Question 8: Did he pitch exclusively or primarily in the National League?
No, but there’s a catch to this response. The player pitched more seasons in the American League than the National. But he would have been a recognized figure in both leagues; in fact, he hit his debut home run as a National Leaguer.
That response eliminates 18 of the 32, and gets you down to just 14 candidates. The 14 are Bert Blyleven, Catfish Hunter, Dennis Eckersley, Hoyt Wilhelm, Jack Morris, Jim Bunning, Jim Palmer, Mariano Rivera, Mike Mussina, Pedro Martinez, Rich Gossage, Rollie Fingers, Roy Halladay, and Whitey Ford.
Some of the eliminations are close calls. Nolan Ryan, Ferguson Jenkins, and Randy Johnson basically split their careers between the two leagues.
And since we’re talking now about an American League pitcher, I’ll save you the trouble of asking the obvious question: Yes, you can eliminate DH-era pitchers. That strikes Blyleven, Hunter, Eckersley, Morris, Palmer, Rivera, Mussina, Martinez, Gossage, Fingers, and Halladay.
Now you’re down to Wilhelm, Bunning, or Ford. And since I’ve already stipulated that the player had substantial careers in both leagues, Ford can obviously be eliminated. That gets it down to Bunning or Wilhelm. Want to guess?