One of my favorite pitchers in my early days of following the Indians was the colorful Jim "Mudcat" Grant. He broke in with the Tribe in 1958 and showed immediate promise winning ten games and posting a 3.84 ERA. Grant had his best season as an Indian in 1961 going 15-9 with a 3.86 ERA and 146 strikeouts. He had another solid season in 1963 winning thirteen decisions and getting a career high 157 whiffs.

Grant started 1964 with the Tribe but then he went to the Minnesota Twins whose young team was beginning to gel into a top rate club. Grant won eleven games for the Twins and set the stage for the 1965 campaign. That was the year that the Twins won the American League pennant breaking the five year grip of the once great Yankees. In the World Series they battled the Dodgers right down to the wire in losing a seven game series. That year Mudcat went 21-7. Grant won thirteen games in 1966 then his numbers began to drop. In 1968 he went to the Dodgers and worked as a spot starter and reliever. He shared time with both the Expos and the Cardinals in 1969. Grant found a home with the A's in 1970 where he put up impressive numbers. He went 6-2 with a stingy 1.82 ERA and 24 saves. He finished the year with the Pirates and picked up a couple of more wins. He started 1971 with the Pirates but later ended up back with the A's. That was Grant's final season.

In his fourteen year career Grant won 145 games and saved 53 more. He had a very respectable 3.63 lifetime ERA. He worked nearly 2,500 innings. I remember him well as a laid back and witty announcer for the Tribe. He often mentioned his home town of Lacochee, Florida. If a batter was knocked down or brushed back, Grant would offer up the line, " Ah, a little chin music."

Mudcat was a fine pitcher and quite the character!

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