May 20, 1964 - Bob Gibson has come up with a simple formula for getting his arm loose — polishing his car.
A few hours after working on his car in Forest Park, Gibson polished off the Chicago Cubs, 1-0, tonight at Busch Stadium. He had 12 strikeouts, one short of his high against Houston last season. He allowed four hits and retired the last 17 batters.
“I threw well in spring training, but my shoulder has been stiff since then,” said the stellar St. Louis Cardinal. “Why, I had to warm up for 20 minutes to get loose one night. So, I thought I’d try polishing the car.”
Most of the Cubs wish Gibson had taken the bus and left the polishing to someone else.
Even though Ron Sango got 50% of the hits off Gibson, he had the highest praise for Bob. Santo was especially awed by a slider that he missed for a third strike. “I never saw anyone throw a breaking pitch that exploded like that one,” said Santo.
Does Gibson, no 4-0 for the season, throw harder than the Reds’ Jim Maloney?
“Maloney’s ball rises,” Santo said. Then, motioning with his hands, the Cub slugger added: “Gibson’s ball goes this way, that way, up and down. Gibson is more deceptive and throws more easily than Maloney.”
Santo, who also struck out on an exploding slider to end the game, was asked if Gibson threw his fastball as hard as Sandy Koufax does his.
“Yes, for certain periods,” Ron said, “but Gibson throws his breaking stuff as hard as he does his fastball.”
Dick Groat, whose single in the eighth was followed by hits by Ken Boyer and Bill White for the only run off hard-luck Larry Jackson, remembered only one game in which Gibson threw as hard as he did tonight.
“It was a night in Pittsburgh in 1962 when Bob beat the Pirates on a three-hitter,” ex-Pirate Groat recalled. “We got two hits on sliders, one on a curve — none on his fastball. I felt that for one given night, Gibson was the fastest pitcher I ever faced.”
Manager Johnny Keane said he might have seen Gibson when he was as good as tonight, “but never better.”
“Bob had great control, and he challenged the hitters all night,” said Keane. “In the ninth, he went after Billy Williams and Santo as if he were saying, ‘Hurry up, I want to get this over and go home.’”
Redbird catcher Tim McCarver said he never had seen Gibson throw better.
“I’ve got a big sponge in my mitt,” Tim said, displaying his reddened hand. “I’m not letting him rip up my hand.”
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