Denny McLain had a book signing in Myrtle Beach on Sunday night.
Major League Baseball great Denny McLain paid a visit to TicketReturn.com Field in Myrtle Beach for a book signing. His fourth book, "I Told You I Wasn't Perfect," was first published in 2007.
McLain won two Cy Young Awards with the Detroit Tigers in 1968 and 1969. In '68, he won the American League MVP. He played for the Tigers, Washington Senators, Oakland A's and Atlanta Braves from 1963-1972. McLain was a three-time all-star and helped the Tigers win the 1968 World Series.
After his baseball career, he was involved in organized crime, bumping elbows with the likes of John Gotti, Jr., and was sent to prison for embezzlement, drug trafficking and racketeering. An appeals court later threw out all those convictions and McLain was released from a federal prison in Talladega, Alabama after serving 30 months.
McLain, 68, had many heartbreaking experiences in his life. He has served time in prison, filed for bankruptcy three times and was suspended from baseball for gambling. Following an investigation, Major League Baseball Commissioner Bowie Kuhn said that McLain's actions did not have any affect on baseball games. McLain was suspended two other times. Once, for dumping ice water on reporters and again for carrying a gun on a team flight.
His oldest daughter, Kristin, lost her life in a car accident caused by a drunk driver in 1992. McLain said, "Unless you experience the loss of a child, and it's the worst thing anyone could ever experience, it's really difficult to understand how significant it is in the grand scheme of things. Nothing else matters if you lose a child."
McLain's best year in baseball was in 1968 when he compiled a pitching record of 31-6. He is the last pitcher to win 30 or more games in the Majors. McLain said he wants to be remembered for more than his baseball accomplishments. He said, "I want to be remembered for being a great father and a great grandfather."
