Happy Birthday to the late and great Hall of Fame Starting Pitcher, Rube Waddell. Pitching in the early 1900s, during the Dead Ball Era, Waddell is the most forgotten dominant Left-Handed Pitcher in baseball history. Despite his career only lasting 13 seasons, he was as dominant as any pitcher was during his time for the Philadelphia Athletics, St. Louis Browns, Pittsburgh Pirates, Chicago Orphans, and Louisville Colonels.

Career Statistics/Accolades (1897; 1899-1910):

193-143 W-L 2.16 ERA 2,961.1 IP 2,316 K 1.102 WHIP

  • 1905 Pitching Triple Crown
  • 2x ERA Leader
  • 6x AL Strikeout Leader

Waddell, at the time, had one of the fastest Fastballs of that time. Also, Waddell had a reputation for throwing a hard Curveball. From 1902-07, he led the AL in Strikeouts, reaching 300Ks in 1903-04. He led the league in ERA twice, and in 1905, he took home the Pitching Triple Crown, leading his league in Wins, ERA, and Strikeouts. Also, from 1902-05, he won 20 or more games every year. In 1900, despite playing on a 2nd place Pirates team when he was on the mound that year, the team didn’t back him up regarding run support, as he posted a Win-Loss record of 8-13, even though he led the league with a 2.37 ERA and a 1.107 WHIP.

While it was the Dead Ball Era, I remind you that Pitchers were expected to pitch way more than they are today. Waddell had eleven years in which he logged in over 200 Innings Pitched; also three of those years, 1903-05, he logged well over 300 Innings. Also, I will remind you that Starters very rarely didn’t finish games in which they started. In 340 career starts, Waddell completed 261 games, 76.7% of his starts. 

Off the field, he had problems with alcohol and not taking proper care of himself, leading to him dying in 1914 at the age of 37. Nonetheless, his years of dominance with the Philadelphia Athletics from 1902-07, as well as his 1900 campaign with Pittsburgh and 1908 campaign with the St. Louis Browns, is what he will be remembered for. While he wasn’t among the first to be inducted into the Hall of Fame when it first opened its doors, in 1946, the Veterans Committee voted him in as one of the greats who contributed to the game’s growth. 

References:

  1. Rube Waddell via Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rube_Waddell#
  2. Rube Waddell Career Statistics via Baseball-Reference: https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/w/wadderu01.shtml