Highlighted Year: Red Donahue, 1902

Pitcher, St. Louis Browns

Age:  29

1^st season with Browns

Bats – Right, Throws – Right

Height: 6’0”    Weight: 187 

Prior to 1902:

A Connecticut native, Francis L. Donahue was nicknamed “Red” for his hair color. He first gained attention as a pitcher/first baseman at Waterbury High School. He continued to play for amateur and semipro teams after high school. Playing for a semipro club in New Milford in 1892, Donahue was recommended to the New York Giants, who gave him an audition in 1893. Sent to Lowell of the minor New England League, he finished out the season with a 3-1 record and 1.70 ERA in 37 innings pitched. Moving on to Allentown of the Pennsylvania State League in 1894, he compiled a 17-8 tally. Pitching with Rochester of the Eastern League and Grand Rapids of the Western League in 1895, Donahue produced a combined record of 8-13 before joining the NL’s St. Louis Browns (now Cardinals) late in the season and losing his lone start. St. Louis was a poor team and went 40-90 in 1996, with Donahue compiling a 7-24 tally with a 5.80 ERA. With a cellar-dwelling 29-102 club in 1897, his record was 10-35 with a 6.13 ERA and he led the NL in complete games (38), hits surrendered (485), earned runs surrendered (237), and home runs given up (16). Traded to the Philadelphia Phillies as part of a multi-player deal, his performance improved in 1898 to 16-17 with a 3.55 ERA. He pitched a no-hitter against the Boston Beaneaters (now Atlanta Braves) along the way, which, according to newspaper reports at the time he featured his good curve and changeup. Never a hard thrower, Donahue’s curve was considered his best pitch and he developed good control. He was outstanding for the Phillies in 1899, producing a 21-8 tally with a 3.39 ERA and 27 complete games. 1900 was another solid year in which he was 15-10 with a 3.60 ERA for a third-place club. Donahue returned to the top echelon of National League pitchers in 1901 as he posted a 20-13 mark with a 2.59 ERA and 33 complete games. In 1902 he made the jump to the upstart American League and a new St. Louis Browns club (relocated from Milwaukee) that proved to be more competitive than the one he had been part of at the outset of his major league career.  

1902 Season Summary

Appeared in 35 games

[Bracketed numbers indicate AL rank in Top 20]

Pitching

Games – 35 [9, tied with Jimmy Callahan, Win Mercer & George Mullin]

Games Started – 34 [6, tied with Earl Moore & Casey Patten]

Complete Games – 33 [5, tied with Casey Patten]

Wins – 22 [3, tied with Jack Powell]

Losses – 11 [20, tied with four others]

PCT - .667 [5]

Saves – 0

Shutouts – 2 [10, tied with six others]

Innings Pitched – 316.1 [5]

Hits – 322 [7]

Runs – 134 [15]

Earned Runs – 97 [13]

Home Runs – 7 [13, tied with Bert Husting & Rube Waddell]

Bases on Balls – 65 [18]

Strikeouts – 63 [16]

ERA – 2.76 [6]

Hit Batters – 8 [19, tied with seven others]

Balks – 0

Wild Pitches – 1

Midseason Snapshot: 10-6, ERA – 3.19, SO – 31 in 155 IP

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Most strikeouts, game – 6 (in 9 IP) vs. Baltimore 6/16

10+ strikeout games – 0

Fewest hits allowed, game (min. 7 IP) – 4 (in 10 IP) vs. Baltimore 8/28, (in 9 IP) vs. Chi. White Sox 5/3, (in 9 IP) vs. Bos. Americans 6/9

Batting

PA – 128, AB – 118, R – 6, H – 11, 2B – 1, 3B – 1, HR – 0, RBI – 3, BB – 3, SO – 35, SB – 0, CS – N/A, AVG - .093, GDP – N/A, HBP – 1, SH – 5, SF – N/A

Fielding

Chances – 153

Put Outs – 15

Assists – 130

Errors – 8

DP – 3

Pct. - .948

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Browns went 78-58 to finish second in the AL, 5 games behind the pennant-winning Philadelphia Athletics. With a revamped roster, the Browns became locked in a tight race with Boston and the A’s, in which they were in first as late as August 13, but they fell off the pace and couldn’t gain ground on the surging Athletics in September.

Aftermath of 1902:

In the offseason following the 1902 season, the Browns signed Donahue’s brother, Tom, a catcher who had been a standout at Villanova University. His brother was released during spring training and the pitching Donahue got off to a poor start during the 1903 season. He was 8-7 in August when the Browns dealt him to Cleveland. He finished the season with a combined record of 15-16, although his ERA was a respectable 2.59. He went on to a fine season in 1904 in which he posted a 19-14 tally with a 2.40 ERA, 6 shutouts, and 127 strikeouts. Donahue was also known for his humor that included the baiting of gullible rookies. He had a disappointing season in 1905 in which he went 6-12 with a 3.40 ERA. Traded to the Detroit Tigers afterward, his 1906 tally was 13-14 with a 2.73 ERA. By this point the 34-year-old Donahue had bought a saloon-hotel in Philadelphia and retired to devote his energies to this new venture. It was rumored that the failure to be named player/manager of the Washington Senators led to his retirement. Rumors during the summer of 2007 that Donahue would return to Detroit to help the Tigers in their pennant run came to nothing and Donahue remained retired. For his major league career, he produced a 164-175 record with a 3.61 ERA, 312 complete games, 25 shutouts, and 787 strikeouts over the course of 2966.1 innings. Following a dreadful 17-60 start to his career, he went 147-115 the rest of the way. With the American League Browns, he was 30-18 with a 2.76 ERA, 47 complete games, 2 shutouts, and 114 strikeouts in 447.1 innings pitched. Donahue maintained a successful business until he died from the effects of tuberculosis at age 40 in 1913.

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Highlighted Years feature players who led a major league in one of the following categories: batting average, home runs (with a minimum of 10), runs batted in, or stolen bases (with a minimum of 20); or pitchers who led a major league in wins, strikeouts, earned run average, or saves (with a minimum of 10). Also included are participants in annual All-Star Games between the National and American Leagues since 1933. This category also includes Misc. players who received award votes, were contributors to teams that reached the postseason, or had notable seasons in non-award years.