#96 RHSP Mudcat Grant (1958-1964)

Unfortunately for the Indians, Jim “Mudcat” Grant had his best season a year after they traded him. Until 1964, Grant had exactly one year in which he posted an ERA under the league average (1961), and seemed destined for a mediocre career. The Indians traded him to the Minnesota Twins during the 1964 season. The following year, Grant won 21 games, and took Minnesota to the brink of a championship, only to be shut down in Game 7 of the World Series by some guy named Koufax. During the 1965 World Series, Mudcat went 2-1, and hit a home run in Game 6 to force a pivotal game.

A couple years later, with the Dodgers, Grant became a closer, and pretty much remained in that role through the end of his career. Grant was taken by the Montreal Expos in the Expansion Draft, and recorded that franchise’s 1st win.