Ray Herbert

Raymond Ernest Herbert

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 11", Weight 185 lb.
• High school Central Catholic High School (Detroit)
• Debut August 27, 1950
• Final Game September 17, 1966
• Born December 15, 1929 in Detroit, MI USA
• Died December 20, 2022 in Plymouth, MI USA

BR page

Biographical Information

A good pitcher who played for bad ballclubs during most of his Major League career, Detroit native Ray Herbert reached the majors with his hometown Detroit Tigers in 1950 in just his second season in pro ball. After an impressive start in 1951 with a 4-0 record and a 1.42 ERA he was called into the army during the Korean conflict. When he returned in 1953 he was used mainly as a reliever for a few years before being sold to the Kansas City Athletics on May 11, 1955.

He was a .500 pitcher for some lowly A's teams from 1958 to 1960 before being traded to the Chicago White Sox early in 1961. This trade involved everyone but the club-house boy as he was traded with Andy Carey, Don Larsen and Al Pilarcik to the White Sox for Bob Shaw, Jerry Staley, Wes Covington and Stan Johnson.

In 1962 at age 32 and in his tenth major league season, Herbert put together a banner year with 20-9 record for for the Sox. He also was the winning pitcher in the second of the two All-Star Games that summer, working three scoreless innings. In 1963 he fell off to 13 wins, but led the league in shutouts with seven.

He and Jeoff Long were traded in 1965 to the Philadelphia Phillies for Danny Cater and Lee Elia. He closed out a 14-year career in 1966 after two years with the Phillies and lifetime 104-107 record.

Herbert, who gave up Carl Yastrzemski's first big league hit in 1961, also gave up a home run to Mickey Mantle on August 12, 1964, that traveled 502 feet into the centerfield bleachers, making it the longest home run ever measured at Yankee Stadium.

He pitched batting practice at Tiger Stadium for a time and once commented, "I'm up to $12.50 an hour from $10.00 an hour." He later managed a department store in the Detroit area and made his home at Canadian Lakes in Stanwood, MI.

Notable Achievements

• AL All-Star (1962)
• AL Shutouts Leader (1963)
• 15 Wins Seasons: 1 (1962)
• 20 Wins Seasons: 1 (1962)
• 200 Innings Pitched Seasons: 4 (1960-1963)

Sources

baseball-reference.com
Baseball Players of the 1950s

Further Reading

• Ryan Kryska (Associated Press): "Ray Herbert, Detroit sandlot ace and 1962 AL All-Star, dies", Yahoo! News, January 26, 2023. [https://ca.news.yahoo.com/ray-herbert-detroit-sandlot-ace-234731294.html

Related Sites

• Ray Herbert at the SABR Bio Project