237+1⁄3 IP. [1] His 18 losses were ninth most in the league. Among NL pitchers, only Stricklett and Deacon Phillippe allowed no home runs that season. [9] In 1906, Stricklett went 14–18 with a 2.72 ERA in 291+2⁄3 IP, the ninth most losses and IP in the NL that season. [1] [10] He appeared in 41 games, tied for fifth in the NL with Vic Willis and Jake Weimer, and his 28 complete games and five shutouts were both tied for tenth most in the NL. However, he also allowed 88 earned runs, sixth most in the league. [10]
Stricklett pitched on Opening Day for the Superbas in 1907, a game the Superbas lost. [11] [12] That year, Stricklett had a 12–14 record and a 2.27 ERA in 229+2⁄3 IP. [1] His 25 complete games were eighth best in the NL, while his four shutouts tied for tenth. [13] In four MLB seasons, Stricklett went 35–51 with a 2.84 ERA and 10 shutouts. [1]
After the 1907 season, Stricklett returned to the California League to pitch for the San Jose Prune Prickers and Sacramento Sacts, and refused to report to Brooklyn in 1908 as his wife wanted him to remain closer to their California home. [14] As the California League was not recognized in organized baseball at this time, Stricklett was banned by MLB for four years. [15] [16] [17] Though he applied for reinstatement, [18] his banishment was upheld. [19] Stricklett continued to pitch for San Jose through 1910, [20] pitching to a 23-12 record in 1909 and a 19-14 record in 1910. [2]
After the 1910 season, Stricklett he retired from baseball. [21] However, he applied for reinstatement in 1912, which was granted by the National Baseball Commission. Stricklett was fined $100 ($3,157 in current dollar terms) for playing outside organized baseball for the previous three years. [14] The Superbas sold his rights to the Binghamton Bingoes of the New York State League, [22] and he pitched for the team. [23] In minor league baseball, Stricklett won 20 games in a season at least five times, compiling a 169-99 record across nine seasons. [2]
Spitball
Stricklett denied inventing the spitball, though he claimed to be the first pitcher to master the spitball and to feature it exclusively. [4] To achieve the pitch, he would moisten the ball with a spot the size of two of his fingers. [24] The pitch would act "exactly the same way as reverse English does on a billiard ball". [4]
Stricklett learned the spitball from minor league teammate George Hildebrand in 1902, [4] [25] who learned about it from Frank Corridon. [26] Stricklett played an important role in popularizing the spitball. Stricklett taught the spitball to Jack Chesbro, who saw him use the pitch while pitching in minor league baseball. [27] [28] Though Chesbro had experimented with the pitch in the minor leagues, Stricklett showed him how to master it in 1904. [29] Stricklett taught it to Ed Walsh while they roomed together with the White Sox. [5] [30] [31]
Later life
Stricklett retired to Mountain View, California, where he grew apricots on a ranch. [4] He died in Santa Cruz, California, at the age of 87. [1] In 2018, it was announced that he would be inducted into the Kansas Baseball Hall of Fame on Saturday, January 26, 2019. [32]
See also
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References
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Elmer Stricklett Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved November 26, 2011.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Elmer Stricklett Minor League Statistics & History". Baseball-Reference.com . Retrieved November 26, 2011.
- ↑ "Diamond Dust". The Milwaukee Journal. April 3, 1900. p. 8. Retrieved April 12, 2012.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Grandfather of Spitball: Elmer Stricklett Tells Story in Own Way". San Jose News . December 23, 1931. Retrieved April 12, 2012.
- 1 2 "Explains Secret of the Spitball: Ed Walsh, White Sox Wonder, Learned it From Elmer Stricklett. Can Be Perfectly Controlled: Reverse Twist Causes the Sudden Pitch Downward—Some Use Too Much Saliva". The Telegraph-Herald . March 30, 1914. p. 9. Retrieved April 12, 2012.
- ↑ "Elmer Stricklett Has Made Good". Spokane Daily Chronicle. May 27, 1904. p. 3. Retrieved December 4, 2011.
- ↑ "Gossip of the Baseball Field" (PDF). The New York Times. August 25, 1904. Retrieved April 12, 2012.
- ↑ "Will Play With Nationals; Strong Contingent of Minor League Men secured for Next Year". The New York Times. December 29, 1904. Retrieved December 4, 2011.
- ↑ "1905 National League Pitching Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved June 26, 2012.
- 1 2 "1906 National League Pitching Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
- ↑ "Boston Wins in a Pitchers' Battle: Opening Game with Brooklyn was Close. Great Work by Both Young and Stricklett: Shortstops Also Play a Star Game-- Rain or Cold Weather Cause Postponement of All the Other League Games Games Postponed Dartmouth 4, Georgetown 3 Game at Andover Postponed Other Games". The Hartford Courant . April 13, 1907. p. 9. Archived from the original on July 31, 2012. Retrieved April 12, 2012.(subscription required)
- ↑ "Only One Big League Contest Yesterday". The Pittsburgh Press . April 13, 1907. p. 20. Retrieved April 12, 2012.
- ↑ "1907 National League Pitching Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
- 1 2 "Elmer Stricklett Back With Brooklyn; Originator of "Moist Ball" Delivery Reinstated by National Commission". The New York Times . January 12, 1912. Retrieved November 26, 2011.
- ↑ "Will Hold Joint Meet at Chicago: Three-I and Central Ass'n to Decide Redistricting Plan Nov. 23. No Action at Memphis Meet: Dick Kinsella Appears on the Scene and Lands a Couple Players". The Telegraph-Herald. November 13, 1909. p. 10. Retrieved April 12, 2012.
- ↑ "Stricklett an Outlaw". Chicago Tribune . February 21, 1908. p. 6. Retrieved December 4, 2011.[ dead link ](subscription required)
- ↑ "Bar Gates Against Stricklett". The Milwaukee Sentinel . January 8, 1910. p. 5. Retrieved November 26, 2011.
- ↑ "Comment on Sport: Rumor About Stricklett". The Evening News. October 20, 1908. p. 7. Retrieved April 12, 2012.
- ↑ "Bar Gates Against Elmer Stricklett". The Milwaukee Sentinel. January 8, 1910. p. 8. Retrieved April 16, 2012.
- ↑ "San Jose Will Meet Watsonville Pippins: Another Hot Battle Will Be Fought At Luna Park, Elmer Stricklett Will Oppose Elmer Emerson". The Evening News. August 18, 1910. Retrieved April 16, 2012.
- ↑ "Little Bits of Baseball". The Pittsburgh Press. August 3, 1910. Retrieved April 12, 2012.
- ↑ "National League News in Short Metre" (PDF). 59 (3). The Sporting Life. March 23, 1912. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - ↑ "New York Nuggets" (PDF). The Sporting Life. Vol. 59, no. 3. May 18, 1912. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
- ↑ Collins, Eddie (January 17, 1927). "Twenty One Years Of Base Ball: XIII Freak Pitching". Los Angeles Times. p. 13. Archived from the original on July 14, 2012. Retrieved April 16, 2012.(subscription required)
- ↑ "Sayings of the Spectator". The Meriden Daily Journal. January 9, 1934. p. 3. Retrieved November 26, 2011.
- ↑ "Spitball Stricklett is Tired of Being a Superba". The Pittsburgh Press. December 29, 1905. p. 19. Retrieved December 4, 2011.
- ↑ "Spitball's Inventor Dies at 87". The Hartford Courant . June 9, 1964. p. 25. Archived from the original on February 2, 2013. Retrieved November 25, 2011.(subscription required)
- ↑ McCarthy, Ray (January 21, 1920). "Stricklett Credits Corridon With Originating Spitball". Edmonton Journal . Retrieved April 12, 2012.
- ↑ Fleitz, David L. (2004). Ghosts in the gallery at Cooperstown: Sixteen little-known members of the Hall of Fame. McFarland & Company. p. 53. ISBN 0-7864-1749-8 . Retrieved November 25, 2011.
- ↑ "Walsh Defends The Spitball". The Toronto Sunday World. March 29, 1914. p. 18. Retrieved November 26, 2011.
- ↑ Moshier, Jeff (March 22, 1934). "Playing Square: The Vanishing Tribe of Baseball". The Evening Independent . p. 5A. Retrieved April 16, 2012.
- ↑ Nosker, Toby (December 21, 2018). "The Late-Elmer Stricklett from Glasco to be Inducted Into the Kansas Baseball Hall of Fame". KNCK . Retrieved December 22, 2018.
External links
- Career statistics from MLB, or Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors)
| Elmer Stricklett | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Pitcher | |
| Born:August 29, 1876 Glasco, Kansas, U.S. | |
| Died: June 7, 1964 (aged 87) Santa Cruz, California, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| April 22, 1904, for the Chicago White Sox | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 24, 1907, for the Brooklyn Superbas |