Tony Mullane - Career

Career

Born in County Cork, Ireland, Mullane emigrated to the United States in 1864. He made his Major League debut with the Detroit Wolverines on August 27, 1881, picking up his first career win in a 9–1 victory over the Chicago White Stockings.

Mullane suffered an injury to his right arm and managed to teach himself to throw left-handed. Mullane resumed throwing right-handed once the injury healed, and he would even alternate throwing right-handed and left-handed in the same game, which was easy for him since he did not wear a glove. Mullane would face the batter with both hands on the ball, and then use either one to throw a pitch. (Another ambidextrous pitcher of recent years, Greg A. Harris, even used a specially made ambidextrous glove, but he was prohibited by the Red Sox from pitching left-handed; Harris did get to switch-pitch in one game shortly before he retired with the Montreal Expos, becoming the only such pitcher in the 20th Century).

In 1882, Mullane moved on to the American Association and joined the Louisville Eclipse, where he started 55 of the team's 80 games and compiled a record of 30–24 with a 1.88 ERA, the first of five consecutive 30-win seasons. On September 11, he pitched a no-hitter against the Cincinnati Red Stockings. He recorded 35 victories with the 1883 St. Louis Browns.

In 1884, Mullane attempted to sign with the St. Louis Maroons of the Union Association, a new independent league, even though under the reserve clause the Browns still had rights to his services. Threatened with banishment for defying his contract, Mullane relented. The Browns then sold Mullane to the expansion Toledo Blue Stockings, with whom Mullane won a career-high 36 games. The Browns attempted to reclaim Mullane after the 1884 season when both the Union Association and the Blue Stockings folded, but before the Browns could re-sign him under the rules, Mullane managed to sign with Cincinnati. For this action, the American Association suspended Mullane for the entire 1885 season. Coming in the midst of his string of consecutive 30-win seasons, this likely cost Mullane a 300-win career.

Following the suspension, Mullane joined the Cincinnati Red Stockings for the 1886 season and remained there for the next seven and a half years, over which he won 163 games. At the plate, in 1889 he recorded career-highs with 24 stolen bases, a .296 batting average and a slugging percentage of .418 in 196 at-bats.

The 1893 season brought several rules changes, most notably the moving of the pitcher's mound an additional five feet from home plate. Mullane began the season a mediocre 6–6, and was traded to the Baltimore Orioles on June 16. He staggered to an 18–25 record with the Orioles in a little more than one full season over 1893 and 1894. Mullane set a dubious record on June 18, 1894, by allowing 16 runs in the first inning of a game with the Boston Beaneaters. A month later he was traded once again, this time to the Cleveland Spiders, for whom he played only four games.

Mullane retired after the 1894 season with a record of 284–220 and a 3.05 ERA over a 13-year career. He also worked five games as an umpire. His 284 wins tie him with Ferguson Jenkins for 27th on the all-time list; he is third among eligible pitchers not in the Hall of Fame, behind only Bobby Mathews (297) and Tommy John (288).