| Jim Creighton | |
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| Pitcher | |
| Born: April 15, 1841 Manhattan, New York, US | |
| Died: October 18, 1862 (aged 21) Brooklyn, New York, US | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| Teams | |
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James Creighton, Jr. (April 15, 1841 – October 18, 1862) was an American baseball player during the game's amateur era, and is considered by historians to be the sport's first superstar and one of its earliest paid competitors. In 1860 and 1862 he played for one of the most dominant teams of the era, the Excelsior of Brooklyn. He also was reputed to be a superb cricketer, and played in many amateur and professional cricket matches.
During this early, pre-professional period of baseball's evolution, Creighton's pitching technique changed the sport from a game that showcased hitting, running, and fielding into a confrontation between the pitcher and batter. Under rules of the day, a pitcher was required to deliver the ball in an underhand motion with a stiff arm/stiff wrist movement. The intention was to induce the batter to swing and put the ball in play, thus initiating action on the diamond. Creighton's swift delivery was difficult for opposing batters to hit, because they were accustomed to balls being lobbed over the plate.
The speed with which Creighton was able to hurl the ball had previously been considered impossible without movement of the elbow or wrist, which was prohibited by existing rules. If there were any such movements by Creighton, they were imperceptible. Nonetheless, he was accused by some opponents and spectators of using an illegal delivery. In effect, because Creighton was exceptionally successful, his opponents assumed he was cheating.
However, the competitive advantage of this delivery, and his success as a pitcher, eventually led others to emulate his technique. Historian Thomas Gilbert, in his 2015 book Playing First: Early Baseball Lives at Brooklyn's Green-Wood Cemetery, which includes a chapter on Creighton and his extended family, referred to Creighton's pitching style as "weaponizing the ball."[1]
In October 1862, at the height of his popularity, Creighton suffered a ruptured abdominal hernia, a condition possibly caused and exacerbated by his unorthodox pitching motion and high per-game pitch counts. The rupture caused internal bleeding, and Creighton died four days later.
- ^ Gilbert, Thomas, Playing First: Early Baseball Lives at Brooklyn's Green-Wood Cemetery, published by The Green-Wood Cemetery, September 2015