Highlighted Year: Bob Harmon, 1911

Pitcher, St. Louis Cardinals

Age:  23

3^rd season with Cardinals

Bats – Both, Throws – Right

Height: 6’0”    Weight: 187 

Prior to 1911:

A Missouri native, Harmon began playing baseball in his home town of Liberal, where he pitched and played shortstop for the town team. With a strong fastball and slow curve, he drew the attention of the Shreveport Pirates of the Class C Texas League in 1909. Encountering difficulty with Shreveport, he was nearly sent to the Class D Arkansas State League, but a no-hitter against Galveston marked a turnaround in his fortunes. Sold to the Cardinals in June he posted a 6-11 record and 3.68 ERA with 10 complete games and 48 strikeouts over 159 innings. Prone to wildness, he also issued 65 walks and 7 wild pitches.  

1911 Season Summary

Appeared in 51 games

[Bracketed numbers indicate NL rank in Top 20]

Pitching

Games – 51 [2]

Games Started – 41 [1]

Complete Games – 28 [3]

Wins – 23 [4]

Losses – 16 [6, tied with Lefty Leifield]

PCT - .590 [12]

Saves – 4 [3, tied with four others]

Shutouts – 2 [12, tied with eight others]

Innings Pitched – 348 [2]

Hits – 290 [3]

Runs – 155 [2]

Earned Runs – 121 [1]

Home Runs – 10 [6, tied with Hub Perdue & Doc Crandall]

Bases on Balls – 181 [1]

Strikeouts – 144 [5]

ERA – 3.13 [18, tied with King Cole & Howie Camnitz]

Hit Batters – 7 [18, tied with Cy Barger]

Balks – 0

Wild Pitches – 3 

League-leading games started were +4 higher than runners-up Pete Alexander, Christy Mathewson, Lefty Leifield & Babe Adams

League-leading earned runs surrendered were +2 higher than runner-up Bill Steele

League-leading bases on balls issued were +17 higher than runner-up Earl Moore

Midseason Snapshot: 14-5, ERA - 2.55, SO - 65 in 165.2 IP

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Most strikeouts, game – 9 (in 9 IP) vs. Phila. Phillies 7/24

10+ strikeout games – 0

Fewest hits allowed, game (min. 7 IP) – 2 (in 9 IP) at Cincinnati 10/8

Batting

PA – 132, AB – 111, R – 7, H – 17, 2B – 4, 3B – 1, HR – 0, RBI – 3, BB – 11, SO – 48, SB – 2, CS – N/A, AVG - .153, GDP – N/A, HBP – 1, SH – 9, SF – N/A

Fielding

Chances – 112

Put Outs – 11

Assists – 98

Errors – 3

DP – 4

Pct. - .973

Awards & Honors:

14^th in NL MVP voting, tied with Mickey Doolin, PhilaP (6 points – 9% share)

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The Cardinals went 75-74 to finish fifth in the NL, 22 games behind the pennant-winning New York Giants. The pitching staff led the league in walks issued (701). The Cardinals were in contention following strong May and June records but a July train accident that resulted in no serious injuries to team members marked a derailment in the club’s fortunes and they ended the season with 7 losses in their last 9 games (excluding a tie) which still resulted in their first winning season since 1901. Harmon’s performance was a highlight. Used heavily by manager Roger Bresnahan, he won seven straight decisions between May 9 and June 8.

Aftermath of 1911:

Harmon took criticism in 1912 for over-relying on his slow curve rather than his live fastball and his record dropped to 18-18 with a 3.93 ERA, 15 complete games, 3 shutouts, and 73 strikeouts with 116 walks over 268 innings. An excellent violinist (or fiddler, as some said), Harmon would bring his instrument along to play during road trips and he also performed in the St. Louis area during the offseason. Unhappy with the club’s contract offer for 1913, Harmon briefly held out and went on to post an 8-21 tally for the last-place team. Following a teammate’s recommendation, he invested in Louisiana oil fields and received an excellent return. In the offseason, the newly married pitcher was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates as part of an eight-player deal. His 1914 record with the Pirates was 13-17 with a 2.53 ERA, 19 complete games, and 61 strikeouts with 55 walks over 245 innings. Harmon went 16-17 in 1915 with a 2.50 ERA, 25 complete games, 5 shutouts, and 86 strikeouts over 269.2 innings. Used more often as a reliever than a starter in 1916 (17 of his 31 appearences were starts) his record was 8-11 with 10 complete games and 62 strikeouts over 172.2 innings. Refusing a demotion to the minors in 1917, Harmon sat out the season while he tended to his Louisiana farm, but he returned to Pittsburgh in 1918 and despite a good start, he went only 2-7 with a 2.62 ERA in late June when he was granted his release, thus ending his major league career. For that career he produced a 107-133 record with a 3.33 ERA, 143 complete games, 15 shutouts, 12 saves, and 634 strikeouts over 2054 innings. With the Cardinals he went 68-81 with a 3.78 ERA, 84 complete games, 6 shutouts, 8 saves, and 418 strikeouts over 1284.1 innings. Typically playing for losing teams, he had no World Series appearances. Post baseball he remained a prosperous Louisiana farmer, who was friendly and likeable, which helped him to become a prominent figure who was involved in several community organizations. He also managed a town team in Homer, Louisiana and was briefly a minor league manager and umpire. Harmon died in 1961 at age 74.

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