Tom Underwood
A durable left-handed pitcher whose career was highlighted by a unique and historic family moment on the major league mound.
1953–2010 (age 57)·American baseball player·Birthday: December 22·Baby Boomers
Biography
Tom Underwood carved out a solid 11-year career in the big leagues as a crafty left-hander known for his control. Drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in 1972, he broke into the majors two years later and quickly became a reliable arm, capable of starting or working out of the bullpen. He pitched for seven teams, including the St. Louis Cardinals, Toronto Blue Jays, and New York Yankees, finishing with over 1000 innings pitched and 108 career wins. While his statistics speak to a steady and valuable pitcher, his legacy is forever tied to a single, poetic game in 1979. Pitching for the Toronto Blue Jays, Underwood took the mound against the Detroit Tigers, whose starting pitcher that day was his younger brother, Pat. It marked the first time in American League history that brothers made their starting pitching debuts against each other, a moment of pure baseball lore. The elder Underwood got the win that day, a fitting capstone to a professional journey defined more by consistency and that one unforgettable family showdown than by flashy stardom.
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.
Tom was born in 1953, 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 Tom Was Born
The biggest hits of 1953
#1 Movie
Peter Pan
Best Picture
From Here to Eternity
#1 TV Show
I Love Lucy
Tom's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1953Born
DNA structure discovered by Watson and Crick
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $8,750Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Song from Moulin Rouge" — Percy FaithBest Picture: From Here to Eternity
1958Started school
NASA founded
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $11,050Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Volare" — Domenico ModugnoBest Picture: Gigi
1966Became a teenager
Star Trek premieres on television
Gas: $0.32/galHome: $14,200Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"The Ballad of the Green Berets" — SSgt Barry SadlerBest Picture: A Man for All Seasons
1969Could drive
Apollo 11: humans walk on the Moon; Woodstock festival
Gas: $0.35/galHome: $15,550Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Sugar, Sugar" — The ArchiesBest Picture: Midnight Cowboy
1971Could vote
Voting age lowered to 18 in the US
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $18,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Joy to the World" — Three Dog NightBest Picture: The French Connection
1974Turned 21
Nixon resigns the presidency
Gas: $0.53/galHome: $22,600Min wage: $2.00/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"The Way We Were" — Barbra StreisandBest Picture: The Godfather Part II
1983Turned 30
Internet adopts TCP/IP, creating the modern internet
Gas: $1.16/galHome: $57,700Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Every Breath You Take" — The PoliceBest Picture: Terms of Endearment
1993Turned 40
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 50
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
2010Died at 57
Deepwater Horizon oil spill; iPad launched
Gas: $2.79/galHome: $147,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Tik Tok" — KeshaBest Picture: The King's Speech
Key Achievements
- Pitched in 11 Major League Baseball seasons for seven different teams from 1974 to 1984.
- Recorded 108 career wins against 113 losses, with a 4.13 ERA and 929 strikeouts over 1,082 innings.
- Started the historic 1979 game against his brother Pat, marking the first time brothers made their starting pitching debuts against each other in AL history.
Did You Know?
He and his brother Pat are one of only a few pairs of brothers to have started against each other as pitchers in Major League history.
He was traded from the New York Yankees to the Oakland Athletics in 1980 in a deal that sent outfielder Dave Collins to New York.
He threw a complete-game, five-hit shutout against the California Angels in his final major league win in 1984.
“A lefty's job is to disrupt timing and find the corner of the plate.”
