The White Sox announced on Thursday that Gary Peters, star pitcher from the 50s and 60s, has died. He was 85 years old.
Peters made his MLB debut with the White Sox in 1959 but only pitched 21 innings over 12 games from 1959-1962. He became a fixture in the White Sox rotation in 1963 and found immediate success in his new role. Peters had a 19-8 record that year, led the A.L. with a 2.33 ERA and led all of baseball with a tiny 0.3 HR/9 rate. He was recognized with a Rookie of the Year award that year.
From that point forward, Peters was a force in the White Sox rotation. He led the league ERA again in 1966 (1.98) and led the league in wins in 1964 (20). Peters was a two-time All-Star and finished in the top-10 in MVP voting three times. His 1,098 strikeouts with the White Sox rank eighth in franchise history.
Peters was no slouch at the plate, either. He slashed .212/.240/.344 with 15 home runs and 71 RBI over his 11 seasons on the South Side. Peters even had one pinch hit, walkoff homer according to Baseball Almanac. That came off of Wes Stock in the 13th inning of a game against the A’s in 1964.
The White Sox traded Peters and Don Pavletich to the Red Sox in exchange for Syd O'Brien, Billy Farmer and cash after the 1969 season. Peters finished his career with three seasons in Boston.