Trouble seemed to find Lee when he was a student at Benton High School in Arkansas. More accurately, he seemed to find it. No, Lee didn't rob any liquor stores or push over any little old ladies. His troublesome nature often came in the form of an acid tongue.

"I was a little smart aleck," he said. "I did some stupid things. I would say things in class all the time."

And, yes, Lee even admits he's been in jail a couple times, though he didn't elaborate on the offenses. But Cliff said he finally wised up around the time of his senior year of high school. If baseball was going to be his career, he reasoned, he couldn't have a bad track record.

So he cleaned up his act, stopped opening his yap and focused on becoming the stellar lefthanded pitcher he is today. That's why last fall, rather than appearing on any "Wanted" posters, Lee was putting the finishing touches on an 18-win season and hearing his name mentioned in Cy Young Award talk.

"People back home probably laugh that I'm in the big leagues," he said. "I'm very lucky to be where I am now, because I wasn't a good kid." (Anthony Castrovince-MLB.com-3/07/06)

Lee had been a top prospect in high school in Benton, Arkansas, but missed most of his senior year with injuries.

In the 1997 draft, the Marlins still chose him in the eighth round. But Cliff chose instead to attend Meridian Community College in Mississippi.

In 1998, Cliff was drafted by the Orioles in the 20th round. Still, Cliff chose to stay in school, this time moving to the University of Arkansas. He pitched there for one year. 

In the 2000 draft, Montreal was happy to see that Lee was still available in the fourth round. This time, Cliff signed on the dotted line.

Cliff's son, Jaxon, born on April 29, 2001, had to fight for his life after being diagnosed with acute myelogenous leukemia at the age of four months, on the final day of the 2001 season. Jaxon had developed a fever and was vomiting. Doctors first thought it was a urinary tract infection, then found it was myelogenous leukemia. He was given only a 30 percent chance to survive.

"It was the worst thing anybody has ever told me in my entire life," Cliff said late in 2002. "The first few days were really hard, but then my wife (Kristen) and I decided to find out what we needed to do to get it taken care of. Everthing is going well now. If you didn't know he had leukemia, you wouldn't know there was anything wrong with him."

They took their son to the Arkansas Children's Hospital in Little Rock for chemotherapy. After two treatments, he had a setback when cells formed behind his eye and chemotherapy had to be stopped. Radiation was used to treat the cells behind his eye. Then it was off to San Antonio in January 2002, for an umbilical cord, stem cell blood transplant procedure. That helped put the leukemia in remission.

So Jaxon beat childhood leukemia.

In May 2006, Cliff and his wife, Kristen, chaired a benefit to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society in Cleveland. To this day they work tirelessly to support Arkansas' Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

During the offseason before 2004 spring training, Cliff shot an eight-to-ten point buck from a distance of about 35 yards. It weighed about 200 pounds.

He hunts often on the 300 acres of land he owns in southewestern Arkansas. It is full of deer.

"I was all over the place," he said. "I walked, what, four guys—four or five guys. A lot of the time I was tying to get inside and missed."

He missed the inside of the plate, and he missed Griffey's dome, too.

Then, on August 2, 2004, Lee was "kind of wild" again, throwing his glove 20 rows into the stands at SkyDome in Toronto. It happened as he departed the field after a rough outing against the Blue Jays. A fan caught the glove on the fly and showed it off to his girlfriend.

"I was trying to throw the glove into the upper deck," Lee said at the time. A few months later, he continued to regret the incident, which also included the flinging of his cap. A blond-haired boy, sitting behind the dugout, snatched the cap.

"It was a stupid thing to do, and I obviously wish I hadn't done it," Lee said last week. "I suppose a fan got a cool souvenir, and people got a kick out of it, but it was not one of my brighter moments."

In his spare time, Lee likes to play cards or watch TV.

His favorite all-time movie is Braveheart. Cliff says his favorite TV show is "Sportscenter."

By the way, don't go over to the Lee house for supper. Cliff's favorite food is Spam.

Cliff says that if he weren't a baseball player he would be a construction worker.

Lee makes sure to hop over the third or first base line on his way to and from the mound.

"I've done it forever," he said. "I never step on lines and cracks and stuff. I try not to make it obvious, to be honest. It's a weird little deal because it's not like I'm real superstitious or anything."

In 2008, Lee was named the Comeback Player of the Year for the American League. And, he was was named the American League's Pitcher of the Year by the Sporting News in a vote by over 300 of his peers. Lee was also named the AL's Outstanding Pitcher in the Players Choice Awards, sponsored by MLB's Players Association.

In 2008, Cliff was named theAmerican League Cy Young Award winner.

In March 2009, Lee took a fly in an F-16 Fighting Falcon. His wife, Kristen, was not worried about her husband's safety.

"I wanted to go instead," she said with a laugh Thursday afternoon at Luke Air Force Base in Glendale, Arizona. "I'm a daredevil."

Major Dan "Dutch" Munter took the Indians No.1 starter for an hourlong ride over Arizona. When Cliff and Munter got out of the plane, he said Lee was a natural, because "he didn't throw up."

March 2010: Lee was suspended for the first five games of the season for throwing a pitch over the head of Arizona's Chris Snyder in an exhibition game.

But, MLB vice president of administration John McHale made the decision April 20, 2010 to drop the suspension after Lee's appeal hearing last week. Lee, general manager Jack Zduriencik and Mariners trainer Rick Griffin said in a conference call with MLB that the left-hander's injuries caused an errant pitch in a spring training game.

The Mariners said McHale wrote in a letter to Lee and the team that he determined "the difficulties in recovering from foot surgery during the offseason combined with the physical challenges created by your serious muscle strain" were sufficient evidence to rescind the suspension and fine.

Baseball often reduces suspensions but rarely drops them. MLB did not have a previous case of a five-game suspension being completely dropped. Lee's was the first.

Cliff and Cubs pitcher Travis Wood live near each other in the offseason. So the work out and go hunting together.

TRANSACTIONS

June 2000: The Expos chose Lee in the fourth round, out of the University of Arkansas.

June 27, 2002: The Indians sent pitchers Bartolo Colon and Tim Drew to the Expos, acquiring Lee, 1B Lee Stevens, INF Brandon Phillips, and OF Grady Sizemore.

August 8, 2006: The Indians signed Lee to a three-year, $14 million contract extension. The pact includes a club option for the 2010 season for $8 million, plus $1 million in award and incentive bonuses.

July 29, 2009: The Phillies sent prospects Jason Knapp, Carlos Carrasco, Jason Donald, and Lou Marson to the Indians, acquiring Lee and OF Ben Francisco.

November 6, 2009: The Phillies picked up the $9 million option on Lee for the 2010 season.

December 16, 2009: The Mariners sent RHP Phillippe Aumont, RHP Juan Ramirez, and OF Tyson Gillies to the Phillies, acquiring Lee.

July 9, 2010: The Rangers sent 1B Justin Smoak, Blake Beavan, Josh Lueke, and Matthew Lawson to the Mariners; acquiring Lee and reliever Mark Lowe, plus $2.25 million of the $4.2 million still owed Cliff.

December 14, 2010: Cliff Lee turned down a whole lot of New York Yankee money and almost as much money from the Rangers to return to the Phillies again.

Lee agreed to a reported five-year contract with the Phillies with a vesting option for a sixth year. The deal is in the $120 million range ($24 million per year). The deal included a $27.5 million option on a 6th year based on performance. 

Cliff's tailing four-seam FASTBALL is 87-93 mph and looks like it rises a lot. He uses it vs. lefty hitters. His two-seam fastball is 86-90 mph and breaks down-and-away from righthanded batters. He has a had-biting, nose-to-toes CURVEBALL that he loves to throw when ahead in the count. CUTTER was a pitch he learned to master while working with pitching coach Carl Willis before 2008 spring training. His cutter breaks away lie a slider but at fastball speed. It is totally unfair to hitters.

He also has a SLIDER, but rarely uses it anymore. His CHANGEUP comes in about 85 mph, fading away from a righty hitter while bottoming out as it gets to the plate. The change helps Lee work both sides of the plate, not just the right half.

His pitches move a lot, so he is difficult to hit.His fastball moves so  much he can get about anyone out with it. But the key to his success is getting his curveball to produce outs.

March 4, 2014: Lee's curveball is the fourth pitch in his arsenal, but he believes it is his best. He throws it far less frequently than his fastball, cutter and changeup—just 7.8 percent of the 3,253 pitches he threw in 2013, according to FanGraphs—despite the fact he believes it has the best action on it.  

"I can command my fastball, cutter and changeup on a high percentage. My curveball I command it on a very low percentage. It's hard for me to justify throwing it when I think I can locate a fastball, cutter or changeup at a high percentage.  I definitely need to use my curveball more," he said. "I'm going to mix it in more often, but I need to make sure I get the fastball, cutter and changeup down before I move onto other things."

How does Lee win so often with less-than-overpowering stuff? His unusual arm angle makes his pitches hard for hitters to pick up. He is aggressive, not being afraid to challenge hitters, and he is sneaky and smart.

But the single pitch that brings Lee the most success is the cutter. He didn't throw it until 2001. It was in Jupiter (Florida) pitching for the Hammerheads, then-Single-A farm team for the Expos. Arthur "Ace" Adams taught the cutter to young pitchers who "needed something to throw inside."

Adams had Cliff drop his slider and add the cutter. Hold the baseball off-center, rotate your wrist with a quarter-turn in and throw it with the same rotation and force as you would a fastball. The wrist rotation and off-center grip increase the pitch's movement and decrease its velocity.

He does a fine job of repeating his delivery. Cliff credits Expos' minor league pitching coordinator Wayne Rosenthal and Jupiter pitching coach Ace Adams with providing the foundation that improved his command, back when he was in the Montreal organization.

"Rosie and Ace had me keep my weight back and stay more directional to the plate, which helped me improve my balance," Lee said.

Cliff's delivery might be the best in the game. He begins on the far right side of the rubber, at rest but poised for action. He then takes a bit of a dance step, inching toward third base with his right foot before lifting it.

Lee then rotates his front hip and shoulder far enough for the hitter to see the 33 on his back, and as the ball comes out of his glove in his left hand, the hitter cannot see it; in fact, the ball stays hidden behind his body and then his head before suddenly appearing out of an unusually high release point. Keeping his front side on the target for as long as possible and keeping his head uncannily still are key parts of his delivery. (October 2010)

"There's something about the way the ball seems to come out (of his hand) at the last instant that causes hitters to pick it up late. It's amazing how his fastball gets on top of hitters," former teammate Jamie Moyer said in October 2010.

In 2005, Cliff was the winningest lefthander in the American League, with an 18-5 record. And he led the league in winning percentage at .783.

RECORDS FALL IN 2008

On August 26, 2008, Lee won his 19th game in his first 21 decisions in the Major Leagues. Before this, the only other pitcher ever to win 18 of his first 20 for a losing team was Ewell Blackwell for the 1947 Reds.

He also became just the fourth pitcher since 1969 and just the eighth since 1920 to win 19 of his first 21 decisions.

Lee's easygoing personality and demeanor give him an edge when he pitches in the big games: playoffs, World Series, etc. Nothing rattles him.

"I've always been pretty loose, no matter what," Lee said. "There's no need to fake like there's some extra something."

2009 World Series: Cliff was the first pitcher since Deacon Phillippe in Game 1 of the 1903 World Series to pitch a complete game in the World Series with 10 or more strikeouts and no walks. Because Phillippe allowed two earned runs in his start, Lee was the first to do so without allowing an earned run.

In his next start (Game 5), Lee earned another victory, allowing five runs and three walks while striking out three in seven innings; the Phillies won, 8–6.

In May 2013, Clay Buchholz was accused of cheating after throwing six shutout innings in Toronto. Buchholz was accused of doctoring pitches by two former big-league pitchers-turned-broadcasters: Jack Morris and Dirk Hayhurst.

Both said Buchholz was applying a foreign substance to the ball, which is illegal.

Two days later, Hayhurst took the conversation further and included Lee in his accusations in a piece he wrote for Canada's Sportsnet website. He insinuated that Lee scuffs the ball. 

As of the start of the 2016 season, Lee had a career record of 143-91 with 3.52 ERA, having allowed 223 home runs and 2,116 hits in 2,157 innings. And he had 1,824 strikeouts and only 476 walks! 

"Cliff first noticed it in April," said Lonnie Soloff, Indians head trainer. "It was nonpainful, and we decided to treat it at the end of the year."

This operation did not hinder Lee's offseason conditioning or throwing.  But it did keep him from doing some hunting for three or four weeks.

March 2-May 3, 2007: Lee had to start the season on the D.L with an abdominal strain. He first felt the strain in his right abdomen during a throwing session early in spring training. He missed most of spring training and the first five weeks of the season.

February 4, 2010: Cliff had surgery to remove a bone spur that had broken loose on the top of his left "push off" foot. But he missed only about three weeks of working out.

March 19-April 30, 2010: Lee received a platelet-rich injection to treat what has been diagnosed as a lower right abdominal strain. He began the season on the D.L.

February 2011: Cliff was sidelined at the start of spring training with a lat injury—not a major problem at all.

April 18, 2012: Lee was on the D.L. with a left oblique strain. It was a Grade 1 left external oblique strain.

May 20-July 21, 2014: Lee landed on the 15-day D.L. with a mild (Grade 1 or 2) strain in his flexor tendon in his left elbow.

August 1–end of 2014 season: Cliff was on the D.L. with a left flexor pronator strain. He didn't begin throwing again until December.

March 16, 2015: Lee was been placed on the 60-day disabled list following a second failed attempt to rehabilitate from a torn common flexor tendon in his left elbow. Despite the fact a handful of doctors have recommended surgery, Lee will try to rehab a third time.