Jim “Catfish” Hunter
You’d be hard pressed to find anyone who would say anything unpleasant about Catfish. Isn’t that a wonderful way to be remembered? He was one of the outstanding athletes who remained humble, just did his job the best he could and was grateful to have the good fortune and talent to pursue it. He married his high school sweetheart and during the off season of baseball always returned to their hometown. His wife still lives in their brick ranch-style home where they raised their three children. When he retired from the major league, he returned to Hertford and farmed. He was a member of the Lion’s Club, coached Little League, and willingly gave his autographs and used his name to raise money for every charity and anything his hometown or any person needed. Never boastful or prideful, he loved his neighbors and his town. He’s buried in the local cemetery behind the high school where his career began. He died in 1999 of ALS, just like another Yankee great, Lou Gehrig, who gave the disease its common name.
I think remembering a person for living a saintly life is way more important than remembering his statistics. But in case you don’t know why Jim Catfish Hunter is a celebrity, here are the stats.
Fresh out of high school he signed with Charles O. Finley and the Kansas City Athletics. It was 1964 for a $75,000 bonus! In 1966 and ’67 he was named to the American League All-Star Team. The team moved from Kansas City to Oakland in 1968, where Hunter pitched the first perfect game the American League had seen since 1922. At age 22 he was the youngest pitcher to have ever done so. He received the Cy Young Award and was named Pitcher of the Year. In 1975, he left the Athletics to join the New York Yankees as the highest paid pitcher in baseball with a contract for $3.75 million, baseball’s first millionaire. In his first year with the Yankees he won more than 20 games, was named to the All-Star Team for the 7th time and did it again in 1976. The Yankees won three straight pennants with Hunter. He was named to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1987.
Sadly, arm strain and diabetes caused him to retire at age 33 in 1979. He died of complications from ALS in 1999, at age 53. A stellar career, and a life well-lived, and he is lovingly remembered in his hometown, Hertford, North Carolina as a good person.