Biography
Jack Morris: Wiki, Bio, Age, Baseball Career, Family, Awards & Net-Worth
Jack Morris: John Scott Morris was born May 16, 1955, he is a former American starting pitcher in professional baseball. Between 1977 to 1994, he played in Major League Baseball (MLB), mainly for the Detroit Tigers. Morris won a total of 254 games during his career.
Morris, equipped with a fastball, slider, and forkball, was a five-time All-Star (1981, 1984, 1985, 1987, and 1991) and played on four World Series Championship teams (1984 Tigers, 1991 Minnesota Twins, and 1992–1993 Toronto Blue Jays).
He went 3–0 in the 1984 postseason with two complete-game triumphs in the 1984 World Series, and he went 4–0 in the 1991 postseason with a complete-game victory in Game 7 of the 1991 World Series. In 1984 and 1991, Morris won the Babe Ruth Award, and in 1991, he was awarded the World Series Most Valuable Player.
While he allowed the most hits, earned runs, and home runs of any pitcher in the 1980s, he also began the most games, pitched the most innings, and got the most victories.
He is one of eight players in Major League Baseball history to have won consecutive World Series titles with separate teams. The other seven are Ben Zobrist, Jake Peavy, Bill Skowron, Clem Labine, Don Gullett, Ryan Theriot, and Joc Pederson.
Since his retirement as a player, Morris has served as a color commentator for the Blue Jays, Twins, and Tigers. In addition, he has served as a commentator for Fox Sports 1 MLB broadcasts. In 2018, Morris became a member of the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Table of Contents
Jack Morris Career
Amateur career
Morris graduated from Saint Paul, Minnesota’s Highland Park High School in 1973. He then attended Brigham Young University (BYU) and played baseball for the BYU Cougars in college.
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers took Morris in the fifth round of the 1976 MLB draught. In 1977, when Mark Fidrych was injured and placed on the disabled list, he was first called up to the Tigers. In 1979, Morris debuted as a starter with the Tigers, compiling a 17–7 record with a 3.20 ERA and establishing himself as the staff ace.
Morris, along with catchers Lance Parrish and Alan Trammell, shortstop Lou Whitaker, second baseman Kirk Gibson, outfielder Kirk Gibson, and manager Sparky Anderson, played a significant role in transforming the Tigers into a contending team for the most of the 1980s.
In 1980, Morris learned from newly-hired pitching coach Roger Craig how to throw a split-finger fastball, which became his most productive pitch for the remainder of his career. He led the major leagues with 14 victories during the 1981 strike-shortened season.
Despite playing for the infamous “Captain Hook” (Anderson), known for pulling his starters at the slightest indication of weakness, Morris had a reputation for finishing what he started. He completed 175 games during his career (154 with Detroit).
He pitched double-digit complete games in ten of his twelve full seasons as a Tiger. Morris completed 20 of his 37 starts in 1983.
During that season, he led the league in innings pitched (293.2), batters faced (1204), and strikeouts (232), in addition to recording his first 20-win campaign.
On April 7, 1984 (during NBC’s nationally televised Game of the Week), Morris threw a no-hitter against the Chicago White Sox at Comiskey Park, kicking off an outstanding season for himself and the Tigers. It was the first no-hitter by a Tiger since Jim Bunning in 1958.
He finished the 1984 season with 19 victories and a 3.50 ERA, leading Detroit to the postseason. He earned a win against the Kansas City Royals in the American League Championship Series. In the World Series, he added two more complete-game victories against the San Diego Padres as the Tigers completed a perfect 1984 season.
While teammate Alan Trammell was chosen Most Valuable Player of the World Series, Morris was awarded the Babe Ruth Award for the most impressive playoff performance in 1984.
From July 9 to July 18, 1986, Morris threw three consecutive, complete-game shutouts in nine days. The Tigers returned to the postseason in 1987, led by team leader Morris and his 18 victories, although Morris’ performance fell short of expectations.
He surrendered six runs in eight innings against the eventual World Champion Minnesota Twins in his lone ALCS start, resulting in a loss. Despite a poor 1989 year in which he made only 24 starts and won only six games, he concluded the 1980s as the most successful big-league pitcher with 162 victories. In 1990, his final year with the Tigers, Morris lost a career-high 18 games, although he also led the Tigers’ staff with 15 victories and led the American League with 11 complete games. Morris posted a 3–1 postseason record with a 2.50 ERA as a Tiger.
Minnesota Twins
Morris signed a one-year deal with his hometown Minnesota Twins in 1991. After the Twins won the AL West, he had an even stronger postseason. During the regular season, he recorded 18 victories with a 3.50 ERA.
Morris won both of his ALCS starts against the Toronto Blue Jays, and his team advanced to the World Series against the Atlanta Braves. Morris made three starts for the Twins in the series, going 2-0 with a 1.01 ERA, with his final appearance coming in Game 7. In a postseason performance for the ages, the 36-year-old pitcher threw 10 scoreless innings against the Braves, and the Twins won 1–0 on a single by Gene Larkin that scored Dan Gladden in the 10th inning.
Due to his performance, Morris was awarded the World Series Most Valuable Player and joined Sandy Koufax as the only player to win the Babe Ruth Award twice. With four postseason victories in 1991, he owns the record for most wins by a Twin in a single postseason.
Toronto Blue Jays
After the 1991 season, Morris signed a contract with the Toronto Blue Jays. He got 21 victories for the second time in his career (the first 20-win season for a Blue Jays pitcher) with only six defeats, even though he rode a wave of superior run support from his offense since his ERA that season was 4.40.
Against the Braves, the Blue Jays reached the 1992 World Series. Despite a dismal postseason showing (he went 0–3, including two defeats in the World Series), Morris won a third World Series ring as Toronto defeated Atlanta in six games to claim the championship.
In 1993, he got his fourth championship ring as the Toronto Blue Jays repeated as World Champions with a six-game victory against the Philadelphia Phillies.
However, Morris was not a part of the Blue Jays’ repeat of the World Series: he performed poorly throughout the regular season, finishing 7–12 with a 6.20 ERA, and was not employed in the postseason due to a season-ending injury.
On April 6, 1993, Morris established a major league record by making his 14th consecutive opening day start, a remarkable feat given that he played for many championship-contending clubs. The Opening Day starting pitcher is typically the best pitcher in the rotation or the pitcher with the most respect among players and coaches.
Cleveland Indians and Cincinnati Reds
Morris joined Cleveland Indians in 1994 but was released three days before the end of the season due to a strike on August 9. Morris completed the season with a 10–6 and an ERA of 5.50. Morris retired following a failed comeback attempt with the Cincinnati Reds during 1995 spring training.
In 1996, he briefly returned to professional baseball with the independent St. Paul Saints of the Northern League, his hometown team. Before retiring for good, 41-year-old Morris went 5–1 in 10 starts with an ERA of 2.60.
Wildness
Although it certainly aided his strikeout totals, Morris’ split-finger fastball was also responsible for his six league-leading wild pitch totals. His 206 career wild pitches rank eighth in baseball history.
Jack Morris Salary
Morris was the American League’s highest-paid pitcher on at least four occasions: 1987, 1988, 1991, and 1993.
Jack Morris Awards and highlights
- 1981 – The Sporting News Pitcher of the Year
- 1984 – Babe Ruth Award
- 1986 – Tiger of the Year by the BBWAA-Detroit Chapter
- 1991 – Babe Ruth Award
- 1991 – World Series Most Valuable Player
- World Series Champion – 1984, 1991, 1992, 1993
- All-Star: 1981, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1991
- AL Wins Leader: 1981, 1992
- AL Strikeouts Leader: 1983
- AL Shutouts Leader: 1986
- AL Complete Games Leader: 1990
- Holds the major league record for consecutive opening day starts, with 14 (1980–1993)
- Ranks No. 8 on the all time MLB list for wild pitches with 206Ranks No. 1 in Detroit Tigers history for wild pitches (155) and balks (23).
- Holds Tigers’ all-time record for most times leading the team in wins – 11 (1979–88, 1990).
- Morris is the only pitcher with 2,000-plus strikeouts who did not face a single pitcher in his career.
- Baseball Hall Of Fame Inductee – 2018 (Modern Era Committee)
Jack Morris Post-Career Activities
Morris was a color analyst for the Minnesota Twins at one point. He was also a part-time coach with the Detroit Tigers in Lakeland, Florida, during spring training.
Morris joined Sportsnet in 2013 as a color analyst for Toronto Blue Jays radio broadcasts and making television appearances.
In 2014, he was a pre-and post-game analyst for Twins telecasts on Bally Sports North (a part-time replacement for regular game analyst Bert Blyleven) and a regular on-air contributor to KTWN-FM and the Twins Radio Network.
Morris was recruited as a part-time analyst for Detroit Tigers telecasts on Fox Sports Detroit on February 10, 2015, with his former teammate Kirk Gibson. In an unusual arrangement, Morris continued to work part-time for both the Twins’ and Tigers’ broadcast crews.
It was announced in 2017 that Morris would no longer broadcast Tigers games. Morris was again named color commentator for the Tigers on January 15, 2019.
On August 17, 2021, while Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Angels was at-bat, Morris used an accent that some felt insulting.
Later in the program, he tendered an apology on-air. Ohtani stated via an interpreter, “Personally, I am not upset and I did not take anything personally.” After this incident, Morris was suspended indefinitely from the Tigers’ broadcast booth, but he returned in less than a month.
Jack Morris Children
Jack Morris has three boys between his first and second marriages. He is well-known for his passion for hunting and fishing, particularly in his home state of Minnesota.
Hall of Fame Nomination
Morris was eligible for the National Baseball Hall of Fame from 2000 to 2014 but never received 75 percent of the vote. He never received more than 30 percent of the vote from 2000 to 2003. In 2006, and gained forty percent of the vote for the first time. He garnered 52,3 percent of the vote in 2010.
He earned 67 percent of the vote in 2012 and 67.7 percent in 2013. In his final year of eligibility, Morris received 61.5 percent of the vote on January 8, 2014. After slipping off the regular ballot, Morris was voted to the Hall by the Modern Era section of the Veterans Committee in December 2017. In 2018, he was inducted alongside his former Tigers teammate Alan Trammell.
His ERA of 3.90 is the highest of any pitcher nominated to the Hall of Fame. Morris has the fewest (regular season) plate appearances of any player in the Hall of Fame.
Net-Worth
Jack Morris has a net worth of $10 million dollars
Read More:
