THIS DATE IN WHITE SOX HISTORY: DECEMBER 31ST

[StatManDu]

THIS DATE IN WHITE SOX HISTORY: DECEMBER 31ST

 

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BIG ED SENT PACKING

1916: The long and storied Hall of Fame playing career of the great Ed Walsh came to an end when the White Sox released the legendary pitcher. The right-hander hadn’t pitched regularly since 1912 because of arm troubles. “The Big Reel” went 195-125 with a 1.81 ERA in 426 games (312 starts) in 13 seasons with the Sox. He departed as the franchise’s leader in virtually every pitching category and is still first in ERA, fewest runners per nine innings (9.12), strikeout/walk ratio (2.85), shutouts (57) and hits per nine innings (7.10). The spitballer’s best season came in 1908 when he went 40-15 with a 1.42 ERA. Walsh pitched briefly with the Boston Braves in 1917. He served as a White Sox coach in 1923 and 1924 and managed the team briefly (three games) in 1924 between Johnny Evers and Eddie Collins. He returned as a coach for the 1928 and 1929 season, which coincided with part of his son’s (Ed Jr.) undistinguished tenure with the team. The Sox honored the Walsh with two testimonial days – one after the 1911 campaign and one on June 22, 1958 at Comiskey Park. He died less than a year later.

 

KID REPLACES PANTS

1918: Charles Comiskey ushered out the old year by replacing Clarence “Pants” Rowland with Kid Gleason as White Sox manager. Rowland managed the Sox from 1915 to 1918 and guided the team to the 1917 World Series title. With star players contributing to the war effort, the team tumbled into sixth place in 1918, prompting Comiskey to make the change. Gleason managed the Sox until 1923. He was the manager for the infamous 1919 World Series. He knew the fix was in but had no proof to offer Comiskey. Gleason hung with the team trying to rebuild the team but wasn’t up to the task, according to Rich Lindberg’s “Total White Sox.” He left the Sox after the 1923 season and never managed in the bigs again.

 

SO LONG, MR. PERFECT

1925: The St. Louis Browns claimed pitcher Charlie Robertson, the only man in franchise history to throw a perfect game, off waivers from the White Sox. Robertson’s perfecto came April 30, 1922 and was just one of his 49 big league wins.