Forgotten Blue - Jim Abbott
Recently my new BFF It's Harambe took on the thankless task of asking his fellow MgoBloggers to rank the top 25 Michigan athletes of all time. As the list was revealed it was clear to this reader that some of the most notable players who competed during the athletic stone age (pre-internet) had been forgotten about. This weekly diary will take a look at the more notable players from our past to remind everyone of what they did and why they deserve to be honored and remembered.
JIM ABBOTT
"I take a lot of pride in having played at Michigan," Abbott said. "Pretty much everywhere I go, people know I went there. I wear it on my sleeve."
Abbott was born in Flint, Michigan. He was picked up by the Ypsilanti, Michigan American Legion team and went on to win the championship. He graduated from Flint Central High School in Michigan where he was a stand-out pitcher and quarterback. He played for the Grossi Baseball Club during the summer in the Connie Mack leagues of Michigan. He was drafted in the 36th round by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 1985 Major League Baseball draft but did not sign, instead moving on to the University of Michigan.
The remarkable and inspirational part of the Jim Abbott story is that he was born without a right hand. When preparing to pitch the ball, Abbott would rest his mitt on the end of his right forearm. After releasing the ball, he would quickly slip his hand into the mitt, usually in time to field any balls that a two-handed pitcher would be able to field. Then he would secure the mitt between his right forearm and torso, slip his hand out of the mitt, and remove the ball from the mitt, usually in time to throw out the runner at first or sometimes even start a double play. At all levels, teams tried to exploit his fielding disadvantage by repeatedly bunting to him; this tactic was never effective.
He played for Michigan three years under coach Bud Middaugh, from 1985 to 1988, leading them to two Big Ten championships. In 1987, he won the James E. Sullivan Award as the top amateur athlete in the United States, becoming the first baseball player to win the award
After taking home his first All-America honor in 1987, Jim was on the short list for numerous major postseason honors, the biggest of which took him to New York, N.Y., winning the coveted Golden Spikes Award. 1987 was a special season for Jim. He earned All-America status, became the first baseball player to win the AAU's Sullivan Award and, also that season, he was recognized as the top amateur baseball player in the nation by winning the Golden Spikes Award.
The Golden Spikes is like the Heisman Trophy of College Baseball. It was presented in the Downtown Athletic Club in New York City and presenting the award that season was former Major League Baseball Commissioner Bowie Kuhn.
Abbott was the flag-bearer for the United States at the 1987 Pan American Games in Indianapolis, helping lead the USA to a second-place finish. Baseball was a demonstration sport in the 1988 Summer Olympics; Abbott pitched the final game, winning an unofficial gold medal for the United States. Abbott was voted the Big Ten Athlete of the Year in 1988. He would be selected 8th overall by the California Angels in the 1988 draft. Abbott's University of Michigan #31 jersey was retired at the Wolverines' April 18, 2009 home game against Michigan State University.
In 2007, Abbott was elected to the College Baseball Hall of Fame for his career at Michigan.Abb ott, who pitched for U-M from 1986 to 1988 before embarking on a 10-year professional career, was the fifth person in program history to have his number retired. Maloney said Abbott's addition to the group was a "no brainer."
"You have to be very selective and it's a difficult decision, but to me, this one was not very hard," Maloney said. "Not only with the success he had at Michigan, but more importantly on top of all that, his humility and how he's represented the university."
Abbott retired from baseball in 1999. He currently lives in Orange County, Calif., and does motivational speaking around the country. He also recently worked on a disability awareness project for the federal government.
He counts his years at Michigan as one of his most cherished achievements.
A look at some of the key statistics Jim Abbott compiled while pitching for Michigan from 1986 to 1988:
Stat Rank
26 career wins (Fourth)
13 complete games (Eighth)
3.04 career ERA (Sixth)
1987 Golden Spikes winner, given to college baseball's top player.
1987 Big Ten Male Athlete of the Year
October 12th, 2016 at 10:10 PM ^
i was working out in OC when he was with the angels. we were on patrol one night in 'angel' (the anaheim police helicopter) and flew over the stadium when the angels were playing the yankees. i still remember the oddity of the score board - 2nd inning, tied 2-2, and count on the batter as we crested the outfield wall was 2 balls, 2 strikes, with 2 out and 2 men on. IIRC, abbott was the one pitching that night.
October 12th, 2016 at 10:05 PM ^
I remember him well... He was a pretty good pitcher, and was universally known as an above average fielder on the mound.
October 12th, 2016 at 10:16 PM ^
Heckuvan athlete. Better human!
October 12th, 2016 at 10:19 PM ^
Jim Abbott was my childhood hero. Got a chance to see him pitch at Tiger Stadium with my dad during the waning end of his career when he was back with the Angels. He was already coming in as a relief guy by that point, and had already been sent minors for the first time. He was one of the few MLB players who managed to make it to the majors without ever playing in the minors. Even got to meet him and get an autograph before the game.
One of my favorite sports memories and maybe my favorite athlete of all time. Class act across the board.
One thing that could be added is that he was also one hell of a high school quarterback, and was (I think) even recruited to play football at a few places, but he chose baseball instead.
October 12th, 2016 at 10:38 PM ^
October 12th, 2016 at 11:20 PM ^
He also threw a no-hitter for the Yankees against the Indians on September 4, 1993
October 12th, 2016 at 11:48 PM ^
October 13th, 2016 at 12:25 AM ^
Everything I read and everything people have posted all point to a great athlete who was an even greater person. That he seemed to be someone people genuinely liked being around and that he treated others with respect.
The Michigan difference!
October 13th, 2016 at 8:01 AM ^
and Jim pitched. This might have been the same team they went to the PanAm games and Olympics - not sure as I'm recalling a highlight film on ESPN from some years back.
Anyways, the cool part of that film was the story of the Cuban kids that didn't have super talent. They were basically ignored by the government and left in povery. Those with talent we treated like hero's. The less talented kids saw Jim pitch and gained self worth out it. As adults, they said that if Jim could be successful with one arm then they could make something out of their lives with two.
October 13th, 2016 at 1:27 AM ^
One time we were selling parking spots on Arch St and Jim Abbott showed up, parked on the lawn, and said hey, I used to live here. He took a tour of the house for old time's sake, and then walked to the football game. I think it was 1997.
October 13th, 2016 at 2:18 AM ^
Totally agree - awesome dude, awesome pitcher. Also went right from college to the pros without a day in the minors which was extremely rare. At the time it was like him, Dave Winfield, and a couple others.
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad
October 15th, 2016 at 12:55 PM ^
went from high school to the tigers. even more rare.
October 13th, 2016 at 7:45 AM ^
One of the boys on my son's travel baseball team has a dad with one arm. The dad will occasionally warm up the pitchers and take his glove off to throw back to the pitcher. He doesn't have any off his missing arm, unlike Jim, but still gets the job done.
Also, my neighbor was recruited by Michigan to pitch. The last roster spot was either him or Jim - he went on the pitch for Sparty and later had a cup of coffee in the bigs.
Glad you posted a diary for Jim.
October 13th, 2016 at 7:53 AM ^
For so many reasons, take your pick. Thanks for posting.
October 13th, 2016 at 8:48 AM ^
They broke up while I was working with her, and she still only had good things to say about him. That's a good indication of how nice a guy he was.
I love MGrowOld's relaying of teams' general strategy of bunting against Abbott. I have no problem with the idea: it's fair game to exploit a weakness* in a highly competitive sport. But bunting was hilariously ineffective against Abbott, who had seen that proverbial movie over and over.
*Here it was merely a perceived weakness, of course.
October 13th, 2016 at 10:58 AM ^
In Abbott's first-ever NCAA appearance, a team tried something else.
It was down south, I think the opponent was North Carolina State. This is from memory, so that opponent might be wrong. Abbott was brought in as a lefty vs lefty reliever late in a close game, NC State had a runner on third with 2 out.
After Abbott's first pitch, as soon as the catcher threw the ball back to Abbott, the runner on third took off for home. Needless to say, Abbott calmly caught the ball, made his switch (which was so fast in person that you couldn't even tell how he was doing it), and easily threw the runner out at home.
Something MGrowOld doesn't mention is that Michigan would use Abbott as their primary pinch runner in close games when he wasn't pitching--he was the fastest guy on the team.
October 13th, 2016 at 12:42 PM ^
October 13th, 2016 at 9:48 AM ^
My brother played against him in high school. I remember watching the games, and since it was HS, we were really close to the field. His movements were so quick, and so exact, it was amazing to see how deft he was handling the ball/glove. He could throw 90, even then. Amazing and inspiring (and having a disability myself, I always looked up to him personally).
October 13th, 2016 at 10:38 AM ^
A class act from everything I've ever seen or heard about him. Per Chris Evans' recent comment, "It's a sin to be good, when you were sent to be great." Abbott never let his disability become an excuse not to be great.
October 13th, 2016 at 11:50 AM ^
that there is zero argument about whether these athletes should/could have been included in the Top 25. A Top 25 is too restrictive for all of the talent we have enjoyed at Michigan.
October 13th, 2016 at 1:21 PM ^
The first time I saw him pitch it took me a few minutes to realize that he was catching and throwing with the same hand. He was so slick and matter-of-fact about the switch that it almost escaped notice.
Despite all that he's accomplished, he always seemed grateful and never took any of it for granted. Truly a Wolverine to be remembered.
October 13th, 2016 at 4:04 PM ^
Was a quiet guy as a student. He never drew attention to himself as a varsity athlete. After a Tower Club meeting, we watched Ann Arbor start to wake from a rooftop at State x U. He probably said less than five things but they were insightful observations. Very humble despite his gifts and oddity, Jim is one of those performers who just gets things done and without deliberately bringing attention to himself. Truly a quintessential Wolverine. Darn straight he's in the pantheon.
October 13th, 2016 at 4:18 PM ^
The next negative thing someone says about Jim Abbott will be the first.
One hell of a Wolverine.
October 13th, 2016 at 8:48 PM ^
Growing up in the Flint area, Jim Abbott was a big deal. I followed him through Central, U-M, and MLB. I saw him pitch at Tiger Stadium, and if I remember correctly he gave a home run to (of all people) Skeeter Barnes. He is an all-time favorite.
October 13th, 2016 at 9:41 PM ^
I happened to be good friends with Jim's cousin back in the day. Jim is a very nice guy. A little trivia: the family owns a big meat business in Flint. If you ever have a Coney in the area, you'll be enjoying Abbott Meats products (and they are yummy).
October 13th, 2016 at 10:07 PM ^
Thanks for writing this. Abbot is pretty much my favorite Michigan athlete ever (though Devin Gardner is close).
October 14th, 2016 at 8:08 AM ^
LIke the fielding moves, you watch, and are not quite sure how he does it. He had at least one hit while pitching for UM.
The bunt thing was hilarious. Like the opponents figure he got all the way to UM without learning how to field a bunt? Yet teams would still try. Those were the easiest outs he got.
And his daughter is on our volleyball team now.
October 14th, 2016 at 10:33 AM ^
It's been a long time, but I want to say that he hit over .500 at Flint Central. Just a terrific athlete.
October 14th, 2016 at 12:25 PM ^
I remember him as a very talented Flint Central QB throwing to Andre Rison, though Pioneer was able to beat them in the state semi-finals in 1984.
Also saw him pitch masterfully in the '88 Olympics in Seoul.
October 15th, 2016 at 7:59 PM ^
I'm not a baseball guy, but Jim Abbott made me a fan for a few years in the 1990s. Fantastic athlete and a wonderul human being.
October 17th, 2016 at 11:24 PM ^
Jim Abbott was absolutely amazing. Thank you for including him in this series.
October 20th, 2016 at 3:21 PM ^
My Dad was inducted into the UM Athletic Hall of Fame the same night Jim was. I went over to him to say "hi" and tell him what an honor, etc., and all he wanted to talk about was my dad - who he was, when did he play, etc., and congratulating our family.
Super humble and genuine and you could just see the love for Michigan on his face.
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