Highlighted Year: Cy Young, 1902

Pitcher, Boston Americans

Age:  35

2^nd season with Americans

Bats – Right, Throws – Right

Height: 6’2”    Weight: 210 

Prior to 1902:

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. He did so impressively in 1901 by winning the pitching Triple Crown with a 33-10 record, 1.62 ERA, and 158 strikeouts over 371.1 innings.

1902 Season Summary

Appeared in 45 games

[Bracketed numbers indicate AL rank in Top 20]

Pitching

Games – 45 [1]

Games Started – 43 [1]

Complete Games – 41 [1]

Wins – 32 [1]

Losses – 11 [20, tied with four others]

PCT - .744 [3]

Saves – 0

Shutouts – 3 [5, tied with four others]

Innings Pitched – 384.2 [1]

Hits – 350 [3]

Runs – 136 [13, tied with Harry Howell]

Earned Runs – 92 [18]

Home Runs – 6 [16, tied with Willie Sudhoff & Gene Wright]

Bases on Balls – 53

Strikeouts – 160 [2]

ERA – 2.15 [3, tied with Bill Bernhard]

Hit Batters – 13 [3, tied with Addie Joss, Jack Townsend & Lewis Wiltse]

Balks – 0

Wild Pitches – 3

League-leading games pitched were +3 ahead of runners-up Bill Dinneen & Jack Powell

League-leading games started were +1 ahead of runner-up Bill Dinneen

League-leading complete games were +2 ahead of runner-up Bill Dinneen

League-leading wins were +8 ahead of runner-up Rube Waddell

League-leading innings pitched were 13.1 ahead of runner-up Bill Dinneen

Midseason Snapshot: 18-4, ERA – 2.19, SO – 91 in 197.2 IP

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Most strikeouts, game – 9 (in 9 IP) vs. Baltimore 4/19

10+ strikeout games – 0

Fewest hits allowed, game (min. 7 IP) – 3 (in 9 IP) at Chi. White Sox 6/14, (in 9 IP) vs. Phila. A’s 7/10, (in 9 IP) vs. St. Louis Browns 7/24

Batting

PA – 157, AB – 148, R – 17, H – 34, 2B – 4, 3B – 1, HR – 1, RBI – 12, BB – 5, SO – 20, SB – 0, CS – N/A, AVG - .230, GDP – N/A, HBP – 0, SH – 1, SF – N/A

Fielding

Chances - 99

Put Outs – 10

Assists – 82

Errors – 7

DP – 4

Pct. – .929

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The Americans (aka Pilgrims) went 77-60 to finish third in the AL, 6.5 games behind the pennant-winning Philadelphia Athletics. The pitching staff led the league in ERA (3.02) and fewest runs allowed (600). The Americans, led by the pitching of Cy Young and Bill Dinneen, and the hitting of outfielders Buck Freeman and Patsy Dougherty and player/manager Jimmy Collins, rose into contention during a 16-10 May, sharing first place from May 28-30. Staying among the leaders through June, a 6-game July losing streak put them 6.5 games back but was immediately followed by an 8-game winning streak which moved them back into a close second place. Holding steady through August, the club fell behind the surging Athletics, as well as the St. Louis Browns, for good in September.

Aftermath of 1902:

Boston won the pennant in 1903 and the durable and highly consistent 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 500^th 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. 

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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.