Skip to main content

Sunday School: History Lesson 23

By
George McQuillan was a pitcher with our Phillies from 1907-1910, and again from 1915-1916. McQuillan is best known for the record he set as a rookie that stood for over 100 years. McQuillan joined the Phillies in the final month of the 1907 season, after winning 13 games in the minors for Providence. He quickly won four of his first 5 starts, which included back to back shut outs of the Reds and Cubs. McQuillan's record of 25 consecutive scoreless innings to start a career was his main claim to fame. The record stood till 2008 when Athletics reliever Brad Ziegler eclipsed the mark.

The next season, McQuillan got off to another hot start, as he won 11 of his first 14 starts. His terrific performances were, at times, hampered by the Phillies' weak offensive outputs. In his first six losses that season, the Phillies scored just 1 total run. In mid-June, he lost 3 straight starts by identical scores of 1-0.

McQuillan's sudden success may have played a role in his impending alcohol abuse. News papers documented accounts of McQuillan "breaking training" at the time. In August 1908, his wife filed for divorce, and McQuillan was virtually a .500 pitcher for the remainder of the season.

McQuillan would spend that offseason playing winter ball in Cuba, though his team folded in mid-season. He returned to the U.S. broke and in poor health, having contracted syphilis and gained weight.

In 1909, McQuillan would make only one start in the first six weeks of the season. Unable to find his rhythm at times, he finished the season with a record of 13-16, which included 4 shutouts. In 1910, his record was 9-6 through 17 starts and he posted a National League low 1.60 ERA. Despite the sparkling ERA, the Phillies had grown frustrated with McQuillan's lack of reliability and alcoholism and he was traded to the Reds after the season.

McQuillan spent the next 3 years with Cincinnati and Pittsburgh, posting a 31-39 total record. McQuillan returned to the Phillies midway through the 1915 season when he was claimed off waivers. His record with the Phils was 5-10 en route to the Phillies first National League pennant.

To this day, McQuillan is still the Phillies all time leader in ERA (1.79) and WHIP (1.02).

BallHype: hype it up!

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Patreon Exclusive: Logan O'Hoppe answers Nine Silly-ass Questions

By
Logan O'Hoppe, image- Jay Floyd Phillies catching prospect Logan O'Hoppe was the subject of a recent player feature I posted here three days early.  When I talked with Logan, he was kind enough to not only chat about some serious baseball related topics, he also had some fun with me and answered Nine Silly-Ass Questions! In this interview, the 20-year-old, who was an All-Star with Class A short-season Williamsport last year, offered his thoughts on his experiences playing in Australia last off-season, super powers, some surprising movies he's never seen, teammate Albertus Barber and plenty more.  Read ahead for some excerpts from this Silly-ass interview... -You can 4-for-4 and your team loses, or you can get hit in the groin and your team wins...which do you choose? I mean, if we win, then the whole team has a good night, so I have to go with that one.  That really benefits everybody. -Tell me, if you can, four words to describe Albertus Barber . One,...
Post a Comment
Read more

Rappers in Phillies Caps

By
Weekend greetings to you phine pholks out there. Today's post features pictures of rappers wearing Phillies caps. Why rappers in Phillies caps, you ask? Because... Any other questions? We will start things off properly by going with a highly recognizable hip hop star. 50 Cent stays constantly relavant by consistantly creating radio friendly material to help sell (G) units, while he "keeps it real" by still rapping about the thug life he lived before becoming the 2nd highest earning black entertainer in America. 50 is seen here in a recent interview rocking a throw-back Phillies cap. Next up we'll use a throw-back screen cap from what may be the very first major appearance by a rapper wearing Phillies gear. Chuck D, of legendary rap group Public Enemy, wore a Phillies cap in the music video for rap anthem Fight The Power in 1989. The song was the lead single from the soundtrack for Spike Lee's film Do The Right Thing . Next up we'll go with some home grown tal...
3 comments
Read more

Is it time to be concerned about Mickey Moniak?

By
Mickey Moniak with Lakewood in 2017 Almost daily I am engaged via Twitter or email or text messages or in person about Phillies prospects. It comes with the gig.  The player that scores the most inquiries is, as should be expected, 2016 top overall draft selection Mickey Moniak . Questions from fans that don't want to seem overly judgmental will ask, “Should we be concerned?” Others, living up to the more stereotypical Philadelphia sports fan reputation, will assert the notion, “He’s a bust!  Somebody didn't do his job right!” For the most part I have responded in defense of Moniak and others, letting people know that the youngster’s skills are real and his coaches stand by them. I’d caution fans that he was young, still a teenager, among the five youngest position players in the Class A Advanced Florida State League (per his team the Clearwater Threshers, as of the end of April), and he just needed time to catch up to the older, more mature pitching at that level....
Post a Comment
Read more