A History of the Oriole Closer: From Zuverink to Sherrill - The 50's

I thought it would be interesting to take a look at some of the top Oriole relievers through the years to see how the closer role developed in Baltimore. Of course, when the Orioles moved from St. Louis in 1954, the term closer wasn't even invented. Your top reliever was usually called a "fireman". The save hadn't been invented yet and wouldn't be an official stat until 1969. How were top relievers utilized during the dawn of the franchise?

Yeah, well, not that intersting in a broad sense but it's interesting to me...so you're all stuck with these posts until I'm done

I decided to break it down by decade. For this post, it's the 1950's. Below are the relievers of note from each season.

1954

Reliever       Record   SV   ERA    IP
Bob Chakales    3-7      3   3.73  89.1
Howie Fox       1-2      2   3.67  73.2
 

Bob Chakales, "The Golden Greek", was traded to Baltimore from Cleveland for Vic Wertz on June 1st, 1954. He was never given much of an opportunity with the Indians but quickly found a role in the Oriole bullpen racking up 89.1 innings in 2/3 of a season. He made a few spot starts as well and there was no one guy to "close" out games in the Orioles bullpen. Chakales was traded to the White Sox after the season.

Baltimore lost 100 games in 1954 and only accumulated 8 saves. Howie Fox accounted for two of them. Fox was a former starter in Cincinatti but at age 33 was trying to hang on as a reliever in the majors. He had a good year for Baltimore but 1954 would be his last year in the majors. In 1955, he pitched for San Antonio in the Texas League and that would be his last in professional baseball. After that, Fox met a tragic end:

After baseball, Fox opened up his own tavern in San Antonio and was present when three men entered the bar and started making trouble with the bartender. Fox, in trying to stop the trouble, was killed by a knife wound from one of the thugs on October 9, 1955.

1955

Reliever        Record   SV   ERA    IP
Ray Moore        10-10    6   3.92  151.2
Harry Dorish      3-3     6   3.15   65.2
George Zuverink   4-3     4   2.19   86.1
 

In 1954, manager Jimmy Dykes had pitchers in the pen who were strictly relievers, not a common practice at the time. After Paul Richards replaced him for the 1955 season, that concept was gone. Richards used relievers for spot starts quite a bit and every regular starter pitched at least a couple games in relief. Harry Dorish was the only reliver to appear in more than 30 games to make less than 5 starts. With a staff full of swingmen, the saves were spread around. 16 of the team's 20 saves were accumulated by the top three relievers. With Chakles and Fox elsewhere, there were opportunities for new relievers to make their mark.

Ray Moore was a Maryland native (from Meadows, not too far from where I grew up...) and was traded to the Orioles from the Dodgers for his age 29 season. Early on, he found his niche in the bullpen getting 5 of his 6 saves before the end of May. He continued to relieve all season but started getting spot starts in July and ended the season with 10 wins.

Harry Dorish was a 33-year old journeyman reliever who was acquired from the White Sox (Paul Richards' former club)in June. Dorish was one of the first true relief pitchers starting only 40 games over his 10 year career. 1955 would be his last truly effective season in the majors and he would retire after the 1956 season.

At 30, George Zuverink was a journeyman starter who was, frankly, washed up. The gangly righty was picked up on waivers from the Tigers and he found some success in Baltimore out of the bullpen. He led all Oriole relivers in ERA in 1955 and it would be a harbinger of things to come.

1956

Reliver         Record   SV     ERA    IP
George Zuverink   7-6    16    4.16   97.1
Mike  Fornieles   4-7     1    3.97   111
 

In 1956, Zuverink became the first Oriole reliever that could be recognizable as a "closer". He saved 16 games (out of 24 for the team) and appeared in 62 games, finishing 40 of them, both marks leading the league. He didn't start a game in 1956. Zuverink's journey from waiver wire starter to top reliever was detailed in Baseball Digest in 1956:

"(Manger Paul) Richards told me that for a guy with my long arms, I wasn't getting enough leverage behind my pitches, (said Zuverink)

"I guess that night really changed my whole life in baseball..."

Zuverink has done such an about-face since then that for the first half of this season he was the number one ranking relief pitcher in the American League and had come striding out of the bullpen an average of once every other game. He became so consistently dependable that when Oriole starting pitchers showed even a slight trace of wilting in tight games, a regular "we-want-Zuverink" chant started in the Memorial Stadium stands...

With his new-found success, Zuverink has become the picture of confidence. He talks and acts like a pitcher who expects to get every hitter out every time he walks in from the bullpen. Richards sums it up this way:

"It's not bravado with George, it's just plain, simple belief in himself."*

Sounds like a closer to me.

Mike Fornieles led the pen in ERA but would not fare well during his brief Oriole career. He would be traded to the Red Sox in 1957 where he would eventually lead the AL in saves in 1960.

1957

Reliever          Record   SV   ERA   IP
George Zuverink    10-6     9  2.48  112.2
Billy O'Dell       4-10     4  2.69  140.1
Ken Lehman          8-3     6  2.78   68
 

Zuverink continuted his good work in '57 as well as combining with C Frank Zupo to form the first battery in major league history where the pitcher and catcher both had last names starting with "Z".

Lefty Billy O'Dell was a bonus baby who broke in with the Orioles in the bullpen and would go on to be an All-Star starter for the O's in 1958 and 1959.

Ken Lehman was also a lefty reliever who bounced up and down between the majors and minors during his career. At age 29, he had his best season racking up 6 saves and a 2.78 ERA. He went on to coach baseball at the University of Washington from 1964-1971.

1958

Reliever          Record   SV   ERA    IP
George Zuverink    2-2      7  3.39   97.1
Billy Loes         3-9      5  3.63   114
 

Zuverink continues to rack up the saves in '58.

Loes had been a pretty good starter for Brooklyn earlier in the decade and was an All-Star in 1957. He did good work for the Orioles out of the pen and in spot starts earning him more opportunities the next season.

1959

Relievers     Record   SV   ERA   IP
Billy Loes     4-7     14  4.06  64.1
Jack Fisher    1-6      2  3.05  88.2
 

With Zuverink battling injuries that would end his career during the 1959 season, Loes stepped right into the role that Zuverink had pioneered in Baltimore. Loes was strictly a reliever and finished 31 games.

20-year old Jack Fisher was the only other bright spot in the Orioles bullpen that season. A Maryland native, Fisher would have a couple nice seasons for Baltimore as part of an 11 year career. Fisher is most famous for giving up notable home runs. He gave up a homer to Ted Williams during the last at bat of his career, gave up Roger Maris' 60th home run and gave up the first longball at Shea Stadium.

Fireman of the Decade: George Zuverink

With 36 saves for a perennial loser, Zuverink was the first great reliever in the modern history of the Baltimore Orioles. It's really not close.

Honorable Mention: Billy Loes

* excerpt from How Zuverink Found His Lever to Stardom by Neal Eskridge, Baseball Digest, August 1956

Booing the Yankees? It's an Oriole Tradition

This post comes a bit late as the Yankees just left town but I discovered an interesting tidbit for juxtaposition.

The Baltimore reaction to Mark Teixeira when he made his Yankee debut on Opening Day:

Judging from the way the fans treated Teixeira, you'd think he had just issued a personal manifesto against crab cakes -- or Francis Scott Key. When he came out for a pregame media session in the visiting dugout, a fan in the front row waved a sign that read, "Severna Park Hates U Tex.''

The crowd booed him during pregame introductions, booed him when he left the on-deck circle and booed him again when he jogged back to the dugout after outs.

Now and account from Baseball Digest of Baltimore fans behavior during the 1958 All-Star game that was held at Memorial Stadium:

Everybody hates the New York Yankees, but no one hates them more than the Baltimore fans...Baltimore's fans never forgave the Yankees for doing them out of Pitchers Don Larsen and Bob Turley in a 1954 trade.

The Baltimore venom exploded at the All-Star game in 1958, which was played in the Orioles' park. The fans booed the Yankee's Yogi Berra when he batted for Baltimore's own Gus Triandos and cheered when he popped up. They booed the Yankee's Gil McDougald when he batter for Chicago's Early Wynn and greeted his game-winning single in behalf of their club, the American League team, with only scattered applause. And they booed Manager Casey Stengal of the Yankees every time he stuck his shaggy head out of the American League dugout.

In Baltimore, the fans have some of the characteristics of both the Milwaukee and the Philadelphia fans. They have the same wild-eyed devotion for their Orioles as Milwaukee people have for the Braves. And they can be as vicious in their abuse of visiting ball players as the good burghers of Philadelphia...*

See Colin Cowherd? WE'VE ALWAYS BEEN THIS WAY!



*excerpt from "Where Are The Last Angry Fans?" by Al Hirshberg, Baseball Digest, July 1959

Orioles in Asheville

We're still waiting for the season to start so I figured I'd share this little nugget as filler while there's a lull in the action...

I was up near Asheville, NC doing some hiking this past January and I headed into Asheville for some food and a beer run. I was cruising around, took a wrong turn and ended up out by McCormick Field where the Asheville Tourists play and where Crash Davis finished up his baseball career.

Anyway, I pulled in to take a look and the whole place was plastered with Orioles:

So there's Cal Sr., Cal, Jr., and Billy Ripken up top and there's Eddie Murray on the office door. What's the connection?

Evidently, Asheville was an Oriole farm club for a short time in the early 1970's. Eddie Murray played for Asheville in 1975 hitting .264 with 17 home runs at the tender age of 19. Cal Ripken, Sr. was a coach in Asheville in 1972.

However, connecting Billy and Cal Jr. to the 1972 Asheville Tourists is a bit sketchy. Cal, Jr. was 12 and Billy was 8 at the time. I'm sure they were on the field, shagging flies during batting practice or serving as batboys...but that's a huge stretch to claim the Ripken boys as part of the Asheville Tourist heritage.

And here's a banner with an interesting juxtaposition; a young Eddie Murray and a very young Willie Stargell who faced off against each other during the 1979 World Series.

By the way, when in Asheville, visit Bruisin' Ales for all your beery needs.

Examining Chris Hoiles and the 1993 AL MVP Voting

OK, I've been out of town for the holiday and haven't seen a lot of the Orioles lately. There's a whole lot to catch up on but let me just say this one thing:

Kevin Millar was safe! No extra innings were necessary!
Anyway....

I'm not here to talk about the present, I'm here to talk about the past. You see, I have three big obsessions involving the Orioles:

1. Jeffrey Maier in the 1996 ALCS
2. The amazing 1987 season of Larry Sheets (you have no idea how close I came to naming this blog "Holy Sheets!")
3. The snubbing of Chris Hoiles for MVP in 1993.

(I'll also grant you that three Oriole obsessions is really understating the case. There are certainly many, many more...I am writing a blog about a baseball team for Christ's sake.)

I'm here today to talk about Mr. Hoiles and give him his due.

Top Ten OPS+ Seasons By A Catcher Since 1900

               Year     OPS+



Mike Piazza    1997     185



Mike Piazza    1995     172



Mike Piazza    1996     166



Johnny Bench   1972     166



Mike Grady     1904     166



Chris Hoiles   1993     162



Carlton Fisk   1972     162



Ernie Lombardi 1942     161



Roy Campanella 1951     159



Gabby Hartnett 1937     158



 

So Hoiles' season ranks only behind three seasons from the greatest hitting catcher of all time (Piazza), another by the second greatest hitting catcher of all time and a fluky season from a journeyman catcher from the deadball era (Grady). Behind him are Fisk, Lombardi, Campanella and Hartnett; all Hall of Famers.

If fact outside of Grady and Hoiles himself, all of these catchers are or will be in the Hall of Fame.

Even more impressive, the top five OPS+ performances by a catcher in the 107 year history of the American League:

Name            OPS+     Year



Chris Hoiles    162      1993



Carlton Fisk    162      1972



Bill Dickey     158      1936



Mickey Cochrane 157      1933



Jorge Posada    154      2007









 

Again, Hoiles leads a list of current or future Hall of Famers.

OPS+ for all position players in the American League in 1993:

Name            OPS+



John Olerud     186



Frank Thomas    177



Ken Griffey     171



Juan Gonazalez  169



Chis Hoiles     162









 

Even though Hoiles had a fantastic year at the plate (.310/.416/.585, 29 HR) there were a lot of great performances in the AL that year. Olerud hit .363, Thomas slugged .617 and drove in 128, Griffey hit .309 with 45 homers and Gonazalez hit 46 with a .310 average. But only Griffey did it at a premium defensive position.

And this is not an argument that Chris Hoiles should have won the MVP. I know how MVP voting works. Your team typically has to make the playoffs or your performance has to stand out in a year where there is clearly no better option (i.e. Cal Ripken, Jr. in 1991 for the last place O's). But he deserved better than this:

                           1st           Max              Season Results



 Rk Name             Team Place Points Points Share   AB  H  HR   BA    OPS  SB  W-L   IP  ERA   WHIP  SO SV



+--+----------------+----+-----+------+------+-----+-----+---+--+-----+-----+---+------+---+-----+-----+---+--+



  1 Frank Thomas      CHW   28    392    392  1.00   549 174 41  .317 1.033   4                       



  2 Paul Molitor      TOR    0    209    392  0.53   636 211 22  .332  .911  22                       



  3 John Olerud       TOR    0    198    392  0.51   551 200 24  .363 1.072   0                       



  4 Juan Gonzalez     TEX    0    185    392  0.47   536 166 46  .310 1.000   4                       



  5 Ken Griffey       SEA    0    182    392  0.46   582 180 45  .309 1.025  17                       



  6 Roberto Alomar    TOR    0    102    392  0.26   589 192 17  .326  .900  55                       



  7 Albert Belle      CLE    0     81    392  0.21   594 172 38  .290  .922  23                       



  8 Rafael Palmeiro   TEX    0     52    392  0.13   597 176 37  .295  .925  22                       



  9 Jack McDowell     CHW    0     51    392  0.13                              22-10 257  3.37  1.29 158



 10 Carlos Baerga     CLE    0     50    392  0.13   624 200 21  .321  .841  15                       



 11 Jimmy Key         NYY    0     29    392  0.07                              18-6  237  3.00  1.11 173



 12 Joe Carter        TOR    0     25    392  0.06   603 153 33  .254  .801   8                       



 13 Jeff Montgomery   KCR    0     15    392  0.04                               7-5   87  2.27  1.01  66 45



 13 Mike Stanley      NYY    0     15    392  0.04   423 129 26  .305  .923   1                       



 15 Kenny Lofton      CLE    0     11    392  0.03   569 185  1  .325  .816  70                       



 16 Chris Hoiles      BAL    0     10    392  0.03   419 130 29  .310 1.001   1                       



 16 Tony Phillips     DET    0     10    392  0.03   566 177  7  .313  .841  16                      









 

Behind Kenny Lofton? Behind Mike Stanley? Mike Freakin Stanley? Jimmy Bleepin' Key?!?!?!

It gets even worse when you consider Win Shares. Hoiles leads all these guys with 6.8 Fielding Win Shares in 1993 on top of the great bat. It still doesn't make up the ground on guys like Thomas and Olerud but it certainly narrows the gap.

Hoiles arguably should've finished in the top 5 of MVP voting and certainly the top ten. As it turns out, he wouldn't even crack the top 15!

A performance worthy of baseball immortals but is largely forgotten, even in Baltimore, and was underappreciated even as it was happening 15 years ago.