| Steve Carlton was a big, imposing left-hander with a good fastball and an astonishing slider ("like drinking coffee with a fork," Willie Stargell supposedly said of trying to hit Carlton's signature pitch). Good enough to break into a formidable St. Louis Cardinals rotation in 1967, Carlton struggled in his early years with consistency. Good years alternated with bad ones; he could lose control of his pitches in a hurry and often seemed to be beating himself mentally.
Read more at the Baseball-Reference Bullpen |
