Pitcher, Boston
Americans
Age: 34
1st season
with Americans
Bats – Right,
Throws – Right
Height: 6’2” Weight: 210
Prior to 1901:
An Ohio native,
Denton Young, known as “Dent” in his youth, quit school following the sixth
grade to help on his father’s farm. Playing baseball in his spare time and
showing skill as a pitcher, he organized a team in his hometown of Gilmore
before playing semi-professionally. In 1890 he signed with Canton of the
Tri-States League for $60 per month. He was given the nickname “Cy”, which may
have been short for “Cyclone” or may have been a slang term for a rube from the
country, and the 23-year-old went 15-15 for a last-place club while striking
out 201 batters and issuing only 33 walks. Following a no-hitter in which he
recorded 18 strikeouts, he joined the Cleveland Spiders of the National League,
and winning over his new teammates who were initially put off by his hick-like
appearance, compiled a 9-7 record with a 3.47 ERA and 39 strikeouts in 147.2
innings pitched. With excellent control of his fastball, curve, and changeup,
he had a big year for the fifth-place Spiders in 1891, producing a 27-22 tally
with a 2.85 ERA and 187 strikeouts while accumulating 423.2 innings that
included 43 complete games. Cleveland rose to second place in 1892 and Young
led the NL in wins with his 36-12 record, in ERA (1.93), and shutouts (9) while
totaling 453 innings and 48 complete games. Adjusting to the increase in
distance between batters and pitchers from 55 feet, 6 inches, to 60 feet, 6
inches in 1893, Young’s ERA rose to 3.36, but he still produced a 33-16 tally
and struck out 102 batters over 422.2 innings. His 103 walks had him averaging
a league-best 2.2 walks per 9 innings, a tribute to his outstanding control.
With the Spiders dropping to sixth in 1894, Young had a rough season, which
included seven losses in a row, on his way to a 26-21 mark with a 3.94 ERA and
108 strikeouts over 408.2 innings that included 44 complete games. He and the
Spiders bounced back in 1895, with the club finishing second and qualifying for
the postseason Temple Cup series while Young posted a 35-10 record with a 3.26
ERA, 36 complete games that included a league-leading 4 shutouts, and 121 strikeouts.
He won another three games as Cleveland defeated the Baltimore Orioles in the
Temple Cup series. In 1896 his tally was 28-15, which included a stretch where
he went 14-4 following a slow start. He also had a 3.24 ERA, 42 complete games,
and led the league with 5 shutouts and 140 strikeouts. He also wore a fielder’s
glove while pitching for the first time. Well-liked and respected for his
honesty and gentlemanly behavior, Young twice filled in as an umpire during the
season. In 1897 he was a twenty-game winner for the seventh consecutive season,
going 21-19 with a 3.78 ERA, including a no-hitter against Cincinnati, 35
complete games, and 335.2 innings pitched, although his strikeout total dropped
to 88. He made it eight straight twenty-win seasons in 1898, with a 25-13 record,
2.53 ERA, 40 complete games, and 101 strikeouts over 377.2 innings. With the
brothers who owned the Spiders having also acquired the NL’s St. Louis
franchise (then called the Perfectos and renamed the Cardinals in 1900), Young,
along with other Cleveland stars, was transferred to St. Louis in 1899. Young
kept up his winning ways, posting a 26-16 tally with a 2.58 ERA, another 40
complete games, 4 shutouts, and 111 strikeouts while accumulating 369.1
innings. In 1900, the 33-year-old hurler produced a 20-18 mark with a 3.00 ERA,
32 complete games, 4 shutouts, and 115 strikeouts in 321.1 innings. By this
point in his career, his great overhand fastball was losing some of its fire,
and he began to rely more on breaking pitches and his excellent control. Not
liking the hot summer weather in St. Louis or the NL’s $2400 salary cap, Young
jumped to Boston of the new American League for $3000 in 1901, helping to
provide immediate legitimacy to the new circuit.
1901 Season Summary
Appeared in 45
games
P – 43, PH – 2
[Bracketed
numbers indicate AL rank in Top 20]
Pitching
Games – 43 [2,
tied with Pete Dowling]
Games Started –
41 [2]
Complete Games
– 38 [2]
Wins – 33 [1]
Losses – 10
PCT - .767 [2]
Saves – 0
Shutouts – 5 [1,
tied with Clark Griffith]
Innings Pitched
– 371.1 [2]
Hits – 324 [12]
Runs – 112
Earned Runs – 67
Home Runs – 6
[11, tied with Chick Fraser, Bill Bernhard & Jack Cronin]
Bases on Balls
– 37
Strikeouts – 158
[1]
ERA – 1.62 [1]
Hit Batters – 7
Balks – 0
Wild Pitches – 2
League-leading
wins were +7 ahead of runner-up Joe McGinnity
League-leading strikeouts
were +31 ahead of runner-up Roy Patterson
League-leading
ERA was -0.80 lower than runner-up Jimmy Callahan
Midseason
Snapshot: 17-3, ERA – 2.04, SO – 75 in 171.2 IP
---
Most
strikeouts, game – 9 (in 9 IP) vs. Baltimore 5/17
10+ strikeout
games – 0
Fewest hits
allowed, game (min. 7 IP) – 3 (in 9 IP) at Baltimore 8/5, (in 9 IP) at
Washington 9/11
Batting
PA – 163, AB – 153,
R – 20, H – 32, 2B – 2, 3B – 5, HR – 0, RBI – 17, BB – 6, SO – 16, SB – 1, CS –
N/A, AVG - .209, GDP – N/A, HBP – 1, SH – 3, SF – N/A
Fielding
Chances - 120
Put Outs – 12
Assists – 105
Errors – 3
DP – 3
Pct. – .975
---
A new team in a
new league, the Americans went 79-57 to finish second in the AL, 4 games behind
the pennant-winning Chicago White Sox. The pitching staff led the league in
strikeouts (396), fewest hits allowed (1178), and fewest runs allowed (608). Paced
by Young’s pitching, the Americans contended throughout the season, briefly
tying for first in late June. Entering September with a 64-45 record, they went
15-12 the rest of the way to finish in second place while outdrawing the NL’s
Boston entry, the Beaneaters, by 289,448 to 146,502.
Aftermath of 1901:
The durable and
highly consistent Young followed up on his first American League season by
producing a 32-11 record for Boston in 1902. Aside from again topping the
league in wins, he led the AL in games pitched (45), games started (43),
complete games (41), and innings pitched (384.2) while also logging a 2.15 ERA,
3 shutouts, and 160 strikeouts, while issuing only 53 walks. Boston won the
pennant in 1903 and Young contributed a 28-9 tally, to again top the circuit in
wins, while also leading in complete games (34), shutouts (7), and innings
pitched (341.2) while posting a 2.08 ERA and 176 strikeouts. In the first
modern World Series against Pittsburgh, which was a best of 9 format, Young
went 2-1, including a crucial Game 7 win that set the stage for the Americans
to win in 8 games, with a 1.85 ERA and 17 strikeouts in 34 innings. Boston won
the pennant again in 1904, while the 37-year-old Young went 26-16 with a 1.97
ERA and league-leading 10 shutouts that included a perfect game against the
Philadelphia Athletics amidst a 24-inning hitless streak. He also closed out
the season with three straight shutouts, which were much needed in a tight
pennant race with the New York Highlanders (now Yankees). However, there was no
opportunity for further World Series glory as the owner of the NL-champion New
York Giants, John T. Brush, refused to allow his club to face the champions of
a “minor league”. Boston dropped to fourth place in 1905 and Young’s record
fell to 18-19, although his 1.82 ERA ranked third in the league and his 210
strikeouts tied for second while he compiled 320.2 innings. 1906 was another
rough year for the Americans, and Young got off to a slow start on his way to a
13-21 tally with a 3.19 ERA and 140 strikeouts while pitching 287.2 innings
that included 28 complete games. Young was acting as Boston’s temporary manager
at the start of the 1907 season. On the mound, his record rebounded to 21-15
with a 1.99 ERA, 33 complete games, 343.1 innings, and 147 strikeouts. At age
41 in 1908, he had another excellent year, recording a 21-11 tally that
included a no-hitter against the New York Highlanders, with a 1.26 ERA, and 155
strikeouts in 299 innings pitched. Praised for his clean living and outstanding
work ethic, which included the offseason farm work that he credited for his
longevity, he moved on from Boston in 1909, when he was traded to Cleveland.
Returning to the city where he had begun his major league career at age 42,
Young went 19-15 in ’09 with a 2.26 ERA, 30 complete games, 294.1 innings
pitched, and 109 strikeouts. He won his 500th game in 1910, a season
in which he went 7-10 with a 2.53 ERA. In 1911 he was released in August with a
record of 3-4 and a 3.88 ERA. Signed by the NL’s Boston Rustlers (former
Beaneaters and future Braves) for his box office value, he made 11 starts and
put together a 4-5 mark with a 3.71 ERA. He attempted to return to action in 1912,
but a sore arm, complicated by difficulty in fielding his position as his girth
increased, forced his retirement at age 45. For his long major league career,
Young compiled a 511-315 record with a 2.63 ERA, 749 complete games, 7356
innings pitched, 76 shutouts, and 2803 strikeouts. His totals for wins, losses,
complete games, and innings pitched remain as all-time records. Young’s total
of 1217 walks issued averages out to 1.5 per nine innings, a very good rate.
With Boston, Young’s record was 192-112 with a 2.00 ERA, 275 complete games, 38
shutouts, 2728.1 innings pitched, and 1341 strikeouts. Counting the 1892 Temple
Cup series and 1903 World Series, he pitched in 7 postseason games and went 2-3
with a 2.36 ERA, 6 complete games, and 26 strikeouts in 61 innings pitched. Young
compiled 16 twenty-win seasons that included five thirty-win seasons and had a
winning percentage of .619. Following his retirement as a player, Young managed
in the rival Federal League in 1913. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of
Fame in 1937 and died at the age of 88 in 1955. The next year, the annual award
for the best pitcher in each league was named in his honor. A statue of Young
was built on the site of the Huntington Avenue Grounds, the home venue of the
Americans when Young pitched for them, which is now part of Northeastern
University.
---
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.
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