41 Facts About Tug McGraw

1.

Tug McGraw was the last active big league player to have played under manager Casey Stengel.

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2.

Tug McGraw enrolled in Vallejo Junior College and signed with the New York Mets as an amateur free agent on June 12,1964, upon graduation.

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3.

Tug McGraw was trained as a rifleman on the M14 rifle and M60 machine gun.

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4.

Tug McGraw earned two saves during that stretch, and 12 for the season.

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5.

Tug McGraw pitched the final three innings without giving up a run to earn the win in this game.

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6.

Tug McGraw did not appear in the World Series against the Baltimore Orioles.

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7.

Tug McGraw emerged as one of the top closers in the National League in the early 1970s, enjoying a career year in 1972.

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8.

Whereas 1973 wasn't as good a year statistically for Tug McGraw, he was valued for the leadership role he assumed for the league champions.

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9.

Tug McGraw continued his dominant pitching into the postseason, when he pitched five innings over two games in the NLCS against the defending NL champion Cincinnati Reds without giving up a run, and appeared in five of the seven games of the World Series against the defending champion Oakland Athletics.

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10.

Tug McGraw was traded along with Don Hahn and Dave Schneck from the Mets to the Philadelphia Phillies for Del Unser, John Stearns, and Mac Scarce at the Winter Meetings on December 3,1974.

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11.

Tug McGraw left the Mets as the all-time leader in saves, games pitched, and games finished.

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12.

Tug McGraw was nearly traded along with Bake McBride and Larry Christenson to the Texas Rangers for Sparky Lyle and Johnny Grubb at the 1979 Winter Meetings in Toronto, but the proposed transaction was never executed because a deferred money issue in Lyle's contract went unresolved.

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13.

The Phillies won two of the three, with Tug McGraw winning the second game, to pull a half game up on Montreal.

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14.

Tug McGraw earned the save by striking out five of the six batters he faced.

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15.

The following day, Tug McGraw entered the game in the ninth inning, with the score tied at four.

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16.

Tug McGraw received consideration in balloting for both awards as well, finishing fifth in Cy Young balloting, and 16th for league MVP.

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17.

Tug McGraw pitched in all five games of the 1980 NLCS against the Houston Astros.

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18.

Tug McGraw entered game three in the eighth inning with a runner on second, and one out.

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19.

Tug McGraw managed to get out of the inning, and keep the Astros scoreless until the 11th inning, when Joe Morgan led the inning off with a triple.

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20.

Rafael Landestoy entered the game as a pinch runner for Morgan, and Tug McGraw intentionally walked the next two batters to create a force at any base.

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21.

Tug McGraw earned a save in game four to even the series blew the save in the fifth and deciding game, allowing it to go into extra innings.

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22.

Tug McGraw appeared in four of the six games of the World Series, striking out ten batters in 7.

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23.

Tug McGraw allowed one inherited base runner to score, but managed to get through the inning relatively unscathed.

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24.

In later years, Tug McGraw expressed remorse toward his comments toward New York.

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25.

Tug McGraw returned to Shea Stadium on numerous occasions following his retirement, citing his love for the Mets fans.

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26.

On March 17,1981, Tug McGraw wore a dyed green uniform on St Patrick's Day to a spring training game, though an umpire refused to let him play.

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27.

In 1982, Tug McGraw shifted into more of a set-up man role, with both Ron Reed and Ed Farmer earning more saves than he on the season.

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28.

Tug McGraw rewarded his manager's faith in him by putting the Mets on the board with his only career home run.

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29.

Tug McGraw could throw right-handed and would often loosen up before games by playing right-handed catch with his teammates, leaving fans wondering who that right-hander wearing number 45 was.

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30.

Tug McGraw appeared as himself in a 1999 episode of Everybody Loves Raymond along with several other members of the 1969 New York Mets.

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31.

Tug McGraw recorded a version of the baseball poem "Casey at the Bat", accompanied by Peter Nero and the Philly Pops.

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32.

Tug McGraw had a brief relationship in 1966 with Betty D'Agostino that resulted in a son, country music singer Tim Tug McGraw.

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33.

At the time, Tug McGraw was playing baseball for Jacksonville, while D'Agostino was a high school student.

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34.

Tug McGraw did not acknowledge Tim as his son until Tim was 17 years old.

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35.

The first time they had a lunch with the elder Tug McGraw telling the younger they could be friends but he could not be a father to him.

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36.

On March 12,2003, Tug McGraw was working as an instructor for the Phillies during spring training when he was hospitalized with a glioblastoma brain tumor.

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37.

Tug McGraw lived for over nine months after the initial surgery.

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38.

In what would be his last public appearance, Tug McGraw attended the closing ceremonies of Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia on September 28,2003, where he recreated the final out of the Phillies' World Series triumph.

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39.

Tug McGraw Foundation was established in 2003 to enhance the quality of life of children and adults with brain tumors and in 2009 expanded programs to include posttraumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury.

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40.

In 1983—the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Phillies—Tug McGraw was selected as one of only two left-handed pitchers on the Phillies Centennial Team.

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41.

In 2010, Tug McGraw was inducted into the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame.

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