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1969 was a seminal season in MLB history – not only did the league lower the pitching mound from 15 to 10 inches after “The Year of the Pitcher” in 1968, but it was also the first season with divisions and an expanded postseason, thus culminating in an improbable World Series title for the New York Mets AKA “The Amazin’ Mets”. Two of the key baseball figures at the center of these monumental events were pitchers Bob Gibson of the St. Louis Cardinals and Tom Seaver of the Mets – the former had arguably the most dominant pitching season ever in 1968, while the latter led the “Miracle Mets” to their unexpected first championship. Both multiple Cy Young winners and eventual Hall of Famers, the duo were among the elite pitchers of the era and faced off against each other on numerous occasions in the NL, thus leading to the natural comparison:
Who was better – Bob Gibson or Tom Seaver?
The Beginning
While they came from very different backgrounds, Gibson and Seaver were both multi-sport high school stars en route to college and then professional baseball careers; Seaver was an immediate MLB star, whereas it would take Gibson some time to find his stride as a pitcher.
Growing up in Omaha, Nebraska, Gibson overcame health problems as a child to excel in youth sports. In particular, he starred in both baseball and basketball and after earning All-State basketball honors as a high school senior, attended in-state Creighton University on a basketball scholarship. Continuing to play both baseball and basketball throughout his college days, Gibson eventually signed with the Cardinals, though first played a season of basketball with the Harlem Globetrotters (preceding Wilt Chamberlain by a year). Upon beginning his professional baseball career in earnest, Gibson shuffled between the majors and the minors for a couple of seasons, pitching in a combined 40 games with 21 starting appearances and an aggregate 6-11 record over the course of 1959 and 1960. In his first season as a (mostly) full-time starter in 1961, Gibson was 13-12 with a 3.24 ERA (136 ERA+, which is an advanced statistic that adjusts a pitcher’s ERA for both his ballpark and the league-wide ERA; 100 is average), a 1.44 WHIP, 166 strikeouts, and 10 complete games (during that era, complete games were more frequent – in fact, this was the first of 13 consecutive seasons in which he hurled double-digit complete games).
Roughly a decade younger than Gibson, Seaver was a native of Fresno, California and likewise played both baseball and basketball. Post high school graduation, he did six months of reserve duty with the United States Marine Corps before first attending Fresno City College and then earning a baseball scholarship to USC. Though Seaver was originally drafted in the 10th round of the 1965 MLB Draft by the Los Angeles Dodgers, the two sides were not able to come to financial terms and he was later selected 20th overall in the first round of the 1966 January Draft by the Atlanta Braves; however, the contract was voided and the Mets would eventually win his signing rights in a lottery. Following one season in the minors, Seaver made his major league debut in 1967 and proceeded to go 16-13 with 2.76 ERA (122 ERA+), 1.20 WHIP, 170 strikeouts, and 18 complete games (similarly, he would have 10+ complete games for 11 years in a row, and 12x overall), thus winning NL Rookie of the Year and earning the first of seven consecutive All-Star selections (12x total).
Career Comparison
Throughout the late 1960s and 1970s, Gibson and Seaver would each hold the unofficial title of best pitcher in baseball – the former took the mantle from Sandy Koufax in the mid-1960s and would pass on that distinction to Seaver for the 1970s; both were also members of the 3,000-strikeout club and among the greatest strikeout pitchers in baseball history.
In 1962, Gibson was an All-Star for the first time (he was actually a 2x All-Star that year because MLB had an odd quirk from 1959 to 1962 where there were two All-Star Games per year), going 15-13 with a 2.85 ERA (151 ERA+), 1.15 WHIP, 208 strikeouts, and a league-high 5 shutouts in 233.2 innings pitched. For the next few seasons, he was a consistent 200+ innings pitched workhorse and 15+ game winner; then, starting in 1965, he had two straight 20-win seasons, which also marked the start of six straight All-Star selections and nine consecutive Gold Gloves:
- 1965: 20-12 record with a 3.07 ERA (126 ERA+), 1.16 WHIP, 270 strikeouts, and 6 shutouts in 299.0 innings pitched
- 1966: 21-12 record with a 2.44 ERA (148 ERA+), 1.03 WHIP, 225 strikeouts, and a league-high 5 shutouts in 280.1 innings pitched
After making only 24 starts in 1967 (13-7 record) due to a fractured fibula bone suffered after the All-Star break, Gibson had a historic season in 1968 in the aforementioned “Year of the Pitcher”. By going 22-9 with a microscopic 1.12 ERA (258 ERA+), 0.85 WHIP, 268 strikeouts, 28 complete games, and 13 shutouts in 304.2 innings pitched, he led the league in ERA, WHIP, strikeouts and shutouts en route to winning both the NL Cy Young and NL MVP awards; moreover, his 1.12 ERA remains the single-season record for the live-ball era. As an encore, even with MLB lowering the pitching mound in 1969, Gibson remained dominant, going 20-13 with a 2.18 ERA (164 ERA+), 1.10 WHIP, 269 strikeouts, a league-leading 28 complete games, and 4 shutouts in a career-high 314.0 innings pitched. This was then followed by a second Cy Young in 1970, as well as a fourth-place MVP finish: 23-7 record (a career-high in wins and the only time he led the league in the category) with a 3.12 ERA (133 ERA+), 1.19 WHIP, and a career-high 274 strikeouts in 294.0 innings pitched.
Entering his mid-30s, Gibson went “only” 16-13 in 1971, though still finished fifth for Cy Young and also tossed his first (and only) no-hitter in the process. He rebounded with a final All-Star selection and 200-strikeout season in 1972 on the strength of a 19-11 record with a 2.46 ERA (139 ERA+), 1.13 WHIP, and 208 strikeouts in 278.0 innings pitched. Though no longer an overpowering force, Gibson remained a solid pitcher until his retirement after the 1975 season at age 39, having spent his entire career with the Cardinals and becoming just the second pitcher in MLB history to reach 3,000 career strikeouts (after Walter Johnson; first NL pitcher to accomplish the feat).
During the late 1960s, Seaver quickly established himself as the Mets’ ace and in their magical 1969 season, led the league with a career-best 25-7 record, 2.21 ERA (165 ERA+), 1.04 WHIP, and 208 strikeouts in 273.1 innings pitched to win his first Cy Young Award and finish second for NL MVP to Willie McCovey. For the next four years, he placed top-10 for the Cy Young every year while winning 20 games 2x and leading the league in ERA 3x, WHIP 2x, and strikeouts in 3x:
- 1970: 18-12 record with a league-leading 2.82 ERA (143 ERA+), 1.08 WHIP, and a league-high 283 strikeouts in 290.2 innings pitched; finished seventh for Cy Young
- 1971: 20-10 record with a league-leading 1.76 ERA (194 ERA+), a league-best 0.95 WHIP, and a league-high 289 strikeouts in 286.1 innings pitched; set career-best marks for ERA, WHIP, and strikeouts, but finished second for the Cy Young to Fergie Jenkins while placing ninth for MVP
- 1972: 21-12 record with a 2.92 ERA (115 ERA+), 1.12 WHIP, and 249 strikeouts in 262.0 innings pitched; finished fifth for Cy Young
- 1973: 19-10 record with a league-best 2.08 ERA (175 ERA+), a league-leading 0.98 WHIP, and a league-high 251 strikeouts in 290.0 innings pitched; won his second Cy Young and finished eighth for MVP
Following an “off” year in 1974 (11-11 with a 3.20 ERA), Seaver quickly bounced back to win his third and final Cy Young in 1975 on the strength of a league-leading 22-9 record, a 2.38 EA (146 ERA+), 1.09 WHIP, and a league-best 243 strikeouts in 280.1 innings pitched.
However, after another All-Star campaign in 1976 (in which he once again led the league in strikeouts) and amidst contentious contract negotiations, Seaver was sent to the Cincinnati Reds at the 1977 trade deadline for Pat Zachry, Steve Henderson, Doug Flynn, and Dan Norman; overall, he finished the season with an outstanding 21-6 record, 2.58 ERA (149 ERA+), league-best 1.01 WHIP, 196 strikeouts, and a league-high 7 shutouts in 261.1 innings pitched to finish third for the Cy Young. Though not quite the same dominant force as he was with the Mets (he never won 20 games again and struck out 200+ batters only once), Seaver remained an excellent pitcher for the Reds – in addition to a fourth-place Cy Young showing in 1979, he had his final All-Star selection and was second for Cy Young to rookie sensation Fernando Valenzuela during the strike-shortened 1981 campaign: a league-best 14-2 record with a 2.54 ERA (140 ER+), 1.12 WHIP, and 87 strikeouts in 166.1 innings pitched, in the process becoming the sixth pitcher to reach 3,000 career strikeouts and only 11 days after Steve Carlton.
Coming off a career-worst 5-13 season and 5.50 ERA in 1982, a 38-year-old Seaver returned to the Mets in 1983, spending one season back with the team before jumping to the AL with the Chicago White Sox. In two full seasons with Chicago, he won 15+ games both times and reached the 300-win milestone late in the 1985 season. A 16x Opening Day starter, Seaver was traded midway through the 1986 season to the Boston Red Sox, thus spending his final major league season between the White Sox and Red Sox. While he did rejoin the Mets midway through the 1987 season, Seaver never made it to the major league roster and instead retired at age 42; upon retirement, he was third in career strikeouts behind only Nolan Ryan (a former Mets teammate on the 1969 squad) and Carlton and together with the aforementioned Walter Johnson, are the only pitchers with 300 career wins, 3,000 career strikeouts, and a sub-3.00 career ERA.
With three additional MLB seasons under his belt and an earlier start as a full-time starting pitcher, Seaver pitched over 125 extra games and nearly 1,000 additional innings than Gibson, which in turn, contributes to his advantage in cumulative statistics (wins, losses, strikeouts, and shutouts). When you look at career ratios, though Seaver has a slightly lower ERA and WHIP, both pitchers have an identical 127 ERA+; moreover, in terms of “great” seasons, each had five 20-win seasons and Seaver had one extra 200-strikeout campaign (10x vs. 9x) – this translates to an edge for Seaver in All-Star selections (12 to 9), ERA titles (3 to 1), and Cy Youngs (3 vs. 2), but Gibson does have an MVP award and nine Gold Gloves. Not surprisingly, when you encapsulate their careers using Wins Above Replacement (WAR), Seaver comes out ahead at 109.9 to 89.2. Nevertheless, both pitchers were first ballot Hall of Famers, Gibson in 1981 and Seaver in 1992; in particular, Seaver was not only the player to be inducted into Cooperstown with a Mets cap (he has since been joined by Mike Piazza), but for many years, his 98.84% ballot selection was the highest percentage in history (since surpassed by Mariano Rivera, Derek Jeter, and Ken Griffey Jr. as of the 2020 class).
Regular Season Statistics
| Bob Gibson | Player | Tom Seaver |
| 17 (1959-1975) | Seasons | 20 (1967-1986) |
| 528 | Games Played | 656 |
| 3,884.1 | Innings Pitched | 4,783.0 |
| 251-174 | W-L Record | 311-205 |
| 6 | Saves | 1 |
| 2.91 | ERA | 2.86 |
| 127 | ERA+ | 127 |
| 1.19 | WHIP | 1.12 |
| 3,117 | Strikeouts | 3,640 |
| 56 | Shutouts | 61 |
| 89.2 | Wins Above Replacement | 109.9 |
| 9x | All-Star Games | 12x |
| 1x | MVP | – |
| 2x | Cy Young | 3x |
| 2x | World Series Titles | 1x |
| 2x World Series MVP, 1x ERA, 9x Gold Glove | Other Awards | 3x ERA, Rookie of the Year |
| 1981 | Hall of Fame Induction | 1992 |
Source: Baseball-Reference.com
With both of their careers straddling the playoff expansion era, the name of the game for both Gibson and Seaver was quality rather than quantity when it came to the postseason – despite limited appearances, the ace pitchers each carried their respective teams to World Series titles in their prime.
All three of Gibson’s postseason appearances came in the pre-expansion era, when the winners of the AL and NL pennants met directly in the World Series; as the Cardinals’ undisputed ace, he led the team to two championships, winning World Series MVP on both occasions:
- 1964: beat Mickey Mantle and the New York Yankees in the full seven games; Gibson went 2-1 with a 3.00 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, and a then-World Series record 31 strikeouts, winning the deciding Game 7 with a complete game
- 1967: beat Triple Crown winner Carl Yastrzemski and the Boston Red Sox in another seven game series; Gibson was even better this time, going 3-0 (all complete games, including a shutout) with a 1.00 ERA, 0.70 WHIP, and 26 strikeouts, again winning the clinching Game 7
- 1968: lost to Al Kaline and the Detroit Tigers, also in seven games; Gibson continued his regular season brilliance, going 2-1 (again all complete games, including a shutout) with a 1.67 ERA, 0.82 WHIP, and 35 strikeouts, including a single-game record of 17 strikeouts in Game 1 to break Koufax’s previous record
Even with the expansion of baseball’s postseason, Seaver also made three total playoff trips, with his first one being by far his most memorable. During the unforgettable 1969 season, he was mediocre in the NLCS vs. the Atlanta Braves (6.43 ERA), but then went 1-1 with a 3.00 ERA and 1.00 WHIP as the upstart Mets defeated the Baltimore Orioles in five games for their first World Series title. Four years later, they would make a return trip, but fall to the Oakland Athletics in a seven game series; Seaver went 0-1 in a pair of starts with a 2.40 ERA and 1.07 WHIP. Later on, he would also pitch for the Reds in the 1979 NLCS vs. the Pittsburgh Pirates, but it was past the “Big Red Machine” heyday and Cincinnati was swept.
Playoff Statistics
| Bob Gibson | Player | Tom Seaver |
| 9 | Games Played | 8 |
| 81.0 | Innings Pitched | 61.2 |
| 7-2 | W-L Record | 3-3 |
| – | Saves | – |
| 1.89 | ERA | 2.77 |
| 0.89 | WHIP | 1.09 |
| 92 | Strikeouts | 51 |
| 2 | Shutouts | – |
Source: Baseball-Reference.com
Every athlete goes through a natural career lifecycle, from starting off as a rookie to reaching peak years of performance and finally, declining into the inevitable retirement due to a combination of age and/or injury; Gibson had a relatively late start to being a top-line starter and declined in his last few seasons, while Seaver was also a relatively average to slightly above-average pitcher during most of the 1980s. For Hall of Fame caliber players across sports, I like to look at a concept I call a “decade of dominance.” The thinking behind this is that for most Hall of Fame type careers, there are roughly 10 great seasons that define an athlete (this idea is embodied in a sense by the NFL’s All-Decade teams), though due to injury or other factors, they might not be 10 consecutive years.
Decade of Dominance
| Bob Gibson | Player | Tom Seaver |
| 1962, 1964-1972 | Decade of Dominance | 1968-1973, 1975-1977, 1981 |
| 337 | Games Played | 343 |
| 2,712.0 | Innings Pitched | 2,659.1 |
| 188-109 | W-L Record | 190-91 |
| 3 | Saves | 1 |
| 2.59 | ERA | 2.40 |
| 1.10 | WHIP | 1.04 |
| 2,299 | Strikeouts | 2,246 |
| 49 | Shutouts | 40 |
| 69.1 | Wins Above Replacement | 70.8 |
Source: Baseball-Reference.com
Interestingly, despite Gibson’s 1968 campaign being arguably the most dominant single pitching season ever, Seaver’s decade of dominance actually compares favorably, which is a testament to his consistent greatness with the Mets and Reds; Gibson struck out slightly more batters in more innings pitched, but Seaver nevertheless holds the edge in nearly every other category, counting or ratio, with nearly identical WARs for the normalized period.
My Thoughts
Bob Gibson and Tom Seaver were at the vanguard of a power pitching renaissance in the 1960s and 1970s – though Gibson was only the second pitcher to reach 3,000 career strikeouts in 1974, over the next dozen years, he would be joined in the illustrious fraternity by not only Seaver and the aforementioned Carlton and Ryan, but also Gaylord Perry, Ferguson Jenkins, Don Sutton, Phil Niekro, and Bert Blyleven (all Hall of Famers). In addition, with both pitching in the NL (at least for most of Seaver’s career) and a budding rivalry during their playing days between the Cardinals and Mets, the two aces frequently faced off directly on the mound, so a head-to-head comparison is particularly apt. On one hand, Gibson may be the most intimidating pitcher ever and his 1968 season will be forever immortalized; in today’s offense-heavy game, his single-season 1.12 ERA may never be matched. On the other hand, however, Seaver’s year in and year out brilliance over the course of 10 to 15 seasons cannot be overlooked and may actually be slightly underrated – for one start or one season only, I think it is reasonable to chose Gibson (see his World Series brilliance), but over any longer period, whether three, five, 10, or 15 years, the choice for me is Mr. Met.
Thus, after weighing their careers against each other in terms of statistics, achievements, and impact, the winner of this faceoff is:
Tom Seaver
As always, vote for your choice and leave your thoughts and comments below.
Further Reading
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