Thomas Morgan Fine (October 10, 1914 – January 10, 2005) was an American

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 in 23

games A game is a structured form of play, usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or games) or art (such ...

for 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

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 ...

(). The native of

Cleburne, Texas Cleburne is a city in and the county seat of Johnson County, Texas, United States. As of the 2010 census, its population was 29,337. The city is named in honor of Patrick Cleburne, a Confederate general. Lake Pat Cleburne, the reservoir that pro ...

, stood tall and weighed . He was a

switch-hitter In baseball, a switch hitter is a player who bats both right-handed and left-handed, usually right-handed against left-handed pitchers and left-handed against right-handed pitchers. Characteristics Right-handed batters generally hit better aga ...

and threw

right-handed In human biology, handedness is an individual's preferential use of one hand, known as the dominant hand, due to it being stronger, faster or more dextrous. The other hand, comparatively often the weaker, less dextrous or simply less subjecti ...

. Despite pitching just two seasons in the major leagues, Fine was a

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 for 15 years (1939–1942; 1946–1956). He is most remembered for his career in

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

n baseball during five seasons, and especially for being the only pitcher ever to hurl a

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 ...

game in

Caribbean World Series The Caribbean Series (''Spanish'': ''Serie del Caribe''), also called Caribbean World Series, is the highest tournament for professional baseball teams in Latin America. The tournament location is rotated annually among the countries and is norma ...

history.

Professional career

Fine played for the

Scranton Red Sox Scranton is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Lackawanna County. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 U.S. census, Scranton is the largest city in Northeastern Pennsylvania, the Wyoming Vall ...

of the Eastern League, where in

1946 Events January * January 6 - The 1946 North Vietnamese parliamentary election, first general election ever in Vietnam is held. * January 7 – The Allies recognize the Austrian republic with its 1937 borders, and divide the country into f ...

he broke the leagues record for most consecutive wins with 15. He made his major league debut in 1947 with the Red Sox and finished with a 1–2 record in seven starts. He appeared in the majors again in 1950 with the Browns and posted 0–1 in 14 games as a

reliever In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed because of fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection, or for other strategic reasons, such as inclement weather ...

. In his majors career, Fine compiled a 1–3 record and a 6.81

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 ...

walking Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined by an 'inverted pendulum' gait in which the body vaults o ...

44 batters while

striking out ''Striking Out'' is an Irish television legal drama series, broadcast on RTÉ, that first aired on 1 January 2017. Produced by Bl!nder F!lms for RTÉ Television, ''Striking Out'' stars Amy Huberman as Dublin-based solicitor Tara Rafferty, who is ...

16 in 72⅔

innings An innings is one of the divisions of a cricket match during which one team takes its turn to bat. Innings also means the period in which an individual player bats (acts as either striker or nonstriker). Innings, in cricket, and rounders, is bot ...

of work. He was a competent hitting pitcher, batting .333 (6-for-18) with five runs scored and one RBI in 25

. In the minors, he went 157–110 with a 3.35 ERA for 12 different teams during 15 seasons spanning 1939–1956.

Career highlight

On February 21,

1952 Events January–February * January 26 – Black Saturday in Egypt: Rioters burn Cairo's central business district, targeting British and upper-class Egyptian businesses. * February 6 ** Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh, becomes m ...

, Fine appeared in the III Caribbean World Series held at

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Cos ...

. He was called by Leones del Habana manager Mike González as a late replacement for future

Hall of Famer A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actual halls or muse ...

Hoyt Wilhelm James Hoyt Wilhelm (July 26, 1922 – August 23, 2002), nicknamed "Old Sarge", was an American Major League Baseball pitcher with the New York Giants, St. Louis Cardinals, Cleveland Indians, Baltimore Orioles, Chicago White Sox, California Angel ...

. Guided by

catcher Catcher is a Baseball positions, position in baseball and softball. When a Batter (baseball), batter takes their at bat, turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home plate, home) Umpire (baseball), umpire, and recei ...

Andrés Fleitas Andrés Fleitas lei'-tasz(November 8, 1916 – December 18, 2011) was a professional Cuban baseball catcher and first baseman. Listed at 5' 11", 175 lb., he batted and threw right handed. Born in Las Villas Province, Fleitas came from a b ...

, Fine posted the only no-hitter pitched in any Caribbean series game, to give his team a 1–0 win against the

Cervecería Caracas The Caracas Base Ball Club C.A. or better known by its commercial name as the ''Leones del Caracas'', is a professional baseball team of the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League. In its creation, its headquarters are the University Stadium of C ...

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

. He also helped himself, going 1 for 3 while scoring the eventual winning run on

Sandy Amorós Edmundo "Sandy" Amorós Isasi (January 30, 1930 – June 27, 1992) was a Cuban left fielder in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers and Detroit Tigers. Amorós was born in Matanzas. He both batted and threw left- ...

' single in the 6th inning. Hard-luck losing pitcher

Al Papai Alfred Thomas Papai (May 7, 1917 – September 7, 1995) was an American pitcher in Major League Baseball who played between the and seasons for the St. Louis Cardinals (1948, 1950), St. Louis Browns (1949), Boston Red Sox (1950) and Chicago Whit ...

allowed just four singles. Five days later, Fine faced the

Carta Vieja Yankees The Panamanian Professional Baseball League ( es, Béisbol Profesional de Panamá, links=no), currently known as Probeis, is a professional baseball winter league consisting of three teams based in Panama. Since 2019, the league's winner takes p ...

and was close to glory. He was three outs from consecutive no-hitters in the Series, having allowed a

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

in the ninth inning to break it up. His 17 hitless innings streak also is the longest in Series history.

Personal life

Fine served in the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

during World War II.Baseball in Wartime web site
/ref> Following his baseball retirement, he became a respected businessman and also served as a

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Churc ...

in the

Baptist church Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...

. He died in 2005 in

Little Elm, Texas Little Elm is a city in Denton County, Texas, United States, and a part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is an extended suburb of Denton; its population was 46,453 as of the 2020 census. In 2000, the census population was at 3,646. By the ...

, at the age of 90.

References

External links

1952 Caribbean World Series (Spanish)Venezuelan Professional Baseball League statistics
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fine, Tommy 1914 births 2005 deaths United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II Baltimore Orioles (International League) players Baseball players from Texas Baylor University alumni Boston Red Sox players Canton Terriers players Greensboro Red Sox players Leones del Caracas players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Major League Baseball pitchers Memphis Chickasaws players Oneonta Indians players People from Cleburne, Texas Richmond Virginians (minor league) players Rocky Mount Red Sox players St. Louis Browns players San Antonio Missions players San Francisco Seals (baseball) players Scranton Red Sox players Shreveport Sports players Toronto Maple Leafs (International League) players American expatriate baseball players in Cuba Habana players