 Jim Brewer, Pitcher from Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, was signed by the Chicago Cubs as an amateur free agent in 1956. Jim Brewer made his big league debut pitching for the Cubs in July of 1960. Jim spent most of his 17 year major league baseball career as a relief pitcher. He pitched for the Cubs from 1960 through 1963. Early in his career as Cub, Jim Brewer brushed back Billy Martin, then with the Cincinnati Reds, with a pitch in the second inning of a game at Wrigley Field. Martin threw his bat at Brewer, who picked it up and started to hand it to Martin as Martin approached. Martin punched Brewer in the right eye, breaking his cheekbone. Brewer was hospitalized for two months, and Martin served a five-day suspension. The Cubs sued Martin for $1 million for the loss of Brewer's services, but later dropped their case. Brewer, however, pursued his, and in 1969 a judge ordered Martin to pay $10,000 in damages. In December of 1963, Brewer was traded by the Chicago Cubs with Cuno Barragan to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Dick Scott. Jim Brewer spent the next 12 seasons with the Dodgers and it was with the Dodgers that he had most of his success as a pitcher. Brewer had 125 saves for the Dodgers, appearing in 474 games for the club. Only two Dodgers pitchers, Don Sutton and Don Drysdale, have more appearances –550 and 518, respectively. As a Dodger, Brewer appeared in the 1973 All-Star Game and in three World Series (1965-66 and 1974). From 1968 through 1973 he averaged 19.5 saves a season, with a career-high 24 in 1970, and in 1972, he posted an 1.26 ERA and averaged a significant 4.69 hits per nine innings. In July of 1975, Jim Brewer was traded by the Los Angeles Dodgers to the California Angels for Dave Sells. Brewer retired after the 1975 seasons having appeared in 584 games, winning 69 and saving 132 with a 3.07 lifetime ERA.
Jim Brewer died November 16, 1987 in Tyler, Texas, of injuries suffered in an automobile accident, just a day before his 50th birthday. |
