Biographical

Portrait of Sandy Koufax

Sandy Koufax PDodgers

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Career Summary
Years G IP W L SV ERA WARP
12 397 2324.3 165 87 9 2.76 65.3
Birth Date12-30-1935
Height6' 2"
Weight210 lbs
Age88 years, 3 months, 26 days
BatsR
ThrowsL
WARP Summary

MLB Statistics

Historical (past-seasons) WARP is now based on DRA..
cFIP and DRA are not available on a by-team basis and display as zeroes(0). See TOT line for season totals of these stats.
Multiple stints are are currently shown —Click to hide.
YEAR Team Lg G GS IP W L SV H BB SO HR PPF H/9 BB/9 HR/9 K/9 GB% BABIP WHIP FIP ERA cFIP DRA DRA- WARP
1955 BRO MLB 12 5 41.7 2 2 0 33 28 30 2 110 7.1 6.0 0.4 6.5 0% .254 1.46 3.58 3.02 110 5.08 112.3 0.1
1956 BRO MLB 16 10 58.7 2 4 0 66 29 30 10 88 10.1 4.4 1.5 4.6 0% .292 1.62 4.91 4.91 132 6.64 147.7 -0.9
1957 BRO MLB 34 13 104.3 5 4 0 83 51 122 14 109 7.2 4.4 1.2 10.5 0% .271 1.28 3.44 3.88 84 3.01 70.2 2.4
1958 LAN MLB 40 26 158.7 11 11 1 132 105 131 19 113 7.5 6.0 1.1 7.4 0% .247 1.49 4.42 4.48 123 5.06 117.1 0.0
1959 LAN MLB 35 23 153.3 8 6 2 136 92 173 23 107 8.0 5.4 1.4 10.2 0% .289 1.49 4.12 4.05 97 3.33 75.3 3.3
1960 LAN MLB 37 26 175.0 8 13 1 133 100 197 20 91 6.8 5.1 1.0 10.1 0% .260 1.33 3.62 3.91 91 3.14 72.7 4.0
1961 LAN MLB 42 35 255.7 18 13 1 212 96 269 27 100 7.5 3.4 1.0 9.5 0% .275 1.20 3.10 3.52 73 2.91 63.6 7.1
1962 LAN MLB 28 26 184.3 14 7 1 134 57 216 13 97 6.5 2.8 0.6 10.5 0% .265 1.04 2.25 2.54 48 1.99 44.4 7.1
1963 LAN MLB 40 40 311.0 25 5 0 214 58 306 18 92 6.2 1.7 0.5 8.9 0% .238 0.87 1.87 1.88 56 1.92 48.6 10.7
1964 LAN MLB 29 28 223.0 19 5 1 154 53 223 13 89 6.2 2.1 0.5 9.0 0% .243 0.93 2.22 1.74 61 1.48 36.5 9.1
1965 LAN MLB 43 41 335.7 26 8 2 216 71 382 26 90 5.8 1.9 0.7 10.2 0% .234 0.86 2.05 2.04 49 1.77 44.3 12.2
1966 LAN MLB 41 41 323.0 27 9 0 241 77 317 19 91 6.7 2.1 0.5 8.8 0% .258 0.98 2.19 1.73 62 2.10 52.5 10.4
CareerMLB3973142324.316587917548172396204966.83.20.89.338%.2561.112.772.76732.6261.565.3

Statistics for All Levels

'opp' stats - Quality of opponents faced - have been moved and are available only as OPP_QUAL in the Statistics reports now.
Minor league stats are currently shown —Click to hide.
YEAR Team Lg LG G GS IP W L SV H BB SO HR PPF H/9 BB/9 HR/9 K/9 GB% BABIP WHIP FIP ERA cFIP DRA DRA-
1955 BRO MLB NL 12 5 41.7 2 2 0 33 28 30 2 110 7.1 6.0 0.4 6.5 0% .254 1.46 3.58 3.02 110 5.08 112.3
1956 BRO MLB NL 16 10 58.7 2 4 0 66 29 30 10 88 10.1 4.4 1.5 4.6 0% .292 1.62 4.91 4.91 132 6.64 147.7
1957 BRO MLB NL 34 13 104.3 5 4 0 83 51 122 14 109 7.2 4.4 1.2 10.5 0% .271 1.28 3.44 3.88 84 3.01 70.2
1958 LAN MLB NL 40 26 158.7 11 11 1 132 105 131 19 113 7.5 6.0 1.1 7.4 0% .247 1.49 4.42 4.48 123 5.06 117.1
1959 LAN MLB NL 35 23 153.3 8 6 2 136 92 173 23 107 8.0 5.4 1.4 10.2 0% .289 1.49 4.12 4.05 97 3.33 75.3
1960 LAN MLB NL 37 26 175.0 8 13 1 133 100 197 20 91 6.8 5.1 1.0 10.1 0% .260 1.33 3.62 3.91 91 3.14 72.7
1961 LAN MLB NL 42 35 255.7 18 13 1 212 96 269 27 100 7.5 3.4 1.0 9.5 0% .275 1.20 3.10 3.52 73 2.91 63.6
1962 LAN MLB NL 28 26 184.3 14 7 1 134 57 216 13 97 6.5 2.8 0.6 10.5 0% .265 1.04 2.25 2.54 48 1.99 44.4
1963 LAN MLB NL 40 40 311.0 25 5 0 214 58 306 18 92 6.2 1.7 0.5 8.9 0% .238 0.87 1.87 1.88 56 1.92 48.6
1964 LAN MLB NL 29 28 223.0 19 5 1 154 53 223 13 89 6.2 2.1 0.5 9.0 0% .243 0.93 2.22 1.74 61 1.48 36.5
1965 LAN MLB NL 43 41 335.7 26 8 2 216 71 382 26 90 5.8 1.9 0.7 10.2 0% .234 0.86 2.05 2.04 49 1.77 44.3
1966 LAN MLB NL 41 41 323.0 27 9 0 241 77 317 19 91 6.7 2.1 0.5 8.8 0% .258 0.98 2.19 1.73 62 2.10 52.5

Plate Discipline

YEAR Pits Zone% Swing% Contact% Z-Swing% O-Swing% Z-Contact% O-Contact% SwStr%

Injury History  —  No longer being updated

Last Update: 12/31/2014 23:59 ET

Date On Date Off Transaction Days Games Side Body Part Injury Severity Surgery Date Reaggravation
1955-07-25 1955-08-25 31 25 - Low Back Strain - -

Compensation

Year Team Salary

 

Service TimeAgentContract Status

Details

2019 Preseason Forecast

Last Update: 1/27/2017 12:35 ET

PCT W L SV G GS IP H BB SO HR BABIP WHIP ERA DRA VORP WARP
Weighted Mean?????0.0?00?.0000.000.00?0.00.0

Comparable Players (Similarity Index )

Rank Score Name Year Run Average Trend

BP Annual Player Comments

No BP Book Comments have been found for this player.

BP Articles

Click here to see articles tagged with Sandy Koufax

BP Chats

DateQuestionAnswer
2015-10-06 19:30:00 (link to chat)I remember when I was young, real men like Lew Burdette and Sandy Koufax would pitch complete game shutouts in WS Game 7 on 2 days rest.
(oldbopper from New Britain, CT)		It was a very different era, and probably everyone on both of these teams would take Burdette deep on two days rest. - JP (AL Wild Card Game Chat)
2014-07-25 14:00:00 (link to chat)Thanks for reply on my Head Tilt question. Do you have any comments about Lincecum related to head tilt?
(HeftyLefty from San Mateo)		Lincecum's head-tilt appears to be more of a blatant manipulation than a lack of functional strength. The head starts to sell out once the rotational elements kick into gear, immediately after foot strike. Sandy Koufax did the same thing, and given that Lincecum patterned his delivery after Koufax, I think that the tilt is an intentional movement designed to elevate his arm slot.

On the jukebox: Dredg, "Information" (Doug Thorburn)
2014-05-02 14:00:00 (link to chat)If you had to pick one guy out of these prospects who is going to underwhelm throughout his career, who would it be? Giolito, Bundy, Walker, Gausman, Syndergaard, Zimmer or Stephenson
(Adam from FL)		Forcing me to take the cynical side, eh? This is actually a really intriguing question, as the focus on prospects tends to resemble a dream state, but it is just as pertinent to ask who will fail to develop. We actually have a really strong corps of young pitchers coming up through the ranks right now, and I am relatively optimistic on all of these guys.

These guys fit a couple of categories - you have TJ survivors, a currently disabled arm, a pitcher who has been bitten in his first exposure to the show, etc. If I had to pick one to underwhelm, I guess it would have to be Giolito, but that is mostly because his perceived ceiling has grown to astronomical proportions and he will probably underwhelm unless he becomes Sandy Koufax.

On the jukebox: Pantera, "Becoming" (Doug Thorburn)
2014-02-20 13:00:00 (link to chat)You are a wizard. You are able to take the medical acumen of 2014 and transport it back to 1955. You can then use that acumen to better treat Sandy Koufax. Will his mechanics still doom him to a shortened career?
(dianagram from VORGville)		I doubt it. I think he gets a handful of extra years, even if they aren't super-elite and instead just "good". (Paul Sporer)
2013-04-15 13:00:00 (link to chat)If you could go back and give any player a completely healthy career to see what they could do with their full capabilities, who would you pick? I'm having a tough time deciding between Mickey Mantle and Eric Davis...
(Nick from Los Feliz, CA)		Hey Nick, this is another fun one. I'm tempted to say Bo Jackson because of the tools, but I don't know how complete a ballplayer he would have become even without the injury. A healthy career from Davis boggles the mind. I literally get goosebumps thinking about it. I'll go with Davis. On the pitching side, Sandy Koufax or Bret Saberhagen. (Geoff Young)
2012-03-20 13:00:00 (link to chat)If you had a chance to get in a time machine, who would be the player you would like to watch in person?
(blazeswim from Chicago)		I've always said that I was disappointed to be just old enough to know about Mike Schmidt as an active player, but not old enough to have ever seen him play (let alone seen him when he was at his best). I'd be pretty happy to get that chance.

Looking farther back, I'd probably want to see someone like Sandy Koufax or Walter Johnson in their prime. I really want to know exactly how great those guys were, seeing as how much better they were than their competition. (Larry Granillo)
2011-11-30 13:00:00 (link to chat)Who would be on your top 10 pitchers to see list: I'd put vintage Maddux, Halladay, Pedro, Clemens, and 87 Mike Scott, Gooden, Blyleven, Rivera, Henke, and Johan for people from my lifetime. I
(JT from Exhibition Stadium)		Having seen all of those guys, I'd focus on a lot on the ones that I didn't get to see. If I've included Ryan on that top 10, I'll add Sandy Koufax, Walter Johnson, Lefty Grove, Juan Marichal, Bob Gibson, Grover Alexander, Old Hoss Radbourn (just to see what the game was like then), Burleigh Grimes (need a spitballer), and because he's meant so much to me in the JAWS process, Blyleven. (Jay Jaffe)
2011-06-20 14:00:00 (link to chat)Of course Halladay would get consideration. JAWS needs some sort of 'Puckett Adjustment'. If injury stops Doc tomorrow, he'll benefit from some type of 'halo effect'. Being stopped abruptly at 198 wins beats daylight out of petering out even some ways past it.
(Richie from Washington)		On what do you base that? The only starter who has gotten in with less than 200 wins and any playing time in the post-1961 expansion era is Sandy Koufax. Adjusted for context, Halladay's numbers are surprisingly similar, though he doesn't have the World Series rings. You're not going to convince me that being somewhat comparable to a once-in-50-years exception makes his election a likelihood. (Jay Jaffe)
2011-01-12 13:00:00 (link to chat)Kevin Brown got a raw deal. Agreed?
(mafrth77 from Boston)		Yes, but it's easy to see why. He was a better pitcher than any number of HOFers. There was probably THIS much difference between Brown and Sandy Koufax. Sanford, of course, was beloved and Brown... was not. (Steven Goldman)
2010-04-22 13:00:00 (link to chat)What do you think of the Cubs decision to move Zambrano to the pen? Does it have anything to do with his recent high pitch counts or their concerns over his long term health?
(cubfan131 from IA)		Zambrano was worked just as hard as Mark Prior and Kerry Wood at a young age. The smoking comparison works here - some people get cancer, some don't, and not all on the same timeline. I'm not sure if Zambrano's done, but right now, he's certainly paying a price. Some is simple aging - there's a lot of great pitchers who burned out quickly (Sandy Koufax, anyone?) and some is lack of adjustment. Someone on Twitter suggested using Zambrano in a Mike Marshall style role. I don't think the Cubs will even think of that, but maybe Chuck Wasserstrom will surprise us all. (Will Carroll)
2008-12-15 13:00:00 (link to chat)Will, with all the work that has been done in sports medicine over the last 30 years, is there a player from before these advances that you look at as having a much greater career? Mine is Mantle (and Bobby Orr!) and his knees.
(Tim from DC)		Sandy Koufax? Steve Dalkowski? Joe Namath? Eric Lindros? (Will Carroll)
2008-08-27 13:00:00 (link to chat)What specific procedure would Sandy Koufax undergo today to treat whatever was wrong with his elbow in 1966?
(Greg from Honolulu)		It was his shoulder, mostly, and no one really knows. I'd guess labrum or cuff. (Will Carroll)


BP Roundtables

DateRoundtable NameComment
2010-10-06 10:00:002010 Playoffs Day OneBB-Ref must not be aware that Lee was bitten by a radioactive Sandy Koufax on a routine trip to Dodgertown prior to the 2008 season. (Ben Lindbergh)
2009-10-12 15:00:00Phillies/Rockies Playoffs RoundtableRepeating myself:

Todd Helton:hitters::Sandy Koufax:pitchers.
(Joe Sheehan)