George William Pipgras (December 20, 1899 – October 19, 1986) was an American right-handed

starting pitcher In baseball (hardball or softball), a starting pitcher or starter is the first pitcher in the game for each team. A pitcher is credited with a game started if they throw the first pitch to the opponent's first batter of a game. Starting pit ...

and

umpire An umpire is an official in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The term derives from the Old French nonper, ''non'', "not" and ''per'', ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

. Known as "The Danish Viking", he spent most of his playing career with the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

, breaking in as a rookie in 1923. He spent the 1925 and 1926 seasons in the minor leagues, and became a starter in the rotation for the first time with the legendary team. Pipgras lead the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

in wins with a 24–13, 3.38 ERA record for the following year's 1928 repeat champions. After ending his 11-year career with the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

, he became an AL umpire from 1938 to 1946, and was the umpire behind the plate in one of baseball's most dramatic wins ever: on September 30, 1945, at

Sportsman's Park Sportsman's Park was the name of several former Major League Baseball ballpark structures in St. Louis, Missouri. All but one of these were located on the same piece of land, at the northwest corner of Grand Boulevard and Dodier Street, on the ...

in St. Louis, when

Hank Greenberg Henry Benjamin Greenberg (born Hyman Greenberg; January 1, 1911 – September 4, 1986), nicknamed "Hammerin' Hank", "Hankus Pankus", or "The Hebrew Hammer", was an American professional baseball player and team executive. He played in Major Leagu ...

hit a ninth-inning grand slam, after Pipgras suggested to Greenberg the game should be called on account of darkness. However, Greenberg convinced him ''he'' could still see the ball, so the game proceeded. The next pitch was hit over the fence and the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

went on to win the pennant and eventually the

1945 World Series The 1945 World Series was the championship series in Major League Baseball for the 1945 season. The 42nd edition of the World Series, it matched the American League champion Detroit Tigers against the National League champion Chicago Cubs. T ...

over the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...

4–3 in 7 games. His younger brother Ed pitched briefly for the 1932

Brooklyn Dodgers The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1884 as a member of the American Association (19th century), American Association before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brooklyn until 1957, after which the ...

Pitching career

George Pipgras, Carl Mays, Harvey Hendrick, Oscar Roettger, 4-26-1923 (baseball) LCCN2014715996 (cropped)

Pipgras was born in

Ida Grove, Iowa Ida Grove is a city in Ida County, Iowa, United States. The population was 2,051 at the time of the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Ida County. History Founded in 1871, the town now known as "Old Ida Grove" was located on the north side o ...

, and served in World War I with the 25th Army Engineers. He started his major league career with the Yankees in the season after being acquired from the Red Sox, making 17 appearances in his first two years. After returning to the minor leagues for two more years, he earned a place in the starting rotation in 1927, posting a 10–3 record for the team still considered by many to be the greatest ever, and winning Game 2 of the

1927 World Series The 1927 World Series was the championship series in Major League Baseball for the 1927 season. The 24th edition of the World Series, it matched the American League champion New York Yankees against the National League champion Pittsburgh Pirat ...

against the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

. In he led AL pitchers in wins with a 24–13 record, and also in

games started In baseball statistics, games started (denoted by GS) indicates the number of games that a pitcher has started for his team. A pitcher is credited with starting the game if he throws the first pitch to the first opposing batter. If a player is lis ...

(38) and

innings pitched In baseball, innings pitched (IP) are the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of batters and baserunners that are put out while the pitcher is on the pitching mound in a game. Three outs made is equal to one innin ...

(300), while finishing second in

strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is deno ...

s (139); he followed up with another Game 2 victory in the

1928 World Series The 1928 World Series was the championship series in Major League Baseball for the 1928 season. The 25th edition of the World Series, it matched the American League champion New York Yankees versus the National League champion St. Louis Cardina ...

against the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

as New York swept the NL champions for the second straight year. He was 18–12 as the Yankees slipped to second place in 1929, and 15–15 in 1930 with an AL-leading 3

shutout In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which one team prevents the other from scoring any points. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball. Shutouts are usuall ...

s. After a 7–6 season in 1931, he bounced back with a 16–7 mark for the AL champions, and again won his

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...

start in Game 3 as the Yankees swept the

. In that game,

Babe Ruth George Herman "Babe" Ruth Jr. (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948) was an American professional baseball player whose career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanned 22 seasons, from 1914 through 1935. Nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Su ...

and

Lou Gehrig Henry Louis Gehrig (born Heinrich Ludwig Gehrig ; June 19, 1903June 2, 1941) was an American professional baseball first baseman who played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees (1923–1939). Gehrig was renowned f ...

each hit a pair of

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s, including Ruth's renowned " Called Shot." In May 1933, Pipgras' contract was sold back to the Red Sox, and he was 9–8 for the team that year before making a handful of appearances in 1934 and . In an eleven-season career, he posted a 102–73 record with 714 strikeouts and a 4.09

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

in 1488 innings.

Umpire and scout

In 1938 Pipgras joined the American League umpiring staff. On Opening Day at

Yankee Stadium Yankee Stadium is a baseball stadium located in the Bronx, New York City. It is the home field of the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball, and New York City FC of Major League Soccer. Opened in April 2009, the stadium replaced the origi ...

on April 20, , Pipgras worked as the third base umpire during a Red Sox-Yankees contest. The historic

box score A box score is a structured summary of the results from a sport competition. The box score lists the game score as well as individual and team achievements in the game. Among the sports in which box scores are common are baseball, basketball, ...

included the names of future Hall of Famers

Joe Cronin Joseph Edward Cronin (October 12, 1906 – September 7, 1984) was an American professional baseball player, manager and executive. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a shortstop, most notably as a member of the Boston Red Sox. Cronin spe ...

Bill Dickey William Malcolm Dickey (June 6, 1907 – November 12, 1993) was an American professional baseball catcher and manager. He played in Major League Baseball with the New York Yankees for 19 seasons. Dickey managed the Yankees as a player-manager in ...

Joe DiMaggio Joseph Paul DiMaggio (November 25, 1914 – March 8, 1999), nicknamed "Joltin' Joe", "The Yankee Clipper" and "Joe D.", was an American baseball center fielder who played his entire 13-year career in Major League Baseball for the New York Yank ...

Bobby Doerr Robert Pershing Doerr (April 7, 1918 – November 13, 2017) was an American professional baseball second baseman and coach. He played his entire 14-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career for the Boston Red Sox (1937–1951). A nine-time MLB A ...

Jimmie Foxx James Emory Foxx (October 22, 1907 – July 21, 1967), nicknamed "Double X" and "The Beast", was an American professional baseball first baseman who played 20 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Athletics, Boston Red Sox, ...

Lefty Grove Robert Moses "Lefty" Grove (March 6, 1900 – May 22, 1975) was an American professional baseball pitcher. After having success in the minor leagues during the early 1920s, Grove became a star in Major League Baseball with the American League's P ...

Red Ruffing Charles Herbert "Red" Ruffing (May 3, 1905 – February 17, 1986) was an American professional baseball player. A pitcher, he played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1924 through 1947. He played for the Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, ...

Joe Gordon Joseph Lowell Gordon (February 18, 1915 – April 14, 1978), nicknamed "Flash" in reference to the comic-book character ''Flash Gordon'', was an American second baseman, coach and manager in Major League Baseball who played for the New York Yank ...

and prize rookie

Ted Williams Theodore Samuel Williams (August 30, 1918 – July 5, 2002) was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played his entire 19-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career, primarily as a left fielder, for the Boston Red Sox from 1939 ...

as well. Pipgras was the starting pitcher for the Yankees in 1929's Opening Day, and his opponent for the Red Sox that day was Ruffing. According to historians, the unusual feat set by Pipgras is a case unique in major league history. He went on to umpire in the

1944 World Series World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, as well as the 1940

All-Star Game An all-star game is an exhibition game that purports to showcase the best players (the "stars") of a sports league. The exhibition is between two teams organized solely for the event, usually representing the league's teams based on region or div ...

; he was the home plate umpire for Dick Fowler's

no-hitter In baseball, a no-hitter is a game in which a team was not able to record a hit. Major League Baseball (MLB) officially defines a no-hitter as a completed game in which a team that batted in at least nine innings recorded no hits. A pitcher wh ...

on September 9, . He also worked as a

scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement *Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement **Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom **Scouts BSA, sectio ...

for the Red Sox.

Death

Pipgras died in

Gainesville, Florida Gainesville is the county seat of Alachua County, Florida, Alachua County, Florida, and the largest city in North Central Florida, with a population of 141,085 in 2020. It is the principal city of the Gainesville metropolitan area, Florida, Gaine ...

at the age of 86. He was survived by his wife, Mattie Mae, who died in 2013 at the age of 99.

External links

SABR Biography ProjectGeorge Pipgras
- Baseballbiography.com

''The Deadball Era'' *
George Pipgras Oral History Interview - National Baseball Hall of Fame Digital Collection
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pipgras, George 1899 births 1986 deaths People from Ida Grove, Iowa Major League Baseball pitchers New York Yankees players Boston Red Sox players Boston Red Sox scouts Baseball players from Iowa American League wins champions United States Army soldiers United States Army personnel of World War I Major League Baseball umpires Madison Greys players Charleston Pals players Atlanta Crackers players St. Paul Saints (AA) players Nashville Vols players

Pitching career

Umpire and scout

Death

See also

Further reading

External links