Famous lefties in sports

The Big Unit struck fear into the hearts of many a left-handed batter who had to step into the box against him. The gigantic pitcher won five Cy Youngs in his career and is second all time in strikeouts behind Nolan Ryan. You could make the argument that no left-hander was ever better on the mound, and certainly none was more intimidating. John Kruk can attest to that.

Being a lefty tends to be a hindrance to quarterbacks. Teams have to turn their entire system around to work with a southpaw under center. It was worth it for the 49ers when it came to Young. Whether with his arm or with his legs, Young was a force after taking over for Joe Montana. The BYU product won two regular-season MVPs, plus one Super Bowl MVP.

How could Lefty not be on this list? If not for Tiger Woods, he would have likely been the best golfer of his generation. Even though left-handed golfers are extremely rare, Mickelson has won 43 events total, including five majors. He’s one of only 16 golfers to win three out of the four majors, and he’s finished second six times at the U.S. Open, the one that has evaded him.

Koufax’s time in the majors was somewhat limited — he only pitched in 12 seasons. But his impact was huge. The Dodgers great was a seven-time All-Star and also managed to pitch a whopping four no-hitters. Pitchers are rarely MVPs, but Koufax managed the feat in 1963.

Nadal is often seen as the King of Clay, owing to the fact he’s won the French Open a staggering 11 times. However, he’s also arguably the best left-handed tennis player to ever live. Though he’s now 32, he’s still the top-ranked player in the world.

Bonds is controversial, to be sure. Baseball isn’t a popularity contest, though. Like it or not, Bonds is the home run king, having hit 762 dingers in his career. Whether or not his performance was chemically enhanced, you can’t argue with the numbers of this lefty, including early in his career before suspicion began.

Navratilova has 18 singles Grand Slam titles to her name, and her 167 singles titles are the most of the Open Era. She’s also a legendary doubles player, having won 31 women’s double titles over the years. Many still consider her the best women’s tennis player ever, and she’s certainly the best lefty in the bunch.

Though Russell played in a time when the talent level in the NBA wasn’t as deep as it is now, his success is still truly impressive. He helped lead the Boston Celtics to 11 titles in his 13-year career. A five-time MVP, many consider him perhaps the most dominant defensive player ever. The NBA also did him the honor of naming the Finals MVP award after him.

He’s the Babe! He’s the Bambino! He cursed the Red Sox! For years, Ruth was considered the best baseball player ever. Some still consider that to be true. Hey, how many great hitters can also say they were an above-average pitcher?

Sure, his talk show sucked, but his tennis skills make up for that. Although McEnroe was tempestuous on the court, he was known as “Super Brat” for a reason. But the results were often there. He won seven majors, including four U.S. Opens in his stomping grounds of New York.

Laver, the Australian southpaw, was the top-ranked men’s player in the world from 1964 until 1970. He won 200 singles tournaments, which is still a record and one that is not likely to be beaten. It was a different era of tennis, but Laver dominated it with gusto.

If you know anything about hockey, you know Gretzky. He still owns basically every offensive record worth owning. His trade from the Oilers to the Kings shook the NHL to its core and helped make hockey trendy in Los Angeles. He once scored 92 goals in a season. That will never happen again.

Only in basketball could a guy listed at 6-foot-1 be nicknamed “Tiny.” The point guard was a six-time All-Star and made the All-NBA First Team three times. By the end of his career in Boston, his numbers had started to fall. But back in the 1972-73 season with Kansas City-Omaha, he averaged 34.0 points and 11.4 assists per game.

Gehrig’s career was notably cut short, but the Iron Horse had an enviable career before that occurred. So important were his contributions to the Yankees, his No. 4 was the first number ever retired by a baseball team. Though overshadowed by Babe Ruth, Gehrig was a true great and a fantastic left-handed bat.

Arguably no athletes use their hands more definitively than boxers. Nicknamed “The Golden Boy,” De La Hoya was twice named the top pound-for-pound fighter in the world by “Ring Magazine.” That’s a left hand you don’t want to get up close and personal with.

After a college career at Alabama, the southpaw quarterback helped lead the Oakland Raiders to glory in the ‘70s. His pinnacle came in 1974 when he was the NFL MVP, and he also helped lead the team to a Super Bowl. The Snake was named the quarterback for the NFL’s All-Decade team for the ‘70s and was posthumously elected to the Hall of Fame in 2016.

How could you keep off a guy from the Dream Team? He was known as a sharpshooter during his career, a time before the three-pointer was as prevalent as it is today, and had his number retired by the Golden State Warriors. He also had a great college career at St. John’s, where he is currently the coach.

The Admiral may have only one MVP, but the fact he had to play in the time of Michael Jordan had a part in that. The lifelong Spur was a 10-time All-Star, and his defensive prowess helped lead San Antonio to two titles. Then he ceded the reins to the right-handed Tim Duncan. Lefties will always have Robinson to look up to though.

Left-handers are often viewed as being creative or weird. Walton certainly lives up to that stereotype. On top of that, he was a great, if oft-injured, player. He still managed to win an NBA MVP, and his broadcasting work is iconic, if not polarizing.

They don’t nickname you “Marvelous” because you aren’t good at your chosen profession. Hagler was the undisputed middleweight champion from 1980 until 1987 and lost only three times in 67 career fights. He won 62 of those bouts, 52 by knockout.

Orr legitimately changed the way people viewed defensemen in the NHL. His offensive skills and skating prowess were almost unheard of, and he once scored 46 goals in a season. Orr also helped break a lengthy Stanley Cup drought for the Boston Bruins. You may have seen a picture of him flying through the air. It’s only the most iconic image in hockey.

Though not as dynamic a player as fellow Bruin Orr, Esposito was an even more impactful scorer. At a time when scoring 50 goals was still a huge thing, Espo took things to the next level, picking up 55 goals or more in five straight seasons. That includes a 76-goal effort that stood as a record for many years.

Left-handed goalies are a rare breed, and there was nothing normal about Barrasso’s career. He is the only goalie to ever play in the NHL straight out of high school, and he won the Vezina for best goalie in 1984 at a mere 18 years old. Barrasso also won two Stanley Cups with the Penguins in the ‘90s.

Tebow’s pro football career wasn’t great, and his baseball career hasn’t lit the world on fire either, but we will always have his years with the Gators. When he won the Heisman in 2007, he was the first sophomore to do so. He also helped lead Florida to titles in 2006 and 2008.

Pacquiao may be problematic out of the ring — don’t look too deeply into his politics if you want to keep your fandom intact — but you can’t argue with his boxing acumen. He’s won titles in eight different divisions, the only boxer to ever do so. With his big left hand, Pacquiao became perhaps the best pound-for-pound boxer of his generation.

As a football player, Sanders was great, even if his handedness wasn’t terribly important to being a defensive back. However, let’s not forget that Neon Deion was also a pro baseball player. His skills on the diamond weren’t up to par with his abilities on the gridiron, save for his speed, but how many southpaws can say they were able to play two sports at such a high level?

Junior helped to make baseball cool in the ‘90s. He was beloved by fans, and he earned it on the field. Griffey was an All-Star 13 times and won 10 Golden Gloves as well. When he was elected into the Hall of Fame, it was with a record 99.3 percent of the votes. Imagine if he hadn’t been plagued with injury issues.

“The Splendid Splinter” was as good of a hitter as you would ever see. To this day, he’s the last hitter to post a batting average over .400. Williams was an All-Star 19 times, even though he missed time to serve in both World War II and Korea.

Sadly, Seles is probably best remembered for the time a deranged Steffi Graf fan stabbed her, which effectively, if not literally, ended her career. Despite that, the Yugoslavian lefty was able to win nine majors, including four Australian Opens. Only one of them came after the 1993 stabbing incident. Without that, some say she may have been the best women’s player ever.

Diggins-Smith first made a name for herself as the point guard for Notre Dame, back when she was just known as Skyler Diggins. Since being drafted by the Tulsa Shock, now the Dallas Wings, she’s become one of the best players in the WNBA. In the four seasons she’s been healthy, she’s been an All-Star, and she’s been All-WNBA twice.

Glavine could have been a professional hockey player. He was drafted by the NHL but opted for baseball instead. It worked out well for him. Though he was often overshadowed by teammate Greg Maddux, Glavine is one of only six lefties with 300 wins to his name. He also has two Cy Youngs and, perhaps most preciously, a World Series MVP.

Wilson is still young, but the sky’s the limit for this southpaw. She was a force to be reckoned at South Carolina and won a title there in 2017. Recognizing her skills, the Las Vegas Aces made her the first overall pick in the 2018 WNBA Draft. In her first season, she’s been named an All-Star. So far, so good.

The quintessential Royal, Brett could certainly hit. In fact, he’s one of four players to retire with a .300 career batting average, 3,000 hits and 300 home runs. There was also the “Pine Tar Incident,” which was fun, if nothing else. Few players get the honor of being THE name synonymous with a franchise. Brett can say that.

Boggs was perhaps the original “he could hit homers if he wanted to” guys, but instead he focused on getting on base. It worked, as he was the American League batting champion five times and retired with a .328 career batting average. In addition to being a Hall of Famer, Boggs had his number retired by the Red Sox AND the Rays. He didn’t even play two full seasons with Tampa. Talk about efficiency.

Connors was the hotheaded, left-handed counterpart to the cool Swede Bjorn Borg, creating one of the greatest tennis rivalries ever. He was the No. 1 ranked player for 160 straight weeks, and he was the king of the U.S. Open. Connors won that tournament five times, and he won three more majors on top of that.

Here's how good Carlton, fittingly nicknamed "Lefty," was: When the 1972 Phillies won only 59 games, he picked up 27 wins himself. That kind of talent led to him winning four Cy Youngs, becoming the first pitcher to achieve that. Carlton remains second in strikeouts for a lefty and he's fourth overall, which means most righties are in his wake as well.

If you don’t follow cricket, this can be hard to understand. In that case, just know that Lara is considered one of the best batsman ever, period, and probably the best lefty batsman in history. The Trinidadian held many records upon his retirement and, naturally, was enshrined in the Hall of Fame in 2012.

There is a proliferation of left-handed shots in hockey who otherwise use their right hands. However, Sakic is a dyed-in-the-wool lefty and a great player to boot. Sakic played his entire career with the Quebec Nordiques/Colorado Avalanche and led them to two Stanley Cups. He also won the Hart in 2001 when he finished with 54 goals and 118 points. Overall, the lefty notched 1,641 career points.

Even without the MVP award last season, Harden would have made this list. Though some knock his defense, and none knock his beard, Harden is the epitome of the modern NBA. He’s a great scorer who can dominate the court, even if it a lot of it comes from drawing fouls. Though he’s not always the most fun player to watch, he’s on his way to being one of the top lefty scorers ever.

Like Wayne Gretzky, who many have compared Sid the Kid to, Crosby is a lefty shot who has racked up the points and accolades. Even though the NHL doesn't enjoy the widespread popularity of, say, the NFL, Crosby is still a household name. Though he’s won “only” two Hart Trophies, he’s also won the Conn Smythe as playoffs MVP twice, and he’s lifted the Cup three times. When he retires, Crosby will likely go down as the best player of his era.

Though all of women’s tennis is in the shadow of Serena Williams, Kerber is the best lefty currently still active. The German was formally the top-ranked player in the world, and she’s won three majors. That includes this year’s Wimbledon. Since she’s still active and still a top-five player, she could easily add to her resume before she retires.

Lefty Ted Williams was the last player to hit .400. Gwynn came awfully close during his career. He finished with a .394 batting average in the strike-shortened 1994 season, and his career batting average was a robust .338. The late Padre won eight batting titles and was a 15-time All-Star.

Stan “The Man” Musial put up a laundry list of accomplishments with the Cardinals, the team he spent his entire career with. The lefty was an All-Star a mindboggling 24 times and was an MVP three times over to boot. His 3,630 career hits still rank fourth.

Cobb had a less-than-great personality, which inspired a less-than-great biopic starring Tommy Lee Jones. But you can’t argue with his skills on the field. Obviously, he played a strikingly different brand of baseball than is played now, but for his era he was still awesome. His career .367 batting average is the highest of all time, and he was a batting champion 12 times. The Tigers would have surely retired his number — that is, if he had played in an era when numbers were used.

Manu had an idiosyncratic style, and the fact he was left-handed may have been a part of that. Though he was never the best player on the Spurs, his presence was still vital during their glory years. Additionally, Ginobili had a ton of success with the Argentinian national team, including a gold medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics. Not too shabby for a guy drafted 57th overall.

First, Bosh was a star with the Toronto Raptors. Then he became the third fiddle on the LeBron-led Heat. But his willingness to accept his role helped turn them into title winners. Though his career seems over due to health concerns, Bosh should still be in the Hall of Fame when the time comes.

After being drafted first overall by the Detroit Pistons, Lanier routinely averaged 20 points and 10 rebounds in the Motor City. His number 16 was retired by the Pistons and retired by the Milwaukee Bucks as well after he spent five seasons there. Overall, the lefty averaged 20.1 points and 10.1 boards in his career.

Vick may not have been the player people envisioned when he was drafted first overall, but he was still a force in the NFL thanks to his legs. He’s the only quarterback to ever rush for over 1,000 yards, and his big arm led to a lot of highlights in college and the pros. His dog fighting exploits marred his career and personal image, but his highlight reel is on par with that of any quarterback.

Boomer has been doing TV work for many years, but before that he was a pretty successful quarterback. In fact, he was so good he helped make the Cincinnati Bengals win. He made four Pro Bowls, but his peak came in 1988 when he was also the NFL MVP. The Bengals lost to the 49ers in the Super Bowl that season, but there was no shame in that.

Mark Brunell is kind of a forgotten man, perhaps because he spent the bulk of his career with the Jacksonville Jaguars. He threw for over 32,000 yards in his career and rushed for 2,421 yards as well. In 1996, he made his first of three Pro Bowls and led the NFL in passing yards. Not bad for a southpaw drafted in the fifth round.