From the back of the card: “Fast ball pitcher.”
Last week, I posted that I was beginning a collection of 1933 Goudey baseball cards, with the intention of completing the entire 239 card set within half a decade or so. Here’s the first card.
Baseball-Reference lists Mahaffey as “Lee Roy” rather than “Leroy,” and I’m inclined to go with them over a gum company. Mahaffey, who was nicknamed “Popeye,” was a below average pitcher who began his big league career at age 22 in 1926 with the Pittsburgh Pirates, but threw only 14 innings for the Pirates over the 1926 and 1927 seasons. According to the back of the card, Mahaffey “had a tryout with Pittsburgh…but failed to make the grade.” (Modern baseball cards really lack that kind of frankness about a player’s performance.)
From 1930-1935, Mahaffey was with the Philadelphia Athletics, primarily as a starter. During that time, he started 118 games and posted a 64-43 record with a 4.82 ERA (adjusted ERA+ of 93). The A’s won the World Series during Mahaffey’s first season with the team. He finished his career with a forgettable season for the St. Louis Browns in 1936.
Mahaffey’s best season came when he went 15-4 with a 4.21 ERA for Connie Mack’s 1931 A’s team that went 107-45 in the regular season, but lost the World Series in 7 games to the St. Louis Cardinals. On that team, Mahaffey was part of a rotation that included future Hall of Famers Lefty Grove (who went 31-4 with a 219 ERA+) and Waite Hoyt. The team also included future HOFers Mickey Cochrane at catcher, Jimmie Foxx at first base, and Al Simmons in the outfield, who batted .390 in 1931. What a team.
Despite being thoroughly mediocre, Mahaffey does have one feather in his cap: He faced the New York Yankees 14 times, both as a starter and reliever, and did not surrender a home run to Babe Ruth. He wasn’t as lucky with Lou Gehrig, though. Gehrig took him deep 7 times.
Tags: 1933, 1933 Goudey, Al Simmons, babe ruth, Connie Mack, ERA+, Jimmie Foxx, Lee Roy Mahaffey, Lefty Grove, Leroy Mahaffey, Lou Gehrig, Mickey Cochrane, Philadelphia Athletics, Pittsburgh Pirates, St. Louis Browns, St. Louis Cardinals, Waite Hoyt
(4.88 out of 5)
Where’s Brian Downing?!?!
The Evening Independent says it best:
6 Oct 1931:
http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=YHoLAAAAIBAJ&sjid=m1QDAAAAIBAJ&dq=leroy%20mahaffey&pg=4229%2C6946869
That’s a great quote, Professor. I’ve noticed that “twirler” must have been a popular term for pitcher back in old-timey days. Mahaffey is referred to as a “twirler” on the back of his 1933 Goudey card.
Incidentally, the pitcher that the newspaper is referring to is the Cardinals’ Burleigh Grimes (great name), a veteran of 16 seasons who won Game 3 of the 1931 World Series in a matchup against Lefty Grove. Grimes was in the decline phase of his career at this point, but pitched a complete game two-hitter in Game 3, surrendering only a two-run home run to Al Simmons and a single to Bing Miller. Grimes is one of those players who is pretty undeserving of the Hall of Fame, but was elected by the Veteran’s Committee long after his retirement. In nearly 4200 career innings, he had a 107 ERA+.
Pre-WW2 baseball journalism is low-hanging fruit, and it’s interesting to see what was being said about the bygone schlubs who played along side the Groves and Gerhigs.
Also, what’s with the bipolar take on Grimes? Why was Grimes blasphemous? Did the author have some indication of his future election to the Hall? Today he could only have one story line. He would either be courageous in his pitching peak ascendancy, or a blasphemer. Not both.