Samuel David "Sad Sam" Gray (October 15, 1897 – April 16, 1953) was a

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 ...

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 on the

Philadelphia Athletics The Philadelphia Athletics were a Major League Baseball team that played in Philadelphia from 1901 to 1954, when they moved to Kansas City, Missouri, and became the Kansas City Athletics. Following another move in 1967, the team became the Oaklan ...

(1924–27) and the

St. Louis Browns The St. Louis Browns were a Major League Baseball team that originated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as the Milwaukee Brewers. A charter member of the American League (AL), the Brewers moved to St. Louis, Missouri, after the 1901 season, where they ...

(1928–33). Gray pitched and batted right-handed. He made his professional debut on April 19, 1924 for the Philadelphia Athletics under iconic manager

Connie Mack Cornelius McGillicuddy (December 22, 1862 – February 8, 1956), better known as Connie Mack, was an American professional baseball catcher, manager, and team owner. The longest-serving manager in Major League Baseball history, he holds untoucha ...

. In his rookie season, he pitched 151⅔ innings in 34 games. He was traded to the St. Louis Browns in 1928 and began pitching much more. His 1928 season was his finest year. He pitched 21

complete game In baseball, a complete game (CG) is the act of a pitcher pitching an entire game without the benefit of a relief pitcher. A pitcher who meets this criterion will be credited with a complete game regardless of the number of innings played—pitche ...

s with a win–loss record of 20–12. His

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 ...

that year was his lowest at 3.19. His 1929 season had similar numbers with an 18-15 record. He also led the league 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 ...

(37) 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 ...

(305). He tied 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 ...

lead in

shutouts 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 ...

with four. He shared the league lead with

George Blaeholder George Franklin Blaeholder (January 26, 1904 – December 29, 1947) was a pitcher in Major League Baseball. Blaeholder began his career in 1925 with the St. Louis Browns, but he pitched in just two innings that season. Back in the minors in 1926, ...

and

General Crowder Alvin Floyd Crowder (January 11, 1899 – April 3, 1972), nicknamed "General", was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who played eleven seasons in the American League with the Washington Senators, the St. Louis Browns, an ...

, who were teammates, as well as with

Danny MacFayden Daniel Knowles MacFayden (June 10, 1905 – August 26, 1972) was an American starting and relief pitcher in Major League Baseball. From through , he played for the Boston Red Sox (1926–1932), New York Yankees (1932–1934), Cincinnati Reds ...

of 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 ...

. In 1931, he had the dubious distinction of leading the league with 24 losses with a high 5.09 earned run average. His final game was on September 18, 1933. He retired with a win–loss record of 111–115, a 4.18 earned run average, 101 complete games in 379 games pitched, 16 shutouts, and 22 saves. As a batter, his statistics were relatively poor. He accumulated a .191

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

in 648 at bats and hit two career

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. He never appeared in any post-season games. He died in

McKinney, Texas McKinney is a city in and the county seat of Collin County, Texas. It is Collin County's third-largest city, after Plano and Frisco. A suburb of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, McKinney is about north of Dallas. The U.S. Census Bureau l ...

, on April 16, 1953 at the age of 55.

References

Sam Gray
at Baseball Almanac {{DEFAULTSORT:Gray, Sam Major League Baseball pitchers Philadelphia Athletics players St. Louis Browns players Sherman Lions players Fort Worth Panthers players Paris Snappers players Beaumont Exporters players Dallas Steers players Texarkana Liners players Welch Miners players Baseball players from Texas 1897 births 1953 deaths People from Van Alstyne, Texas

See also

References