1950's NY Giants Pitcher Ruben Gomez (1953-1958)

Ruben Gomez Colon was born July 13, 1927 in Puerto Rico. He was known as “The Divine Madman” who loved to pitch in tough situations but was also known to be wild. Gómez, was a rookie in 1953 going 13-11, throwing 3 shutouts with a 3.40 ERA. He was welcomed into the Giant Dodger rivalry, when manager Leo Durocher ordered him to throw at Brooklyn's Carl Furillo. Furillo was so furious, he went after Durocher in the dugout and ended up breaking his hand. Gomez threw at a few others too; In 1956 he hit the Braves hot hitter Joe Adcock on the wrist, when Adcock charged the mound Gomez threw the ball at him & ran to the dugout. He leveled Frank Robinson with a fastball to the head in 1957 sending him to the hospital.

In the Giants 1954 Championship season Ruben was the #2 man, going 17-9 with a 2.88 ERA pitching 221 innings. In the 1954 World Series Gómez won Game #3 in the Giants sweep of Cleveland. He went into the 8th, allowing just two earned runs and four hits. He became the first Puerto Rican player to be a member of a World Series championship team, becoming a hero in his native country. Schools closed the day he pitched in the Series so the kids could watch the game. When Gómez returned to Puerto Rico, a holiday was declared, he was greeted by thousands.

The next two seasons his record dropped below .500 (7-17 in 1956), he was demoted to the bullpen for 10 games. By 1957 he regained form and won 15 games and lowering his ERA under four. In 1958 the Giants moved West, and on April 15, 1958 he became the first pitcher to win a game on the West Coast. He faced off against the Dodgers Don Drysdale at Seals Stadium in San Francisco, and pitched an 8-0 shutout to earn the victory. He went 10-12 and was traded to Philadelphia after the season. After three poor seasons he went to the Indians, Twins and ended up in the Mexican League. In 1967, at age 39 he pitched 11 innings for the Phillies. In 10-seasons, Gómez pitched 289 games, going 76-86, with 677 strikeouts, a 4.09 ERA, 63 complete games, & 15 shutouts.

Amazing Story: One day a young boy begged Gómez to buy a lottery ticket. He did and won $35,000. He tried to share the money with the boy, but the family refused. Instead he went a nearby bank and set up a trust fund for the boy, for when he turned 18. In 2001, Gómez was hospitalized with cancer, a doctor from Mexico requested permission to attend an operation. He was the boy, the fund put him through med school. Gómez passed away from cancer in San Juan in July 2004 at the age of 77.