Happy Birthday to the late and great Hall of Famer, Starting Pitcher Mordecai Brown, nicknamed “Three Finger Brown.” Despite losing two fingers on his right hand in a farm machine accident as a kid, Brown used a disability as an advantage in being easier to grip a ball for a dominant Curveball/Knucklecurve. How did it go? Well, let’s just say that despite pitching in the Dead-Ball Era over 100 years ago, Brown is still considered one of the Immortals regarding Starting Pitchers. Brown pitched mainly for the Chicago Cubs, the St. Louis Cardinals, the Cincinnati Reds, the former St. Louis Terriers, the Brooklyn Tip-Tops, and the Chicago Whalers.

Career Statistics/Accolades (1903-1916):

239-130 W-L 2.06 ERA 3,172.1 IP 1.375 K 1.066 WHIP 

  • 2x World Series Champion (1907 & 1908)
  • 1906 ERA Champion

Brown’s lifetime 2.06 ERA is the third lowest by any starting pitcher behind Ed Walsh & Addie Joss. Yes, in the Dead-Ball Era, the balls weren’t as hard, and Strikeouts for a Pitcher were more scarce. However, starting pitchers like Brown were expected to start every 2-3 games, complete the entire game, and be available to pitch in relief on days they weren’t starting. In eleven years of his career, Brown logged over 200 Innings pitched, and in twelve years, he reached double digits of Complete Games. From 1904-10, Brown never had an ERA over 2.17; his ERA was under 2.00 in six of those seven years, as low as 1.04 in 1906. Brown was also a 20-game winner six times consecutively. Brown also had a WHIP under 1.000 five times and led in it three times. He had 8-10 years as a Hall of Fame pitcher, but to me, the highlight of his career in 1906-08. 1906, he had the best season of his career, winning 26 games with a 1.04 ERA. Then, in 1907 & 1908, he and the Chicago Cubs would be World Series Champions, which he was a massive part of. In three starts between the two series, he went 3-0, allowing no earned runs in 20 Innings. 

As a hitter, Brown hit from both sides of the plate. I remind everyone that historically, a Pitcher being a Switch Hitter is uncommon. This was long before the Designated Hitter was in place, and pitchers took their turn in the batting lineup. Brown was a respectable hitting pitcher, going 235 for 1143, a .206 average, and a .236 OBP. 

Unfortunately, he didn’t live to see his Hall of Fame induction, but the year after he died, he was voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame by the Veterans’ Committee in 1949. While shockingly, he was left off the Sporting News 100 Greatest Ballplayers list, he was named a finalist to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team in 1999.

References:

  1. Mordecai Brown via Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mordecai_Brown#
  2. Mordecai Brown Career Statistics via Baseball-Reference: https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/b/brownmo01.shtml