John Dungan Rigney (October 28, 1914 – October 21, 1984) was a starting pitcher 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), ...
who played his entire career 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 ...
(– and –). Listed at , , Rigney batted and threw right-handed. A native of
River Forest, Illinois
River Forest is a suburban village adjacent to Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, U.S. Per the 2020 census, the population was 11,717. Two universities make their home in River Forest, Dominican University and Concordia University Chicago. The ...
Rigney was one of the Chicago White Sox top pitchers in the years prior to World War II. His most productive season came in , when he won a career-high 15 games, including the first win for a pitcher during the first night game ever played at Comiskey Park (August 14). In , he recorded 14 wins with a career-high 3.11
ERA
An era is a span of time defined for the purposes of chronology or historiography, as in the regnal eras in the history of a given monarchy, a calendar era used for a given calendar, or the geological eras defined for the history of Earth.
Comp ...
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 ...
against the visitors
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...
(June 20). It was the first time since 1919 that the Yankees had been shut out in extra innings by one pitcher. After that, he won 13 games in and was 3–3 before joining the
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
in May 1942. After being discharged in 1945, he returned to Chicago, but his playing time was limited by arm injuries. He retired after the season.
Management career
Following his playing retirement, Rigney took a position in the White Sox front office. In 1956, he became the club's co-
general manager
A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...
along with
Chuck Comiskey
Charles Albert Comiskey II (November 19, 1925 – August 26, 2007) was part-owner of the Chicago White Sox from to . A native of Chicago, Comiskey was the grandson of the team's founder, Charles Comiskey.
White Sox ownership
Comiskey's father, ...
in replacement of
Frank Lane
Frank Charles Meyers LaneCorbett, Warren: ''Frank Lane,''
...
.
Career statistics
In an eight-season career, Rigney posted a 63–64 record with 605 strikeouts and a 3.59 ERA in 197 appearances, including 132 starts, 66 complete games, 10 shutouts, five saves, and innings of work.
Charles Comiskey
Charles Albert Comiskey (August 15, 1859 – October 26, 1931), nicknamed "Commy" or "The Old Roman", was an American Major League Baseball player, manager and team owner. He was a key person in the formation of the American League, and was also ...
, founding owner of the White Sox, and daughter of J. Louis Comiskey, another former club president.
Rigney died in
Wheaton, Illinois
Wheaton is a suburban city in Milton and Winfield Townships and is the county seat of DuPage County, Illinois. It is located approximately west of Chicago. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 52,894, which was estimated ...