Olen Edward "Ode" Voigt was a pitcher

Pitcher

In 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...

 in 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...

. He was born in Wheaton, Illinois

Wheaton, Illinois

Wheaton is an affluent community located in DuPage County, Illinois, approximately west of Chicago and Lake Michigan. Wheaton is the county seat of DuPage County...

, and played baseball at Wheaton High School

Wheaton High School

Wheaton High School is an American four-year public high school in Montgomery County, Maryland. It is located in the unincorporated Wheaton/Glenmont section of Silver Spring, about 5 miles north of Washington, D.C.....

 and the University of Illinois.

Career

Voigt started his professional baseball career in 1919 with the Rockford Rox of the Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League. The following season, he went 17-17 on the mound with a 2.79 earned run average

Earned run average

In baseball statistics, earned run average is the mean of earned runs given up by a pitcher per nine innings pitched. It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number of innings pitched and multiplying by nine...

. He also led the league with 303 innings pitched

Innings pitched

In baseball, innings pitched are the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of batters and baserunners that are put out while the pitcher on the pitching mound in a game. Three outs made is equal to one inning pitched. One out counts as one-third of an inning, and two...

.

In 1921, Voigt pitched well again and moved up to the class A Texas League

Texas League

The Texas League is a minor league baseball league which operates in the South Central United States. It is classified a Double-A league. The league was founded in 1888 and ran through 1892...

, where he struggled. He improved the next season, though. In 1923, he set career-highs with 19 wins and 332 innings pitched and led his Denver Bears team in both categories. That performance earned him a roster spot on the major league St. Louis Browns

Baltimore Orioles

The Baltimore Orioles are a professional baseball team based in Baltimore, Maryland in the United States. They are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's American League. One of the American League's eight charter franchises in 1901, it spent its first year as a major league...

 in the spring of 1924.

Voigt appeared in eight major league games, including one start, and went 1-0 with a 5.51 ERA. His final game was on May 31, after which he returned to the Western League

Western League (defunct minor league)

The Western League is a name given to several circuits in American minor league baseball. Its earliest progenitor, which existed from 1885 to 1899, was the predecessor of the American League...

 and won 12 games the rest of the year.

Voigt did not play in organized baseball after 1924. He died at the age of 71 in Scottsdale, Arizona

Scottsdale, Arizona

Scottsdale is a city in the eastern part of Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, adjacent to Phoenix. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, as of 2010 the population of the city was 217,385...

.

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