| Erskine Mayer | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Pitcher | |
| Born: January 16, 1889 Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. | |
| Died: March 10, 1957 (aged 68) Los Angeles, California, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| September 4, 1912, for the Philadelphia Phillies | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 27, 1919, for the Chicago White Sox | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Win–loss record | 91–70 |
| Earned run average | 2.96 |
| Strikeouts | 482 |
| Teams | |
| |
Jacob Erskine Mayer (born James Erskine Mayer, January 16, 1889 – March 10, 1957) was an American baseball player who played for three different Major League Baseball teams during the 1910s. In his eight-year career, Mayer played for the Philadelphia Phillies, the Pittsburgh Pirates, and the Chicago White Sox.
A right-handed pitcher, Mayer's repertoire of pitches included a curveball which he threw from a sidearm angle.[1] As a result of his curveball, then Brooklyn Dodgers manager Wilbert Robinson called Mayer "Eelskine" because the pitch was "so slippery."[2]
Mayer won 20 games in a single season in both 1914 and 1915. He appeared in the 1915 World Series as a member of the Phillies and in the 1919 World Series as a member of the White Sox, a series noted for the Black Sox Scandal.
He was 91–70 in his career, with a 2.96 ERA. He was one of the all-time best Jewish pitchers in major league history through 2010, 3rd career-wise in ERA (behind only Barney Pelty and Sandy Koufax), 7th in wins, and 10th in strikeouts (482).[3]
- ^ Erskine Mayer at the SABR Baseball Biography Project , by Lyle Spatz, Retrieved June 4, 2007.
- ^ "Jews in Sports". jewsinsports.org. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved June 4, 2007.
- ^ "Career Pitching Leaders". Career Leaders. Jewish Major Leaguers. Archived from the original on August 26, 2012. Retrieved February 10, 2011.