James Augustus Hunter (April 8, 1946 – September 9, 1999), nicknamed "Catfish", was a professional baseball player in
Major League Baseball (MLB). From 1965 to 1979, he was a
pitcher for the
Kansas City Athletics,
Oakland Athletics, and
New York Yankees. Hunter was the first pitcher since 1915 to win 200 career games by the age of 31. He is often referred to as baseball's first big-money
free agent. He was a member of five
World Series championship teams.
Hunter retired in 1979 after developing persistent arm problems. He was inducted into the
National Baseball Hall of Fame in
1987. He was diagnosed with
amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, in his early 50s. He died of the disease about a year after his diagnosis. Hunter has been the subject of numerous popular culture references, including the
Bob Dylan song "
Catfish".
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