The Los Angeles Dodgers and the Toronto Blue Jays are about to play in Game 3 of the 2025 World Series. The WS is tied 1 game apiece and the teams will now play on the West Coast in historic Dodger Stadium for the next three games. I’m not much of an analyst when it comes to the two teams playing and what they are capable of. I do know that the Dodgers will throw Tyler Glasnow and the Blue Jays will counter with Max Scherzer. And thanks to the internet (which is never wrong), LAD’s Glasnow is set to make more than 30 million bucks this year, while the Jays’ Scherzer will pocket about 15 or so million bucks. So, before Game 3 of the WS begins, here is a head scratcher…

In 1978, the New York Yankees had a Left Handed Pitcher (LHP) is his 2nd full year in the Major Leagues who had one of the best pitching seasons of all-time. Here are some of his eye-popping stats:

• 25-3 record
• 1.74 ERA (earned run average)
• 9 shutouts
• 248 K’s (strikeouts)
• 18 K’s in one game (06/17 vs California Angels)
• 273 innings pitched
• All-Star Team
• 1978 World Series Champion – New York Yankees (over the LA Dodgers)
• Cy Young Award Winner – American League
• 2nd place – American League MVP (Lost to the Boston Red Sox’s Jim Rice)
• His 1978 salary, along with the other stats above, according to Baseball Reference...$47,000
• The player –

Guidry, in 1978, started 35 games. Based on his $47,000 salary, that is about $1342 per game pitched. And boy did the NYY get their money’s worth in 1978 with Ron Guidry on the mound. His salary jumped up over $200K for his 1979 campaign and then subsequent raises until the end of his career in 1988. Guidry played his entire career with the New York Yankees. Again, according to Baseball Reference, Ron Guidry totaled just about 7 million bucks over his 12 year plus MLB career. That career total mark of Guidry is far less than each of the Starting Pitchers made this 2025 regular season. I get inflation and salaries steadily rising over the past 4 decades and economics and all that jazz. But with all that said, wow, that is a head scratcher.

Here is another one – Ron Guidry is not a Hall of Famer. Now that is a real head scratcher and a real shame.