Mickey Lolich

Michael Stephen Lolich (September 12, 1940 – February 4, 2026) was an American left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who played from 1963 until 1979, almost entirely for the Detroit Tigers. A three-time All-Star, he won at least 14 games every year from 1964 through 1974, striking out at least 200 batters seven times. Lolich was named the Most Valuable Player of the 1968 World Series against the defending champion St. Louis Cardinals after earning three complete-game victories, including a 4-1 win over future Hall-of-Famer Bob Gibson in the climactic Game 7. He was runner-up for the 1971 American League (AL) Cy Young Award after leading the league with 25 wins, 308 strikeouts, 29 complete games and 376 innings pitched, also setting team records in strikeouts and with 45 games started, and helped lead the Tigers to a 1972 division title with 22 victories.

By 1975, Lolich ranked fifth in major league history in career strikeouts, though by the time of his retirement in 1979, his final total of 2,832 had slipped to seventh place. He held the major league record for career strikeouts by a left-handed pitcher from 1975 until 1980, when Steve Carlton passed him, and the AL record from 1973 until 2017, when CC Sabathia broke the mark. He holds Tigers franchise records of 2,679 strikeouts, 459 games started and 39 shutouts, and his 207 wins and innings pitched for Detroit are franchise records for a left-hander, as were his 508 games pitched until John Hiller passed him in 1979.

Early years

Lolich was born in Portland, Oregon, on September 12, 1940, and was of Croatian descent. He was born right-handed, but began to throw left-handed after a childhood accident. At age two, he rode his tricycle into a parked motorcycle, which fell on him. The accident broke his left collarbone, requiring him to wear a cast for four months. Post-injury efforts to strengthen the left arm helped Lolich develop into throwing left-handed. A sportswriter in 1964 wrote of Lolich, who was known as an eccentric: "He now eats, writes and bats right-handed, pitches left-handed and thinks sideways." He began his professional career playing the 1959, 1960, and 1961 seasons with the Knoxville Smokies of the South Atlantic League and the Durham Bulls of the Carolina League. In his first three seasons, he compiled a 17–29 record in 82 games.

Lolich was assigned to the Triple-A Denver Bears at the start of the 1962 season and went 0–4 with a 16.50 ERA in nine games. After the poor start, Detroit ordered him back to Knoxville. Lolich refused to report to Knoxville and was placed under indefinite suspension. He returned home to Oregon and struck out all 12 batters he faced in a four-inning outing in semi-pro ball with the Archer Blower team in Portland. In early June, Lolich was acquired by the Portland Beavers of the Pacific Coast League in a deal with the Tigers. Lolich turned his career around, compiling a 10–9 record and 3.95 ERA with 138 strikeouts in 23 games with the Beavers. The key to Lolich's turnaround was finding control of his pitches. He had developed a reputation as "a flamethrowing wildman" in the minors but developed his control while playing for Portland.

Detroit Tigers

1963–1967

Buoyed by a strong performance with Portland, Lolich was reclaimed by the Tigers in 1963. He irked Detroit's management by reporting late to spring training, saying he had remained in Portland to take an examination to become a mailman during the off-season. On September 9, he pitched his sixth shutout of the season and struck out 12 Yankees. For the season, Lolich ranked fourth in the American League with six shutouts and fifth with 192 strikeouts.

In November 1964, Lolich married Joyce Fleenor, a former airline stewardess from Los Angeles. At spring training in 1965, Lolich told reporter Joe Falls that marriage had a calming influence on him: "She's done so much for me, to settle me down, that I can hardly put it into words. She's made me a very happy guy."

In 1965, he compiled a 15–9 record with a 3.44 ERA. Always known as a weak hitter, Lolich hit .058 and struck out 37 times in 86 at-bats during the 1965 season.

In 1967, the Tigers hired former major league pitcher Johnny Sain as their pitching coach. Sain helped develop Lolich's pitching skills and taught him psychological aspects of pitching. The Tigers were in contention until the final day of the 1967 season, finishing one game behind the Red Sox. Lolich finished the season with a 14–13 record, but led the league with six shutouts and posted a 3.04 ERA.

In late July 1967, Lolich was called to active duty with the Michigan Air National Guard in response to the ongoing Detroit riot. Lolich spent twelve days on active duty and was promoted to Airman First Class. Upon returning to the team, he received death threats, allegedly from the Black Panthers, for his role in quelling the riot. In response, the Federal Bureau of Investigation placed a team of snipers on the roof of Tiger Stadium during his subsequent two starts.

1968 World Series championship

In 1968, the Tigers quickly rose to first place, winning nine straight after losing the season opener to Boston. Lolich was overshadowed by teammate Denny McLain's 31-win season, and was sent to the bullpen in August due to a late-season slump.

After Bob Gibson defeated McLain in Game 1 of the 1968 World Series in St. Louis, Lolich helped Detroit recover by allowing only one run in an 8–1 Game 2 win. He also helped his own cause by hitting the only home run of his 16-year career. They added another run for a 5–3 win, staving off elimination. With just two days of rest, and having pitched two complete games in the past week, Lolich faced Gibson in Game 7, both having won their previous two starts.

Detroit became only the third team in World Series history to rally from a 3–1 series deficit to win in seven games.

1969–1975

In 1969, Lolich went 19–11 with a 3.14 ERA, and earned his first All-Star selection. At the 1971 All-Star Game which featured 21 future members of the Baseball Hall of Fame, Lolich pitched the final two innings to preserve the first All-Star game victory by an American League team since 1962. He finished second to Vida Blue in the 1971 Cy Young Award voting. Lolich became known for his endurance and his ability to pitch complete games.

Lolich won 16 games in both 1973 and 1974. However, the Tigers dropped to last place in the American League East as the team transitioned to younger players. In 1975, Lolich eclipsed Warren Spahn’s Major League Baseball record of 2,583 career strikeouts by a left-handed pitcher.

Much like 1975 in Detroit, Lolich received poor run support with the Mets, posting an 8–13 record despite a solid 3.22 ERA for the 1976 season; however, he had disagreements with the Mets pitching coach as well as the Mets trainer and retired after the season.

Life after baseball

thumb|Lolich in 2009

At the end of his playing career, Lolich did work as a manufacturer's representative. One day on a trip to work, he stopped for breakfast at a doughnut shop and became friends with the proprietor, who offered him to be partners in the shop. For a time, he worked at the doughnut shop in the day and selling "A. C. Spark Plugs or Buick lighters" before a series of auto industry cuts saw him focus exclusively on the doughnut business.

In 1979, Lolich invested in a doughnut shop in Rochester, Michigan, with the understanding that his partner would run the business. Following disagreements, Lolich bought out his partner and began running the business. In 1983, after losing his lease, he moved the doughnut business to Lake Orion. As late as 1984, Lolich had a glass den that held 216 1/2 baseballs that represented his 216 victories and half of a ball for a relief victory. In the late 1990s, Lolich sold the doughnut shop and retired.

Lolich also had a small role in The Incredible Melting Man, a 1977 horror movie released during his first retirement. He plays a security guard who is killed by the Melting Man near the end of the film.

In 2003, Lolich was one of 26 players chosen for the final ballot by the National Baseball Hall of Fame's Veterans Committee but garnered only 13 votes, far below the 75% required for election.

Lolich died at a care facility in Sterling Heights, Michigan, on February 4, 2026, at the age of 85.

Lolich's other records and accomplishments

His 2,679 strikeouts in the American League is the 9th-most in AL history and 2nd most by a left-hander.
His 2,832 career strikeouts in both leagues was the 7th most in major league history and the most by a left-hander when he retired in 1979. Through 2025, he has the fifth-most strikeouts by a left-handed pitcher in MLB history.
His 1,538 batters faced in 1971 was the most in the majors since George Uhle faced 1,548 in 1923. Only two other pitchers have faced at least 1,500 hitters since 1923, Wilbur Wood with 1,531 in 1973 and Bob Feller with 1,512 in 1946.
His 376 innings pitched in 1971 is the second highest in the majors since 1917. Wilbur Wood holds the modern record with just a year later, 1972. Only four have pitched 350 or more innings in a season since 1929: Wilbur Wood (1972 and 1973), Lolich (1971), Bob Feller (1946) and Tiger forerunner Dizzy Trout (1944).
His 29 complete games in 1971 was the highest in the AL since Bob Feller's 36 in 1946.
In the ten-year span from 1965 to 1974, he struck out more (2,245) than any other major league pitcher. Bob Gibson was second with 2,117 during the same period.
In that same span, he was second in major league innings pitched () to Gaylord Perry's 2,978.
In the same span, he had more wins (172) than any other AL pitcher. Gaylord Perry led the majors with 182.
In the same span, he threw more complete games (155) than any other AL hurler. Gaylord Perry led the majors with 205.
He is the only left-hander with three complete World Series games in the same Series.
Lolich started 324 games with Bill Freehan playing as catcher, setting a major league record for most starts together as a battery that stood until Adam Wainwright and Yadier Molina of the St. Louis Cardinals broke it in 2022.

Early years

Detroit Tigers

1963–1967

1968 World Series championship

1969–1975

Life after baseball

Lolich's other records and accomplishments

See also

References

Further reading

External links