Mickey Welch
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| Mickey Welch | ||
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| Pitcher | ||
| Born: July 4, 1859 Brooklyn, New York |
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| Died: July 30, 1941 (aged 82) Concord, New Hampshire |
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| Batted: Right | Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | ||
| May 1, 1880 for the Troy Trojans |
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| Final game | ||
| May 17, 1892 for the New York Giants |
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| Career statistics | ||
| Win-Loss record | 307-210 | |
| ERA | 2.71 | |
| Strikeouts | 1,850 | |
| Teams | ||
| Career highlights and awards | ||
| Member of the National | ||
 Baseball Hall of Fame |
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| Elected | 1973 | |
| Vote | Veterans Committee | |
Michael Francis Welch Born as Michael Francis Walsh (July 4, 1859 - July 30, 1941) was a 19th century Major League Baseball starting pitcher. He was the third big league pitcher to accumulate 300 career victories. Nicknamed "Smiling Mickey", he was born in Brooklyn, New York, and played 13 seasons in the major leagues, three with the Troy Trojans, and 10 with the New York Gothams/Giants.[1] He was very successful with an effective curveball, a change of pace, and a version of the screwball. During his 13 major league seasons, he posted 20 or more wins nine times, seven in succession.[2]
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[edit] Major league career
[edit] Troy Trojans
Welch made his major league debut in 1880, winning 34 games for the Troy Trojans.[1] On July 6, 1880, he pitched a one-hitter against the Cleveland Blues.[3] Welch's totals dipped the following two seasons, when he began to split starts with future Hall-of-Famer Tim Keefe, who also went on to win more than 300 games.[4] The duo would only enjoy moderate success of the course of three seasons with the Trojans, a team that never finished higher than fourth in the National League during its four season run.[5]
[edit] New York Gothams/Giants
After the Trojans disbanded after the 1882 season, the New York Gothams replaced them, taking many of the Troy players, including Welch. He resumed a heavy workload in 1883, throwing 426 innings in 54 games. This time he split pitching duties with John Montgomery Ward[6], which turned out to be Ward's final season as a regular pitcher. His two finest individual seasons came in 1884, when he went 39-21 with 345 strikeouts and a 2.50 ERA, and 1885, when he went 44-11 with 258 strikeouts and a 1.66 ERA.[1] That 1885 season saw Welch and Keefe reunite as a two-man pitching rotation, with Keefe having a 32-13 win/loss record. The team, now called the Giants, had an incredible record of 85 and 27, with Welch winning 17 consecutive games at one point[2], but finished second to the Chicago White Stockings, who finished with a record of 87-25.[7] Welch holds the record for most consecutive batters struck out to begin a game, with 9, set August 28, 1884.[2] The record still stands today, although Tom Seaver now holds the consecutive strikeout record with 10, which he accomplished in 1970.[3]
Welch's career slowed down after the Giants won the National League pennant in 1888 and 1889. He retired after one start in the 1892 season having compiled 307 victories, 210 losses, 1850 strikeouts and a career 2.71 ERA.
On September 10, 1889, he is credited as having become the first pinch hitter in Major League history, when he Batted for Hank O'Day‚ and struck out. Conventional wisdom indicates that this must have been an injury situation since a rule allowing pinch hitters in non-injury situations will not be instituted until 1892. The first pinch hitter under that rule is generally agreed to be Jack Doyle‚ on June 7‚ 1892.[3] On April 24, 1890, with the score tied 2-2 in the 7th inning between his Giants and the Boston Beaneaters‚ Welch gets into an argument with umpire McDermott, an argument that resulted in the ump forfeiting the game to host Boston.[3]
[edit] Post-career
Welch was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame by the Veteran's Committee in 1973.[8] Mickey Welch died in Concord, New Hampshire at the age of 82, and is interred in the Calvary Cemetery in Woodside, Queens, New York, under his birth name of Walsh.[9]
[edit] See also
- List of most winning pitchers of all time
- 300 win club
- List of Major League Baseball leaders in career wins
- List of Major League Baseball saves champions
- Top 100 strikeout pitchers of all time
[edit] References
- ^ a b c Mickey Welch's career statistics. baseball-reference.com. Retrieved on 2007-11-29.
- ^ a b c The Ballplayers - Mickey Welch. baseballlibrary.com. Retrieved on 2007-11-29.
- ^ a b c d The Ballplayers - Chronology. baseballlibrary.com. Retrieved on 2007-11-29.
- ^ Tim Keefe's career statistics. baseball-reference.com. Retrieved on 2007-11-29.
- ^ Troy Trojans History & Encyclopedia. baseball-reference.com. Retrieved on 2007-11-29.
- ^ 1883 New York Gothams. baseball-reference.com. Retrieved on 2007-11-29.
- ^ 1885 New York Giants. baseball-reference.com. Retrieved on 2007-11-29.
- ^ Baseball Hall of Fame Biography. baseballhalloffame.org. Retrieved on 2007-11-29.
- ^ Mickey Walsh stats. retrosheet.org. Retrieved on 2007-11-29.
[edit] External links
- Mickey Welch's career statistics at Baseball-Reference.com
- Mickey Welch's gravesite
- Mickey Welch at Find A Grave
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