Silver King (baseball player)

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Silver King (January 11, 1868 - May 21, 1938), born Charles Frederick Koenig in St. Louis, Missouri, was a Major League Baseball player in the 19th century from 1886 through 1897. He batted and threw right handed.

In a 10-year career, spent primarily as a pitcher, King played for Jacksonville Illinois (1885), St. Joseph Missouri in the Western League (1886), Kansas City Cowboys (1886), St. Louis Browns (1887), Chicago Pirates (1890), Pittsburgh Pirates (1891), New York Giants (1892-93), Cincinnati Reds (1893) and Washington Senators (1896-97). The first part of King's nickname was a reference to the color of his hair, while the latter part was a translation of his German surname.

King was an unusual pitcher for his time. Gripping the ball with unusually large hands, he delivered the ball without a windup. He also was one of the first pitchers in major league history to employ a sidearm delivery. The unconventional methods worked, as he went on to pitch 3,190 2/3 innings, winning 203 games with 1229 strikeouts and a 3.18 ERA in 397 games.

King's best season came in 1888, when he led the Browns to their second consecutive American Association championship. That year, King pitched 585 2/3 innings in 66 games, won 45 games, and his 1.64 ERA led the league pitchers. He added another ERA title two years later, and his strong fastball enabled him to become a notable strikeout artist; he finished among the league's top 10 in that category six times. On

After baseball, King returned to his native St. Louis. He died in 1938, at age 70, and was laid to rest at New St. Marcus Cemetery in St. Louis, Missouri.

[edit] External links

• Baseball Reference
• Baseball Almanac