Don Newcombe

Who is Don Newcombe?

Donald Newcombe, nicknamed "Newk", is an American former Major League Baseball right-handed starting pitcher who played for the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers, Cincinnati Reds and Cleveland Indians.

Until 2011 when Detroit Tigers Pitcher Justin Verlander did it, Newcombe was the only baseball player to have won the Rookie of the Year, Most Valuable Player and Cy Young awards in his career. In 1949, he became the first black pitcher to start a World Series game. In 1951, Newcombe was the first black pitcher to win twenty games in one season. In 1956, he was the first pitcher to win the National League MVP and the Cy Young Award in the same season.

Newcombe compiled a career average of .271 with 15 home runs and was used as a pinch hitter, a rarity for pitchers.