| Allen Sothoron | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Pitcher /Manager | |
| Born:(1893-04-27)April 27, 1893 Bradford, Ohio, U.S. | |
| Died: June 17, 1939(1939-06-17) (aged 46) St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. | |
Batted: Switch Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| September 17, 1914, for the St. Louis Browns | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 6, 1926, for the St. Louis Cardinals | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Win–loss record | 91–99 |
| Earned run average | 3.31 |
| Strikeouts | 576 |
| Managerial record | 2–6 |
| Winning % | .250 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
As player
As manager | |
Allen[1] Sutton Sothoron (April 27, 1893 – June 17, 1939) was an American professionalbaseball player,coach andmanager. As a player, he was aspitballpitcher who spent 11 years in themajor leagues playing for theSt. Louis Browns,Boston Red Sox,Cleveland Indians and theSt. Louis Cardinals. Born inBradford, Ohio, Sothoron threw and batted right-handed, stood 5 feet 11 inches (1.80 m) tall and weighed 182 pounds (83 kg). He attendedAlbright College andJuniata College.
Sportswriters frequently misspelled Sothoron's given name (as "Allan") and family name (as "Southern", among other variations) and some sources continue to refer to him as "Allan," although his personal documents show his preference forAllen.[1]
Sothoron broke into the major leagues when the spitball was still legal. His best season came in1919, when he posted a 20–13record with a 2.20earned run average for the Browns, finishing fifth in theAmerican League in wins and ERA. After the spitball was outlawed following the 1919 campaign, Sothoron at first was not permitted to throw it, then in mid-1920 he was added to a list of 17 spitballers in the majors who were allowed to continue using the banned pitch.[1] But he was never able to match his 1919 numbers. His pitching career ended in St. Louis with theNational League Cardinals, where he played for his first MLB manager,Branch Rickey, and led the NL inshutouts with four in1924, despite a mediocre 10–16 (3.57) record. During his MLB career, he appeared in 264games pitched, and allowed 1,583hits and 596bases on balls in1,582+1⁄3innings pitched. Hestruck out 576 and hurled 102complete games.
In 1921, sportswriterBugs Baer came up with this immortal quip: "Allen S. Sothoron pitched his initials off yesterday."[1]
After his playing days, Sothoronmanaged inminor league baseball, coached for the Cardinals (1927),Boston Braves (1928), and Browns (1932–1933), and with the1933 Browns he served a brief, eight-game managerial stint after the dismissal ofBill Killefer. After compiling awin–loss record of 2–6 between July 19 and July 27, he was replaced with hometown favoriteRogers Hornsby.[2]
Sothoron died in St. Louis at age 46 in the middle of the1939 season after a series of illnesses. He is interred atWoodlawn Cemetery inthe Bronx,New York City.
| Team | Year | Regular season | Postseason | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Games | Won | Lost | Win % | Finish | Won | Lost | Win % | Result | ||
| SLB | 1933 | 8 | 2 | 6 | .250 | interim | – | – | – | – |
| Total | 8 | 2 | 6 | .250 | 0 | 0 | – | |||
· Baseball Almanac