Malcolm Wayne (Mal) Eason (March 13, 1879 – April 16, 1970) was a
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 ...
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 for the
Chicago Orphans (1900–1902),
Boston Beaneaters
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- most po ...
(1902),
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 ...
(1903) and
Brooklyn Superbas
The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1884 as a member of the American Association before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brooklyn until 1957, after which the club moved to Los Angeles, Californi ...
(1905–1906). Eason batted and threw right-handed. He was born in
Brookville, Pennsylvania
Brookville is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Jefferson County, Pennsylvania, Jefferson County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, northeast of Pittsburgh. As of the 2010 United States census, 2010 census, the population was 3,933. Founded in ...
.
Playing career
In 1901 and 1902, Eason finished with marks of 8–17 and 10–12, while pitching for second-division teams. Despite these losing records, he registered 3.59 and 2.61
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 ...
s respectively. His most productive season came in 1906, when he posted a 10–17 mark with a 3.25 ERA. It was Eason's last season as an active player. That July 20, Eason
no-hit
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 ...
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 hav ...
2–0. Earlier in the season, he had been the losing pitcher in the previous no-hitter to this one, by 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 ...
'
Johnny Lush
John Charles Lush (October 8, 1885 – November 18, 1946), was a professional baseball player who was a pitcher in the Major Leagues from 1904 to 1910. He played for the St. Louis Cardinals and Philadelphia Phillies.
On May 1, 1906, while with ...
on May 1. Not until
Bill McCahan
William Glenn McCahan (June 7, 1921 – July 3, 1986) was an American professional baseball baseball, player and right-handed pitcher in the Major League Baseball, Major Leagues with the History of the Philadelphia Athletics, Philadelphia Athleti ...
in 1947 would another pitcher hurl a no-hitter after being on the losing end of the last no-hitter before the one he posted.
In a six-season career, Eason posted a 36–73 record with 274
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 and a 3.42 ERA in
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 ...
. He completed 90 of 114 starts, including ten
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.
Umpiring career
Eason is recorded as having umpired three games in 1902. After his retirement as a player, he worked as a
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 ...
umpire from to .
Death
Eason died in a house fire in
Douglas, Arizona
Douglas is a city in Cochise County, Arizona, United States that lies in the north-west to south-east running Sulpher Springs Valley. Douglas has a border crossing with Mexico at Agua Prieta and a history of mining.
The population was 16,531 in ...
, at the age of 91.
See also
*
List of Major League Baseball no-hitters
Below is a list of Major League Baseball no-hitters, enumerating every no-hitter pitched in Major League Baseball history. In addition, all no-hitters that were broken up in extra innings or were in shortened games are listed, although they are no ...
External links
Baseball AlmanacBaseball Library
{{DEFAULTSORT:Eason, Mal
Boston Beaneaters players
Brooklyn Superbas players
Chicago Orphans players
Detroit Tigers players
Major League Baseball pitchers
Baseball players from Pennsylvania
1879 births
1970 deaths
Grove City Wolverines baseball players
Accidental deaths in Arizona
Minor league baseball managers
Auburn Maroons players
Troy Trojans (minor league) players
Syracuse Stars (minor league baseball) players
Cortland Wagonmakers players
Louisville Colonels (minor league) players
Jersey City Skeeters players
Lawrence Colts players
Major League Baseball umpires
19th-century baseball players
Deaths from fire in the United States