Hugh Noyes Mulcahy (September 9, 1913 – October 19, 2001) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

, who played in

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), ...

(MLB) for the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

(1935–40 and 1945–46) and

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 ...

(1947). Mulcahy was born in

Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. He threw and batted right-handed; during his playing days, Mulcahy stood tall, weighing .

Career

After short stints in the Class B

Northeastern League The Northeastern League was a minor league baseball league that last played in the 1934 season as an eight–team Class B (baseball), Class B level league. The 1934 league franchises were based in Connecticut, Massachusetts and New Hampshire. An e ...

and 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 ...

and Washington Senators

minor league Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nor ...

farm systems, Mulcahy was signed by the Philadelphia Phillies and made his big league debut in 1935. He was named to the 1940

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...

(NL) All-Star Team. Mulcahy had the nickname of "Losing Pitcher"; owing to the fact that he lost 20 games in 1938 and 22 in 1940 and never had a full season in the majors in which he recorded more wins than losses. Mulcahy led the NL in earned runs allowed in 1938 and 1939. Mulcahy also gained national distinction when he became the very first major leaguer to be drafted into United States military service before the U.S. entered

World War II 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 ...

, on March 8, 1941. Mulcahy ended up serving over four years. Mulcahy led the NL in games (56), walks allowed (97), and hit batsmen (7) in 1937. Despite leading the League in losses (20) and earned runs allowed (137) he finished 25th in voting for the 1938 National League Most Valuable Player award for having 10 wins, 46 games pitched in, 34 games started, 15 complete games, 8 games finished, 1 save, 267 innings pitched, 294 hits allowed, 162 runs allowed, 14 home runs allowed, 120 walks allowed, 90 strikeouts, 6 hit batters, 5 wild pitches, 1,201 batters faced, 1 balk, and a 4.61

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 ...

(ERA). Mulcahy led the NL in earned runs allowed (125), wild pitches (11), and hit batsmen (11) in 1939. Then, despite leading the NL in hits allowed (283) and losses (22), he finished 29th in voting for the 1940 NL MVP. Mulcahy also had 13 wins in 36 games (all starts), three shutouts, 280 innings pitched, and a 3.60 ERA. In a nine-year MLB career, Mulcahy had a 45–89 win–loss record, 220 games pitched in, 143 games started, 63 complete games, 5 shutouts, 48 games finished, 9 saves, 1,161 innings pitched, 1,271 hits allowed, 695 runs allowed, 579 earned runs allowed, 69 home runs allowed, 487 walks allowed, 314 strikeouts, 39 hit batters, 36 wild pitches, 5,161 batters faced, 4 balks, and a 4.49 ERA. In retirement, Mulcahy spent many years 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

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and p ...

, and served one season (1970) as their

pitching coach In baseball, a number of coaches assist in the smooth functioning of a team. They are assistants to the manager, who determines the starting lineup and batting order, decides how to substitute players during the game, and makes strategy decisio ...

. Mulcahy died at age 88, in Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, on October 19, 2001.

References

External links

Hugh Mulcahy
at SABR (Baseball BioProject) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mulcahy, Hugh 1913 births 2001 deaths Albany Senators players Baseball players from Boston Chicago White Sox coaches Chicago White Sox scouts Hazleton Mountaineers players Major League Baseball pitching coaches Major League Baseball pitchers Manchester Indians players Memphis Chickasaws players Oakland Oaks (baseball) players Philadelphia Phillies players Pittsburgh Pirates players Reading Red Sox players Syracuse Chiefs players Woonsocket (minor league baseball) players American military personnel of World War II Attleboro Burros players

Career

See also

References

External links