The Best Brave to Wear #21

This one’s easy for you and me. It’s a 17 time All-Star, a man who won both a CYA and a World Series in 1957, and the winningest lefty in MLB history. It’s the last man to wear the now retired #21 – Hall of Famer Warren Spahn.

On these days, where we celebrate legends, I won’t presume to be able to write anything that hasn’t been written before. Just go peruse Spahn’s baseball-reference page. You’ll find stats unlike any other in the post-war era. Thirteen 20-win seasons. Spahn is the last MLB pitcher to win 200 games in a single decade winning 202 in the 1950’s. It was an astounding career made even more astounding when you realize his age 22, 23, and 24 seasons were all lost to military service.

Oh, and about that military service… Spahn was the only major league ballplayer to earn a battlefield commission for his leadership holding the bridge at Remagen, the only intact bridge crossing the Rhine River. Spahn also earned the Purple Heart, Bronze Star, and a Presidential citation, making him the most decorated major league baseball player of the war. For his part, when asked how many wins he lost to the war, Spahn replied “I matured a lot in those years. If I had not had that maturity, I wouldn’t have pitched until I was 45.”

Who Is the Best Ever to Wear #21?

Spahn has great career numbers, and Roberto Clemente is one of the most beloved outfielders of all time. But the answer here is the Rocket, Roger Clemens. Even when you limit it to his accomplishments in #21, Clemens, who wore #21 with the Red Sox and Blue Jays, is the pick.

In his 15 seasons wearing #21, Clemens went 233-124 with a 2.95 ERA and 3153 K’s. He won 5 CYAs, the 1986 MVP award, and was a 7-time All-Star. Again, this completely ignores everything he did with the Yankees and Astros (including, coincidentally, PEDs, which there’s no evidence he took while wearing #21). He won back-to-back pitching triple crowns with the Blue Jays. As #21, he twice struck out 20 batters in a game.

Here is MLB’s comprehensive look at his career: