Stan Coveleski - Later Life and Legacy

Later Life and Legacy

In 1929, after leaving major league baseball, Coveleski relocated to South Bend, Indiana. There, he ran Coveleski Service Station for a time, but closed the business during the Great Depression. He became a popular member of the community in South Bend, providing free pitching lessons to local youths in a field behind his garage. After his playing career ended, he dropped the "e" at the end of his name, as he never corrected anyone if his last name was incorrectly spelled. In 1969, Coveleski was named to the Baseball Hall of Fame by the Veterans' Committee alongside 1920s pitcher Waite Hoyt. Of his introduction into the Hall he said, "I figured I'd make it sooner or later, and I just kept hoping each year would be the one." His health declined in later years, and he was eventually admitted to a local nursing home, where he died on March 20, 1984 at the age of 94.

In addition to Coveleski's induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame, he was inducted into the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame in 1976. In 1984, the minor league baseball stadium in South Bend, Indiana, was named in his honor. Coveleski was interviewed by Lawrence Ritter for his 1966 book The Glory of Their Times, a series of interviews with players of the early 20th century. To fellow ballplayers, Coveleski was considered "taciturn and ornery" on days when he was scheduled to pitch, but was otherwise friendly with a lively sense of humor.

Coveleski had 216 wins and 142 losses with a 2.89 ERA in 450 games, 385 of them starts in a 14-year career. He had 224 complete games, 38 shutouts, 981 strikeouts, and pitched 3,082 total innings. His control was highly regarded, he never considered himself a strikeout pitcher, and it was not unusual for him to pitch a complete game having thrown 95 pitches or less. He once pitched seven innings of a game where every pitch was either a hit or a strike. In 2001, baseball statistician Bill James ranked Coveleski 58th among the all-time greatest major league pitchers.