Mike Marshall

Michael Grant Marshall (January 15, 1943 – May 31, 2021) was an American professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) in 1967 and from 1969 through 1981 for nine different teams. Marshall won the National League Cy Young Award in 1974 as a Los Angeles Dodger and was a two-time All-Star selection. He was the first relief pitcher to receive the Cy Young Award.

In 1974, Marshall set a record for the most games pitched in a season, with 106.

Early life Marshall was born in Adrian, Michigan, on January 15, 1943. He attended Adrian High School in his hometown, before studying at Michigan State University. He was signed as an amateur free agent by the Philadelphia Phillies on September 13, 1960. He made 37 relief appearances for the Tigers that season, going 1–3 with 10 saves and had a 1.98 earned run average (ERA).

The Pilots used Marshall mainly as a starter in his only season there, as he went 3–10 with a 5.13 ERA in 20 games (14 starts).

Marshall was traded from the Expos to the Dodgers for Willie Davis at the Winter Meetings on December 5, 1973. He won the National League Cy Young Award in 1974 as a member of the Dodgers, in 1974 with the Los Angeles Dodgers, and a third time in 1979 in the American League with the Minnesota Twins (sharing the award with Jim Kern). He was voted the Montreal Expos Player of the Year in 1972 and 1973,

Marshall, who relied primarily on an elusive screwball,

In his record-setting 1974 season, he pitched innings, all of which came in relief appearances. In the months preceding his 1974 Cy Young season, he considered retiring in order to work on his Ph.D. Marshall pitched for the Dodgers that year. His second marriage to Erica Smith-Marshall lasted 32 years.

Marshall earned his Doctor of Philosophy in exercise physiology from Michigan State University in 1978. He wanted pitchers to externally rotate early as they swing their arm up. That means the pitcher will lift the hand before the elbow, so that the wrist faces away from the body and up, the hand is above the elbow when the front foot touches the ground, which leads to a smooth transition without a "forearm bounce", as Marshall called it. Marshall believed this causes ulnar collateral ligament injuries, which can necessitate ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, which is known as "Tommy John surgery". He wanted to first lay back the forearm and then accelerate by rotating the body instead of bending over, in order to protect the elbow against injury.

Marshall taught the screwball to his cousin, Brent Honeywell Sr., who taught it to his son, Brent Honeywell Jr.

Marshall died on May 31, 2021, at his home in Zephyrhills, Florida, where he ran a pitcher training camp. He was 78, and had been receiving hospice care.