Don Sutton

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Sutton was born in Clio, Alabama. He attended high school and college in Florida before entering professional baseball. After a year in the minor leagues, Sutton joined the Dodgers. Beginning in 1966, he was in the team's starting pitching rotation with Sandy Koufax, Don Drysdale, and Claude Osteen. Sixteen of Sutton's 23 MLB seasons were spent with the Dodgers. He spent much of the 1980s with the Houston Astros, the Milwaukee Brewers, the Oakland Athletics and the California Angels, before returning for a second stint with the Dodgers. He registered only one 20-win season, but earned 10 or more wins in every season except 1983 and 1988. Sutton became a television sports broadcaster after his retirement as a player. He worked in this capacity for several teams, the majority being with the Atlanta Braves. Sutton was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1998.

In Their Own Story

The defining moment of Sutton's longevity arrived on June 18, 1986, while pitching for the California Angels. Entering the season with 295 career victories, Sutton had struggled early with a 9.12 ERA in his first five starts. He needed just five wins to reach the historic 300-win mark. In a complete game against the Texas Rangers, he allowed only three hits and one run. With the game on the line, he struck out Gary Ward for the final out, securing his 300th victory. This achievement capped a career that included a trade in 1982 from the Astros to the Milwaukee Brewers, where he started two games in the World Series against the St. Louis Cardinals, pitching 10 innings and giving up nine earned runs. His resilience was evident even in his final Dodgers stint; before the 1988 season, he faced criticism from former teammate John Candelaria for reporting Candelaria's drinking to police. Sutton maintained he acted out of concern for safety. He finished his career by returning to the Dodgers in 1988 after a brief discussion about an assistant general manager role with the Astros led to his release.

Reader's Guide

Sutton was born in Clio, Alabama, a small town in Barbour County, on April 2, 1945, the same day as future Dodger teammate Reggie Smith. He was born to sharecroppers at the end of World War II, in a tarpaper shack. At the time Sutton was born, his father was 18 and his mother was 15. Sutton's father, Howard, gave him the strong work ethic which he carried throughout his career. His father tried logging and construction work, and in looking for work, moved the family to Molino, Florida, just north of Pensacola. Sutton and his family were Evangelical Christians. Sutton attended J. M. Tate High School where he played baseball, basketball, and football. He led his baseball team to the small-school state finals two years in row, winning his junior year, 1962, and losing 2–1 in his senior year, and was named all-county, all-conference, and all-state for both of those seasons. He graduated in 1963 and was voted 'Most Likely to Succeed'. He wanted to attend the University of Florida, but coach Dave Fuller was not interested. He attended Gulf Coast Community College, Panama City for one year, and then Whittier College. After a good summer league, he was signed by the Dodgers. After playing for the Sioux Falls Packers in South Dakota, Sutton entered the major leagues at 21. His major league debut came with the Dodgers on April 14, 1966. On the 1966 Dodgers, Sutton was the fourth starting pitcher in a rotation that included Sandy Koufax, Don Drysdale, and Claude Osteen. He later said that the 'best thing that could have happened to me was to join a team with Drysdale and Koufax. They were obviously helpful to me as a pitcher.' He struck out 209 batters that season, which was the highest strikeout total for a rookie since 1911. Sutton was passed over in Game 4 of the 1966 World Series, giving Drysdale a second start. Though the Baltimore Orioles did start a rookie in the World Series, future Hall of Famer, Jim Palmer, Sutton did not pitch and the Dodgers were swept in four games by the Orioles. Sutton was selected to the Major League Baseball All-Star Game four times in the 1970s. The 1974 Dodgers made the postseason after winning 102 games during the regular season. They defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates in the playoffs and Sutton accounted for two of the team's three wins. They lost the 1974 World Series four games to one, with Sutton earning the only win for the team.

Did You Know?

• Sutton is seventh on baseball's all-time strikeout list with 3,574.
• Sutton holds the record for most at-bats without a home run (1,354).
• Sutton was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1998.