Detroit Tigers All-Time 25-Man Roster
By Matt Snyder
Starting Pitcher #4 – Jack Morris
Few pitchers can shoulder the type of workload that Jack Morris took on as a the Tigers’ top pitcher of the 1980s. One of only four players in franchise history to eclipse the 3,000 innings mark, Morris was the model of durability and reliability. From the time he joined the rotation full-time in 1979 to his departure following the 1990 season, Morris averaged 33 starts and 241 innings (for context, no pitcher threw even 235 innings in 2015).
Morris won all three of his postseason starts in the 1984 World Series Championship season (Game 1 of the ALCS and Games 1 and 4 of the World Series). In all he threw 25 innings that postseason (two starts were complete games) and posted a stellar 1.80 ERA. He also won 10 of his first 11 decisions that year during the club’s notable 35-5 start to the season.
The Hall of Fame may not have come calling for Morris — he fell 7.3% short in 2013 at the peak of his support in his penultimate year of ballot eligibility — but his career is nothing to be ashamed of and easily stacks up with the best in the history of the Detroit Tigers.
For his career in Detroit Morris was credited with 198 wins (fifth in club history), a 3.73 ERA, and 1980 strikeouts (currently second).
Next: Starting Pitcher #5