In 1981 Lawrence Ritter and Donald Honig included Lyons in their book The 100 Greatest Baseball Players of All Time.

Prior to a 1931 arm injury, his pitches included a "sailer" (now known as a cut fastball), knuckleball, curveball, and changeup.

Although exempt from the military draft due to age, after the season he enlisted in the United States Marine Corps and fought in the Pacific War.

Lyons never appeared in a postseason game, as the generally mediocre-to-poor White Sox were usually far behind the American League leaders during his career.

Defensively, he recorded a .958 fielding percentage which was only a couple of points higher than the league average at his position.

In May 1946, six days after what would be his last game as a pitcher, Lyons took over as manager of the White Sox after an apparent contract dispute between Dykes and Grace Comiskey.

[10] Apart from his wartime service and his stints as a coach with the Tigers and Dodgers, he spent over 40 years on the White Sox payroll.

Lawrence Ritter and Donald Honig included Lyons in their book The 100 Greatest Baseball Players of All Time (1981).

In 2013, the Bob Feller Act of Valor Award honored Lyons as one of 37 Baseball Hall of Fame members for his service in the United States Marine Corps during World War II.