Is Cardinals legend Bob Gibson the most intimidating pitcher ever?

If you look up which MLB pitcher is the most intimidating of all time, the one name that consistently pops up at the top of these lists is St. Louis Cardinals great Bob Gibson. The aura around Gibson has led to many stories and claims — some of which are true. Hank Aaron has a famous quote about Bob:

"You don’t dig in against Bob Gibson, he’ll knock you down. He’d knock down his own grandmother if she dared to challenge him. Don’t stare at him, don’t smile at him, don’t talk to him. He doesn’t like it. If you happen to hit a home run, don’t run too slow, don’t run too fast. If you happen to want to celebrate, get in the tunnel first. And if he hits you, don’t charge the mound, because he’s a Gold Glove boxer."

Hank Aaron

Well, that sounds intimidating! But if you brush off the mystique, there are a lot of questionable claims about Gibson that have been passed off as truth throughout the years. Was he intimidating? Sure. I think it’s mainly because he was a great pitcher (1968...wow) and fierce competitor. Let’s start with the most misleading claim in my opinion:

Claim #1: Gibson was a headhunter!

If a batter got too close to the plate, Gibson would brush them off and wasn’t afraid to hit them. Sure, but you could say that about most pitchers — especially back in the 1960s and ‘70s. While “brushback” pitch information is not available, there is data for how often Gibson would hit a batter. How often? Not very.

“In a career of 3,884 innings, Gibson hit only 102 batters. That comes out to roughly one hit batsman every 38 innings. Other pitchers with the reputation as headhunters, like Don Drysdale and Pedro Martinez, hit batters with a much higher frequency. Drysdale hit a batter every 22 innings and Pedro every 20 innings!

One of the most similar pitchers to compare Gibson to is the oh-so-intimidating…Greg Maddux.  Maddux averaged one hit batsman every 37 innings throughout his career, very similar to Gibson. Gibson’s reputation as a headhunter is more bark than bite.”

Claim #2:  Gibson looked intimidating! 

It’s not because of his size. Gibson was 6’1, which is smaller than his contemporary, Sandy Koufax. Most players claimed his intimidating look was HOW he looked at you! Gibson’s stern gaze would send chills down hitters’ spines! There may be a very good reason for that scowl — Gibson couldn’t see the catcher’s signs.

Gibson told a story once about the first time he met Willie Mays.

"I was wearing glasses at the time, but I never did wear ’em on the field. When he opened his door, I’m standing behind Bill White and Mays says, ‘Who is that?’ Bill says, ‘That’s Gibson.’ Mays said, ‘You wear glasses? You gonna kill somebody.’ And after that, he never did lean over the plate too much. He was always a little leery of the ball inside.
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Bob Gibson

Willie Mays hit .196 against Gibson for his career. Was he worried about getting hit because Gibson’s vision wasn’t great? Maybe. More likely, Gibson was just really good!

Gibson’s facial contortions may have looked intimidating to some, but he was just squinting. Maybe if Gibson wore glasses (or rec specs like Chris Sabo), that intimidation factor would have never existed.

Claim #3: Gibson could throw heat!

Gibson did have a great fastball. How much faster was it than his peers? That’s hard to know for sure because the technology wasn’t available to get radar gun readings like today. Most estimates seem to suggest Gibson threw in the mid-to-low 90s. That’s fast, but probably the same or slower than Koufax or Sam McDowell in the AL. Definitely slower than Nolan Ryan.

One interesting analysis looked at video evidence and concluded that Gibson averaged 91.9 mph on his fastball with a peak of 95 mph. There is no way to know conclusively, but Gibson’s fastball didn't seem to outpace those of his peers.

Now that everyone has seen the evidence, the mythology of Gibson’s intimidation will go away!

Probably not. Gibson wasn’t a headhunter, squinted because he couldn’t see well, and didn't have record-breaking heat on his fastball. But many people love Gibson because of his will to succeed, determination, and grit, not to mention an indomitable spirit that never wanted to lose, even if you were his daughter trying to win a game of tic-tac-toe. He was a warrior.

So…was Bob Gibson intimidating? Yes.

But mostly because of the stories people pass along rather than anything he actually did.