Athletics History: Rube Waddell Impresses in Debut

As far as debuts go, few players had a better one than Rube Waddell had on this day in 1902. Making his first appearance for the Philadelphia Athletics, Waddell showed the dominant form he would be known for.

The story of how Rube Waddell came to the Philadelphia Athletics sounds like the plot of a turn of the century baseball novel. With legendary manager Connie Mack desperate for pitching help, he signed Waddell, who he knew from his time managing the enigmatic pitcher in Milwaukee. The problem was, Waddell was already under contract in the Pacific Coast League. As such, the Athletics hired two Pinkerton agents to smuggle Waddell out of California, and to accompany him to Philadelphia.

Finally, on this day in 1902, the talented lefty made his debut for Philadelphia. If Connie Mack needed pitching help, his decision to bring Waddell on board proved to be the right answer. While his debut was not quite on the level of Bumpus Jones, Waddell came pretty close in his game against the Baltimore Orioles.

He allowed only two baserunners, but as catcher Ossee Schreckengost threw out both runners as they attempted to steal. Waddell struck out the side three times, victimizing Billy Gilbert, Billy Howell, and Jack Cronin in the third, sixth, and ninth innings. In the third, he struck that trio out on only nine pitches.

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The 2-0 victory was only the start of Waddell’s dominant run in the American League. He appeared in 33 games, including 27 starts, in essentially three months. Waddell went 24-7 with a 2.05 ERA and a 1.042 WHiP, leading the league with 210 strikeouts. Even with that three month headstart, no one else was capable of being the force that Waddell was.

That year set a Hall of Fame career into motion. While Waddell was known as a talented pitcher, he was also a kid in a man’s body. His immaturity, alcoholism, and inability to focus drove teams insane. Even Mack, who was capable of reigning Waddell in, could only do so for a few years, selling him to the St. Louis Browns in 1908.

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Rube Waddell made quite the impression with the Philadelphia Athletics, cementing his legacy as one of the top pitchers of the time. On this day in 1902, Waddell made his Athletics debut, showing the type of pitcher he could be.