“A certain magic still lingers in the name, stirring memories of the sixties supernova whose half-decade of dominance was so brilliant, yet so fleeting. Decades removed from his final game, Koufax’s stats still jump from the pages of history like one of his fastballs.” (Gruver, 1)

In Koufax, the first book in more than thirty years on the inimitable Sandy Koufax, sportswriter Edward Gruver illuminates the astonishing story of the man many consider the greatest left-handed pitcher of all time. Between 1962 and 1966, he dominated the game as no pitcher before or since. His 382 strikeouts in ’65 remain a National League record to this day. Koufax’s hopping curve and blazing fastball, sometimes spotted with blood from his ailing hand, confounded hitters while slowly tearing his arm apart. He suffered agonizing arthritis, immersed his inflamed elbow in ice baths following games, and required specially tailored suits to acco

Edward Gruver strategy in Koufax is to slowly and surely establish Sandy as one of, if not the greatest pitcher of all time. He methodically weaves the twist and turns of Koufax’s not-so-fairy tale life, throughout his Series winning performance. Such as the fact that his love for baseball, never existed in comparison to his feelings for basketball. It was his standout heroics as a six foot two inch forward at Lafayette High that won him a scholarship to the University of Cincinnati. Or maybe the instance in mid-May of the ’62 season when the index finger on Sandy’s pitching hand became numb and cold to the point where”…when Koufax pressed the nail of his thumb into it, the impression remained, as if the finger was made of wax.”(Gruver, 139). From mid-may to late June, he threw complete games in which he struck out a total of 49 hitter and walked a combined total of eight. Ironically, as his index finger worsened, Koufax pitching improved. He embarked on the hottest win streak of his career to that point. The string of bad luck for the hard throwing lefty that started with control problems early in his career continued into the 1964 season at the height of his excellence, when Koufax was diving back into second base and took a hard tag that shocked his left elbow. Despite a stinging pain, Sandy stayed in the game, and captured the 5-4 win. Awakening the next morning, Koufax realized his elbow was swollen. Four days later he ignored his aching elbow to shut down the Reds. And despite on-again, off-again swelling and soreness, Koufax started four days after that against the Cards. Striking out thirteen and walking just one, he earned his 15th win in his last 16 starts. His record was 19-5 and he had a league best 1.74 earned run average; but when he awoke the next morning, he began to sense that his season was in jeopardy. The swelling in his pitching arm was no longer confined to his elbow; it now extended from wrist to shoulder. Looking at his swollen arm, he thought, “I have a knee for an elbow.” (Gruver, 179). Test showed that Koufax’s left arm had passed beyond the irregularities most veteran pitchers have. The x-rays taken on August 17, 1964, showed the arm had undergone a traumatic blow. The damage to his arm was no longer temporary. It was permanent. Trial after trial, and Sandy always seemed to come through, that is what makes him remarkable, that

Some topics in this essay:
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