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Top 15 Interesting Facts about Ferguson Jenkins

*Originally published by Laura C in June 2022 and updated by Kenneth K in January 2024

Ferguson Arthur Jenkins, Canada’s greatest ball player and one of the country’s best all-around athletes, was born on December 13, 1943, in Chatham, Ontario. His mother’s family had arrived in Canada via the Underground Railway from the United States. His father’s family immigrated to the United States from Barbados.

At a time when the major leagues were brimming with great pitchers – Sandy Koufax, Jim Palmer, Tom Seaver, Bob Gibson – 6’5″ Jenkins stood shoulder to shoulder with the best and towered above the rest. Jenkins’ passion for sports was fueled by his father, who had a successful amateur boxing and semi-pro baseball career.

1. Early life and introduction to baseball

Jenkins thrived in all sports in school. The young pitcher’s impressive speed and control, not to mention his already remarkable curve ball, spread south to major league recruits in the United States. Jenkins was signed by the Philadelphia Phillies shortly after graduating from high school.

The team traded first baseman John Herrnstein and the new kid, Fergie Jenkins, to the Chicago Cubs in 1964, where manager Leo Durocher assisted Fergie’s transition from reliever to starter early in 1967.

Jenkins was selected to lead the Cubs at the all-star game in Anaheim, California, a few months later, and continued to strike out six first-class hitters, including Rod Carew, Tony Oliva, and Mickey Mantle.

2. Jenkins retirement from baseball

Professional baseball player Fergie Jenkins- Wikimedia

Jenkins was traded to the Texas Rangers after seven more seasons with the Cubs, including a remarkable 1971 season that earned him the Cy Young Award as the best pitcher in the National League. He returned to the Cubs for his final two seasons before retiring in the autumn of 1983, just a few months shy of his 40th birthday.

3. The only pitcher who has outstanding statistics 

Ferguson Arthur Jenkins, Jr. was a dominant right-handed pitcher known for his strikeouts, ranking eleventh all-time (through 2013) with 3,192. He is the only pitcher with over 3,000 strikeouts and fewer than 1,000 walks (997).

He pitched for the Philadelphia Phillies, Texas Rangers, and Boston Red Sox before joining the Chicago Cubs from 1966 to 1973. He finished his career in a return stint with the Cubs from 1982 to 1983.

4. How Jenkins gained the confidence to be a great pitcher

Ferguson Jenkins Photo by: ScottRAnselmo- Wikimedia

When Ferguson and his pals weren’t aiming at the ice chute, they were aiming at passing boxcars – not to hit them but to time their throws so that their rocks passed between the cars or entered open boxcars.

Fergie stepped in when a teammate injured his arm and couldn’t pitch. While he was not dominant that day, Jenkins’ confidence in his ability to play grew as a result of his hours of rock-throwing practice.

Gene Dziadura, a former Cubs minor league shortstop, urged Fergie to work on his pitching during those years. Fergie was discovered as a raw talent by Dziadura, a scout for the Philadelphia Phillies.

Jenkins’ training sessions continued until he graduated from high school and was signed in 1962 by the Phillies.

5. Jenkins has an autobiography about his life

The title of his most recent memoir, The Game Is Easy, Life Is Hard, indicates that Jenkins has encountered various personal challenges. He was very close to his blind mother, who died of cancer in 1970.

Fergie now donates to organizations that help patients struggling with these two illnesses. His first marriage was annulled. In 1988, he married softball player Mary-Anne Miller and moved to a ranch near Guthrie, Oklahoma.

Fergie was working as the pitching coach for the Texas Rangers’ Class AAA team at the time. Mary-Anne was tragically killed in an automobile accident. Fergie planned to accept a coaching position with the Cincinnati Reds farm team in Chattanooga, Tennessee, in the fall of 1992.

6. How Jenkins feels about his many loses

Ferguson Jenkins Photo by: ScottRAnselmo- Wikimedia

His fiance tragically committed suicide, taking Ferguson’s three-year-old daughter with her. They both died as a result of carbon monoxide poisoning.

“I quickly realized that life is fleeting.” I buried a mother when she was 52 years old. I buried a wife when she was only 32 years old.

I buried my three-year-old daughter. I buried a close friend who died in her thirties. I buried my father, who was 89 years old. I’ve attended a number of funerals in my life. I once told a reporter that I should be in a rubber room.”

7. Jenkins has his own non-profit organization

Instead of ending up in a mental institution, Ferguson channeled his grief into charitable work. He donates to countless non-profits and participates in countless charity events in the United States and his native Canada.

In the year 2000, he established The Fergie Jenkins Foundation as a charitable organization. Ferguson married Lydia Farrington in 1993, which was a happy personal note.

Ferguson Jenkins was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 1987. In 1991, he was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York, and he was named honorary pitching coach for the National League All-Stars in 1995. In 1999, SABR named him one of the top 100 baseball players of the twentieth century.

Fergie writes in his book, The Game Is Easy, Life Is Hard, “There are two things in (this) sport. You either win or lose. Life is the same way. How you get through it is determined by the strength of your faith.”

This is one of the most famous quotes from a baseball player. 

8. Jenkins was arrested in possession of cocaine

, , via Wikimedia Commons

On this day in 1980, everything came crashing down. Jenkins was arrested at Exhibition Stadium, the Toronto Blue Jays’ first home.

Customs agents revealed that the Rangers pitcher had managed to smuggle about $500 worth of cocaine, marijuana, and hashish in his suitcase. Not only had the arrest surprised the baseball world, but the country had lost one of its heroes.

The arrest had an impact on the baseball world as well. Jenkins became the first player in baseball history to be permanently suspended for drug-related misdemeanors just 14 days after his arrest.

Commissioner Bowie Kuhn slammed the Rangers pitcher, attempting to make an example of him.

9. How did the criminal case go?

Jenkins’ suspension would be brief. On September 22, he was reinstated in an unexpected move by independent arbitrator Raymond Goetz. When Jenkins went to trial, the judge granted him an unconditional release because some of the proof against him was missing.

10. Jenkins’ arrest raised drug concerns

That arrest was only the beginning of the decade’s drug concerns. Willie Wilson, Willie Aikens, and Jerry Martin of the Kansas City Royals, along with Athletics pitcher Vida Blue, were sentenced to three months in prison in 1983 for trying to obtain cocaine.

In 1985, several Pittsburgh Pirates players, as well as their mascot, were called before a grand jury in connection with their cocaine use and purchases.

Several players were suspended for this behavior, and others were required to perform community service and donate a portion of their pay. 

11. Jenkins Was the First Canadian In The National Baseball Hall of Fame

, , via Wikimedia Commons

The National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York, stands as a monument to the legends who have shaped America’s favorite pastime.

Every year, a select group of players, deemed by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America to have had “exceedingly meritorious” careers, earn the prestigious honor of induction.

Among these enshrined luminaries stands Ferguson Jenkins, a towering figure not just in baseball history, but also in Canadian athletics.

In 1991, Jenkins became the first Canadian to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, a momentous occasion that solidified his legacy as a pioneer and an inspiration for generations of aspiring athletes north of the border.

While Jenkins proudly carried the torch for Canada in the Hall of Fame for nearly 30 years, his groundbreaking achievement wasn’t matched until 2020 when fellow countryman Larry Walker joined him in Cooperstown.

12. Jenkins Continued Playing After Retirement from Major League Baseball

Ferguson Jenkins’ retirement from Major League Baseball in 1983 wasn’t the end of his professional baseball journey. While his final pitch came representing the Montreal Expos, hunger for the game kept him on the field in another league.

This wasn’t a common path, with most players fading into quiet lives post-Major League Baseball. However, Jenkins wasn’t like most players.

He ventured north, joining the London Majors, a minor league team in Canada’s Intercounty Major Baseball League. For two seasons, he graced the diamond, proving his passion wasn’t dimmed by leaving the big leagues.

It wasn’t about chasing statistics or contracts; it was about the love of the game. Although many might find the transition from MLB to minor leagues jarring, Jenkins embraced it, inspiring aspiring players and captivating fans with his legendary presence.

13. Ferguson Jenkins Became A Politician After Retirement

, , via Wikimedia Commons

After his Hall of Fame baseball career ended in 1985, Ferguson Jenkins pursued politics. In 1985, Jenkins ran as a candidate for the Ontario Liberal Party in the general election for the riding of Windsor–Riverside.

However, despite his celebrity athlete status, Jenkins placed third earning 15% of the votes.

14. He Was Married Twice Before Tragedy Hit

In 1965, Jenkins married Kathy Williams, and they welcomed three daughters into their lives. While details about their life together remain private, their union ultimately couldn’t stand the test of time, and they divorced in 1987.

Reasons for the split haven’t been publicly disclosed, leaving room for speculation about what led to their parting ways.

After the divorce, Jenkins found love again with Maryanne. They married in 1988 and embarked on a new chapter.

This time, they built a family through a shared daughter, Samantha, born in 1989. Sadly, their happiness was short-lived.

In December 1990, Maryanne was involved in a car accident that fractured her neck. Despite medical intervention, she succumbed to her injuries in January 1991. This sudden and tragic loss left Jenkins with an immense void, shattering his newfound family’s happiness.

As mentioned above, Jenkins was hit with more tragedy in 1992 when his 3-year-old daughter Samantha died in a car with his then-girlfriend Cynthia Takieddine due to carbon monoxide poisoning. According to authorities, the deaths were ruled as a murder-suicide.

15. In His Youth, Jenkins Played a Variety of Sports

, , via Wikimedia Commons

From a young age, Ferguson Jenkins’ destiny seemed intertwined with athletic prowess. Perhaps inheriting genes for greatness from his father, a basketball player, and mother, a sprinter, Jenkins wasn’t content with confining his talents to a single pitch.

In his school years, his ambition ran wild, encompassing the diverse domains of track and field, and even the thrilling collisions of ice hockey.

While baseball ultimately claimed his allegiance, Jenkins’ youthful dalliances with other sports painted a vibrant picture of a gifted athlete.

Ferguson Jenkins’ legacy transcends the cold grip of statistics. He embodies the resilience of the human spirit, overcoming racial hurdles and personal setbacks to etch his name in baseball history. His pinpoint control and unwavering determination inspired generations of young athletes, both in Canada and beyond.