Firpo Marberry facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Firpo Marberry |
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Marberry with the Washington Senators in 1924
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| Pitcher | |||
| Born: November 30, 1898 Streetman, Texas, U.S. |
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| Died: June 30, 1976 (aged 77) Mexia, Texas, U.S. |
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| debut | |||
| August 11, 1923, for the Washington Senators | |||
| Last appearance | |||
| June 10, 1936, for the Washington Senators | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Win–loss record | 148–88 | ||
| Earned run average | 3.63 | ||
| Strikeouts | 822 | ||
| Saves | 101 | ||
| Teams | |||
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| Career highlights and awards | |||
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Frederick "Firpo" Marberry (born November 30, 1898 – died June 30, 1976) was an American baseball player. He was a right-handed starting and relief pitcher in Major League Baseball from 1923 to 1936. He played mostly for the Washington Senators. Firpo was known as one of the first great relief pitchers. A relief pitcher comes into the game after the starting pitcher. He was the first pitcher to get 20 saves in a season. A "save" happens when a relief pitcher finishes a game and helps their team win. He also led the major leagues in saves six times. Even though he was famous as a reliever, Marberry also started many games. He had a great record as a starter, winning 94 games and losing 52. He also played for the Detroit Tigers and New York Giants.
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Firpo Marberry: Baseball's Early Relief Star
Firpo Marberry was born in Streetman, Texas. He became well-known in baseball for his serious expression. This look sometimes made batters nervous. People said he looked like the boxer Luis Firpo, which is how he got his nickname. Marberry himself didn't always like the nickname.
Early Career and World Series Wins
Marberry started his Major League Baseball career with the Washington Senators in August 1923. He pitched very well that year, winning all four of his games. This showed he was ready for the big leagues.
The next year, 1924, he had a record of 11 wins and 12 losses. But what was special was his relief pitching. He recorded 15 saves, which was a new record for Major League Baseball at the time. His important relief work helped the Senators reach the World Series for the first time ever.
In the 1924 World Series against the New York Giants, Marberry played a key role. In Game 2, he came into a tough situation and helped the Senators win. The next day, he started Game 3, but his team lost. However, he bounced back in Game 4, helping his team secure a victory.
In the deciding Game 7, Marberry entered the game when the score was close. He helped shut down the Giants' offense. The Senators eventually won the game in the 12th inning. This gave the Washington Senators their only World Series title in history. Marberry had a great performance in the Series, allowing very few runs.
Becoming a Top Pitcher
In 1925, Marberry again recorded 15 saves, tying his own record. The Senators won their league championship again. But they lost the World Series to the Pittsburgh Pirates. In 1926, Marberry had an excellent year. He broke his own record again with 22 saves. He also had the best ERA (a measure of how many runs a pitcher allows) of his career. He became the all-time leader in career saves with 52.
After a couple of average seasons, Marberry came back strong in 1929. He led the American League with 11 saves. He also won a career-high 19 games as a starter.
Marberry was known as one of the few pitchers who could switch between being a starter and a reliever. In 1930 and 1931, he mostly started games. He had a combined record of 31 wins and 9 losses over those two seasons. In 1931, he showed his skills by starting 25 games and appearing in 20 as a reliever. He finished with 16 wins and 4 losses. He also had 11 complete games (finishing the whole game himself) and one shutout (not allowing any runs). He also recorded seven saves that year.
Later Career and Legacy
In 1932, Marberry led the league in saves for the fifth and final time. He was then traded to the Detroit Tigers. With the Tigers, he continued to pitch well, with a record of 31 wins and 16 losses in 1933.
After playing only a few games in 1935, Marberry was offered a job as a baseball umpire. He worked as an umpire for the rest of that season. He made one last appearance as a relief pitcher for the New York Giants in 1936. He ended his career on June 10, 1936, back in Washington, D.C.
Over his 14-season career, Firpo Marberry had a lifetime record of 148 wins and 88 losses. His career ERA was 3.63. He played in 551 games, starting 187 of them. He completed 86 games and had seven shutouts. He struck out 822 batters. His career records of 364 relief appearances and 101 saves were later broken by other pitchers. The "save" was officially created as a statistic in the 1960s, and then researchers looked back at old games to count saves from the past.
As a hitter, Marberry had a .192 batting average. He got 128 hits in 668 tries. He also had 60 runs, 21 doubles, 3 triples, one home run, and 65 RBI. He was also a good fielder, with a .965 fielding percentage.
Later in his life, Firpo Marberry owned a car dealership. He also lost his left arm in a car accident. Marberry passed away at age 77 in Mexia, Texas. He was buried in Birdston Cemetery near Streetman.
Career Highlights
- He was one of the top 10 pitchers in the American League for wins five times (1929, 1930, 1931, 1933, 1934).
- He was one of the top 6 pitchers in the league for ERA four times (1924, 1929, 1931, 1933).
- He led the league in saves five times (1924, 1925, 1926, 1929, 1932). He was also in the top 10 four other times.
- He led the league in games played six times (1924, 1925, 1926, 1928, 1929, 1932). He also led the league in games finished four times.
See also
- List of Major League Baseball annual saves leaders
- Major League Baseball titles leaders
