Happy Belated Birthday to the late and great Hall of Famer James Francis “Pud” Gavin. This is a throwback, Galvin pitched from 1875-1892 for the St Louis Brown Stockings, Buffalo Bisons, Pittsburgh Alleghenys, Pittsburgh Burghers, Pittsburgh Pirates, and the St. Louis Browns. Despite being considered a small individual, it didn’t stop him from being one of the top pitchers of his time. He earned the nickname “Pud” having the reputation of making hitters “look like pudding.”

Career Statistics (1875; 79-1892):

365-310 W-L 2.85 ERA 6,003.1 IP 1,807 K 1.191 WHIP

Dominance as a Pitcher

Gavin pitched in a time when there was only a two-man starting rotation, and during that time, starters were expected to finish just about every game. Of the 688 career starts Galvin made, he pitched the entire game 646 of those starts. Very few pitchers today even reach 200 Innings Pitched in a season; well, Galvin had nine seasons in which he eclipsed 400 Innings pitched. His 646 Complete Games and 6,000.3 Innings Pitched are second to only Cy Young for the most in baseball history. Due to having small hands, throwing a curveball wasn’t in the cards for him. Instead, his fastball, as well as proper pin-point control, made him dominant. Throughout his career, he was regarded as a great fielding pitcher while known for being great at Pickoffs. Despite being a right-handed pitcher, his pickoff move was so effective that runners on first had to be extra cautious. 

Best Years 

Galvin’s best years were in Buffalo with the former Buffalo Bisons. In 1883-84, Galvin threw over 600 Innings in both seasons, in which I’d say those were his two best years. In 1883, his 75 Starts are tied for the most by any pitcher in a single season.

1883: 46-29 W-L 2.72 ERA 656.1 IP 279 K 1.106 WHIP (75 Starts/ 72 Complete Games)

1884: 46-22 W-L 1.99 ERA 636.1 IP 369 K 0.988 WHIP (72 Starts/ 71 Complete Games)

Legacy

He was dominant despite playing on many teams that weren’t the best, never appearing on a pennant-winning team. Despite winning many games, he earned the loss in many games with a lack of run support. He had ten seasons in which he recorded an ERA under 3.00. Maintaining an ERA under 3 in seasons in which he was expected to start a game 2 or 3 times a week, logging in 400 + Innings a season, while pitching on teams struggling to give him run support is nothing short of impressive. In 1888, he became the first career 300-game winner in baseball history. At the time of his retirement, he was an all-time career leader in Wins, Innings Pitched, Starts, Complete Games, and Shutouts. It wasn’t until over 60 years after his death, but in 1965, he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame from the Veterans Committee. 

References:

  1. Pud Galvin via Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pud_Galvin#
  2. Pud Galvin Career Statistics via Baseball-Reference:  https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/g/galvipu01.shtml