| Toad Ramsey | |
|---|---|
 1888 baseball card of Ramsey | |
| Pitcher | |
| Born:(1864-08-08)August 8, 1864 Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S. | |
| Died: March 27, 1906(1906-03-27) (aged 41) Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Left | |
| MLB debut | |
| September 5, 1885, for the Louisville Colonels | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 17, 1890, for the St. Louis Browns | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Win–loss record | 113–124 |
| Earned run average | 3.29 |
| Strikeouts | 1,515 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Thomas H. "Toad" Ramsey (August 8, 1864 – March 27, 1906) was an AmericanMajor League Baseball player whopitched in the majors from1885 to1890. Ramsey spent his entire career in theAmerican Association, split between playing for theLouisville Colonels andSt. Louis Browns. He is sometimes credited with inventing apitch, theknuckleball,[1] and was one of the top pitchers in the Association for more than two years, with statistics that put him in the top five in multiple pitching categories.
Born inIndianapolis, Indiana, and a formerbricklayer, Ramsey is credited as the inventor of the knuckleball pitch. He had severed thetendon in the index finger of his pitching hand with atrowel. The result was that Ramsey's pitches had a natural knuckleball motion. He threw with a fastball motion, holding the ball with his index finger retracted, since he could not straighten it, and with just his finger tip on the ball.[2] Some historians have disputed he actually threw a knuckleball in the modern sense, in that his ball movement was like what is now known as aknuckle curve.[3]
While playing for theChattanooga Lookouts of theSouthern League, Ramsey pitched ano-hitter on May 30, 1885, against theNashville Americans in a road game where only three players reached base, two viawalks and one on anerror.[4] On August 29, Chattanooga traded him to Louisville Colonels of the American Association in exchange forJohn Connor and $750.[5] He was brought in to spell star pitcherGuy Hecker, who had a sore arm,[6] and made his major league debut on September 5,[5] in acomplete game 4–3 loss to the St. Louis Browns.[7] In that first season with the Colonels, hestarted nine games, completing them all with a 3–6 win–loss record.[5]
For the1886 season, his first full season in the majors, Ramsey became the number onestarting pitcher for the Colonels, sharing starts with Hecker.[8] Ramsey logged in a league leading588+2⁄3 innings and 66 complete games in 67 starts. In addition to his league leading statistics that season, hisearned run average of 2.45 and 38 wins were good for third in the league.[9] His 499strikeouts that season finished second behindMatt Kilroy's record setting total of 513. Ramsey's total is the second-highest total in major league history.[10] Ramsey and Hecker's relationship steadily became more at odds the more Ramsey's status with the team grew. At one point, Ramsey stated Hecker was jealous of his success and it would be good for the team if Hecker were released.[6]
Ramsey had a similar1887 season winning 37 games. His 355 strikeouts led the American Association, while his 561 innings pitched, 64 games started, and 61 complete games, were all second in the league to Kilroy.[11] Unfortunately, his dominant years stopped after that season, and his fortunes changed for the worse beginning during the1888 season. His win–loss record was 8–30 in 40 starts.[5] On July 25, 1888, Ramsey was arrested for not paying an overdue bar bill.[1]
His1889 season began the way his 1888 season went, winning one game in his 18 starts with Louisville. On July 17, he was traded to the St. Louis Browns forNat Hudson. He pitched in just five games the rest of season, but did go 3–1 and had an ERA of 3.95.[5] He returned with St. Louis for the1890 season, and pitched his last season in the majors. He had a record of 24–17, struck out 257 batters, and had an ERA of 3.69 in348+2⁄3 innings pitched. Ramsey was released by St. Louis on September 19, 1890, and he never returned to the majors.[5]
Ramsey died ofpneumonia[12] in his hometown of Indianapolis at the age of 41, and is interred atCrown Hill Cemetery and Aboretum, Section 37, Lot 238.[5]
· Baseball Almanac
