Stan Coveleski - Cleveland Indians

Cleveland Indians

When Coveleski was brought up to the majors, the original intention was to use him as a relief pitcher. Due to an injury to Ed Klepfer, the Indians used him as a starter early on in the season, and kept him in the role when he performed well. He was scheduled to pitch in the first week of the season against his brother Harry, but the matchup never took place at Harry's behest. Coveleski fought health problems during the season, suffering from tonsillitis in the middle of the year and pitching one game with a fever of 102 °F (39 °C). He finished the season with a 15–13 record and a 3.41 ERA in 45 games, 27 of them starts. Coveleski had lost 10 pounds due to illness during 1916, but recovered during the offseason, gained 20 pounds, and appeared healthier by the time the season began.

Coveleski's status as the ace of the staff was demonstrated when he was named the starter for Opening Day of the 1917 season; he beat the Detroit Tigers 6–4 on April 11. He improved statistically during the 1917 season, winning 19 games and losing 14 with an ERA of 1.81 and a career high 133 strikeouts. On September 19, Coveleski pitched a one-hitter against the New York Yankees; the only hit came from Fritz Maisel in the seventh inning. Coveleski continued to improve during the war-shortened 1918 season. His outings that year included pitching a complete game against the New York Yankees, where he pitched 19 innings, allowing two runs as the Indians won, 3–2. He finished the season with a 22–13 record, a 1.82 ERA, and 311 innings pitched in 38 games, 33 of them starts; his wins and ERA were both second in the American League to Walter Johnson. In 1919, Coveleski pitched in 43 games, starting 34, and had a 24–12 record and an ERA of 2.61.

At the beginning of the 1920 season, the spitball was banned by Major League Baseball. As a current spitball pitcher, Coveleski was grandfathered in, and was allowed to continue using the pitch until his retirement. He won his first seven starting appearances of the season, but on May 28, his wife died suddenly, and he was given some time off to mourn, returning to pitching two weeks later. Nearly three months later, he was the starting pitcher against the New York Yankees on August 16. In the game, Coveleski hit a sacrifice fly to help the Indians win, 4–3, but it was best remembered as the game where Yankees pitcher Carl Mays hit Ray Chapman, leading to the only death in MLB history from a pitch. He finished the 1920 regular season with 24 wins, 14 losses, a 2.49 ERA, and 133 strikeouts; he led the AL in strikeouts and finished second in ERA to Bob Shawkey.

Coveleski's helped the Indians to win the AL pennant and play in the 1920 World Series against the Brooklyn Robins. Coveleski was the star of the 1920 World Series, in which he pitched three complete game victories. He pitched the first game against Rube Marquard, and allowed one run and five hits in a 3–1 Cleveland victory. Four days later, he pitched game four, again allowing one run and five hits in a 5–1 win. In game seven, the final one of the series, Coveleski threw a complete game shutout with five hits against fellow spitballer Burleigh Grimes; the 3–0 victory gave the Indians the first World Series championship in franchise history. Coveleski had an ERA of 0.67, which remains a World Series record.

After spending the offseason hunting with Smoky Joe Wood, Coveleski returned to the Indians in 1921, and throughout the season, the Indians battled the Yankees for first in the American League. On September 26, the two teams faced off, but Coveleski failed to make it past the third inning; the Yankees won 8–7 to ensure they won the pennant. Coveleski pitched 315 innings in 1921, matching his career high from the year before, and had a 23–13 record and a 3.37 ERA. The following season, Coveleski married Frances Stivetts, the sister of his late wife. While he did cause the Yankees to move out of first place after winning an August 23 game against them, 4–1, it was his last game of the season. He finished the year with a 17–14 record, the first time since 1917 he did not have 20 wins, and a 3.32 ERA.

Early on in the 1923 season, Coveleski pitched 27 straight scoreless innings, winning three consecutive games during that time. However, he won less frequently as the season wore on, losing three straight games in mid-August. His last game came on August 15, with over a month left in the season. Coveleski finished the season with a 13–14 record, his first season with a losing record. Despite that, he had an ERA of 2.76 and five shutouts, both of which led the AL. In 1924, Coveleski struggled, and at the end of May, he had four losses and an ERA of 6.49. By the end of the season, he had a 15–16 record and a 4.04 ERA. In December 1924, after nine years pitching for Cleveland, Coveleski was traded to the Washington Senators for pitcher By Speece and outfielder Carr Smith.

Despite Coveleski's success in Cleveland, he was not a fan of playing there; he stated that he "didn't like the town. Now the people are all right, but I just didn't like the town." He also stated that it began to affect his performance on the mound, and that he began to get "lazy" from being with the club so long. He did, however, have praise for his catcher: "The best thing that happened to me there was pitching to Steve O'Neill. He caught me for nine years in Cleveland and knew me so well he didn't even need to give me a sign".