966, the Cubs converted him into a full-time starting pitcher beginning in 1967. From there he became one of the most successful pitchers of his generation, recording 20 or more wins and complete games every year from 1967-1972.

Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Fergie Jenkins ( Postmedia Network File Photo )
PHOTO BY JULIE JOCSAK / St. Catharines Standard

When asked who he could credit for his success since coming to the Cubs, Jenkins named JOE BECKER, the immediate former pitching coach with the Cubbies who had retired in 1970.

“ [Becker] gave me a shorter windup,” Jenkins said. “ He made me work. He went over the hitters, and he told me when I first came up he’d make me a million dollars.”

Jenkins also revealed he had gotten a little help from an opponent, having corresponded frequently with Houston Astros pitcher DON WILSON, sharing insights on teams against whom each had fared well. “ I had pretty good success with the Giants and Phillies and he did well against Atlanta and Montreal,” Jenkins said. “ We exchanged information, and it helped us both.” However, he did draw the line somewhere, and understandably so. “ I could have helped him get [RON] SANTO out, too,” Jenkins said. “ But I wouldn’t do that, would I ?”

Pitching at Wrigley Field can be a struggle for many pitchers, though Jenkins was grateful for his home park nonetheless. “ I’d have given up fewer home runs if we had a bigger park, but this park doesn’t cheat a pitcher,” Jenkins said. “ It makes him concentrate more.” After he won his first Cy Young Award, Jenkins became a beacon of consistency in the years to come. He finished third in the NL Cy Young Award voting after another All-Star season in 1972, then was the runner up for the award in 1974, with a 25-12 record and a 2.82 ERA, after he was dealt to the Texas Rangers in October 1973.

He posted tremendous lifetime career marks of a 3.34 ERA, 284 wins with 3,192 strikeouts, becoming the first pitcher to ever retire with at least 3,000 strikeouts (3,192) and fewer than 1,000 walks (997).

Named as an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1979, Ferguson Jenkins was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in the Class of 1991, the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame and Canada's Sports Hall of Fame previous to that in 1987, then later the Ontario Sports Hall of Fame in 1995, the Chatham Sports Hall of Fame in 1999, Canada's Walk of Fame in 2001 and saw his # 31 retired by the Chicago Cubs in 2009.

The first Canadian-born player elected into Cooperstown, will have a statue erected in his honour outside Wrigley Field next year, the Chicago Cubs announced. Jenkins, 78, played 10 of his 19 seasons with the Cubs and became the first Cub to win the National League Cy Young Award back in 1971. As a Cub, he posted a 167-132 record with 154 complete games, 29 shutouts, six saves and a 3.20 ERA in 401 games.

He was elected into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1991. " I am deeply honoured to share this with my family, friends and teammates," Jenkins said in a statement on his Twitter account. " But most of all I share this with you, Cub fans, and I say to you ' Meet me at the Fergie Statue ' next year so we can all celebrate together." He will join fellow Cubs icons ERNIE BANK, HARRY CARAY, RON SANTO and BILLY WILLIAMS standing outside Wrigley Field.

Please see our page for more Ferguson Jenkins images by Ray Boetel.

SPECIAL TO WWW.CANADIANBASEBALLNEWS.COM – 4 NOVEMBER 2021