Is Jack Chesbro HOF worthy?
I bumped into a comment about Jack Chesbro, the famed pitcher that still holds one of the longest standing records in Major League Baseball. The comment claims that Chesbro was only elected to the HOF because of his 1904 season.
Jack Chesbro was born as John Dwight Cheesbro on June 5 1874 in Houghtonvill, Massachusetts. Chesbro started his professional career in 1895 with the Albany Senators of the New York State League. He had various stints with minor league clubs before he made it to the majors with the Pittsburgh Pirates of the National League in 1899. When he played with the Cooperstown Athletics in 1896, the local newspaper shortened his last name to “Chesbro” so that it would fit in the box score.
He recorded a 6-9 record for the Pirates in 1899. After the season he and three others were traded to the Louisville Colonels in exchange for a certain Honus Wagner, a certain Rube Waddell and ten others. But later that off season the National League shrunk from twelve to eight teams and the Louisville Colonels dissolved. Chesbro was appointed to the Pirates again. In the 1900, 1901 and 1902 seasons he had respective 15-13, 21-10 and 28-6 W-L records and respective 3.67, 2.38, 2.17 ERAs.
The American League, founded in 1901, started to raze the rosters of National League clubs and Chesbro agreed on playing for the New York Highlanders, the team that would later become the Yankees, for the 1903 season. During his first season with the Highlanders he won 21 games and lost 15 and recorded a 2.77 ERA.
But his best season was 1904. During that season he started 51 games, won 41 of them and lost 12 with an ERA of only 1.82. Despite this great season, he may be most remembered for the wild pitch that cost the Highlanders the American League pennant. In a close pennant race with the Boston Americans, Chesbro started the final game of the season. After eight innings the score was tied at two. With a runner on third, Chesbro threw a wild pitch that allowed the runner from third to score the winning and pennant clinching run.
Despite having an off year in 1905, Chesbro still pitched in 41 games (38 starts). He won 19 games and lost 15 and recorded a 2.20 ERA. The next season wasn’t much better thouh he still had a 23-17 record. His ERA was,despite being very respectable, a lot worse than in the previous years: 2.96.
His career started to turn around in 1907 when he recorded ten wins and ten losses. While in 1908 he had his first losing season with the Highlanders, with a 14-20 record.
After he lost five games in 1909 with the Highlanders the Boston Americans claimed him on waivers He lost one more game with them before they returned him to New York in the off season. When the Highlanders sent him to the minors he refused to report and he was placed on the ineligible list.
An 11 year MLB career marked by incredible highs and lows in which he posted seven winning seasons, three losing seasons and one .500 season. His lifetime ERA is 2.68. His 41 wins in the 1904 season is an American League record that still stands today together with his record of starts (51) and complete games (48) in a season. With the way pitchers are used nowadays, these records may stand forever.
Chesbro was voted into the Hall of Fame in 1946 by the Veterans Committee together with other greats like Joe Tinker, Johnny Evers, Frank Chance (yes, the three of the famous poem), Rube Waddell and Ed Walsh.
When you look to the stats below you can wonder if his election to the HOF was only based on this magnificent 1904 season.
| Year | Age | Tm | Lg | W | L | W-L% | ERA | G | GS | GF | CG | SHO | SV | IP |
| 1899 | 25 | PIT | NL | 6 | 9 | .400 | 4.11 | 19 | 17 | 2 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 149.0 |
| 1900 | 26 | PIT | NL | 15 | 13 | .536 | 3.67 | 32 | 26 | 4 | 20 | 3 | 1 | 215.2 |
| 1901 | 27 | PIT | NL | 21 | 10 | .677 | 2.38 | 36 | 28 | 8 | 26 | 6 | 1 | 287.2 |
| 1902 | 28 | PIT | NL | 28 | 6 | .824 | 2.17 | 35 | 33 | 2 | 31 | 8 | 1 | 286.1 |
| 1903 | 29 | NYY | AL | 21 | 15 | .583 | 2.77 | 40 | 36 | 4 | 33 | 1 | 0 | 324.2 |
| 1904 | 30 | NYY | AL | 41 | 12 | .774 | 1.82 | 55 | 51 | 3 | 48 | 6 | 0 | 454.2 |
| 1905 | 31 | NYY | AL | 19 | 15 | .559 | 2.20 | 41 | 38 | 2 | 24 | 3 | 0 | 303.1 |
| 1906 | 32 | NYY | AL | 23 | 17 | .575 | 2.96 | 49 | 42 | 7 | 24 | 4 | 1 | 325.0 |
| 1907 | 33 | NYY | AL | 10 | 10 | .500 | 2.53 | 30 | 25 | 3 | 17 | 1 | 0 | 206.0 |
| 1908 | 34 | NYY | AL | 14 | 20 | .412 | 2.93 | 45 | 31 | 13 | 20 | 3 | 1 | 288.2 |
| 1909 | 35 | TOT | AL | 0 | 5 | .000 | 6.14 | 10 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 55.2 |
| 1909 | 35 | NYY | AL | 0 | 4 | .000 | 6.34 | 9 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 49.2 |
| 1909 | 35 | BOS | AL | 0 | 1 | .000 | 4.50 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6.0 |
| 11 Yrs | 198 | 132 | .600 | 2.68 | 392 | 332 | 52 | 260 | 35 | 5 | 2896.2 | |||
Sure his final three seasons were far from great, but during the other season he posted more than respectable records.
Are those years enough to earn him a spot in Cooperstown? I have my doubts. Other pitchers with similar records have not been elected to the HOF. Pitchers like Deacon Phillippe (189–109, 2.59), Sam Leever (194–100, 2.47), and Jesse Tannehill (197–117, 2.80).
At one hand I thnk that his record breaking 1904 season makes hm deserve the HOF election. But on the other hand, when you look at Roger Maris, who broke the single season homerun record in 1961 and had a .260 lifetime batting average, never made it to the Hall.
Maybe the last comparison is like comparing apples and oranges, but I tend to say that Chesbro’s spot in the HOF is unjust.