David Cone
A masterful pitcher whose fierce competitiveness and devastating stuff led to a perfect game, five World Series rings, and a seamless transition to broadcasting.
Born 1963 (age 63)·American baseball player and analyst·Birthday: January 2·Baby Boomers
Biography
David Cone's baseball story is one of brilliant artistry and gritty survival on the mound. With a sharp slider and a fearless approach, he emerged as a strikeout artist for the Kansas City Royals before becoming a central figure in the fierce baseball landscape of New York. His career was a tapestry of peak performance and resilience, overcoming an aneurysm in his pitching arm in 1996 to return stronger. Cone pitched for both the Mets and the Yankees, but it was in pinstripes where he achieved legend status, forming part of the dynasty that captured four World Series titles in five years. His 1999 perfect game for the Yankees stands as a pristine monument to his control and poise under pressure. After retiring with 194 wins and a Cy Young Award, Cone brought the same insightful, candid analysis to the broadcast booth, where he has become one of the game's most respected voices, dissecting pitching with the authority of a man who has done it all.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
David was born in 1963, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When David Was Born
The biggest hits of 1963
#1 Movie
Cleopatra
Best Picture
Tom Jones
#1 TV Show
Beverly Hillbillies
David's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1963Born
JFK assassinated in Dallas; Martin Luther King's 'I Have a Dream' speech
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $13,100Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Sugar Shack" — Jimmy Gilmer & The FireballsBest Picture: Tom Jones
1968Started school
Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy assassinated
Gas: $0.34/galHome: $14,950Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Hey Jude" — The BeatlesBest Picture: Oliver!
1976Became a teenager
Apple Computer founded; US bicentennial
Gas: $0.59/galHome: $29,300Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Silly Love Songs" — WingsBest Picture: Rocky
1979Could drive
Iran hostage crisis begins; Three Mile Island accident
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $37,900Min wage: $2.90/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"My Sharona" — The KnackBest Picture: Kramer vs. Kramer
1981Could vote
MTV launches; first Space Shuttle flight; AIDS identified
Gas: $1.31/galHome: $52,300Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Bette Davis Eyes" — Kim CarnesBest Picture: Chariots of Fire
1984Turned 21
Apple Macintosh introduced
Gas: $1.13/galHome: $59,800Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"When Doves Cry" — PrinceBest Picture: Amadeus
1993Turned 30
European Union officially established
Gas: $1.11/galHome: $86,600Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"I Will Always Love You" — Whitney HoustonBest Picture: Schindler's List
2003Turned 40
US invades Iraq; Human Genome Project completed
Gas: $1.59/galHome: $146,000Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"In Da Club" — 50 CentBest Picture: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
2013Turned 50
Edward Snowden reveals NSA surveillance programs
Gas: $3.53/galHome: $152,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Thrift Shop" — Macklemore & Ryan LewisBest Picture: 12 Years a Slave
2023Turned 60
ChatGPT goes mainstream; Israel-Hamas war begins
Gas: $3.52/galHome: $361,600Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Joe Biden"Flowers" — Miley CyrusBest Picture: Oppenheimer
2026Age 63 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Pitched a perfect game for the New York Yankees against the Montreal Expos on July 18, 1999.
- Won five World Series championships (1992 with Toronto, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000 with the New York Yankees).
- Awarded the American League Cy Young Award in 1994 as a member of the Kansas City Royals.
- Struck out 19 batters in a single game for the New York Mets in 1991, tying a National League record at the time.
Did You Know?
He is one of only six pitchers to throw a no-hitter in both the American and National Leagues.
He worked as a substitute teacher during the 1994-95 MLB players' strike.
He famously wore a back brace to the mound in 1996 while recovering from his aneurysm surgery.
He won his final World Series ring with the Yankees in 2000 despite not being on the postseason roster due to injury.
“I've always said that pitching is the art of instilling fear.”
