Marvin Edward Grissom (March 31, 1918 – September 19, 2005) was an American

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professional ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

and pitching coach. During his active career he appeared in 356 games in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

for the New York / San Francisco Giants (1946; 1953–58), Detroit Tigers (1949),

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...

(1952),

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eigh ...

(1953) and

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

(1959).Regular Season Pitching Statistics
at baseball-reference.com Born in

Los Molinos, California Los Molinos (Spanish for "The Mills") is a census-designated place (CDP) in Tehama County, California, United States. The population was 2,037 at the 2010 census, up from 1,952 at the 2000 census. History Los Molinos ("the mills" in Spanish) tra ...

, he threw and batted right-handed, stood tall and weighed .Biographical Data
at baseball-almanac.com An elder brother, Lee, was a left-handed pitcher for four MLB teams between 1934 and 1941;Lee Grissom Pitching Statistics
at baseball-reference.com in addition, a nephew, Jim Davis, also a southpaw, pitched for three

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team ...

clubs in the mid-1950s and was Marv Grissom's teammate with the 1957 New York Giants.

Early playing career

Grissom's pro career began in 1941. He signed with the

Hollywood Stars The Hollywood Stars were a Minor League Baseball team that played in the Pacific Coast League during the early- and mid-20th century. They were the arch-rivals of the other Los Angeles-based PCL team, the Los Angeles Angels. Hollywood Stars (192 ...

of the Triple-A Pacific Coast League and spent 1941 with a Stars' Class C California League farm club. He missed the next four seasons (1942–45) while he served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. Grissom never appeared in a Hollywood uniform; they released him in and he resumed his career in the Giants' organization. After he appeared in 34 games for Triple-A Jersey City in , the Giants called him up in September. As a

rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience and expertise, a rookie is usually inexperienced ...

, Grissom made three starts in four games, dropped each of his two decisions, then spent all of 1947–48 back in the

minor leagues Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in No ...

. The Tigers selected him in the 1948 Rule 5 draft, and he spent all of on the Detroit roster, working in 27 games (all but two as a

relief pitcher In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed because of fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection, or for other strategic reasons, such as inclement weat ...

), and posting a poor 2–4 record and 6.41

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

. Two more years at Triple-A followed; during the second, 1951, Grissom won 20 games for the

Seattle Rainiers The Seattle Rainiers, originally named the Seattle Indians and also known as the Seattle Angels, were a Minor League Baseball team in Seattle, Washington, that played in the Pacific Coast League from 1903 to 1906 and 1919 to 1968. They were initi ...

. Then, during the 1951–52 offseason, he was acquired by the White Sox. In , at age 34, Grissom finally established himself as a Major League pitcher, going 12–10 (3.74) in 28 games (24 as a starter) and 166 innings pitched, with seven complete games and one

shutout In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which one team prevents the other from scoring any points. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball. Shutouts are usuall ...

. The following February, he was one of three ChiSox hurlers swapped to the pitching-poor Red Sox for veteran

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball or softball fielding position between second and third base, which is considered to be among the most demanding defensive positions. Historically the position was assigned to defensive specialists wh ...

Vern Stephens Vernon Decatur Stephens (October 23, 1920 – November 3, 1968) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a shortstop from through . An eight-time All-Star, Stephens was notable for being the American L ...

. But after a promising start to his campaign, Grissom's Red Sox career unraveled when he allowed 12 hits and 12

earned run In baseball, an earned run is any run that was fully enabled by the offensive team's production in the face of competent play from the defensive team. Conversely, an unearned run is a run that would not have been scored without the aid of an erro ...

s in only innings over two outings against the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive Fi ...

Fenway Park Fenway Park is a baseball stadium located in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, near Kenmore Square. Since 1912, it has been the home of the Boston Red Sox, the city's American League baseball team, and since 1953, its only Major League Bas ...

on June 24–25. His ERA ballooned from 3.05 to 4.78, and after only one more appearance, Grissom was placed on waivers. He was claimed by the Giants on July 1. He got into 21 games for them, with seven starts and three complete games. He also began to pitch out of the bullpen for

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities ...

Leo Durocher Leo Ernest Durocher (French spelling Léo Ernest Durocher) (; July 27, 1905 – October 7, 1991), nicknamed "Leo the Lip" and "Lippy", was an American professional baseball player, manager and coach. He played in Major League Baseball as an infie ...

, although he recorded no saves that year.

Stalwart relief pitcher

But in , Grissom found his niche as one of Durocher's ace relief pitchers —

Hall of Famer A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actual halls or muse ...

Hoyt Wilhelm James Hoyt Wilhelm (July 26, 1922 – August 23, 2002), nicknamed "Old Sarge", was an American Major League Baseball pitcher with the New York Giants, St. Louis Cardinals, Cleveland Indians, Baltimore Orioles, Chicago White Sox, California Angel ...

was the other — as he helped the Giants win the National League pennant. He led the club in saves (17, third in the league) and won ten other games, nine in relief. Grissom was named to the National League All-Star team and finished 24th in voting for NL MVP Award.Appearances on Leader Boards, Awards, and Honors
at baseball-reference.com In innings pitched, he had 64 strikeouts and a 2.35 earned run average. Then, in the

1954 World Series The 1954 World Series matched the National League champion New York Giants against the American League champion Cleveland Indians. The Giants swept the Series in four games to win their first championship since , defeating the heavily favored Ind ...

against the Indians, Grissom was the winning pitcher in Game 1, the contest marked by

Willie Mays Willie Howard Mays Jr. (born May 6, 1931), nicknamed "the Say Hey Kid" and "Buck", is a former center fielder in Major League Baseball (MLB). Regarded as one of the greatest players ever, Mays ranks second behind only Babe Ruth on most all-tim ...

' classic, over-the-shoulder catch of

Vic Wertz Victor Woodrow Wertz (February 9, 1925 – July 7, 1983) was an American professional baseball first baseman and outfielder. He had a 17-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career from 1947 to 1963. He played for the Detroit Tigers, St. Louis Brown ...

' long drive to center field. Grissom came into the game in relief of

Don Liddle Donald Eugene Liddle (May 25, 1925 – June 5, 2000) was an American left-handed pitcher in professional baseball who played four seasons in the Major Leagues for the Milwaukee Braves, New York Giants and St. Louis Cardinals from 1953 through 1 ...

in the eighth inning, immediately after Mays' catch, with the game tied, 2–2. He proceeded to pitch 2 innings of one-hit ball, and held Cleveland off the scoreboard until pinch hitter Dusty Rhodes won the game with a three-run,

walk-off home run In baseball, a walk-off home run is a home run that ends the game. For a home run to end the game, it must be hit in the bottom of the final inning of the game and generate enough runs to exceed the opponent's score. Because the opponent will no ...

in the tenth inning. It was Grissom's only appearance in the Series, as the Giants swept Cleveland in four straight games.Postseason Pitching Statistics
at baseball-reference.com Grissom also shone as a relief pitcher for the next four seasons, leading the Giants in saves three more times (1955; 1957–58). He was a member of the last Giants' team to represent New York City, and the first one based in San Francisco. Traded to the Cardinals in October 1958, he was able to appear in only three games for the 1959 Redbirds before a back injury forced his retirement as an active player at the age of 41. In ten MLB seasons, Grissom had a 47–45 record, 356 games (52 started), 12 complete games, three shutouts, 58 saves, and a career 3.41 ERA. He allowed 771 hits and 343 bases on balls in 810 total innings pitched, with 459 strikeouts.

Pitching coach

After his playing career, Grissom had a 15-year-long tenure as a pitching coach for four MLB teams: the Los Angeles/California Angels (during three separate terms: 1961–66; 1969; 1977–78), White Sox (1967–68), Minnesota Twins (1970–71) and Chicago Cubs (1975–76).An Interview With Marv Grissom
at thediamondangle.com He also spent time with the San Francisco Giants.

Alvin Dark Alvin Ralph Dark (January 7, 1922 – November 13, 2014), nicknamed "Blackie" and "The Swamp Fox", was an American professional baseball shortstop and manager. He played fourteen years in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston/Milwaukee Bra ...

recalled that while Grissom was with the Giants, he had a rule that if

Hank Aaron Henry Louis Aaron (February 5, 1934 – January 22, 2021), nicknamed "Hammer" or "Hammerin' Hank", was an American professional baseball right fielder who played 23 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), from 1954 through 1976. One of the gre ...

was batting, the pitcher should throw a

brushback pitch In baseball, a brushback pitch is a pitch–usually a fastball–thrown high and inside the strike zone to intimidate the batter away from the plate on subsequent pitches. It differs from the beanball in that the intent is not to hit the batte ...

to intimidate him at the plate. Grissom died in

Red Bluff, California Red Bluff is a city in and the county seat of Tehama County, California, United States. The population was 14,710 at the 2020 census, up from 14,076 at the 2010 census. It is located north of Sacramento, south of Redding, and it is bisect ...

, at the age of 87.Grissom leaves major league legacy
/ref>

References

External links

Marv Grissom Twins Autograph Timeline
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grissom, Marv 1918 births 2005 deaths United States Navy personnel of World War II Baseball players from California Boston Red Sox players California Angels coaches Chicago Cubs coaches Chicago White Sox coaches Chicago White Sox players Chicago White Sox scouts Detroit Tigers players Jersey City Giants players Los Angeles Angels coaches Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball pitching coaches Minneapolis Millers (baseball) players Minnesota Twins coaches National League All-Stars New York Giants (NL) players People from Red Bluff, California Sacramento Solons players St. Louis Cardinals players San Bernardino Stars players San Francisco Giants players Seattle Rainiers players Toledo Mud Hens players