Woodie Fryman
From SABR Encyclopedia
| Woodie Fryman | |
| Woodrow Thompson Fryman | |
| Bat/Throw: | R/L |
|---|---|
| Height: | 6' 3" |
| Weight: | 197 |
| Born: | 1940-4-15 at Ewing, KY (US) |
| More info | |
| Statistics: | Retrosheet |
|---|---|
| SABR Searches: | Pictures of Woodie Fryman | width:90% height:65% scrolling:auto | Pictures}} · Bibliography |
EWING -- Former major league pitcher and longtime Ewing farmer Woodie Fryman passed away on Friday at the age of 70
Upon hearing the news, I immediately reflected back to September 2005 when I had the pleasure of meeting and interviewing him.
Woodie was engaging and enjoyed sharing his thoughts and recollections about his long baseball career.
He was also excited to be among the newest inductees into the Kentucky Athletic Hall of Fame.
"I was surprised," he said when asked about the call. "I never worried about things like that when I played but I am honored and thrilled."
Fryman is also a member of the Montreal Expos Hall of Fame, where he enjoyed some of his better seasons as a relief pitcher near the end of his 18-year big league career.
His career in the major leagues began in 1966 and could've started even sooner but he was reluctant to leave the life he loved farming the land he had lived on his entire life.
Fryman enjoyed playing baseball but his real loves throughout his life were his wife Phyllis, his family and his 367-acre Fleming County farm.
"I used to have 600 acres but farming is not what it used to be. A man can't depend on tobacco or dairy for a living nowadays," he said. "I used to have a house in Daytona Beach as well but I would rather be here than anywhere. I also have some land near the Licking River, where i go to hunt and fish. It's very quiet there and a great place to get away."
In the late 1950s and early 1960s, Fryman was a nearly unhittable fireballing lefthander pitching on weekends for the Flemingsburg Aces in the Blue Grass League and he was quite content farming during the week and playing ball on the weekends.
"Every little town had a team in those days," he recalled. "There was nothing like playing baseball in Flemingsburg and I played a lot of ball, even some slow-pitch softball. I really enjoyed it here and I enjoyed the major leagues too but that is totally different because that is a business."
Fryman eventually relented and signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1965.
"The money was nowhere near what it is today," he said. "I signed for $6,000 and it took a while before salaries really went up. I could make more money farming then so that's why I wouldn't sign but it all worked out for the best for me. I had a lot of fun playing a game I loved and met a lot of people I will never forget."
His major league career took him from Pittsburgh to Philadelphia, which sent him to Detroit on 1972, where Fryman enjoyed one of his most memorable seasons. He led the Tigers to the American League East championship after fashioning a 10-3 record and compiling a remarkable 2.06 ERA during a tight pennant race.
"We played excellent baseball down the stretch and it was a good change for me," he said. "We clinched the pennant against Boston and I beat Luis Tiant 2-1. I told Luis he was getting old like me and he was a great guy."
The hard throwing southpaw also pitched for the Cincinnati Reds and the Chicago Cubs but he saved the best for Montreal, where he revived his career by moving to the bullpen and becoming one of the top relievers in the league. In four seasons, he saved 46 games and won another 24 for the Expos, including an outstanding 7-4, 2.25 ERA, 17 saves year in 1980 at the age of 40.
Fryman enjoyed his time in the Canadian city.
"They were first class people and the best I ever played for," he said. "The Expos treated their players like family and it wasn't like that everywhere I played."
Fryman's 18-year career also included being selected to two All-Star teams and he won 141 games, to go with an outstanding 3.77 ERA and 1,587 strikeouts. He also tossed four one-hitters and threw 27 shutouts.
He was definitely a big leaguer in every sense of the word and possessed an inordinate amount of knowledge when it came to the science of pitching. He studied opposing hitters and was offered the pitching coach position by Tigers manager Ralph Houk, one of the most respected baseball men of his time.
Fryman politely declined Houk's offer because he was ready to stay in Ewing following his playing days.
"I had enough of the travel involved in baseball and I was ready to come home to Kentucky."
It was time for Woodie to return to the place he loved and be with the people he loved as well. [1]
Footnotes
- ↑ http://www.maysville-online.com/news/article_072a203e-325c-11e0-9e17-001cc4c002e0.html, retrieved on 2011-09-05.
