Stephen Joseph Gromek (January 15, 1920 – March 12, 2002) was an American right-handed

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 dr ...

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 (A ...

who played for 17 seasons in the American League with the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central division. Since , they have ...

and

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 ...

. In 447 career games, Gromek pitched innings and posted a

win–loss record In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. The statistic is commonly used in standings or rankings to compare teams or individuals. It is defined as wins divided by the total number of match ...

of 123–108 with 92

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, 17

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, and a 3.41

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 numb ...

(ERA). Born in

Hamtramck, Michigan Hamtramck ( ) is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 28,433. Hamtramck is surrounded by the city of Detroit except for a small portion that borders the fellow enclave city of ...

, Gromek originally began playing professionally with the Indians organization as an infielder, but became a pitcher early on, and made his major league debut in 1941. He played sparingly his first three years before becoming an everyday starter in 1944 and 1945, earning his lone All-Star appearance in the latter year. After the war ended, he became a spot starter, spending time as both 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 ...

and

relief pitcher 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 weat ...

. Gromek was the winning pitcher in game four of the

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the Worl ...

with the Cleveland Indians. His career is best remembered for a post game celebratory photo taken of him hugging

Larry Doby Lawrence Eugene Doby (December 13, 1923 – June 18, 2003) was an American professional baseball player in the Negro leagues and Major League Baseball (MLB) who was the second black player to break baseball's color barrier and the first black pl ...

, the first black player in 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 b ...

, whose third inning

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 ...

provided the margin of victory. The photo became a symbol for integration in

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

. Gromek remained in the spot starter role with the Indians until 1953, when he was traded to the Tigers. The Tigers used him solely as a starting pitcher, and had 18 wins in his first full season with them in 1954. He played two more full seasons with the Tigers, and retired during the 1957 season. Gromek then became a player-manager for the

Erie Sailors The Erie Sailors was the primary name of several minor league baseball teams that played in Erie, Pennsylvania between 1906 and 1994. Pre-1930s Several unrelated teams used the Erie Sailors name in the Interstate League (1906–1907, 1913, 19 ...

for one year, became a car insurance sales representative after his retirement, and died in 2002.

Early life and career

Gromek was born

to Polish immigrant parents. His father worked in Hamtramck as a laborer. While attended St. Ladislaus High School in Hamtramck, Gromek considered becoming a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in partic ...

, but decided on a career in baseball instead, playing sandlot baseball in the area, as the school did not have a baseball team. Shortly after graduating, Gromek signed with the

as an

infielder An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns playing offensive and defensive roles. ...

after being discovered by Indians scout

Bill Bradley William Warren Bradley (born July 28, 1943) is an American politician and former professional basketball player. He served three terms as a Democratic U.S. senator from New Jersey (1979–1997). He ran for the Democratic Party's nomination f ...

. In his first professional season, Gromek batted .283 with two home runs as a second baseman for the Mansfield Braves and Logan Indians. He moved over to

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball or softball fielding position between second and third base, which is considered to be among the most demanding defensive positions. Historically the position was assigned to defensive specialists wh ...

in 1940 with the Michigan State League's Flint Gems. After suffering an injury in his left shoulder that hampered his swing, he decided to become an

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to cat ...

. His ability to throw strikes to the plate on throws from the

outfield The outfield, in cricket, baseball and softball is the area of the field of play further from the batsman or batter than the infield. In association football, the outfield players are positioned outside the goal area. In cricket, baseball a ...

inspired

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activitie ...

Jack Knight, who was a former pitcher, to try him on the mound. Gromek pitched four games, and won all four with a 1.61 ERA. A year later, Gromek went 14–2 with a 2.90 ERA for the newly renamed Flint Arrows. In July, Gromek and the Arrows faced the Indians in an exhibition game, which they won, 3–2; the victory led the Indians to promote him to the major league club a month later. He lost his major league debut to the Washington Senators, and earned his first major league win in his only other start of the season against 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 Oakla ...

. He spent the rest of the season as a

, and finished the season with a 1–1 record and a 4.24 ERA in nine appearances. New Cleveland manager

Lou Boudreau Louis Boudreau (July 17, 1917 – August 10, 2001), nicknamed "Old Shufflefoot", "Handsome Lou", and "The Good Kid", was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 15 seasons, primarily as a ...

used Gromek as a relief pitcher in 1942. On July 12, facing the Washington Senators at

Griffith Stadium Griffith Stadium stood in Washington, D.C., from 1911 to 1965, between Georgia Avenue and 5th Street (left field), and between W Street and Florida Avenue NW. The site was once home to a wooden baseball park. Built in 1891, it was called Boundar ...

, Gromek entered the game in the fifth inning behind 6–5 with two outs and a runner on third. He struck out

Al Evans Alfred Hubert Evans (September 28, 1916 – April 6, 1979) was an American Major League Baseball catcher and a Minor League manager. Listed at tall and , Evans batted and threw right-handed. He was born in Kenly, North Carolina. Basically a con ...

to end the inning without further damage, and earned the win in

extra innings Extra innings is the extension of a baseball or softball game in order to break a tie. Ordinarily, a baseball game consists of nine regulation innings (in softball and high school baseball games there are typically seven innings; in Little Lea ...

, but walked three consecutive batters in the seventh, the third of which forced in a run. Shortly after the game, he was demoted to the double A

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

for the rest of the season, the result of an agreement the Indians and Orioles had made before the season began where the Indians would allow use of certain players during the season if requested. He finished the season with a 2–0 record and a 3.65 ERA in 14 appearances with the Indians, and a 4–6 record with a 5.14 ERA in 20 games with the Orioles. He spent the entire 1943 season with Baltimore, going 16–13 with a 3.34 ERA, with the exception of September, when he received a call up to the major leagues. There, he made three appearances, totaling four innings of work.

Gromek as a starting pitcher

Gromek started the 1944 season in Cleveland's

bullpen In baseball, the bullpen (or simply the pen) is the area where relief pitchers warm up before entering a game. A team's roster of relief pitchers is also metonymically referred to as "the bullpen". These pitchers usually wait in the bullpen if t ...

. On May 16, he entered a game against the Senators in the first inning after starter

Allie Reynolds Allie Pierce Reynolds (February 10, 1917 – December 26, 1994) was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher. Reynolds pitched 13 years for the Cleveland Indians (1942–1946) and New York Yankees (1947–1954). Reynolds was nicknam ...

had already allowed three runs. From there, Gromek held the Senators scoreless on just two

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * '' H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014 - a British compilation album s ...

, bringing his ERA for the season down to 0.57 (1 earned run in 15.2 innings). Though the Indians still lost the game, it convinced Boudreau to try Gromek as a starter. On May 21, Gromek made his first start of the season in the second game of a doubleheader with the A's. Through the first six innings, Gromek held the A's scoreless on four hits. Meanwhile, back-to-back home runs by

Roy Cullenbine Roy Joseph Cullenbine (October 18, 1913 – May 28, 1991) was an American professional baseball outfielder and first baseman. He played ten seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Detroit Tigers, Brooklyn Dodgers, St. Louis Browns, Washin ...

and

Pat Seerey James Patrick Seerey (March 17, 1923 – April 28, 1986) was an American professional baseball player. An outfielder, Seerey played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for seven seasons in the American League with the Cleveland Indians and Chicago Whi ...

in the fourth inning gave Cleveland a 2–0 lead. A seventh-inning

error An error (from the Latin ''error'', meaning "wandering") is an action which is inaccurate or incorrect. In some usages, an error is synonymous with a mistake. The etymology derives from the Latin term 'errare', meaning 'to stray'. In statistics ...

third baseman A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the scoring system u ...

Ken Keltner Kenneth Frederick Keltner (October 31, 1916 – December 12, 1991) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a third baseman from 1937 to 1950, most prominently as a member of the Cleveland Indians where ...

allowed two unearned runs to tie the score, and a

wild pitch In baseball, a wild pitch (WP) is charged against a pitcher when his pitch is too high, too short, or too wide of home plate for the catcher to control with ordinary effort, thereby allowing a baserunner, or the batter (on an uncaught third str ...

the following inning allowed the winning run to score. On July 2, after spending June as a reliever, Gromek earned his first win of the season against the Washington Senators after being placed back in the starting rotation, and did not allow a hit until the eighth inning in a 6–3 win; he remained a starter for the rest of the season. On July 14 against the St. Louis Browns, Gromek pitched 14 innings to earn the

3–2 victory over Bob Muncrief, who also pitched all 14 innings for St. Louis. He followed that up with a complete game

against the

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 ...

, and 1–0 loss in which Gromek allowed two hits against 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 ...

. He ended the season winning six of his final seven decisions, finishing the year with a 10–9 record with a 2.56 ERA, and had a league leading 7.1

hits per nine innings In baseball statistics, hits per nine innings (denoted by H/9) is the average number of hits allowed by a pitcher in a nine inning period; calculated as: (hits allowed x 9) / innings pitched. This is a measure of a pitcher's success based on the n ...

. Entering the 1945 season, Gromek was named one of the Indians' main starting pitchers, and would hold that title throughout the season. On June 8, Gromek defeated the Browns, 2–1, to improve to 7–1 with a 1.62 ERA. On July 4, the Indians accomplished one of the more bizarre firsts in baseball history with Gromek on the mound. In a complete game victory over the Yankees, Gromek struck out four. Fifteen

outs In baseball, an out occurs when the umpire rules a batter or baserunner out. When a batter or runner is out, they lose their ability to score a run and must return to the dugout until their next turn at bat. When three outs are recorded in a ha ...

came via fly balls to the

; another four pop-ups were handled by the infielders.

Catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the ( home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the cat ...

Frankie Hayes Franklin Witman "Blimp" Hayes (October 13, 1914 – June 22, 1955) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a catcher between and , most prominently as a member of the Philadelphia Athletics where ...

caught two foul balls, and the only ground ball outs recorded were handled by

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

Mickey Rocco Michael Dominick Rocco (March 2, 1916 – June 1, 1997) was an American professional baseball player. A first baseman, Rocco played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for four seasons in the American League with the Cleveland Indians. In 440 career g ...

unassisted. It was the only time in major league history that a team went nine innings without recording an assist. A week later, Gromek was named to the All-Star team for the 1945 All-Star Game, which was cancelled due to travel restrictions in place during

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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. In late August, Gromek won his 16th game in a 5–4 victory against the

, but injured his knee when scoring the winning run, causing him to miss two weeks. For the year, Gromek went 19–9, with a career best 2.55 ERA; he ranked fourth in wins and seventh in ERA in the American League that season. After getting married in the offseason, Gromek entered the 1946 season as one of the four primary starting pitchers alongside

, as well as

Bob Feller Robert William Andrew Feller (November 3, 1918 – December 15, 2010), nicknamed "the Heater from Van Meter", "Bullet Bob", and "Rapid Robert", was an American baseball pitcher who played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Clevel ...

and

Red Embree Charles Willard Embree (August 30, 1917 – September 24, 1996) was an American Major League Baseball pitcher. His key pitch was the curveball. Nicknamed Red, due to his red hair, Emree joined the Cleveland Indians in , and spent three seas ...

who had returned from the war. Gromek started the season by pitching in the home opener against Detroit. In a 7–0 loss, the Tigers allowed two hits, one of which was a single by Gromek, who allowed five runs in six innings. After losing his first three games of the season, he won his next three in May, which included two complete game shutouts against the Athletics and Browns. He followed that up with a four-game losing streak, which went through the end of June. After his June 28th win, however, Gromek fell in a slump, and Indians management reduced his role to that of a part-time starter who would only see action in a few innings at a time. Gromek lost seven straight games between June 28 and September 10 before breaking the streak in his second-to-last appearance of the season, a 4–2 victory against the Yankees. Gromek finished the season with a 5–15 record and a 4.33 ERA in 29 games. The Indians hired

Bill McKechnie William Boyd McKechnie (August 7, 1886 – October 29, 1965) was an American professional baseball player, manager and coach. He played in Major League Baseball as a third baseman during the dead-ball era. McKechnie was the first manager to win ...

as a pitching coach after the 1946 season. One of his first jobs was to work with Gromek during the offseason and improve his pitching due to his struggles the prior year, in particular against left-handed batters. The Indians talked with the Yankees during the offseason about making a trade for second baseman

Joe Gordon Joseph Lowell Gordon (February 18, 1915 – April 14, 1978), nicknamed "Flash" in reference to the comic-book character ''Flash Gordon'', was an American second baseman, coach and manager in Major League Baseball who played for the New York Yank ...

. The teams settled on Gromek as the main piece originally, but

Joe DiMaggio Joseph Paul DiMaggio (November 25, 1914 – March 8, 1999), nicknamed "Joltin' Joe", "The Yankee Clipper" and "Joe D.", was an American baseball center fielder who played his entire 13-year career in Major League Baseball for the New York Yank ...

suggested the team trade for Reynolds instead. Gromek remained on the Indians for the 1947 season as a result, but was moved to the bullpen instead of remaining in the starting rotation. The highlight of his season came on July 1 in relief of Feller, who left the game due to injury. In the game against the Browns, he threw 7.2 innings and allowed two runs in a 9–3 victory in what was his longest appearance of the season at that time. For the year, Gromek pitched in 29 games, starting 7, and had a 2–5 record and a 3.74 ERA in 84.1 innings pitched, his first full season in which he pitched under 150 innings.

1948 World Series and conversion to spot starter

Gromek entered the 1948 season fighting for a spot on the pitching staff after spending the offseason recovering from a knee injury, which had bothered the season prior, and while he did make the roster, he remained solely a relief pitcher to start the season. He made one start as a replacement for Don Black on June 6 against the Athletics, and won the game 11–1 in a complete game effort. Boudreau considered moving him into the starting rotation, but instead considered it a one-time appearance due to Black's injury, and he remained in a relief role though mid-July. After a second complete game victory against the Athletics on July 15, Gromek was moved to a part-time starter role, where he remained the rest of the season. He ended the regular season with a 9–3 record and a 2.84 ERA in 130 innings pitched, and as a result he was a surprise choice to start game four of the 1948 World Series, which was partially due to Boudreau's trust of Gromek, as well as an opportunity to give

some rest, as well as the potential series-clinching game five. The

Boston Braves The Atlanta Braves, a current Major League Baseball franchise, originated in Boston, Massachusetts. This article details the history of the Boston Braves, from 1871 to 1952, after which they moved to Milwaukee, and then to Atlanta. During it ...

countered with

Johnny Sain John Franklin "Johnny" Sain (September 25, 1917 – November 7, 2006) was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who was best known for teaming with left-hander Warren Spahn on the Boston Braves teams from 1946 to 1951. He ...

, who had shut out the Indians in game one of the series. Boudreau got the Indians on the board first with a first-inning

double A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another. Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to: Film and television * Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character * ...

that scored Dale Mitchell. The Indians took a 2–0 lead in the third when Larry Doby homered. Gromek, meanwhile, held the Braves scoreless with the exception of a Marv Rickert home run in the seventh inning, giving the Indians the win by a final score of 2–1. Following the game, ''

The Plain Dealer ''The Plain Dealer'' is the major newspaper of Cleveland, Ohio, United States. In fall 2019, it ranked 23rd in U.S. newspaper circulation, a significant drop since March 2013, when its circulation ranked 17th daily and 15th on Sunday. As of M ...

'' of Cleveland snapped a photograph of Gromek and Doby celebrating in the locker room. Doby had just broken the color barrier in the American League a season earlier, and resistance to integration in baseball was still intense. This spontaneous moment of post game celebration became a symbol of acceptance. In his

Hall of Fame 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 ...

acceptance speech, Doby fondly remembered that picture: Boudreau placed Gromek in the starting rotation to begin the 1949 season, giving the team a big four of Feller,

Bob Lemon Robert Granville Lemon (September 22, 1920 – January 11, 2000) was an American right-handed pitcher and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). Lemon was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1976. Lemon was raised in Californi ...

Gene Bearden Henry Eugene Bearden (September 5, 1920 – March 18, 2004) was an American professional baseball pitcher, a left-hander who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1947 to 1953 for the Cleveland Indians, Washington Senators, Detroit Tigers ...

, and Gromek, who had spent the past year working on his

curveball In baseball and softball, the curveball is a type of pitch thrown with a characteristic grip and hand movement that imparts forward spin to the ball, causing it to dive as it approaches the plate. Varieties of curveball include the 12–6 curv ...

to help him improve on his 1948 season. In his first start of the season, he allowed two hits in an 8–2 victory against the Browns. By the end of May, he had an ERA of 2.80, which was among the lowest on the team, but only had a 2–4 record to show for it due to a lack of run support; the four losses included both a 1–0 and 2–0 defeat. With the increased productivity of

Early Wynn Early Wynn Jr. (January 6, 1920 – April 4, 1999), nicknamed "Gus", was an American professional baseball right-handed pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Washington Senators, Cleveland Indians, and Chicago White Sox, ...

and Mike Garcia, Gromek fell out of favor with Boudreau, and he was moved primarily to relief duty. After being pulled in the second inning in a July 16 start against the Athletics, he was kept as a reliever the rest of the year. Gromek finished the season with four wins, six losses, and a 3.33 ERA in 92 innings over 27 games, 12 of them starts. The Indians offered Gromek a salary cut for 1950 due to his losing record the prior year, to which Gromek objected. In voicing his objection, Gromek offered that he would welcome being dealt to his hometown

. The Indians used a four-man starting rotation for most of the season, relegating Gromek to spot starter status as they had done in prior seasons. The highlight of his season came on May 28 against 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 ...

, throwing a 7–0 complete game shutout, dropping his ERA on the year from 7.98 to 4.94 in the process. Gromek had a 10–7 record and a 3.65 ERA in 31 games on the year. The Indians had a new manager,

Al López Alfonso Ramón López (August 20, 1908 – October 30, 2005) was a Spanish-American professional baseball catcher and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Brooklyn Robins / Dodgers, Boston Bees, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Cle ...

, entering the 1951 season, and as a result Gromek signed a new contract immediately, feeling that López would utilize him as more than a spot starter and that he would be treated more fairly than he had under Boudreau. Lopez ended up using Gromek the same way Boudreau had, keeping him primarily in the bullpen, but using him as a starting pitcher when one of the regular starters was injured or they needed a second pitcher for a doubleheader. Gromek finished the year with seven wins, four losses, and a 2.77 ERA, lowest on the team, in 27 games. Gromek remained in his spot starter role for the 1952 season. He struggled in

spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for roster and position spots, and gives estab ...

, but he was not considered in danger of losing his role to a rookie, as López felt that he knew what Gromek could and could not do on the mound. He won his first three starts in April and May before getting his first loss of the year, and stayed around .500 the rest of the season. He finished the season with a 7–7 record and a 3.67 ERA in 29 games, 13 of them starts; three of his victories came against the Yankees, of only three pitchers who had three against them that season. His wish to play for the Tigers was granted early in 1953. On June 15, after pitching in five games for the Indians, he, Al Aber, Ray Boone and Dick Weik were traded to the Tigers for Owen Friend, Joe Ginsberg,

Art Houtteman Arthur Joseph Houtteman (August 7, 1927 – May 6, 2003) was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for 12 seasons in the American League with the Detroit Tigers, Cleveland Indians and Baltimore Orioles. In 3 ...

and

Bill Wight William Robert Wight (April 12, 1922 – May 17, 2007) was an American pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played from through for the New York Yankees (1946–47), Chicago White Sox (1948–50), Boston Red Sox (1951–52), Detroit Tig ...

. In the case of both Gromek and Houtteman, it was thought that a change of scenery would benefit both players as both had been inconsistent in recent years, so the two were added into the trade package.

Detroit Tigers

In his first appearance upon joining his new club, Gromek allowed nine earned runs in one inning in a 23–3 blowout loss to the Boston Red Sox. Despite the poor first outing, Tigers manager

Fred Hutchinson Frederick Charles Hutchinson (August 12, 1919 – November 12, 1964) was an American professional baseball player, a major league pitcher for the Detroit Tigers, and the manager for three major league teams. Born and raised in Seattle, Wash ...

decided that the veteran Gromek's best fit would be as a starter with his staff of young pitchers. His confidence paid off, as Gromek shut out Philadelphia in his next appearance, allowing four hits and cementing his role in the starting rotation for the rest of the season. In his third start for the Tigers on July 2, he faced the Indians, and defeated the team who had traded him three weeks prior, 4–2. He ended up facing the Indians two more times, winning in August and losing in September, his final start of the year. In his first season in Detroit, Gromek went 6–8 with a 4.51 ERA in 19 games, 17 of them starts. Hutchinson chose Gromek as his opening day starter for the 1954 season against the former St. Louis Browns in their first game as the

, using the starter with the most experience in order to get the Tigers to start the season strong; he shut them out on seven hits in a 3–0 win. After his first four games, he developed a reputation for his quick pitching, with baseball games ending half an hour earlier on average on days he pitched. On May 9, his complete game eleven inning victory over the

improved Gromek's record to 5–0 with a 1.72 ERA, making him the first pitcher in the league with five wins. He also became the first to seven wins in mid-May, but then went on five-game losing streak, not winning game eight until June 15 against the Red Sox. For the season, Gromek had 18 wins, 16 losses, a 2.74 ERA, and 102 strikeouts in 252.2 innings pitched and 36 games, 32 of them starts. He led the Tigers in wins, losses, ERA, and innings pitched, and his ERA and innings pitched were both ranked fifth in the AL. Gromek also led the AL with twelve hit batsmen in 1954. On August 29, he hit Bill Wilson in the fourth inning of a 14–3 win against the Athletics. In the ninth inning, Athletics pitcher

Marion Fricano Marion John Fricano (July 15, 1923 – May 18, 1976) was an American Major League Baseball pitcher. He is likely remembered for throwing the pitch that ended Cass Michaels' career on August 27, . U.S. Navy The , right-hander was born in Brant ...

, who had a reputation as a head hunter himself (two days prior, he ended the Chicago White Sox's Cass Michaels' career with a beanball), retaliated and threw at Gromek's back. Gromek charged the mound, causing both dugouts and bullpens to empty. Both players were ejected from the game, and fined by the league. Gromek entered the 1955 season as an everyday starting pitcher, though he was not the opening day starter that year. During the offseason, he worked to lessen the control he had on the ball, as he felt his low ERA but league-leading 26 home runs allowed was the result of overly controlling the ball. He remained a starter throughout the season, with the exception of September, in which Gromek pitched three games in relief, earning two wins in the process. He finished the season with 13 wins and 10 losses and a 3.98 ERA in 28 appearances, and led the league with 26 home runs allowed for the second straight year. He remained a starter with the Tigers to begin the 1956 season, but after struggling early in the season (he had a 1–3 record and a 6.12 ERA in his first four games) he was relegated to the bullpen. He spent most of the season in the bullpen, but due to injuries late in the season, Gromek was placed back in the starting rotation in August, getting a complete game win over the Senators in his first game back as a starter. He finished the season with a record of 8–6 and a 4.28 ERA in 40 games, 13 of them starts. Gromek was pulled in the third inning in his first start of 1957 and spent the rest of his tenure with the Tigers as a short-term reliever; in a May 2 game against the Red Sox, he was brought in solely to face one batter,

Jackie Jensen Jack Eugene Jensen (March 9, 1927 – July 14, 1982) was an American right fielder in Major League Baseball who played for three American League (AL) teams from 1950 to 1961, most notably the Boston Red Sox. He was named the AL's Most Valuable Pl ...

. Due to arm trouble, he was released by the Tigers in August, and subsequently retired, finishing the year with a 6.08 ERA in 15 appearances.

Later life

Gromek was immediately hired by the Tigers after his playing career ended to manage the

of the

New York–Penn League The New York–Penn League (NYPL) was a Minor League Baseball league that operated in the northeastern United States from 1939 to 2020. Classified as a Class A Short Season league, its season started in June, after major-league teams signed th ...

. As a player-manager, the team had 53 wins and 72 losses, and Gromek pitched in 17 games for the team as well. After managing in the minors for one season, Gromek retired from the game of baseball, and worked as a car insurance sales representative. He and his wife, Jeanette, had three sons, Carl, Greg and Brian. Greg and Carl both pitched for the

Florida State Seminoles baseball The Florida State Seminoles baseball team represents Florida State University (variously Florida State or FSU) in the sport of college baseball. Florida State competes in NCAA Division I, and the Atlantic Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference ...

team, and Greg, who pitched in the Tigers' organization for four years, made the transition from infielder to pitcher after college just as his father had. In 1981, Gromek became a member of the National Polish-American Hall of Fame. He died on March 12, 2002, of complications from

diabetes Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ...

, a stroke and

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severit ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gromek, Steve 1920 births 2002 deaths Cleveland Indians players Detroit Tigers players Major League Baseball pitchers Baseball players from Michigan People from Hamtramck, Michigan American people of Polish descent American League All-Stars Flint Gems players Baltimore Orioles (AA) players Erie Sailors players