Mike Mussina was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in his sixth year of eligibility in 2019.
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51 Facts About Mike Mussina
2.
Mike Mussina spent his entire career in the American League East, won at least 11 games in 17 consecutive seasons – an American League record – and recorded a career.
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3.
Mike Mussina excelled in the sports of football and basketball as his records remain near the top of Montoursville High School's all-time boys' basketball career scoring leaders with over 1,000 points scored.
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4.
Mike Mussina received a Division 1 college basketball scholarship offer from Vanderbilt University.
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5.
Mike Mussina was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in 1987 but chose to attend college at Stanford University rather than sign.
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6.
Mike Mussina enrolled at Stanford University, where he played college baseball for the Stanford Cardinal baseball team.
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7.
Mike Mussina made two College World Series appearances and was selected as an All-American.
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8.
Mike Mussina graduated from Stanford in 1990 with a degree in economics.
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9.
Mike Mussina is a member of the Delta Tau Delta fraternity.
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10.
Mike Mussina made his professional debut with the Class AA Hagerstown Suns of the Eastern League in 1990.
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11.
Mike Mussina finished fourth in the American League Cy Young Award voting, and pitched one perfect inning in the 1992 All-Star Game.
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12.
Mike Mussina struggled in 1993 due to shoulder soreness, which placed him on the disabled list from July 22 to August 19.
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13.
Mike Mussina was voted onto the All-Star team, however he did not pitch in the game.
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14.
Orioles fans believed Mussina was warming up in preparation to come in and pitch the ninth inning, and when Gaston put Duane Ward in to pitch the ninth inning, the fans at Camden Yards spent the rest of the game chanting "We Want Mike" and booing Gaston very loudly, as the popular slogan "Cito Sucks" was born in Baltimore.
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15.
Mike Mussina returned to form in 1994, but a player's strike cut his season short, causing him to finish with only 16 wins and 99 strikeouts in 176.
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16.
Mike Mussina finished tied for second in the league in wins, and his 3.
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17.
Mike Mussina was selected to his third consecutive All-Star Game and pitched one inning, giving up one hit while striking out one batter.
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18.
Mike Mussina finished fourth in voting for that year's American League Cy Young Award.
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19.
In 1995, Mike Mussina started and won Cal Ripken's record-breaking 2,131st consecutive game on September 6,1995.
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20.
Mike Mussina led the league with 19 wins and had one of his finest statistical seasons.
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21.
Mike Mussina led the league with four shutouts, and he allowed a league-low 2.
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22.
Mike Mussina did not start the Opening Day game in 1997 due to elbow tendonitis.
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23.
Mike Mussina had been the Opening Day starter for the Orioles every year since 1993.
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24.
Mike Mussina was again selected for the All-Star team but did not appear in the game.
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27.
Mike Mussina was selected as an All-Star and pitched one inning, Mussina finished second in the American League Cy Young Award voting that year behind Pedro Martinez.
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28.
Mike Mussina committed just one error out of 61 total chances and won his fourth consecutive Gold Glove, further cementing his reputation as one of the top defensive pitchers in baseball.
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29.
Mike Mussina finished sixth in voting for the Cy Young Award that year.
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30.
Mike Mussina went on to pitch 2 more scoreless innings and kept the Yankees within striking distance in a game they later came back to win.
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31.
Mike Mussina became the first pitcher in American League history to win 10 or more games for 15 consecutive seasons.
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32.
In 2007, Mike Mussina became just the ninth player to win 100 games with two different teams—he had won 147 with Baltimore.
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33.
However, with the Yankees locked in a tight pennant race, Mike Mussina struggled and temporarily lost his spot in the rotation to prospect Ian Kennedy.
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34.
In 2008, Mike Mussina started his eighth season with the Yankees as a much-needed veteran of an inexperienced rotation.
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35.
Owner Hank Steinbrenner suggested that Mike Mussina should "learn how to pitch like Jamie Moyer", and no longer rely so much on his fastball.
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36.
Mike Mussina is the first pitcher to retire following a 20-victory season since Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax in 1966.
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37.
Mike Mussina was always a finesse pitcher, and coming up through the Orioles' organization, he was often compared to Jim Palmer.
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38.
Mike Mussina received praise for the ability to make in-game adjustments to compensate for days when he was not at his best.
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39.
Mike Mussina added a splitter to his repertoire and replaced his knuckle-curve with a more conventional curveball.
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40.
Mike Mussina became more skilled at changing speeds with his breaking pitches and using different arm angles to confuse batters as well as to compensate for the diminishing speed of his fastball.
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41.
Mike Mussina issued very few walks, held baserunners well, and fielded his position superbly.
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42.
Mike Mussina's consistency was often overshadowed by the dominant peaks of contemporaries like Pedro Martinez and Randy Johnson.
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43.
Mike Mussina was inducted into the Baltimore Orioles Hall of Fame on August 25,2012.
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44.
On January 22,2019, Mike Mussina was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, receiving 76.
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45.
Mike Mussina adopted his step-daughter Kyra, who is Jana's from a previous marriage.
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46.
Mike Mussina often helps out with the athletic programs at his high school and he operates a training camp for student athletes in the area.
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47.
Mike Mussina serves on the Little League International Board of Directors, based in nearby South Williamsport, Pennsylvania.
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48.
Mike Mussina is the head basketball coach for the boys' team at Montoursville Area High School.
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50.
Mike Mussina is a crossword puzzle enthusiast and was featured in the 2006 documentary film Wordplay.
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51.
Mike Mussina is a collector of tractors and vintage cars.
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