Red Sox Great Luis Tiant Dies at 83
Boston Red Sox legend Luis Tiant, one of the greatest Latin American-born pitchers in MLB history, has died, the league announced Tuesday. He was 83.
Tiant, the son of Negro Leagues pitcher Luis Tiant Sr., was born in Cuba, where he began his professional career. He was signed by Cleveland in 1961 and made his big league debut in ’64. He made the All-Star team in ’68 but was traded to the Minnesota Twins after a down year in ’69 and after being released by two different teams early in the ’71 season, his career appeared to be on the downswing.
The Red Sox gave Tiant a chance, though, and while he struggled in his first season in Boston, he was among the best pitchers in the league in 1972, posting an MLB-best 1.91 ERA.
Tiant went on to become a beloved figure in Boston, in part because he was an effective pitcher on some successful teams and also due to his unique style on the mound—marked by his distinctive windup in which he turned his body toward second base before firing the pitch.
Tiant’s most memorable season came in 1975 when he helped lead the Red Sox to the American League pennant. He was excellent in that postseason, pitching complete games in three of his four starts as Boston fell to the Cincinnati Reds in the World Series in seven games.
Tiant ended his career with stints with the New York Yankees, Pittsburgh Pirates and California Angels. His 229 career victories ranks fourth among Latin American-born pitchers behind Bartolo Colón, Dennis Martínez and Juan Marichal.
He retired in 1982 and spent the next two decades coaching in various minor league systems and managing the Div. III Savannah College of Art and Design before rejoining the Red Sox in 2002 as the pitching coach at short-season Lowell.
He spent the remainder of his career in the organization, and was a constant sight riding a golf cart at spring training in Fort Myers. He was also a frequent clubhouse visitor in Boston, where he had a locker and became a personal favorite of ace Pedro Martinez.
With his Fu Manchu moustache, love of Cuban cigars (Sports Illustrated once famously photographed him smoking one in the shower), and unpredictable corkscrew movements on the mound, the iconoclastic Tiant married a keen sense of showmanship with a killer instinct.
He was one of the best big-game pitchers of his or any generation. He never lost a playoff start, beating the Reds twice in the classic 1975 World Series. When the Red Sox needed a win against Toronto on the final day of the 1978 season to force a one-game playoff with the Yankees, they knew where to turn.
