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Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Gaylord Perry has died at the age of 84, Cherokee County Coroner Dennis Fowler told the Associated Press on Thursday (December 1).
Perry was pronounced dead at his home in Gaffney, South Carolina, at around 5:00 am. from natural causes, according to Fowler, who didn't provide additional details.
The North Carolina native was the first pitcher to win the Cy Young award in both the American League and National League with the now-Cleveland Guardians in 1972 and San Diego Padres in 1978, the latter of which he accomplished just after turning 40.
Perry spent his first 10 seasons with the San Francisco Giants (1962-71) before joining Cleveland in 1972.
The five-time All-Star pitched for eight MLB franchises during his 22-year career.
“Before I won my second Cy Young I thought I was too old — I didn’t think the writers would vote for me,” Perry said in a feature shared on the National Baseball Hall of Fame website via the AP. “But they voted on my performance, so I won it.”
Perry retired with a 314-255 record and 3,554 strikeouts, having led the majors in wins three times (1970, 1972 and 1978) and pitching a no-hitter on September 17, 1968.