Herman Pillette
Encyclopedia
Herman Polycarp Pillette (December 26, 1896–April 30, 1960), nicknamed "Old Folks", http://www.baseball-almanac.com/players/player.php?p=pillehe01 was a Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major 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...

 pitcher who played four seasons with the Cincinnati Reds
Cincinnati Reds
The Cincinnati Reds are a Major League Baseball team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. They are members of the National League Central Division. The club was established in 1882 as a charter member of the American Association and joined the National League in 1890....

 (1917) and Detroit Tigers
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are a Major League Baseball team located in Detroit, Michigan. One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Detroit in as part of the Western League. The Tigers have won four World Series championships and have won the American League pennant...

 (1922–1924). Born in St. Paul, Oregon
St. Paul, Oregon
St. Paul is a city in Marion County, Oregon, United States. It is named after the Saint Paul Mission founded by Archbishop François Norbert Blanchet, who arrived in the Oregon Territory in 1838 to minister to the Catholic inhabitants of French Prairie. The population was 354 at the 2000 census...

, USA, Pillette was a 6'2", right-handed pitcher who pitched one inning for the Reds on July 30, 1917, giving up 4 hits and 2 earned runs, and did not play in another Major League game for five years thereafter.

In 1922, the Tigers gave the 25-year-old Pillette a second chance, and he came through with a 19-12 record in his first full season in the big leagues. In 1922, Pillette started 37 games, completed 18, threw 4 shutouts, and had a 2.85 ERA—a full point below the league average ERA of 3.87 in 1922. Pillette's performance in 1922 ranked him 2nd in the American League in ERA (2.85), 6th in winning percentage (.613), 7th in wins (19), 2nd in shutouts (4), 2nd in hit batsmen (15), 4th in games started (37), and 9th in innings (274-2/3) and batters faced (1,183).

One of Pillette's losses in 1922 came in a perfect game pitched by Charlie Robertson
Charlie Robertson
Charles Culbertson Robertson was an American Major League Baseball pitcher.Born in Dexter, Texas, and grew up in Nocona, Texas graduating from Nocona High School in 1915. Charles attended Austin College from 1917 until 1919. He began his career with the Chicago White Sox in 1919 at the age of 23...

 on April 30, 1922. Pillette took the 2-0 loss. http://www.baseball-almanac.com/boxscore/04301922.shtml Tigers batters Ty Cobb
Ty Cobb
Tyrus Raymond "Ty" Cobb , nicknamed "The Georgia Peach," was an American Major League Baseball outfielder. He was born in Narrows, Georgia...

 and Harry Heilmann
Harry Heilmann
Harry Edwin Heilmann , nicknamed “Slug,” was a Major League Baseball player who played 17 seasons with the Detroit Tigers and Cincinnati Reds . He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1952.Heilmann was a line drive hitter who won four American League batting crowns: in 1921, 1923, 1925 and...

complained that Robertson was doctoring the ball. http://www.baseballlibrary.com/ballplayers/player.php?name=Herman_Pillette_1895&page=chronology

After a brilliant rookie season, Pillette never reached the same level of performance. In 1923, his ERA rose to 3.85—up from 2.85 the prior year. And, instead of being among the win leaders, Pillette was tops in the American League with losses in 1923 with 19. Pillette saw limited action in 1924, starting only 3 games and finishing 1-1. He played in his final game on September 28, 1924.

Pillette died in Sacramento, California at age 63 in 1960.

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