Grover Cleveland Alexander (February 26, 1887 – November 4, 1950), nicknamed
"Old Pete", was an
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Major League BaseballMajor League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
pitcherIn baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...
. He played for the
Philadelphia PhilliesThe Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
,
Chicago CubsThe Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago . The Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the National...
, and
St. Louis CardinalsThe St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...
and was elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame in
1938The 1938 elections to select inductees to the Baseball Hall of Fame were conducted along much the same lines as the 1937 vote. Toward the goal of 10 initial inductees from the 20th century, 8 had now been selected; members of the Baseball Writers Association of America were once again given...
.
Career
Alexander was born in
Elba, NebraskaElba is a village in Howard County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 243 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Grand Island, Nebraska Micropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Elba is located at ....
, one of thirteen children. While overcoming the setbacks of injuries he'd incurred in
World War IWorld War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
(epilepsy, hearing loss, and double vision), the man they called "Old Pete" compiled 373 victories, ranking third (tied with Christy Mathewson) behind Cy Young and Walter Johnson (first and second respectively). He played semi-pro ball in his youth, signing his first professional contract at age 20 in 1907 for $50 per month. In 1909 he played for the Galesburg (IL) Boosters in the Class D Illinois-Missouri League and went 15-8 that year. He had a good season, but his career was almost ended when he was struck by a thrown ball while baserunning. Although this ended his 1909 season, he would recover by 1910 to become a star pitcher again, finishing with a 29-11 record for the
Syracuse StarsThe Syracuse Stars were a minor professional ice hockey team from Syracuse, New York, existing for 10 season from 1930 to 1940. The Stars name had previously been used by sports teams, including several Syracuse Stars baseball teams from the 19th century....
in the Class B
New York State LeagueThe first New York State League in 1885, was actually the second of the many names the International League used before settling on its current moniker.The second New York State League was a six team league for one season in 1889...
, before being sold to the Philadelphia Phillies for $750.
Alexander made his Philadelphia debut during the pre-season
1911The 1911 Philadelphia Phillies season was a season in Major League Baseball. The Phillies finished fourth in the National League with a record of 79 wins and 73 losses.- City Series :...
City Series, pitching five-innings of no-hit, no-run baseball against the Athletics. He would make his official Major League debut on April 15,
1911The 1911 Philadelphia Phillies season was a season in Major League Baseball. The Phillies finished fourth in the National League with a record of 79 wins and 73 losses.- City Series :...
. He would be joined on the Phillies that year by
catcherCatcher is a position for a baseball or softball player. When a batter takes his turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. This is a catcher's primary duty, but he is also called upon to master many other skills in order to...
Bill KilleferWilliam Killefer , was an American professional baseball player, coach and manager who had a 48-year career in Major League Baseball. Killefer, who was nicknamed "Reindeer Bill" due to his speed afoot, played as a catcher for the St. Louis Browns, Philadelphia Phillies, and Chicago Cubs...
, who went on to become Alexander's favorite receiver, catching 250 of his games.
In his rookie year, Alexander led the league with 28 wins (a modern-day rookie record), 31 complete games, 367 innings pitched, and seven shutouts, while finishing second in strikeouts and fourth in ERA. From 1912 to 1920, Alexander led the league in ERA five times (1915, 1916, 1917, 1919, and 1920), wins five times (1914–17, 1920), innings six times (1912, 1914–17, 1920), strikeouts six times (1912, 1914–1917, 1920), complete games five times (1914–1917, 1920), and shutouts five times (1915, 1916 [a single-season record 16], 1917, 1919). He won pitching's
Triple CrownIn Major League Baseball, a player earns the Triple Crown when he leads a league in three specific statistical categories. For batters, a player must lead the league in home runs, run batted in , and batting average; pitchers must lead the league in wins, strikeouts, and earned run average...
in 1915, 1916, and 1920. In 1915, he was instrumental in leading the Phillies to their first pennant, and he also pitched a record four one-hitters. Although Alexander would pitch for 10 more seasons, he would only lead the
National LeagueThe National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...
one more time (shutouts in 1923) in a major statistical category.
After the
1917- Roster :- Starters by position :Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in- Other batters :Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg...
season, the Phillies sold Alexander to the Cubs, ostensibly fearful that he would be lost to the army in
World War IWorld War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, but as Phillies owner
William BakerWilliam Baker may refer to:*William Baker, builder after whom Baker Street, London, is named*William Baker, the real name of the title fictional character in Sandman ...
admitted later, "I needed the money". Sure enough Alexander was drafted, and spent most of the season in France as a sergeant with the 342nd Field Artillery. While serving in France a shell exploded near his ear, causing partial hearing loss and triggering the onset of epilepsy. Following his return from the war Alexander suffered from
shell shockShell Shock, also known as 82nd Marines Attack was a 1964 film by B-movie director John Hayes. The film takes place in Italy during World War II, and tells the story of a sergeant with his group of soldiers....
and was plagued with epileptic seizures, which only exacerbated the problems he already was experiencing with alcohol. Always a drinker, Alexander hit the bottle particularly hard as a result of the physical and emotional injuries he sustained in the war - injuries that would eventually plague him for the rest of his life. People oftentimes misinterpreted his seizure-related problems as drunkenness. In spite of all this, Alexander gave Chicago several successful years and won another pitching triple crown in
1920- Offseason :* February, 1920: Fred Lear was purchased from the Cubs by the New York Giants.- Roster :- Starters by position :Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in...
. Tiring of his increasing drunkenness and insubordination that was oftentimes directly related to his epilepsy, the Cubs sold him to the Cardinals in the middle of the
1926The St. Louis Cardinals season was the team's 45th season in St. Louis, Missouri and their 35th in the National League. The Cardinals went 89-65 during the season and finished first in the National League, winning their first National League pennant...
season for the waiver price. Then-Cubs manager, Joe McCarthy, admirably stated the reason for the sale was, "The Cubs finished last last year and if they finish last again, I'd rather it be without [Alexander]."
The Cardinals won the National League pennant that year and met the
New York YankeesThe New York Yankees season was the team's 24th season in New York, and its 26th season overall. The team finished with a record of 91-63, winning their fourth pennant, finishing three games ahead of the Cleveland Indians. New York was managed by Miller Huggins. The Yankees played at Yankee...
in the
World SeriesThe 1926 World Series was the championship series of the 1926 Major League Baseball season, featuring the St. Louis Cardinals against the New York Yankees...
, where Alexander had arguably his finest moment. He pitched complete game victories in Games 2 and 6. According to teammate
Bob O'FarrellRobert Arthur "Bob" O'Farrell was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher for 21 seasons with the Chicago Cubs, St. Louis Cardinals and the New York Giants. O'Farrell also played for the Cincinnati Reds, albeit briefly...
in
The Glory of Their TimesThe Glory of Their Times: The Story Of The Early Days Of Baseball Told By The Men Who Played It is a book, edited by Lawrence Ritter, telling the stories of early 20th century baseball...
, after the game six victory, Alexander managed to get drunk throughout the night and was still feeling the effects when he was sent out to pitch the next day in Game 7. Alexander came to the game in the seventh inning after starter
Jesse HainesJesse Joseph "Pop" Haines, was a right-handed Major League Baseball pitcher and knuckleballer. He played briefly in 1918, then from 1920 to 1937.-Career:...
developed a blister, with the Cardinals ahead 3–2, the bases loaded and two outs. Facing Yankee slugger
Tony LazzeriAnthony Michael "Tony" Lazzeri was an American Major League Baseball player during the 1920s and 1930s, predominantly with the New York Yankees. He was part of the famed "Murderers' Row" Yankee batting lineup of the late 1920s , along with Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, and Bob Meusel...
, Alexander struck him out and then held the Yankees scoreless for two more innings to preserve the win and give St. Louis the championship. He had one last 20-win season for the Cardinals in 1927, but his continued drinking finally did him in. He left major league baseball after a brief return to the Phillies in 1930, and pitched for the House of David until 1938.
Alexander attended game three of the
1950 World SeriesThe 1950 World Series was the 47th World Series between the American and National Leagues for the championship of Major League Baseball. The Philadelphia Phillies as 1950 champions of the National League and the New York Yankees, as 1950 American League champions, competed to win a best-of-seven...
at Yankee Stadium where he saw the Phillies lose to the Yankees. He died less than a month later on November 4, 1950 in
St. Paul, NebraskaSt. Paul is a city in and the county seat of Howard County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 2,218 at the 2000 census.St. Paul is part of the Grand Island, Nebraska Micropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:St...
at the age of 63.
Milestones
Alexander's 90 shutouts are a National League record and his 373 wins are tied with
Christy MathewsonChristopher "Christy" Mathewson , nicknamed "Big Six", "The Christian Gentleman", or "Matty", was an American Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. He played his entire career in what is known as the dead-ball era...
for first in the National League record book. He is also third all time in wins, tenth in innings pitched (5190), second in shutouts, and eighth in hits allowed (4868). At the time of Alexander's final victory, in August 1929, the news media reported that he had broken Mathewson's career victories record of 372. In the 1940s, Mathewson was discovered to have qualified for an additional victory (May 21, 1902) and his total was officially upped to 373 and into a tie with Alexander.
In 1915, he won his first World Series game, for the Philadelphia Phillies. It would be 62 years before the Phillies won another postseason game, a record for futility that has yet to be equaled.
In 1999, he ranked number 12 on
The Sporting News list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players, and was a nominee for the
Major League Baseball All-Century TeamIn 1999, the Major League Baseball All-Century Team was chosen by popular vote of fans. To select the team, a panel of experts first compiled a list of the 100 greatest Major League Baseball players from the past century...
.
Alexander was elected to Baseball's Hall of Fame in 1938, the third year of the Hall. Alexander was the only player elected that year.
Names / nicknames
Alexander was born during the first term of U.S. President
Grover ClevelandStephen Grover Cleveland was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States. Cleveland is the only president to serve two non-consecutive terms and therefore is the only individual to be counted twice in the numbering of the presidents...
.
Newspapers often mentioned his full name when writing about him, in addition to just "Grover". He was also sometimes called "Alec", and on occasions when he succeeded in grand fashion (as with the
1926 World SeriesThe 1926 World Series was the championship series of the 1926 Major League Baseball season, featuring the St. Louis Cardinals against the New York Yankees...
), they would call him "
Alexander the Great".
The origin of the nickname "Old Pete" is something of a mystery. It is uncertain how frequently Alexander was publicly called by that nickname during his playing days. On his 1940 Playball baseball card he was referred to as "Ol' Pete." In
The World Series and Highlights of Baseball, by Lamont Buchanan, published in 1951, the year after Alexander died, on pp. 106–107 the author refers to "Pete Alexander" and "Ol' Pete" in a matter-of-fact way, suggesting the nickname was well-known. When he won his 373rd game on August 10, 1929, one newspaper had called him "old Pete", indicating that the nickname was in public circulation. (
The Scrapbook History of Baseball, by Deutsch, Cohen, Johnson and Neft, Bobbs-Merrill, 1975, p. 131).
His nickname among old family friends in Nebraska was "Dode." (see "Grover Alexander and Bride Visit Home Folks,"
St. Paul Phonograph, St. Paul, Neb., April 24, 1919)
Personal
After the 1917 season, Alexander was traded by the Phillies to the Cubs. Due to
World War IWorld War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, the United States drafted Alexander into the military and sent him to fight in the
Battle of the Argonne ForestThe Meuse-Argonne Offensive, or Maas-Argonne Offensive, also called the Battle of the Argonne Forest, was a part of the final Allied offensive of World War I that stretched along the entire western front.-Overview:...
. There he was exposed to German mustard gas, lost much of his hearing, and suffered from shell shock.
Quotes
"Grover Cleveland Alexander wasn't drunk out there on the mound, the way people thought. He was an epileptic. Old Pete would fall down with a seizure between innings, then go back and pitch another shutout." -Ty Cobb ("Cobb", by Al Stump)
Legacy
Alexander was the subject of the 1952 biographical film
The Winning TeamThe Winning Team is 1952 film directed by Lewis Seiler. It is fictionalized biography of the life of major league pitcher Grover Cleveland Alexander starring Ronald Reagan as Alexander, Doris Day as his wife, Aimee and Frank Lovejoy as Rogers Hornsby...
, in which he was played by
Ronald ReaganRonald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
. Baseball commentator
Bill JamesGeorge William “Bill” James is a baseball writer, historian, and statistician whose work has been widely influential. Since 1977, James has written more than two dozen books devoted to baseball history and statistics...
called the film "an awful movie, a
Reader's Digest movie, reducing the events of Alexander's life to a cliché." Nevertheless, the film, which also starred
Doris DayDoris Day is an American actress, singer and, since her retirement from show business, an animal rights activist. With an entertainment career that spanned through almost 50 years, Day started her career as a big band singer in 1939, but only began to be noticed after her first hit recording,...
as Mrs. Alexander, was loved by many of those who saw it. Today, Alexander's fans are grateful he had the distinction of being the namesake of one President of the United States and having been portrayed on film by an actor who would later become president.
Some feel it was a mistake that at Warner Bros.' insistence the word "epilepsy" was not mentioned in the film.
The block-letter "P" from the 1915 season uniforms was retired by the Phillies in 2001 to honor Alexander's Phillies career.
Alexander is the first player mentioned in the poem
Line-Up for YesterdayLine-Up for Yesterday: An ABC of Baseball Immortals is a poem written by Ogden Nash for the January 1949 issue of SPORT Magazine. In the poem, Nash dedicates each letter of the alphabet to an iconic Major League Baseball player...
by
Ogden NashFrederic Ogden Nash was an American poet well known for his light verse. At the time of his death in 1971, the New York Times said his "droll verse with its unconventional rhymes made him the country's best-known producer of humorous poetry".-Early life:Nash was born in Rye, New York...
:
See also
External links