Pete Appleton

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Peter William Appleton (May 20, 1904 - January 18, 1974) was a right handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Cincinnati Reds (1927-1928), Cleveland Indians (1930-1932[start]), Boston Red Sox (1932[end]), New York Yankees (1933), Washington Senators (1936-1939, 1945[end]), Chicago White Sox (1940-1942[start]) and St. Louis Browns.(1942[end]-1945[start]). Appleton, who was born Peter William Jablonowski in Terryville, Connecticut, legally changed his name in 1933.

Appleton was an accomplished pianist and band leader but opted for a baseball career after graduating from University of Michigan. After being named the Triple-A best pitcher while playing for the Montreal Royals in 1935, he pitched for six major league clubs, including two stints with Washington Senators, from 1927 through 1945. His most productive season came in 1936 with Washington, when he posted career highs in wins (14), strikeouts (77), earned run average (3.53), starts (20), and innings pitched (201.2).

In a 14-season career, Appleton posted a 57-66 record with 420 strikeouts and a 4.30 ERA in 341 games (71 as a starter).

Appleton died in Trenton, New Jersey, at the age of 69.

Highlight

• On April 30, 1939, Appleton was the last pitcher to face Lou Gehrig in a New York Yankees 3–2 loss to the Senators at Yankee Stadium. Gehrig was retired by Appleton in his final plate appearance, ending his 2,130 consecutive games played streak.

[edit] External links

• Baseball Library
• Baseball Reference
• Hall of Fame
• The Deadball Era