Former Dodgers pitching great Newcombe dies
Former Los Angeles Dodgers pitching great Don Newcombe has died after a lengthy illness, the team announced Tuesday. He was 92.
“Don Newcombe’s presence and life established him as a role model for major leaguers across the country,” Dodgers president Stan Kasten said in a statement. “He was a constant presence at Dodger Stadium and players always gravitated toward him for his endless advice and friendship. The Dodgers meant everything to him and we are all fortunate he was a part of our lives.”
Newcombe, one of the first African-American pitchers in MLB, joined the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1949, winning Rookie of the Year while helping the team win the NL pennant.
In Newcombe’s debut season, he and Dodgers teammates Jackie Robinson and Roy Campanella became three of the first four African-Americans (along with Cleveland outfielder Larry Doby) to appear in an All-Star Game.
After a break to serve in the military during the 1952 and ’53 seasons, he returned and with the likes of Robinson, Campanella, Duke Snider, Gil Hodges and Pee Wee Reese helped create a World Series champion.
The Dodgers won it all in 1955, and Newcombe went 20-5 with a 3.20 ERA to help get them there.
His best season came in 1956, when he led the league with 27 wins and won the Cy Young and MVP awards and led the Dodgers to another NL pennant. But the Dodgers lost the Series to the Yankees in seven games, and Newcombe dropped the deciding contest, giving up two home runs to Yogi Berra.
He never reached the same lofty heights again. After an 0-6 start to the 1958 season (the organization’s first in Los Angeles), he was traded to the Reds. He won 13 games in 1959 but only six split between Cincinnati and Cleveland in 1960, his last season.
After he retired, Newcombe revealed that a drinking problem contributed to the downfall of his career. In the mid-1960s he became sober and worked with various organizations to help curb teenage drinking.
Newcombe finished his 10-year MLB career as a four-time All-Star with a 149-90 record and 3.56 ERA.
The New Jersey native began his professional career in the Negro Leagues in 1944.