The pristine icon they called the Chairman of the Board later admitted to packing baseballs with mud, gouging them with sharpened shin-guard buckles, and scuffing them with his diamond wedding ring. This episode explores the duality of Whitey Ford, a Queens kid who became the Yankees’ all-time wins leader as much through cunning as talent.

We follow his rocket start and Rookie of the Year season, two years lost to the Korean War, and his reliance on command over velocity. We cover Casey Stengel holding him back for tough opponents, his unleashed 25-4 Cy Young season in 1961, his record scoreless-innings streak, and the physical decline that pushed him toward doctoring the ball.

• Why he was tied for fourth in career winning percentage
• The illusionist approach that made an average fastball play up
• Paralyzing base runners for 243 consecutive innings
• The mud-ball production with catcher Elston Howard
• A spitball thrown to strike out Willie Mays over a golf debt