David Cone

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

On the final game of the 1991 regular season, Cone struck out 19 batters, tied for second-most ever in a game. Renowned for his split-finger fastball, Cone won the 1994 American League Cy Young Award, was a five-time All-Star and led the major leagues in strikeouts each season from 1990 to 1992. He was a two-time 20 game-winner, setting the MLB record for most years between 20-win seasons with 10. Cone pitched the sixteenth perfect game in baseball history in 1999. He was a member of five World Series championship teams: with the Toronto Blue Jays and with the New York Yankees. His 8–3 career postseason record came over 21 games and 111 innings pitched, with an earned run average (ERA) of 3.80; in World Series play, his ERA was 2.12.

In Their Own Story

The atmosphere turned tense during Game 1 of the 1988 National League Championship Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers after Cone wrote a column for the New York Daily News, calling closer Jay Howell's curveball "high school" pitching and stating Orel Hershiser was "lucky for eight innings." The Dodgers used this bulletin board material to jump on Cone for five runs in two innings during Game 2. However, Cone silenced critics with a scoreless ninth in Game 3 and a complete-game victory in Game 6. Despite his efforts, Series MVP Orel Hershiser returned in Game 7 with a complete-game shutout to send the Dodgers to the World Series. In 1990, another contentious moment occurred against the Braves when Cone held onto the ball during an argument over a call at first base, inadvertently allowing Dale Murphy and Ernie Whitt to score.

Reader's Guide

Cone was born in Kansas City, Missouri, the son of Joan (née Curran; 1936–2016) and Edwin Cone (1934–2022). He attended Rockhurst High School, a Jesuit school, where he played quarterback on the football team, leading them to the district championship. He was also a point guard on the basketball team. Because Rockhurst did not have a baseball team, Cone instead played summer ball in the Ban Johnson League, a college summer league in Kansas City. At 16, he reported to an invitation-only tryout at Royals Stadium and an open tryout for the St. Louis Cardinals. He was also recruited to play college football and baseball. Upon graduation, he enrolled at the University of Missouri and was drafted by his hometown Kansas City Royals in the third round of the 1981 Major League Baseball draft. Cone went 22–7 with a 2.21 earned run average in his first two professional seasons. He sat out 1983 with an injury, and went 8–12 with a 4.28 ERA for the Double-A Memphis Chicks when he returned in 1984. During his second season with the Class AAA Omaha Royals (1986), Cone was converted to a relief pitcher, and he made his Major League debut on June 8, 1986, in relief of reigning Cy Young Award winner Bret Saberhagen. He made three more appearances out of the Royals' bullpen before returning to Omaha, where he went 8–4 with a 2.79 ERA. He returned to Kansas City when rosters expanded that September. Prior to the 1987 season, Cone was traded with Chris Jelic to the New York Mets for Ed Hearn, Rick Anderson and Mauro Gozzo. Cone went 5–6 with a 3.71 ERA and 68 strikeouts in 21 appearances (13 starts) his first season in New York City. Cone began the 1988 season in the bullpen, but was added to the starting rotation by the first week of May. His first start was a complete game shutout over the Atlanta Braves, and he went on to post a 9–2 record with a 2.52 ERA in the first half of the season to earn his first All-Star nod. For the season, Cone went 20–3 with a 2.22 ERA to finish third in National League Cy Young Award balloting. The Mets ran away with the National League East by fifteen games over the Pittsburgh Pirates, and were heavy favorites over the Los Angeles Dodgers, against whom they had a 10–1 record during the regular season, in the 1988 National League Championship Series. Cone became a newspaper commentator on the playoffs for the New York Daily News, and incited cont

Did You Know?

• Cone is the subject of the book A Pitcher's Story: Innings With David Cone, by Roger Angell.
• Cone and Jack Curry co-wrote the autobiography Full Count: The Education of a Pitcher, which was released in May 2019 and made The New York Times Best Seller list shortly after its release.