Archived Press Release (Source: Darl DeVault, OSM Publicist)
Johan Santana is 2004 Warren Spahn Winner
October 21, 2004
The best lefty for the 2004 season, and consequently the winner of the 2004 Warren Spahn Award going annually to the best left-handed pitcher in Major League baseball, is Johan Santana of the Minnesota Twins. Santana is also the first foreign-born winner of this award that is presented by the Oklahoma Sports Museum of Guthrie, Oklahoma.
From the remote town of Tovar in the Merida section of Venezuela, Santana, 25, made his major league debut with the Minnesota Twins in 2000. Since that time he has evolved into a solid starting pitcher. In 2004 he baffled opposing hitters, holding them to a .192 batting average in the second half of the season. He "owned" the American League, going 13-0 in his 15 starts after the All-Star break. He ended the regular season with 20 wins, 265 strike-outs, and an ERA of 2.61, all factors in statistically determining him as the 2004 Spahn winner.
Santana edged out veteran pitcher and four-time Spahn Award winner Randy Johnson by the closest winning margin since OSM began presenting the award in 1999. The 2003 winner of the award was Yankee pitcher Andy Pettitte.
The award honors the legacy of Oklahoman Warren Spahn, the winningest lefty ever, whose 363 MLB wins are the most ever for a left-handed pitcher. Spahn died in 2003.
Santana will receive the award, a 2-foot-2-inch bronze statue of Spahn, during a gala event scheduled for January 2005 at the historic Masonic Temple in Guthrie.
'The award allows the OSM to remind fans of Spahn's Hall of Fame accomplishments,' said Richard Hendricks, OSM president and director. 'This year's winner is considered the best young pitcher in the game; Santana is fearless in going right at some of the best hitters in the game, a reminder of how Warren Spahn also pitched some dominant ball in his day.'
Noted Edmond, Oklaoma artist Shan Gray worked closely with Spahn while sculpting the bronze award. The statue features Spahn in his famous high-kicking windup. A nine-foot bronze version of the award is on display at the museum in Guthrie. Another commissioned through the OSM, is on display in Monument Grove outside the Atlanta Braves’ Turner Field in honor of Spahn's years as a Brave (Milwaukee version).
This event is the primary fund-raiser for the OSM, Oklahoma’s official sports museum. The museum offers a sponsorship-level reception prior to the program allowing sponsors of the event to mingle with the award winner and Hall of Famer Fergie Jenkins, formerly of Guthrie and active member of the museum’s board of directors.
Striving to inspire today’s youth through Oklahoma’s rich athletic heritage, the Oklahoma Sports Museum displays exhibits honoring professional and Olympic athletes with Oklahoma ties.
The award presentation is open to the public. Tickets are $25 and $10 for students under 18; they may be purchased by contacting OSM at (405) 260-1342 or P.O. Box 1342, Guthrie, OK 73044.
Archived Press Release (Source: Darl DeVault, OSM Publicist)
Andy Pettitte is 2003 Warren Spahn Award Winner
By pitching a combination of the most wins, lowest ERA, and most strikeouts for a lefty in Major League Baseball, New York Yankee Andy Pettitte is the 2003 Warren Spahn Award winner. The Oklahoma Sports Museum presents the annual award to the best left-handed pitcher in MLB to honor the legacy of Oklahoman Spahn, whose 363 MLB wins are the most ever for a lefty.
Spahn, 82, will present the award, a 2-foot-2 bronze statue of himself, to Pettitte at 7 p.m., December 2, at the Masonic Temple Convention Hall in Guthrie, Oklahoma.
"The award allows OSM to remind fans of Spahn's Hall of Fame accomplishments by honoring a present-day star of the World Series," said Richard Hendricks, OSM president. "Spahn pitched some dominant World Series wins against the Yankees. Pettitte now leads all of MLB in postseason wins as a starting pitcher."
An anchor of the Yankee rotation in winning 149 games since his Yankee debut in 1995, Pettitte won 21 games with an ERA of 4.02 and 180 strikeouts in the 2003 regular season. After the Series, he was 24-9 with 214 Ks. Those 149 wins put Pettitte in a MLB class by himself. He is the only pitcher in the post-expansion era (since 1961) to win at least 12 games in each of his first nine seasons.
After this year's World Series, Pettitte, 31, is 13-8 in postseason play to lead MLB in postseason wins as a starter. Atlanta Braves' John Smoltz has 13 postseason wins as well, but one of his wins was in relief.
Noted Edmond, Oklahoma artist Shan Gray worked closely with Spahn while sculpting the bronze award depicting the legend in his famous high-kicking windup. A nine-foot bronze version of the award commissioned through the OSM is now on display in Monument Grove outside the Atlanta Braves' Turner Field in Atlanta.
Striving to inspire today's youth through Oklahoma's rich athletic heritage, the Oklahoma Sports Museum displays exhibits honoring athletes with Oklahoma ties who play or played professional or Olympic sports. The museum is the first to assume statewide responsibility of preserving the legacy of Oklahomans in the pros and the Olympics. Located in the center of the state in Guthrie, the museum presented the award to Arizona Diamondbacks' Randy Johnson the first four years.
