Addie Joss
Encyclopedia
Adrian Joss was a Major League Baseball
pitcher
. He pitched his entire nine-year baseball career for the Cleveland Bronchos/Naps
(1902–1910).
in Dodge County, Wisconsin
, where his father was a cheese maker. Several of his nicknames in baseball reflected this. As a youth, Joss was a star athlete at Wayland Academy
in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin
. As a town ball player, Joss pitched in, and won, the Wisconsin town championship game against Rube Waddell
who was playing as a 'ringer' while 'moonlighting' away from his job in the Major Leagues—fishing.
, a "slow ball," or changeup
, and a single hard curve
. George Moriarty
explained that he had only one curveball
because "he believed that with a few well mastered deliveries he could acquire great control and success with less strain on his arm." In an era filled with spitball pitchers, Joss achieved his success without ever experimenting with altering the baseball. Joss threw with a "corkscrew" windup motion. Roger Peckinpaugh
described his windup:
in and was an immediate success, earning a 17-13 record and 2.77 ERA
in his first year. He continued to improve over the following decade, posting four 20 win seasons and six sub-2.00 ERAs by . His best season came in when he was 24-11 with a 1.16 ERA and 9 shutouts. In planning for life after baseball, Joss took up sports writing and worked for a local paper for several years.
Joss pitched the fourth perfect game
in baseball history on October 2, 1908 opposite Baseball Hall of Fame
pitcher Ed Walsh
, accomplishing the feat with just 74 pitches. He pitched a second no-hitter
in . Both no-hitters were against the Chicago White Sox
; to date, Joss is the only pitcher in Major League history to no-hit the same team twice. His 1.89 career ERA is ranked second all-time.
Joss was additionally a popular columnist for the Toledo News-Bee
during the off seasons and served as their Sunday sports editor. His writings proved so popular that sales of the paper increased and a special phone line was installed in his office to field the large volume of calls he received from fans. (Addie Joss - King of Pitchers by Scott Longert SABR 1998)
. He died on April 14, 1911 at the age of 31. As late as April 7, press reports took note of Joss' ill health, but speculated about "ptomaine poisoning" or "nervous indigestion." His personal doctor had diagnosed an attack of pleurisy.
management. League president Ban Johnson
threatened punishment for any who participated, but relented.
Panoramic photographs from this event are rare and valuable, with one such photo realizing $89,625 in a 2005 Heritage
Auction.
and Donald Honig
included him in their book The 100 Greatest Baseball Players of All Time. They explained what they called "the Smoky Joe Wood Syndrome," where a player of truly exceptional talent but a career curtailed by injury or illness should still, in spite of not having had career statistics that would quantitatively rank him with the all-time greats, be included on their list of the 100 greatest players. They believed that Joss' career ERA was proof enough of his greatness to be included.
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
pitcher
Pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...
. He pitched his entire nine-year baseball career for the Cleveland Bronchos/Naps
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Indians are a professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Since , they have played in Progressive Field. The team's spring training facility is in Goodyear, Arizona...
(1902–1910).
Early life
He was born in the unincorporated community of WoodlandWoodland, Dodge County, Wisconsin
Woodland is an unincorporated community located, in the town of Rubicon, in Dodge County, Wisconsin, United States. It is located at the intersection of Wisconsin Highway 67 and County highway W.-Notable residents:...
in Dodge County, Wisconsin
Dodge County, Wisconsin
Dodge County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2010, the population was 88,759. Its county seat is Juneau.-Geography:According to the U.S...
, where his father was a cheese maker. Several of his nicknames in baseball reflected this. As a youth, Joss was a star athlete at Wayland Academy
Wayland Academy
Wayland Academy is a private, coeducational college preparatory boarding high school located in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin, USA. The student population at the beginning of the 2011-2012 school year was 220...
in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin
Beaver Dam, Wisconsin
Beaver Dam is a city in Dodge County, Wisconsin, United States, along Beaver Dam Lake and the Beaver Dam River. The population was 16,243 at the 2010 census, making it the second largest city in Dodge County, and the largest city fully located within the county. It is the principal city of the...
. As a town ball player, Joss pitched in, and won, the Wisconsin town championship game against Rube Waddell
Rube Waddell
George Edward Waddell was an American southpaw pitcher in Major League Baseball. In his thirteen-year career he played for the Louisville Colonels , Pittsburgh Pirates and Chicago Orphans in the National League, and the Philadelphia Athletics and St. Louis Browns in the American League...
who was playing as a 'ringer' while 'moonlighting' away from his job in the Major Leagues—fishing.
Pitching style
Joss' pitching repertoire included a fastballFastball
The fastball is the most common type of pitch in baseball. Some "power pitchers," such as Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens, have thrown it at speeds of 95–106 mph and up to 108.1 mph , relying purely on speed to prevent the ball from being hit...
, a "slow ball," or changeup
Changeup
A changeup is a type of pitch in baseball. Other names include change-of-pace, Bugs Bunny change-up, the dreaded equalizer, and simply change. The changeup is sometimes called an off-speed pitch, although that term can also be used simply to mean any pitch that is slower than a fastball...
, and a single hard curve
Curveball
The curveball is a type of pitch in baseball thrown with a characteristic grip and hand movement that imparts forward spin to the ball causing it to dive in a downward path as it approaches the plate. Its close relatives are the slider and the slurve. The "curve" of the ball varies from pitcher to...
. George Moriarty
George Moriarty
George Joseph Moriarty was an American third baseman, umpire and manager in Major League Baseball from 1903 to 1940. He played for the Chicago Cubs, New York Highlanders, Detroit Tigers and Chicago White Sox from 1903 to 1916.Moriarty was born in Chicago, Illinois, where he grew up near the Union...
explained that he had only one curveball
Curveball
The curveball is a type of pitch in baseball thrown with a characteristic grip and hand movement that imparts forward spin to the ball causing it to dive in a downward path as it approaches the plate. Its close relatives are the slider and the slurve. The "curve" of the ball varies from pitcher to...
because "he believed that with a few well mastered deliveries he could acquire great control and success with less strain on his arm." In an era filled with spitball pitchers, Joss achieved his success without ever experimenting with altering the baseball. Joss threw with a "corkscrew" windup motion. Roger Peckinpaugh
Roger Peckinpaugh
Roger Thorpe Peckinpaugh was an American shortstop in Major League Baseball for the Cleveland Indians , New York Yankees , Washington Senators and Chicago White Sox...
described his windup:
- He would turn his back toward the batter as he wound up, hiding the ball all the while, and then whip around and fire it in.
Professional career
Joss joined the Cleveland BronchosCleveland Indians
The Cleveland Indians are a professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Since , they have played in Progressive Field. The team's spring training facility is in Goodyear, Arizona...
in and was an immediate success, earning a 17-13 record and 2.77 ERA
Earned run average
In baseball statistics, earned run average is the mean of earned runs given up by a pitcher per nine innings pitched. It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number of innings pitched and multiplying by nine...
in his first year. He continued to improve over the following decade, posting four 20 win seasons and six sub-2.00 ERAs by . His best season came in when he was 24-11 with a 1.16 ERA and 9 shutouts. In planning for life after baseball, Joss took up sports writing and worked for a local paper for several years.
Perfect game
A perfect game is defined by Major League Baseball as a game in which a pitcher pitches a victory that lasts a minimum of nine innings and in which no opposing player reaches base. Thus, the pitcher cannot allow any hits, walks, hit batsmen, or any opposing player to reach base safely for any...
in baseball history on October 2, 1908 opposite Baseball Hall of Fame
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 25 Main Street in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests serving as the central point for the study of the history of baseball in the United States and beyond, the display of...
pitcher Ed Walsh
Ed Walsh
Edward Augustine Walsh was a Major League Baseball pitcher. He holds the record for lowest career ERA, 1.82.-Baseball career:Born in Plains Township, Pennsylvania, Walsh had a brief though remarkable major league career...
, accomplishing the feat with just 74 pitches. He pitched a second no-hitter
No-hitter
A no-hitter is a baseball game in which one team has no hits. In Major League Baseball, the team must be without hits during the entire game, and the game must be at least nine innings. A pitcher who prevents the opposing team from achieving a hit is said to have "thrown a no-hitter"...
in . Both no-hitters were against the Chicago White Sox
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are a Major League Baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois.The White Sox play in the American League's Central Division. Since , the White Sox have played in U.S. Cellular Field, which was originally called New Comiskey Park and nicknamed The Cell by local fans...
; to date, Joss is the only pitcher in Major League history to no-hit the same team twice. His 1.89 career ERA is ranked second all-time.
Joss was additionally a popular columnist for the Toledo News-Bee
Toledo News-Bee
The Toledo News Bee is a defunct newspaper that served Toledo, Ohio and much of northwestern Ohio in the early part of the 20th century. It was formed from the 1903 merger of The Toledo News andThe Toledo Bee, and was published until August 2, 1938, when it was purchased by The Toledo Blade for...
during the off seasons and served as their Sunday sports editor. His writings proved so popular that sales of the paper increased and a special phone line was installed in his office to field the large volume of calls he received from fans. (Addie Joss - King of Pitchers by Scott Longert SABR 1998)
Death
Joss' playing career was cut short when he died suddenly from tubercular meningitisMeningitis
Meningitis is inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord, known collectively as the meninges. The inflammation may be caused by infection with viruses, bacteria, or other microorganisms, and less commonly by certain drugs...
. He died on April 14, 1911 at the age of 31. As late as April 7, press reports took note of Joss' ill health, but speculated about "ptomaine poisoning" or "nervous indigestion." His personal doctor had diagnosed an attack of pleurisy.
Benefit Game
The first 'all-star' game was played as a benefit for Joss's family, over the opposition of American LeagueAmerican League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League , is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league based in the Great Lakes states, which eventually aspired to major...
management. League president Ban Johnson
Ban Johnson
Byron Bancroft "Ban" Johnson , was an American executive in professional baseball who served as the founder and first president of the American League ....
threatened punishment for any who participated, but relented.
Panoramic photographs from this event are rare and valuable, with one such photo realizing $89,625 in a 2005 Heritage
Heritage Auctions
Heritage Auction Galleries is the world's largest collectibles auctioneer and the third largest auction house, with over $700 million in annual sales and 600,000 online bidder-members...
Auction.
Recognition
Joss was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in . Joss is the only player in the Hall of Fame whose career lasted fewer than ten years (others in the Hall who did not play ten seasons were inducted either as managers or pioneers). In 1981, Lawrence RitterLawrence Ritter
Lawrence S. Ritter was an American writer whose specialties were economics and baseball.Ritter was a professor of economics and finance, and chairman of the Department of Finance at the Graduate School of Business Administration of New York University. He also edited the academic periodical...
and Donald Honig
Donald Honig
Donald Martin Honig is a novelist, historian and editor who mostly writes about baseball.While a member of the Bobo Newsom Memorial Society, an informal group of writers, Honig attempted to get Lawrence Ritter to write a sequel to The Glory of their Times. Ritter declined but gave Honig his blessing...
included him in their book The 100 Greatest Baseball Players of All Time. They explained what they called "the Smoky Joe Wood Syndrome," where a player of truly exceptional talent but a career curtailed by injury or illness should still, in spite of not having had career statistics that would quantitatively rank him with the all-time greats, be included on their list of the 100 greatest players. They believed that Joss' career ERA was proof enough of his greatness to be included.
See also
- List of Major League Baseball leaders in career wins
- List of Major League Baseball earned run average champions
- List of Major League Baseball wins champions
- Pitchers who have thrown a perfect gamePerfect gameA perfect game is defined by Major League Baseball as a game in which a pitcher pitches a victory that lasts a minimum of nine innings and in which no opposing player reaches base. Thus, the pitcher cannot allow any hits, walks, hit batsmen, or any opposing player to reach base safely for any...
- List of Major League Baseball no-hitters