Athletics History: Rube Waddell Signed, Smuggled out of California

Over the years, Rube Waddell had acquired a legendary stature where his stories were the stuff of legend. While no one truly could separate myth and reality in most cases, the story of how he came to the Philadelphia Athletics is quite the interesting tale.

There was no questioning Rube Waddell’s talent. Armed with a big fastball and devastating curve, he was one of the best pitchers the game had ever seen when he was focused. The problem was getting Waddell to focus and perform. He would leave games to chase fire trucks, could be convinced to play on semi-pro teams, and would disappear for fishing trips. Waddell was also known for his love of alcohol. He was, really, just a big kid with the ability to dominate on the mound.

Yet, for all of his ability, Waddell’s antics proved more than teams were willing to take. He was traded from the Pittsburgh Pirates due to his peculiarities, and he left the Chicago Cubs when the team tightened the rules. He found his way to the Pacific Coast League, where he was a dominant force for the Los Angeles Loo Loos. This dominance caught the attention of Philadelphia Athletics manager Connie Mack.

Mack had success with Waddell before. When the enigmatic pitcher was in the Western League, he played for Mack in Milwaukee. The legendary manager had been able to reign Waddell in, and figured that he could do the same in Philadelphia. As such, on this day in 1902, he signed the pitcher to a contract to come back East and rejoin the majors.

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However, Los Angeles would not give up Waddell that easily. The Loo Loos tried to keep him in California, leading Mack to hire a pair of Pinkerton agents to smuggle him from the state. Eventually, with 87 games left on the schedule, the talented lefty joined the Athletics.

From there, he was nothing short of remarkable. Brought in to shore up a severely depleted pitching staff, Waddell was everything Mack had hoped for. He went 24-7 in his 33 appearances, posting a 2.05 ERA and a 1.042 WHiP. Despite such a late start to the season, Waddell led the American League with 210 strikeouts, setting in motion what would be a Hall of Fame career. In doing so, he led the Athletics to the American League pennant.

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The life of Rube Waddell was the stuff of legend, with no one truly knowing what was real and what was myth any longer. One thing is for sure however; it took a couple of Pinkerton agents and the calm hand of Connie Mack to make him the legend he was with the Philadelphia Athletics.