Larry Gura

{{short description|American baseball player (born 1947)}} {{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}} {{more footnotes|date=June 2017}} {{Infobox baseball biography |name=Larry Gura |image=Larry Gura Kansas City Royals.jpg |position=[[Pitcher]] |bats=Switch |throws=Left |birth_date={{Birth date and age|1947|11|26}} |birth_place=[[Joliet, Illinois]], U.S. |death_date= |debutleague = MLB |debutdate=April 30 |debutyear=1970 |debutteam=Chicago Cubs |finalleague = MLB |finaldate=July 27 |finalyear=1985 |finalteam=Chicago Cubs |statleague = MLB |stat1label=[[Win–loss record (pitching)|Win–loss record]] |stat1value=126–97 |stat2label=[[Earned run average]] |stat2value=3.76 |stat3label=[[Strikeout]]s |stat3value=801 |teams= * [[Chicago Cubs]] ({{Baseball year|1970}}–{{Baseball year|1973}}) * [[New York Yankees]] ({{Baseball year|1974}}–{{Baseball year|1975}}) * [[Kansas City Royals]] ({{Baseball year|1976}}–{{Baseball year|1985}}) * [[Chicago Cubs]] ({{Baseball year|1985}}) |highlights= * [[Major League Baseball All-Star Game|All-Star]] ([[1980 Major League Baseball All-Star Game|1980]]) * [[Kansas City Royals Hall of Fame]] | medaltemplates = {{MedalCompetition|[[International Amateur Baseball Tournament|International Amateur Tournament]]}} {{MedalGold| [[International Amateur Baseball Tournament|1968 Mexico City]] | [[United States national baseball team|Team]]}} }} '''Lawrence Cyril Gura''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|ɡ|ʌr|ə}}; born November 26, 1947) is an American former left-handed [[pitcher]] in [[Major League Baseball]] from {{Baseball year|1970}} to {{Baseball year|1985}}. He won a national championship at [[Arizona State University]] and spent 16 years in the [[Major League Baseball|Major Leagues]]. He played for the [[Chicago Cubs]] (1970–1973, 1985) of the [[National League (baseball)|National League]], and the [[New York Yankees]] (1974–1975) and [[Kansas City Royals]] (1976–1985), both of the [[American League]]. He attended [[Joliet Central High School|Joliet East High School]] and was inducted into the inaugural Joliet Hall of Fame in Joliet, Illinois.

He was elected to the American League [[Major League Baseball All-Star Game|All-Star]] team in 1980 when he had his finest season, finishing with an 18–10 record and a 2.95 ERA. Gura won in double figures for seven consecutive seasons for the Royals (1978–1984) compiling 99 wins over that span. He particularly pestered his former team, the Yankees, against whom he went 11–6 in the regular season as a Royal. Gura was 3–0 against them in both 1979 and 1980, with five complete games, and tossed another complete-game victory against the Yankees in the 1980 [[American League Championship Series]].

Gura was named Royals pitcher of the year two times.

Gura was the Royals' starting pitcher for Games 2 and 5 of the [[1980 World Series]].

He finished with a 126–97 career record, 14 saves, 16 shutouts, and an [[earned run average]] of 3.76. Gura was also an exceptional fielding pitcher, committing only 7 errors in 483 [[total chances]] for a career .986 [[fielding percentage]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://baseball-reference.com/players/g/gurala01.shtml|title=Larry Gura Career Statistics at Baseball Reference|website=baseball-reference.com|accessdate= December 19, 2023}}</ref>

He won 18 games in a season twice including the 1980 season. He ranks in the Royals all-time top 10 in games started (219), innings pitched (1,701.1) and though not a dominant strikeout artist, he still struck out 633 batters in a Royal uniform.

==Highlights== *led the [[American Association (20th century)|American Association]] with a .733 [[winning percentage]] while playing for the [[Wichita Aeros]] in 1972 *led the [[International League]] with a 2.14 ERA while playing for the [[Syracuse Chiefs]] in 1974 *led the American League in batters faced (1,175) in 1980 *Was named AL Pitcher of the Month for the months of July 1980 and September 1981.

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== *[https://www.baseball-reference.com/g/gurala01.shtml Baseball Reference] *[http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/Pgural001.htm Retrosheet]

{{1967 Arizona State Sun Devils baseball}} {{1969 Arizona State Sun Devils baseball}} {{1969 College Baseball All-Americans}} {{Kansas City Royals Opening Day starting pitchers}} {{Kansas City Royals}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gura, Larry}} [[Category:1947 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:All-American college baseball players]] [[Category:American League All-Stars]] [[Category:Arizona Instructional League Cubs players]] [[Category:Arizona State Sun Devils baseball players]] [[Category:Chicago Cubs players]] [[Category:Iowa Cubs players]] [[Category:Kansas City Royals players]] [[Category:Major League Baseball pitchers]] [[Category:New York Yankees players]] [[Category:Spokane Indians players]] [[Category:Baseball players from Joliet, Illinois]] [[Category:Syracuse Chiefs players]] [[Category:Tacoma Cubs players]] [[Category:Tiburones de La Guaira players]] [[Category:American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela]] [[Category:Wichita Aeros players]] [[Category:20th-century American sportsmen]]