Larry Jansen (July 16, 1920 – October 10, 2009) made his mark as a baseball player at both the major and minor league levels, including three seasons with the Portland Beavers.
Jansen graduated from Verboort High in 1938 and entered pro baseball with the Salt Lake City Bees in 1940. He was one of eight children in a farm family. There were only nine boys enrolled in the high school, most of them Jansen boys. His work on the mound as a semi-pro pitcher led to a tryout with the San Francisco Seals in Portland.
He played four seasons – two each before and after World War II, with the San Francisco Seals before the New York Giants, noting Jansen’s 30 wins in 1946, offered him a spot in their starting rotation. The next season, Jansen, at age 26, went 21-5 in his rookie season and finished second to Jackie Robinson as Rookie of the Year. He won at least 11 games in the next six seasons and was an All-Star in 1950.
In 1951, Jansen went 23-11 and helped the Giants to the World Series, where they lost to the cross-town Yankees. He was the winning pitcher in the National League playoff game with Brooklyn that ended with Bobby Thompson’s famous “Shot heard round the world.” Jansen started two games in the Series. He also pitched for the Series champion Giants in 1954, but did not see action in the Series.
He pitched for the Seattle Rainiers in 1955 and earned time with the Cincinnati Reds for part of the 1956 season. In nine seasons in the National League, Jansen went 122-89, recorded 10 saves and had an ERA of 3.58. He was an All-Star in 1950 and ’51 and earned votes as league MVP four times.
Jansen played three seasons with the Beavers before retiring at age 39. He managed both Portland and Seattle but made his biggest impact as pitching coach with the San Francisco Giants for 11 seasons, starting in 1961. That allowed him the opportunity to develop the talents of Gaylord Perry and Juan Marichal.
Jansen, who fathered 10 children with wife Ellen during their 70-year marriage, retired to Verboort where he worked in real estate and enjoyed golf and the outdoors.
