Jeff Pfeffer
American baseball player (1888–1972)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Edward Joseph Pfeffer (March 4, 1888 – August 15, 1972) was an American pitcher for the St. Louis Browns (1911), Brooklyn Dodgers/Robins (1913–1921), St. Louis Cardinals (1921–1924) and Pittsburgh Pirates (1924). His older brother Francis was known as Big Jeff Pfeffer.
| Jeff Pfeffer | |
|---|---|
| |
| Pitcher | |
| Born: March 4, 1888 Seymour, Illinois, U.S. | |
| Died: August 15, 1972 (aged 84) Chicago, Illinois, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| April 16, 1911, for the St. Louis Browns | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 26, 1924, for the Pittsburgh Pirates | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Win–loss record | 158–112 |
| Earned run average | 2.77 |
| Strikeouts | 836 |
| Stats at Baseball Reference | |
| Teams | |
Pfeffer helped the Robins win the 1916 and 1920 National League pennants. In the 1916 World Series, he recorded a save in Game 3 and was the hard-luck losing pitcher of the series-ending Game 5.
On March 25, 1920, in the top of the first inning during an exhibition game against the New York Yankees, Pfeffer threw a pitch that struck Yankees second baseman Chick Fewster in the temple, knocking him unconscious for approximately ten minutes. Fewster suffered a fractured skull and concussion, and temporarily lost his ability to speak.[1]
Pfeffer led the National League in hit batsmen in 1916 (17) and 1917 (16). In 1916 he gave up Rogers Hornsby's first home run.[2] In 13 seasons, Pfeffer had a 158–112 win–loss record with 10 saves in 347 games.
As of the end of the 2014 season, Pfeffer ranked 96th on the MLB career ERA list (2.77)[3] and tied for 73rd on the MLB career hit batsmen list (105).[4] He is the Dodgers' career leader in ERA (2.31).[5]
Pfeffer died in Chicago at the age of 84, and is interred at Rock Island National Cemetery.
