Appendix: Bobby Layne, 28-0: Hall of Fame Caliber Pitcher for the Texas Longhorns

This is the online appendix for Herm Krabbenhoft’s article, “Bobby Layne, 28-0: Hall of Fame Caliber Pitcher for the Texas Longhorns,” in SABR’s The National Pastime: Baseball in Texas and Beyond (2025).

 

Click on a link below to scroll down:

• APPENDIX A: Brief Summaries of Each Game Pitched by Bobby Layne for the Texas Longhorns (1944, 1946–48)
• APPENDIX B: Bobby Layne’s Diamond Activity After Texas Completed Its Regular Season in 1947
• APPENDIX C: Information on Bobby Layne’s Mound Mates
• APPENDIX D: Batting and Fielding Stats for Bobby Layne’s SWC Collegiate Games
• APPENDIX E: Game-By-Game Summaries of Bobby Layne’s Professional Baseball Career

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APPENDIX A

Brief Summaries of Each Game Pitched by Bobby Layne for the Texas Longhorns (1944, 1946–48)

Southwest Conference games have the date shown in boldface italics.

1944

Bobby Layne’s first game as a Longhorn pitcher was as a freshman on March 13, 1944—an intra-squad game in which he “gave up no runs and no hits and struck out three batters during his three-inning tenure.”1.

March 25, 1944—Going into the Longhorns’ first game of the collegiate season, Layne was tentatively holding down the number-two slot in Texas’ mound corps. So, Layne’s first game was the Steers second one against the Southwestern University Pirates. Southwestern’s batters, who had easily defeated the Steers, 14–4, the day before, were handily handcuffed by Layne to give Texas a 14–1 victory. Layne tossed a 3-hit complete game; the only run scored against him was unearned. Layne struck out 15 and walked four.2.

March 30, 1944—Effectively promoted to the Longhorns numero-uno pitcher, Layne’s next mound assignment was against a team of US Air Force men stationed at Kelly Field (San Antonio), whose primary mission was pilot training; many of the Kelly Field nine had played baseball professionally in the Texas League.3. Perhaps not surprisingly, Layne and the Steers were routed, 12–2, by the Kelly Field batters—in his eight innings on the slab Layne had an “ungood day on the hill” as he gave up 11 runs on 11 hits; he walked seven and hit two batters; he threw two wild pitches while striking out five batters.4,5.

April 14, 1944—“Demoted” to the number-two starter, Layne’s next scheduled outing was the second game between Texas and Texas A&M in College Station on April 8. However, the game was postponed due to wet grounds.6. It was back to competing against servicemen the next weekend, Layne hurling against the Ganders from Brooks Field (San Antonio). He was again the losing hurler, giving up six runs on six hits in five innings as the servicemen won 10–2.7. Layne walked six and struck out five.

April 18, 1944—Layne returned to the winners circle in his next outing, against a team of servicemen stationed at the San Marcos Army Air Field—he “occupied the mound the first five innings, struck out four batters, allowing but three hits and two runs, and the Steers held a 6–2 advantage when he quit the mound.”8. Texas ended up winning, 10–7.

April 21, 1944—Three days after his San Marcos outing Layne had his first Southwest Conference game—versus Rice. Layne tossed five innings of shutout ball, giving up but 3 hits; he didn’t walk any batters and struck out eight. He took over in right field for the last four innings. Texas won the game, 5–0, with Layne being credited with the victory.9.

April 22, 1944—As it developed, Layne was back on the mound the very next day. The Steers had staked starting hurler Bob Dalzell to a 4–0 lead after the first frame. However, in the fourth inning Dalzell was touched for a couple of runs, which knotted the score at 4–4 and knocked him out of the box. Layne took over the mound duties and completed the fourth—he “struck out the first Owl to come up on four pitched balls. Thereafter big Bobby allowed but one hit.”10. He struck out eight and didn’t issue any free passes in the five and one-third innings he pitched.11. With the Longhorn batters pouring it on, Texas emerged victorious, 23–4, Layne earning credit for the win and improving his overall W-L record to 4–2 (his setbacks being to two teams of US military servicemen from the Air Force stationed in San Antonio) and his collegiate W-L record to 4–0.

April 28, 1944—Layne’s perfect collegiate W-L record was tarnished in his next outing, a rematch with Southwestern University in Georgetown. Although he hurled a complete game (eight innings) he was on the short end of 5–3 score.12.

May 4, 1944—A no-decision relief appearance against the San Marcos Army Air Field team was Layne’s next mound effort. According to the box score, Layne struck out three and did not walk anyone as Texas succumbed to the servicemen, 13–4.13.

May 6, 1944—Two days later Layne started against the San Marcos Navigators and was defeated, 7–2. Bobby gave up six runs in the seven innings he pitched, striking out four while walking five.14. With the loss, Layne’s W-L record was now 4–4 (4–1 versus collegiate teams) and 0–3 versus military teams.

May 11, 1944—Layne returned to his winning ways in his next outing, an SWC game against Texas A&M. He tossed a three-hitter in defeating the Aggies, 4–1, the only run he surrendered being unearned. He struck out eight and walked six.15.

May 19, 1944—Layne recorded another victory in his next game, even though he pitched for only two innings. Thanks to robust hitting by Steers’ batters, Texas built up an 11–0 lead going into the bottom of the third session. Layne had hurled the first two stanzas, giving up but one hit and one base on balls while striking out two. Following the “Large Lead” custom, Layne was awarded the W as Texas defeated Rice by a final score of 16–12.16,17.

May 20, 1944—Thanks to his arm-saving short outing in the May 19 game, Layne was able to take the hill the very next day and turn in a solid mound effort—hurling a complete game against the Rice Owls, emerging with a 7–1 triumph. Permitting only seven hits, Layne passed four batters and fanned 13.18,19.

May 23, 1944—Texas’ final game of the year was against a team composed of employees of the 7-Up Bottling Company in Austin. The game pitted the old against the new—Bill Dumke, who had pitched for the Longhorns in 1930s, was on the hill for the 7-Up Bottlers; Longhorns freshman Bobby Layne did the hurling for the Steers. The 7-Up Bottlers emerged triumphantly in a 1–0 pitchers duel, Layne striking out seven and walking only one.20.

So, for the year overall, Layne finished with a 7–5 ledger. Excluding his five games against non-collegiate opponents (in which he went 1–4), Bobby compiled a 6–1 ledger against collegiate foes. Layne finished with streaks of 3 consecutive collegiate wins and 5 consecutive triumphs versus SWC teams. Table A-1 summarizes Layne’s pitching performances against collegiate opponents; games versus Southwest Conference teams are shown in boldface italics.

 

Table A-1. Bobby Layne’s Performance Stats vs. Collegiate Opponents (1944)

Game	OPP	IP (S/R)	R/ER	H	W	K	W/L
3–25	SWU	9.0 (S*)	1/0	3	4	15	W
4–21	RIC	5.0 (S)	0/0	3	0	8	W
4–22	RIC	5.1 (R)	0/0	1	0	8	W
4–28	SWU*	8.0 (S*)	5/?	8	?	?	L
5–11	TAM	9.0 (S*)	1/0	3	6	8	W
5–19	RIC*	2.0 (S)	0/0	1	1	2	W
5–20	RIC*	9.0 (S*)	1/1	7	4	13	W

NOTES: (1) The “OPP” column gives the opposing team—SWU (Southwestern University); RIC (Rice University); TAM (Texas A&M University). An asterisk indicates the game was played at the opponent’s ballpark. (2) For the “IP (S/R)” column, “IP. Gives the Innings Pitched. “S” indicates Starting pitcher and “R” indicates Relief pitcher. An asterisk indicates a complete game. 

 

1946

March 16, 1946—The Longhorns played their first game of the season against a team of marines stationed at Ward Island (off the shore of Corpus Christi, Texas). Layne entered the fray as a reliever in the fourth inning with the Steers behind, 3–1. By the end of his four-inning stint, Texas had manufactured an 11–4 advantage, Bobby having struck out four while allowing just one run on three hits, a walk, and a hit batsman. The Longhorns vanquished the Marines, 12–6, Layne being the winning chunker.21.

March 20, 1946—The Steers’ opponent was a Class AA minor league team—the Tulsa Oilers (Texas League). Layne again entered the game as a relief hurler, pitching the final two frames in a 7–1 loss. Layne was touched for Tulsa’s last run, giving up a pair of hits and walking one batter; he struck out two.22.

March 22, 1946—Bobby Layne was the starting pitcher for the Longhorns in their first game against a college team, the Oklahoma Sooners. He occupied the mound for six innings, giving up seven runs on eight hits and one walk; he struck out nine batters. Oklahoma won the game, 9–6, and Layne was shackled with the loss.23.

March 26, 1946—Bobby Layne achieved the first no-hitter by Longhorns pitcher in a game against the Southwestern University Pirates, shutting them down 7–0. The right hander struck out 16 batters and walked four in accomplishing his masterpiece. Layne was also the top batter for the Steers, rapping out a pair of doubles and a single in five trips to the plate; he scored one run and batted in another.24.

March 30, 1946—Squaring off against McMurry College (Abilene, Texas), the Longhorns massacred the Indians, 25–0. As a batter Layne collected four singles in five at bats; he scored five runs. As a pitcher, he gave up only one hit—“a looping fly to right which was played badly and allowed to fall for a hit.” Layne struck out 13 batters and walked seven.25.

April 2, 1946—In a rematch with the Tulsa Oilers, the Longhorns improved, but still ended up with the short end of the stick, losing 6–5. “Bobby Layne pitched the last inning for the Steers, walking the first two, fanning the next two and forcing the next batter to hit an easily-fielded fly.”26.

April 4, 1946—A lusty one-out bases-loaded RBI-single in the bottom of the ninth inning by Bobby Williams gave Bobby Layne a complete-game 7–6 triumph over the Baylor Bears. Layne was not as sharp as he had been in his previous two games, surrendering eight hits, walking six batters, and hitting another; he did whiff nine batters. With the victory Layne extended his record against SWC opponents to 6–0.27.

April 8, 1946—For the second consecutive game, Layne was not sharp. Facing the Southwestern University Pirates again, the team he had no-hit just two weeks earlier, Bobby could not survive the first inning. After the first batter reached on a fielding error, Layne walked the next two men, filling the sacks. He then was blasted for a bases-clearing triple. And, when he walked the next batter, he was relieved. Fortunately for Bobby, the Longhorn batters were able to pummel the Pirates pitchers and emerge with a 16–9 victory, resulting in a no-decision for Layne.28.

April 13, 1946—Layne returned to his top-notch pitcher ways in his next outing, versus the Rice Owls in Houston. The right-hander twirled a three-hitter in shutting out the Owls, 16–0. Layne struck out 16 batters while walking only two.29.

April 19, 1946—Except for a solo homer by Texas Christian University’s Bill Fullhart in the fourth frame, Layne would have accomplished back-to-back shutouts. The Longhorns won, 14–1, as Layne yielded only five hits while striking out nine and walking four Horned Frogs.30.

April 24, 1946—In Texas’ 10–4 triumph over the Southern Methodist University nine, “Bobby Layne tossed the last four innings and was credited with the victory, his fourth in the league campaign. He gave up only one hit in hurling shutout ball, but got into trouble in the ninth when he walked three batters. He promptly took care of the situation, however, by striking out Red Maley.” In addition to the three bases on balls he issued, Layne also hit one batter; he struck out seven.31.

May 4, 1946—It was announced on May 1 that, “Bobby Layne, the Longhorns’ star pitcher, might not be able to start against the Texas A&M nine at College Station Saturday [May 4] because of an ankle injury [a badly bruised ankle suffered in an automobile accident].”32. However, Layne did start the game and proceeded to pitch a no-hitter. Bobby struck out 14 Aggies and walked two. He lost his shutout in the sixth inning on a couple of fielding errors—first-up batter Earl Beasley hit a grounder to second baseman Ransom Jackson and went all the way to second on the error. Beasley then “stole third and came home on a squeeze play when Layne threw wide to [catcher] O’Reagan at the plate.” Bobby also did pretty well from the batter’s box, getting three singles in four trips to the plate.33.

May 8, 1946—In a game against the Baylor Bears on their home field in Waco, Texas, Layne took over the mound duties in the bottom of the fourth after the Longhorns had rallied for five runs in the top half to surge to a 9–5 lead. Bobby pitched the rest of the game, giving up three runs on seven hits and six walks while fanning five batters. Layne thereby earned the W in the Steers’ 9–8 victory.34.

May 13, 1946—By twirling a four-hit 4–0 shutout against the Rice Owls, Bobby Layne and his Longhorns clinched the Southwest Conference championship. Layne struck out 11 and walked just two batters in accomplishing the decisive victory.35.

May 17, 1946—Bobby Layne picked up another complete-game victory as he pitched the Longhorns to a 6–4 triumph over the Texas A&M Aggies. Only one of the four runs tallied off him was earned. He gave up seven hits and walked one batter while striking out five.36.

May 25, 1946—In the season finale against Southern Methodist University, Bobby Layne and the Texas Longhorns completed a perfect Southwest Conference record—14–0—with a 3–2 victory. Layne was the winning pitcher in nine of those triumphs. In wrapping up his season as the Steers top pitcher, Layne walked six and gave up only four hits to the Mustang batters in a complete-game effort; both of the runs scored off him were unearned. Layne struck out eight SMU batters.37.

So, overall, for 1946 Layne finished with a 12–1 W-L ledger. Excluding his three games against non-collegiate opponents (in which he went 1–0), Bobby produced an 11–1 ledger against collegiate foes. Layne finished with streaks of 11 consecutive collegiate wins and 14 consecutive triumphs versus SWC teams (5 from 1944 and 9 from 1946). Table A-2 summarizes Layne’s 1946 pitching performances against collegiate opponents; games versus Southwest Conference teams are shown in boldface italics.

 

Table A-2. Bobby Layne’s Performance Stats vs. Collegiate Opponents (1946)

Game	OPP	IP (S/R)	R/ER	H	W	K	W/L
3–22	OKL	6.0 (S)	7/?	8	1	9	L
3–26	SWU	9.0 (S*)	0/0	0	4	16	W
3–30	MMC	9.0 (S*)	0/0	1	7	13	W
4–4	BAY*	9.0 (S*)	6/5	8	6 + 1 HBP	9	W
4–8	SWU*	0.0 (S)	4/3	1	3	0	—
4–13	RIC*	9.0 (S*)	0/0	3	2	16	W
4–19	TCU	9.0 (S*)	1/1	5	4	9	W
4–24	SMU	4.0 (R)	0/0	1	3 + 1 HBP	7	W
5–4	TAM*	9.0 (S*)	1/0	0	2	14	W
5–8	BAY*	6.0 (R)	3/2	7	6	5	W
5–13	RIC	9.0 (S*)	0/0	4	2	11	W
5–17	TAM	9.0 (S*)	4/1	7	1	5	W
5–25	SMU*	9.0 (S*)	2/0	4	6	8	W

NOTES (1) See Table A-1. (2) The “OPP” column gives the opposing team—OKL (Oklahoma University); BAY (Baylor University); TCU (Texas Christian University); SMU (Southern Methodist University).

 

1947

March 21, 1947—Bobby Layne was ill and didn’t participate in the Longhorns’ season-opening game (March 13 versus Hardin Simmons University). A week later he was well enough to be the starting hurler in the Steers’ second game versus a team from the Brook Army Medical Center. Bobby pitched the first six innings, giving up a pair of runs on four hits; he struck out six and walked three. He departed with Texas on top, 5–2, and emerged as the winning pitcher in the Longhorns’ 10–3 triumph.38.

March 24, 1947—Layne hurled a complete game in his next outing as Texas defeated the McMurry College Indians, 9–5. In addition to his solid pitching performance (seven hits allowed, four walks issued, and eleven strikeouts), Bobby clouted a solo home run.39.

March 27, 1947—For the UT’s first SWC game, against SMU, Layne was the Steers’ hurler. While he emerged with a complete-game victory, 12–7, his performance was not in mid-season form: he was tagged for eight hits and gave seven free passes, which led to six earned runs; he fanned just three batters.40.

April 2, 1947—Hurling a complete-game four-hitter, Bobby Layne came out ahead in a 10–2 victory for Texas Longhorns over the Rice Owls. The right-hander walked seven and struck out seven.41.

April 5, 1947—Thanks to a prodigious fourth inning, Texas jumped out to a 9–0 advantage over the visiting Oklahoma Sooners. Layne cruised along until the seventh stanza when he was roughed up for four runs on three hits, three walks, and an error. He was replaced by Murray Wall to start the eight session. The Longhorns ended up winning the game, 9–5. Layne’s pitching line was 7.0 IP, 4 R, 4 H, 5 W, and 3 K.42.

April 11, 1947—Through the seventh, Bobby Layne had managed to keep Texas A&M from denting the plate; meanwhile, the Longhorns had managed just a single tally. “Only four Aggies had reached first up to the drastic eighth inning and Layne arose to each occasion when the Aggies had men in scoring position to retire the side by the strikeout route. Layne, who had given up only two hits prior to the eighth, should have emerged from that inning without trouble, but suddenly his defense collapsed about him. Both [shortstop] Chick Zomlefer and [third baseman] Ransom Jackson erred twice and the Aggies pushed over five runs before the uprising could be quelled.” Fortunately for Texas, the Steers were able to come back with a four-run rally in the bottom of the eighth to knot the score at 5–5, thereby taking Layne off the hook. The Longhorns eventually won the game, 9–8, in ten innings. Layne’s chunking line was 8.0 IP, 4 R, 5 H, 2 W, and 7 K.43.

April 17, 1947—Murray Wall saved the win for Bobby Layne in the game at Katy Park in Waco between the visiting Longhorns and the host Bears. Layne had 9–6 advantage going into the bottom of the ninth when Baylor put on a last-ditch effort to avoid the impending defeat. “Layne walked Hal Harris with one out, then Wall came in and hit Redding with a pitched ball. But Joe Szeleky struck out and Chandler popped to Zomlefer to retire the side.”44. Layne’s pitching line was 8.1 IP, 6 R (3 ER), 9 H, 3 W, and 8 K.

April 22, 1947—In front of the largest Clark Field crowd in history (estimated at 7,000),  Longhorn Bobby Layne out-dueled Baylor’s Rickey Rowe in a minimum-run game, Layne tallying the only run. In tossing his 1–0 shutout Layne surrendered only four hits and issued just four walks; he struck out six. The Steers victory was critically important as it put them a half game ahead of the Bears in the race for the SWC championship.45.

April 25, 1947—In a back-and-forth nail-biter, the Steers, behind the gritty pitching of Bobby Layne, shaded TCU’s stubborn Horned Frogs, 4–3, thereby maintaining the Longhorns’ grip on first place in the Southwest Conference standings. Layne prevailed despite giving up nine hits and issuing seven bases on balls. Bobby struck out eight.46,47.

April 28, 1947—Bobby Layne turned in another solid mound performance in defeating the SMU Mustangs, 4–1. The only run he permitted was scored by his former high school teammate and future pro football teammate—Doak Walker, who received one of Layne’s four walks, which was followed by Layne’s fielding error on a (double play) grounder, and a timely single by John Ligon. Layne struck out 11.48,49.

May 1, 1947—As reported by Wilbur Evans in describing Texas’s 8–6 victory over Rice, “The junior right-hander [Bobby Layne], who has never dropped a conference contest in three seasons of play, literally backed into this [win] decision. Ineffective and in trouble most of the time, Layne was replaced by Pinch Hitter George Schwoebel in the last of the sixth. The Steers had gone into the last half of that frame on the short end of a 5–2 score, but rallied to score five runs before a second Rice relief pitcher quelled the disturbance.” Charles Tankersley then came on in relief of Layne and protected the Longhorns’ 7–5 advantage en route to the 8–6 triumph. Layne received credit for the win despite being smacked for nine hits and five runs; Layne walked four while striking out seven.50.

May 6, 1947—With Bobby Layne on the slab and the Longhorn batters pounding out the hits, Texas vanquished the TCU Horned Frogs, 15–5, thereby clinching the SWC title. Layne pitched the first six innings and left with a 15–4 advantage. Charles Tankersley pitched the remaining three innings of the victory. While giving up four runs on seven hits, Layne had excellent control as he didn’t walk anyone; he struck out seven.51.

May 14, 1947—Seeking to put icing on the cake, Bobby Layne had a 5–3 advantage over Texas A&M going into the last of the eighth inning at College Station. After he retired the first-up batter, Peck Vass, “[Hub] Moon got on base when Ransom Jackson’s throw to first pulled Tom Hamilton off, and Stan Hollmig followed with his second circuit knock which cleared the left field fence by many yards, tying the score at five-all.” After Layne retired the next batter, Bob Fretz, he walked Leo Daniels, which prompted Steers manager Bibb Falk to go to the bullpen and bring in Murray Wall. “Zomlefer muffed Bob Wasson’s grounder, but Wall fielded Sub Catcher Harold Walker’s high bounder off the home plate and retired the side.” And then, after Billy Cox hit a go-ahead solo homer for Texas in the top of the ninth, Wall retired the Aggies in order in the bottom half to gain the 6–5 victory.52.

June 20, 1947—In a first-round game of the NCAA Western Regional Playoffs in Denver between the Longhorns from Texas and the Sooners from Oklahoma, Bobby Layne, in relief of starting pitcher Murray Wall, was charged with three runs as a consequence of surrendering a pair of hits and walking two in one-third of an inning. Fortunately, Charley Tankersley was able to ultimately stop the onslaught which allowed the Steers to emerge victoriously, 9–8, and advance to round two.53–55.

June 22, 1947—Bobby Layne relieved Ellis Wheless with two outs in the third after having been rapped for six runs in that inning. Layne pitched pretty good ball for the remainder of the game (six innings). He was touched for two runs on five hits and three walks; he struck out five. The two runs he gave up were both earned—(a)  In the eighth he gave up a single to Ed San Clemente who advanced on a wild pitch and a sacrifice (actually, probably an infield ground out), and scored on a safe-on-fielder’s choice play at the plate, the Longhorns’ catcher juggling the ball as San Clemente was sliding into home. (b) In the ninth, Doug Clayton led off with a single. The next batter, Lyle Palmer, also singled, putting runners on first and second. “Layne bore down to strike out Cliff McClain and Jim Brown and had two strikes on John Fiscalini. … [But] … Fiscalini’s sizzling line drive down the third base line, bringing home Clayton from second with the winning run, spoiled a great relief job by the Longhorn ace, Bobby Layne.” California defeated Texas, 8–7; Layne was shackled with the loss.56–58.

Overall, for the 1947 collegiate season, Layne finished with an 11–1 W-L ledger. Excluding his record against non-collegiate opponents (1–0), Bobby produced a 10–1 W-L ledger against collegiate foes. Table A-3 summarizes Layne’s 1947 pitching performances against collegiate opponents. Inspection of Table A-3 reveals that Layne produced an 8–0 W-L ledger versus SWC teams and a 2–1 W-L record versus non-SWC teams. His only setback was in a relief role in the final game of the NCAA Western Regional Playoffs, five and a half weeks after his last SWC game. Appendix B provides pertinent information on Layne’s non-collegiate diamond activity during that interval and his performance in the Western Regional Playoffs. Layne’s post-season loss to California snapped a streak of 21 consecutive victories vs collegiate teams. However, adhering to the official rules of Major League Baseball for “Cumulative Performance Records” (Rule 9.23), his streak of 21 straight regular-season triumphs remained intact.59

 

Table A-3. Bobby Layne’s Pitching Stats vs. Collegiate Opponents (1947)

Game	OPP	IP (S/R)	R/ER	H	W	K	W/L
3–24	MMC	9.0 (S*)	5/?	7	4	11	W
3–27	SMU	9.0 (S*)	7/6	8	7	3	W
4–2	RIC*	9.0 (S*)	2/2	4	7	7	W
4–5	OKL	7.0 (S)	4/?	4	5	3	W
4–11	TAM	8.0 (S)	4/0	5	2	7	—
4–17	BAY*	8.1 (S)	6/3	9	3	8	W
4–22	BAY	9.0 (S*)	0/0	4	4	6	W
4–25	TCU*	9.0 (S*)	3/?	9	7	8	W
4–28	SMU*	9.0 (S*)	1/0	4	4	11	W
5–1	RIC	6.0 (S)	5/?	9	4	7	W
5–6	TCU	6.0 (S)	4/1	7	0	7	W
5–14	TAM*	7.2 (S)	5/4	8	3	6	—
6–20	OKL#	0.1 (R)	3/?	2	2	0	—
6–22	CAL#	5.0 (R)	2/2	5	3	5	L

NOTES: (1) See Notes in Tables A-1 and A-2. (2) The “OPP” column gives the opposing team—CAL (University of California, Berkeley); a hashtag indicates that the game was played in Denver, Colorado (NCAA Wester Regional Playoffs).

 

1948

March 13, 1948—The Longhorns season-opening game was against the Milwaukee Brewers, the top farm club of the major league Boston Braves. Bobby Layne entered the game in the final (eighth) inning as a relief hurler and did reasonably well: “… and the celebrated Bobby Layne took easy charge of the eighth;”60,61. As reported in the Dallas Morning News, “… and Bobby Layne shut the Brewers out in the eighth with one hit. He whiffed the first two batters he faced.”62. Utilizing the information provided in the text description of the game and the box score, it was deduced that Layne struck out Pete Whisenant and Karol Kwak, gave up a single to Johnny Logan, and then retired Del Crandall. Whisenant, Logan, and Crandall became major league players, Logan being a four-time All-Star and Crandall an eight-time All-Star. The following was also opined about Layne: “Bobby Layne will start for the Steers and go as far as he can Monday when the Brews play a return game on the Texas campus. The famous footballer exhibited a good overhand curve in his relief chore this afternoon, but otherwise baseball does not seem to be his specialty.”63.

March 15, 1948—Bobby Layne did indeed start the second game against the Milwaukee Brewers, the 1947 Little World Series Champions. He pitched six innings and received credit for the Longhorns’ 9–6 win. “He gave up ten hits and five runs, four of which resulted from fielding errors.”64. Based on the text descriptions and the box scores provided in the Austin American-Statesman and the Milwaukee Sentinel, it was deduced that future major leaguers Johnny Logan went 0-for-3 and Pete Whisenant went 2-for-3 (2-RBI singles) versus Layne.65,66. Layne struck out three and walked two.

March 25, 1948—In his first mound assignment against a college team, Bobby Layne hurled a complete game as Texas defeated Ohio State, 8–6. Layne pitched splendidly through the first six innings, giving up but two hits and no runs. For the entire game, he was touched for six hits, three earned runs; he walked six and struck out seven.67.

March 27, 1948—In the final game of the three-game series with Ohio State, the Longhorns had the lead, 12–6, going into the ninth inning. The Steers’ starting pitcher, Murray Wall had allowed two runs and then gave up a one-out bases-loaded double to pinch hitter Bill Bernhardt, making the score 12–11. Texas manager Bibb Falk then called on Bobby Layne to quell the uprising. Layne faced two batters: “The first grounded out and the old master struck out the second to give Wall the victory before 3,000 fans.”68.

March 29, 1948—Against Oklahoma, Layne went eight full innings and gave up five runs (all earned, all in the fifth frame) and five hits. “He struck out eight Sooners, but was a bit wild and gave up seven bases on balls. Texas won, 12–7.69.

April 2, 1948—An article with the headline “Steers Squeeze By A&M In SWC Opener, 5–4” reported that “Behind the good pitching of Bobby Layne, the Texas Longhorns edged by the Texas Aggies, 5–4, here Friday afternoon as they started defense of their Southwest Conference title.”70. “Bobby Layne was the winning pitcher, although touched for eight hits, two of them homers by Stanley Hollmig and Cliff Lindoff.”71. The Texas right-hander walked two and struck out nine; each of the four runs Layne allowed was an earned run.72.

April 9, 1948—After TCU had racked Bobby Layne in the top of the first for three runs on four hits, the Longhorns responded with a six-run outburst, capped off by Layne: “With two out and two men on base [and four runs already in], the TCU board of strategy elected to issue Dan Watson an international [should be ‘intentional’] base on balls in order to get to Layne. The Blond Bomber responded in typical Layne fashion, slapping out a single—his first hit of the season—to score Hobbs Williams and Watson.”73. However, with the Steers ahead, 6–4, after four frames, Layne could not survive the fifth inning: “Layne was relieved early in the fifth after Rick Kramer walked and Jim Busby hit his circuit clout.”74. Layne, who walked four and struck out only one, was rocked for six earned runs on eight hits before being relieved by Murray Wall, who completely shut down the Aggies, giving up just two inconsequential hits for the remainder of the game and thereby earned the win (7–6). Besides his homer, future major leaguer Jim Busby collected a 2-RBI single in the first and an RBI triple in the third—thus, facing Layne, Busby went 3-for-3 with two runs scored and five runs batted in.

April 13, 1948—Bobby Layne rebounded from his horrendous outing against TCU by tossing a four-hit shutout versus SMU as the Longhorns overwhelmed the Mustangs, 21–0. Layne struck out six while walking three.75.

April 23, 1948—The Longhorn right hander continued his shutout hurling with a 3–0 complete-game verdict over the Rice Owls. Layne tossed a three-hitter and walked four while fanning fifteen.76,77.

May 1, 1948—Bobby Layne maintained his superb pitching against the Baylor Bears as the Longhorns produced an 8–1 triumph. Layne extended his scoreless innings streak to 23. Baylor’s lone run came in the sixth on two singles, an infield out, and a sacrifice fly. Layne gave up nine hits and walked two; he struck out five.78.

May 7, 1948—Squaring off against SMU in Dallas, “The Texas Longhorns strengthened their hold on the Southwest Conference baseball lead Friday as Bobby Layne checked Southern Methodist with seven hits for an 8–2 triumph.”79. Layne hurled shutout ball until the ninth when the Mustangs bunched three hits for their only two tallies.80. The Steers right-hander walked only one batter while striking out seven.

May 14, 1948—Going into the final two-game series of the season between the first-place Longhorns (with an SWC record of 11–1) and the second-place Aggies (11–2), UT needed to win just one of the games to claim at least a tie for the SWC championship.81. Not surprisingly, Bobby Layne was chosen by Steers’ manager Bibb Falk as the starting pitcher for the first game. Layne came through with flying colors as Texas won the game, 16–4. Layne pitched shutout ball through the first seven innings. In the eighth he yielded a tally “on Jim Calvert’s double, an infield error, and an infield forceout.”82. By that time the Longhorns had scored 14 runs. For the entire game, Layne allowed nine hits and walked four while striking out six in carving out his 28th SWC victory without a defeat. By also winning the second game of the series, 3–2, Texas claimed the Southwest Conference championship outright for the third consecutive season.

Despite winning the SWC championship, the University of Texas decided to remove itself from consideration to be the sixth district representative in the NCAA tournament for the 1948 College Baseball World Series. Longhorns’ manager Bibb Falk said, “Graduation of four first-stringers, including pitcher Bobby Layne and shortstop Chick Zomlefer, would require a makeshift lineup if we went to the tournament. Summer school, one or two boys’ professional plans, and the length of time between the end of our season and the tournament all add up.” UT athletic director, D.X. Bible, added, “We found that we cannot field a team equal to that which played the regular season and we don’t feel right to send a team from the University and the Southwest Conference that isn’t representative.”83.

So, overall, for the regular 1948 collegiate season, Layne finished with a 9–0 W-L ledger. Excluding his record against non-collegiate opponents (1–0), Bobby produced an 8–0 ledger against collegiate foes. Thus, Layne extended his streak of consecutive regular-season collegiate wins to 29. Focusing on the Southwestern Conference, Layne went 6–0 in 1948, thereby increasing his perfect record to 28–0—5–0 in 1944; 9–0 in 1946; 8–0 in 1947; 6–0 in 1948. Table A-4 summarizes Layne’s 1948 pitching performances against collegiate opponents; games versus Southwest Conference teams are shown in boldface italics.

 

Table A-4. Bobby Layne’s Performance Stats vs. Collegiate Opponents (1948)

Game	OPP	IP (S/R)	R/ER	H	W	K	W/L
3–25	OSU	9.0 (S*)	6–3	6	6	7	W
3–26	OSU	0.2 (R)	0/0	0	0	1	SV
3–29	OKL	8.0 (S)	5/5	5	7	8	W
4–2	TAM*	9.0 (S*)	4/4	8	2	9	W
4–9	TCU	4.0 (S)	6/6	8	4	1	—
4–13	SMU	9.0 (S*)	0/0	4	3	6	W
4–23	RIC*	9.0 (S*)	0/0	3	4	15	W
5–1	BAY	9.0 (S*)	1/1	9	2	5	W
5–7	SMU*	9.0 (S*)	2/2	7	1	7	W
5–14	TAM	9.0 (S*)	4/4	9	4	6	W

NOTES: (1) The “OPP” column gives the opposing team—OSU (Ohio State University). (2) See also the Notes in Tables A-1 and A-2.

 

APPENDIX A NOTES

1. “Inexperienced Longhorns Lose to Own B Teamers,” Austin (Texas) American-Statesman, March 14, 1944, 9.

2. Morris Williams, “Layne Holds Southwestern to Three Hits,” The Austin (Texas) American, March 26, 1944, 15.

3. “UT Open Kelly Series Today,” The Austin (Texas) American, March 30, 1944, 19.

4. Morris Williams, “Kelly Field Flyers Wallop Steers, 12–2,” The Austin (Texas) American, March 31, 1944, 21.

5. Morris Williams, “Kelly Seeks Second Win Over Steers” Austin (Texas) American-Statesman, March 31, 1944, 15.

6. “Texas-Aggie Game Delayed,” The Austin (Texas) American, April 9, 1944, 10.

7. “Soldiers Wallop UT With Ease, Using Walks Well,” The Austin (Texas) American, April 15, 1944, 9.

8. Morris Williams, “Steers Whip San Marcos” The Austin (Texas) American, April 19, 1944, 9.

9. Morris Williams, “Longhorns Take First of 2 Games With Rice, 5–0,” The Austin (Texas) American, April 22, 1944, 7.

10. Morris Williams, “Longhorns Get Mighty Rough With Rice, 23–4” The Austin (Texas) American, April 23, 1944, 9.

11. “Longhorns Swamp Owls Second Time,” Big Spring (Texas) Daily Record, April 23, 1944, 4.

12. “Pirate Home Run Defeats Steers,” The Austin (Texas) American, April 29, 1944, 7. It is mentioned that I was unable to find a newspaper game account with a box score of the game.

13. “Steers Lose To Navigators, 4–13,” The Austin (Texas) American, May 4, 1944, 9.

14. Morris Williams, “San Marcos Navigators Ride Bobby Layne’s Frequency To Neat 7-to-2 Victory Here,” The Austin (Texas) American, May 7, 1944, 9.

15. Weldon Hart, “Steers Best Aggies, 4–1, To Get Nearer Title,” The Austin (Texas) American, May 12, 1944, 21.

16. “Layne Builds Up 11-Run Lead And Retires,” The Austin (Texas) American, May 20, 1944, 7.

17. Pete Palmer, email to the author, November 2, 2023: “If you leave the game with a large lead, you can get the win because the manager is saving you for the next game. There were no [official] rules for ‘winning’ and ‘losing’ pitchers until 1950.” See also: (a) Frank Vacarro, “Origin of the Modern Pitching Win,” Baseball Research Journal (Volume 42, Number 1, Spring 2013) 50; (b) Frank J. Williams, “All the Record Books Are Wrong,” The National Pastime, 2013, 50; (c) Joe Wayman, “The Matty-Alex Tie,” Baseball Research Journal (Number 24, 2013) 25.

18. “Longhorn Nine Takes Second Game From Rice,” The Austin (Texas) American, May 21, 1944, 12.

19. Johnny Lyons, “Texas Wins, 7–1, on Six Unearned Runs,” The Houston Post, May 21, 1944, Section 2, p3.

20. Morris Williams, “Ex-Longhorn Blanks Old Team for Bottlers, 1–0,” The Austin (Texas) American, May 24, 1944, 11.

21. Morris Williams, “Texas Nine Wins Opener From Ward Island, 12–6,” The Austin (Texas) American, March 17, 1946, 26.

22. Morris Williams, “Longhorns Lose to Tulsa, 7–1,” The Austin (Texas) American, May 24, 1946, 17.

23. Wilbur Evans, “Sooners Beat Steers, 9–6, in Series Opener,” The Austin (Texas) American, March 23, 1946, 9.

24. Wilbur Evans, “Layne Hurls No-Hitter in Blanking Pirates, 7–0,” The Austin (Texas) American, March 27, 1946, 11.

25. Howard Green, “Bobby Layne Stops Tribe With 1 Hit,” Abilene (Texas) Reporter-News, March 31, 1946, p.10.

26. Morris Williams, “Herd Nine Edged By Tulsa, 6–5,” The Austin (Texas) American, April 3, 1946, 11.

27. Wilbur Evans, “Texas Edges Bears, 7–6, With Ninth Inning Rally,” The Austin (Texas) American, April 5, 1946, 23.

28. Wilbur Evans, “Tankersley Strikes Out 17 Batters,” The Austin (Texas) American, April 9, 1946, 11.

29. “Layne Pitches Three-Hitter, Fans 16 Owls,” The Austin (Texas) American, April 14, 1946, 18.

30. Wilbur Evans, “Layne Hurls Longhorns to 14–1 Win,” The Austin (Texas) American, April 20, 1946, 10.

31. Wilbur Evans, “Texas Wins 7th Straight in Slow Game,” The Austin (Texas) American, April 25, 1946, 11.

32. “Bobby Layne May Not Start Against Aggies Saturday,” [AP] Amarillo (Texas) Daily News, May 2, 1946, 10.

33. Wilbur Evans, “Layne Pitches No-Hitter as Texas Tops A&M, 2–1,” The Austin (Texas) American, May 5, 1946, 17.

34. Jinx Tucker, “Steers Win Slugging Duel From Bears, 9–8,” The Waco (Texas) News-Tribune, May 9, 1946, p.11.

35. Wilbur Evans, “Steer Nine Takes Title … Layne Scores Seventh Win in Blanking Rice,” The Austin (Texas) American, May 14, 1946, 7.

36. Wilbur Evans, “Texas Wins, 6–4, To Stay Unbeaten,” The Austin (Texas) American, May 18, 1946, 7.

37. Wilbur Evans, “Longhorns Defeat SMU Nine, 3–2 … Steers Finish Season With Perfect Record,” The Austin (Texas) American, May 26, 1946, 15.

38. Morris Williams, “Steer’s Heavy Hitting Downs Comets, 10–3,” The Austin (Texas) American, March 22, 1947, 9.

39. Morris Williams, “Layne Stingy as McMurry Falls to Longhorns, 9–5,” The Austin (Texas) American, March 25, 1947, 11.

40. Wilbur Evans, “Longhorns Trim SMU, 12–7,” The Austin (Texas) American, March 28, 1947, 26.

41. Johnny Lyons, “Longhorns Rap Rice Owls, 10–2,” The Houston Post, April 3, 1947, Section II, 9.

42. Morris Williams, “Steers Triumph, 9–5, to Sweep Sooner Series,” The Austin (Texas) American, April 6, 1947, 17.

43. Wilbur Evans, “Texas Nips Ags in 10th, 9–8 … Layne Hurls 2-Hit Ball Until Infield Crumbles in Eighth,” The Austin (Texas) American, April 12, 1947, 7.

44. Wilbur Evans, “Hamilton Stars as Steers Defeat Baylor, 9–6,” The Austin (Texas) American, April 18, 1947, 17.

45. Morris Williams, “Bears Fall to Longhorns, 1–0,” The Austin (Texas) American, April 23, 1947, 11.

46. George Kellam, “TCU, Texas Playing Again,” Fort Worth Star-Telegram, April 26, 1947, 10.

47. “Longhorn Nine Edges TCU, 4–3,” The Austin (Texas) American, April 26, 1947, 7.

48. Harry Gage, “Steers Down SMU Nine by 4–1 Margin,” Dallas Morning News, April 29, 1947, 10.

49. “Layne Stops SMU with 4 Hits, 4–1,” The Austin (Texas) American, April 29, 1947, 9.

50. Wilbur Evans, “Steers Nip Rice, 8–6,” The Austin (Texas) American, May 2, 1947, 17.

51. Wilbur Evans, “Steers Win Baseball Title with 15–5 Victory,” The Austin (Texas) American, May 7, 1947, 10.

52. “Victorious Texas in Finale at A&M,” Austin American-Statesman, May 15, 1947, 15.

53. “Steers Win in 9th, 10–9,” The Austin (Texas) American, June 21, 1947, 9.

54. “Sooners Fall 10–9 as Texas Rallies in Ninth Inning,” The Oklahoma Daily, June 21, 1947, 1.

55. “Texas Nips Oklahoma Nine, 10–9,” Austin American-Statesman, June 21, 1947, 7.

56. Phil Gregory, “Cal Nine in NCAA Finals,” Berkeley (California) Daily Gazette, June 23, 1947, 13.

57. “California Edges UT in 9th, 8–7,” The Austin (Texas) American, June 23, 1947, 6.

58. “California, Yale in First Collegiate World Series,” Oakland Tribune, June 23, 1947, 14.

59. “Guidelines for Cumulative Performance Records (Rule 9.23),” Official Baseball Rules, 2024 Edition, 144. See, for example: Matt Kelly, “Pitchers with the longest win streaks,” https://www.mlb.com/news/the-longest-pitcher-win-streaks-in-mlb-history#, August 25, 2020 (accessed October 17, 2024)—“(1) Carl Hubbell, 24 straight wins (July 17, 1936, to May 27, 1937); (2) Roy Face, 22 straight wins (June 7, 1958, to August 39, 1959); (3-Tied) Gerrit Cole 20 straight wins, (May 27, 2019, to August 14, 2020); (3-Tied) Jake Arsrieta (August 4, 2015 to May 25, 2016); (3-Tied) Roger Clemens (June 3, 1998 to June 1, 1999); (3-Tied) Rube Marquard October 1, 1911 to July 3, 1912).” Kelly also provided this: “NOTE: These streaks do not include postseason appearances, which means that Cole’s loss to the Nats in Game 1 of last year’s World Series [i.e., 2019] did not preclude him from [possibly tying Hubbell’s record.”

60. Red Thisted, “Brewers Win 3–1 on Sinton’s Homer,” Milwaukee Sentinel, March 14, 1948, Sports, 1.

61. Seale Doss, “Milwaukee Defeats Texas in Season-Opener, 3–1,” Austin (Texas) American-Statesman, March 14, 1948, 17.

62. George White, “Steer Sports Activities Cover Wide Range of Athletic Effort,” Dallas Morning News, March 14, 1948, 2.

63. “Pyle Wants Money, Flowers Says Sign,” Milwaukee Sentinel, March 14, 1948, Sports, 4.

64. “Texas Bests Brewers, 9–6,” Dallas Morning News, May 16, 1948, 8.

65. Seale Doss, “Texas Blasts Brewers, 9–6,” Austin American-Statesman, March 16, 1948, 15.

66. Red Thisted, “Texas Rips Brewers, 9–6,” Milwaukee Sentinel, March 16, 1948, Sports, 1.

67. Jimmy Banks, “Layne Allows Six Hits In Nine Innings,” The Austin (Texas) American, March 26, 1948, 24.

68. Jimmy Banks, “Longhorns Outslug Ohio State, 12–11 … Layne Helps Wall Win Wild Third Game,” The Austin (Texas) American, March 28, 1948, 17.

69. Jack Gallagher, “Longhorns Wallop Sooners, 18–7,” The Austin (Texas) American, March 30, 1948, 10.

70. “Steers Squeeze by A&M in SWC Opener, 5–4,” The Austin (Texas) American, April 3, 1948, 9.

71. “Texas Edges Aggies, 5–4,” The Houston Post, April 3, 1948, 9.

72. “Longhorns Nose Out Aggies, 5–4,” [AP] San Antonio Express, April 3, 1948, 1A.

73. Jimmy Burks, “Longhorns Edge TCU,” The Austin (Texas) American, April 10, 1948, 8.

74. “Frogs Chase Layne But Lose,” The Houston Post, April 10, 1948, 8.

75. Jimmy Burks, “Longhorns Roll Over Hapless Mustangs, 21–0,” The Austin (Texas) American, April 14, 1948, 15.

76. Morris Frank, “Layne Says Farewell to Rice, 3–0,” The Houston Post, April 24, 1948, 13.

77. “Steers Defeat Rice, 3–0 … Layne Pitches Three-Hitter for 25th Win,” The Austin (Texas) American, April 24, 1948, 6.

78. Jack Gallagher, “Steers Back Layne with 13 Hits, Drub Bears, 8–1,” The Austin (Texas) American, May 2, 1948, 18.

79. “Layne, Steers Throttle SMU Ponies, 8–2,” The Austin (Texas) American, May 8, 1948, 8.

80. Tex Maule, “Steers Clip Ponies, 8–2, as Layne Chalks Up No. 27,” Dallas Morning News, May 8, 1948, 14.

81. The various scenarios resulting from the two-game Steers- Aggies series were as follows: (a) If Texas wins both games, Texas is the SWC champion outright. (b) If Texas A&M wins both games, Texas A&M is the champion outright. (c) If the Longhorns and the Aggies each win one game, then Texas will have to go back to Fort Worth and play the TCU game that was rained out May 10. If Texas wins that game, it is the SWC champion outright; if TCU wins that game, then the Longhorns and Aggies would tie for the SWC title (although Texas could claim bragging rights since it would have won two the three games between the two clubs).

82. Weldon Hart, “16–4 Triumph Clinches Title Tie for Steers,” The Austin (Texas) American, May 15, 1948, 7.

83. “Longhorn Nine Out … Steers Shun NCAA Bid,” The Austin (Texas) American, May 15, 1948, 19.

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Appendix B

Bobby Layne’s Diamond Activity After Texas Completed Its Regular Season in 1947

As shown in Appendix A, Bobby Layne’s last regular-season game in 1947 was on May 14. Texas played its final regular-season game the next day, defeating Texas A&M, 11–9. However, there would be more diamond activity for Layne and the Longhorns.

Immediately after the conclusion of the Longhorn’s regular diamond season, it was reported that “Bobby Layne and Dan Webster, pitcher and catcher, of the University of Texas Longhorns Southwest Conference champion baseball team will play with the Seguin White Sox in the Guadalupe Valley League this summer.”1. However, ten days later the following was reported: “Pitching for the Granger Tigers in the Central Texas League, Bobby Layne has split even in his two starts. He beat the Temple Merchants, 4–0, on six-hit pitching on May 18, but Sunday he fell before Bartlett, 1–4.”2. Then, on June 2, the following was reported: “Bobby Layne, widely-heralded football and baseball performer with the University of Texas, took the box for two innings for the Veribest Cultivator Jockeys in the Concho Basin League against Ozona Sunday and then was forced to leave the game when his right hand was spiked. Layne, who gave up four runs and four hits in his short stretch, was fielding Beecher Montgomery’s bunt down the first base line in the second inning and Montgomery accidentally stepped on his hand.”3.

In a June 11 article in The Austin American it was reported that the four teams competing in the Western playoffs for a trip to the first NCAA Collegiate Baseball World Series would be Texas, Oklahoma, Denver, and California. Denver was subbed for Wyoming when the Big Seven champion withdrew because it was unable to hold its team together. The four college teams competing in the Eastern playoffs would be New York University, Illinois, Yale, and the winner of a southern round-robin which involved Alabama, Auburn, Clemson, and Virginia. It was also mentioned that there was uncertainty surrounding the injury to Bobby Layne’s right hand.4. Subsequently it was reported that Layne “said his hand was completely healed.”5. A few days later the following was reported: “Bobby Layne will go to the box for the University of Texas in its game against the University of Oklahoma in the Western Regional Playoffs in Denver, Co., Friday. If Texas wins that one, and it ought to do so, as it is a better team than Oklahoma, it is apt to lose the next one, as it will not have a pitcher of real merit to go to the box. Texas may lose to Oklahoma unless Layne returns to his college form. In semi-pro games he has been hit hard.”6. Another newspaper article also indicated that the Longhorns might encounter some difficulty in the Western Regional Playoffs—“The Longhorn coach [Bibb Falk] expressed satisfaction with the condition of all players except his pitchers. He indicated that Bobby Layne, ace of the hurling staff, and Charles Tankersley were not in shape. Unless Layne regains his pitching control, Murray Wall and Ellis Wheless will be relied on for most of the pitching chores.”7.

In an AP article (dateline, “Denver, June 19”) published on June 20, i.e., the day of the Texas-vs-Oklahoma game, Ben Funk wrote: “Bobby Layne (11–1) [should be 11–0], who hasn’t lost a Southwestern Conference game in three years, will start for Texas. Opposing him for Oklahoma will be Jack Venable (3–3).”8. However, what actually transpired is described here (from an AP story): “Favored Texas was forced to battle from behind as Oklahoma, after spotting the Longhorns a 7–0 lead, drove their two ace pitchers, Bobby Layne and Murray Wall, off the mound to take a 9–8 lead in the seventh inning. … Charley Tankersley, the second Texas relief pitcher, took care of the Sooners in the eighth and ninth. … The tall, slender Wall, specializing in relief roles, got the opening assignment for Texas and his performance in the first four innings was a masterpiece as he set the Sooners down in one-two-three order. Wall blew sky-high in the fifth as Oklahoma scored four times on one hit, four walks, an error, and a fielder’s choice. Wall went out in the sixth and Layne lasted only one inning [actually, only one-third of an inning], retiring in the seventh with two men on base and nobody down. … Ransom Jackson’s single scored Wall from third to increase Texas’ lead to 8–4 in the sixth but Oklahoma scored one off Wall in the same frame and after Layne replaced Wall, the Sooners pushed home another to make it 8–6. In the seventh, Layne walked Lewis Eubanks and Jim Mitchell on eight pitched balls and had fed Bob Cairns three straight balls when Tankersley came to his relief. Cairns doubled to score Eubanks, Charles Pugsley singled to score Mitchell with the tying run, and when Joe Blake grounded to second, Cairns beat the throw home to put Oklahoma ahead, 9–8.”9. The box score showed that Wall had given up three hits and issued five walks in 5 2/3 innings; Layne had given up two hits and issued two walks in 1/3 of an inning. Texas did manage to rally in the eighth (one run) and ninth (one run) to emerge triumphant, 10–9, and advance to the second round of the Western Regional Playoff.10.

Looking forward to the second-round playoff game between Texas and California (who had defeated Denver, 3–1), the following was reported: “In the championship contest, California will be counting on Virg Butler, who won nine and lost one in Pacific Coast Conference games to bring home the verdict. Texas will probably send Layne to the mound, although the undefeated college hurler looked none too impressive Friday. He was relieved because of wildness.”11. What actually happened is summarized here: Ellis Wheless started for Texas and was replaced by Layne with two outs in the third after being rapped for six runs in that inning. Layne pitched pretty good ball for the remainder of the game (six innings). He was touched for two runs on five hits and three walks; he struck out five. The two runs he gave up were both earned—(a) In the eighth he gave up a single to Ed San Clemente who advanced on a wild pitch and a sacrifice (actually, probably an infield ground out), and scored on a safe-on-fielder’s choice play at the plate, the Longhorns’ catcher juggling the ball as San Clemente was sliding into home. (b) In the ninth, Doug Clayton led off with a single. The next batter, Lyle Palmer, also singled, putting runners on first and second. “Layne bore down to strike out Cliff McClain and Jim Brown and had two strikes on John Fiscalini. … [But] … Fiscalini’s sizzling line drive down the third base line, bringing home Clayton from second with the winning run, spoiled a great relief job by the Longhorn ace, Bobby Layne.” California defeated Texas, 8–7; Layne was shackled with the loss.12–14.

 

NOTES

1. “Layne Joins Semipro Team for Summer,” Fort Worth Star-Telegram, May 16, 1947, 15.

2. Wilbur Evans, “Top of the Morn,” The Austin (Texas) American, May 26, 1947, 7.

3. “Bobby Layne Injured as Ozona Wins,” San Angelo Evening Standard, June 2, 1947, 8.

4. Wilbur Evans, “Top of the Morn,” The Austin (Texas) American, June 11, 1947, 13.

5. Jimmy Banks, “Sportside,” Austin American-Statesman, June 12, 1947, 15.

6. “Jinx’s Hot Shots,” The Waco (Texas) News-Tribune, June 17, 1947, 10.

7. “Steer Baseball Team Crippled,” Amarillo (Texas) Daily News, June 18, 1947, 6.

8. Ben Funk, “Texas, California Favored in NCAA,” The Austin (Texas) American, June 20, 1947, 17.

9. “Steers Win in 9th, 10–9,” The Austin (Texas) American, June 21, 1947, 9.

10. “Sooners Fall 10–9 as Texas Rallies in Ninth Inning,” The Oklahoma Daily, June 21, 1947, 1.

11. “Texas Nips Oklahoma Nine, 10–9,” Austin American-Statesman, June 21, 1947, 7.

12. Phil Gregory, “Cal Nine in NCAA Finals,” Berkeley (California) Daily Gazette, June 23, 1947, 13.

13. “California Edges UT in 9th, 8–7,” The Austin (Texas) American, June 23, 1947, 6.

14. “California, Yale in First Collegiate World Series,” Oakland Tribune, June 23, 1947, 14.

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Appendix C

Information on Bobby Layne’s Mound Mates

Layne pitched in 31 (62%) of the Longhorns 50 SWC games. Layne was the game-starting hurler 28 times. The other 22 games were started by seven other pitchers. Pertinent information for these seven pitchers is given in Table C-1. Collectively, the seven other pitchers compiled a 15–2 W-L ledger as starting pitchers—Bob Dalzell (1–1), A.J. Hamilton (2–0), Fred Brent (1–0), Jim Godfrey (3–1), Charley Tankersley (1–0), Murray Wall (3–0), and Charley Gorin (4–0). Longhorn relief pitchers produced a composite 7–1 W-L record—Bobby Layne (3–0), Murray Wall (3–1), and Ellis Wheless (1–0). The pitcher with the best overall W-L after Layne’s amazing 28–0 was Murray Wall (6–1). Wall went on to pitch in the majors (1950, 1957–59), compiling a 13–14 W-L record.

 

Table C-1. Texas Pitchers Who Started SWC Regular-Season Games (1944, 1946–48).

Pitcher	Seasons	GS	W-L
Bobby Layne	1944 1946 1947 1948	4 7 10 7	4–0 7–0 8–0 6–0
Bobby Layne Total	1944, 1946–48	28	25–0
Bob Dalzell	1944	3	1–1
A.J. Hamilton	1946	3	2–0
Fred Brent	1946	1	1–0
Jim Godfrey	1946 1947	2 3	1–0 2–1
Charley Tankersley	1946 1947	1 1	1–0 0–0
Murray Wall	1947 1948	1 2	1–0 2–0
Charley Gorin	1948	5	4–0
7 Pitchers Total	1944, 1946–48	22	15–2

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Appendix D

Batting and Fielding Stats for Bobby Layne’s SWC Collegiate Games

Table D-1. Bobby Layne’s SWC Batting and Fielding Stats for 1944

Date	OPP	AB	R	H	D	T	HR	RBI	W	PO	A	E
4-21	RIC	4	1	2	—	—	—	1	—	0	1	0
4-22	RIC	2	1	1	1	—	—	2	—	0	0	0
5-11	TAM	2*	0	0	—	—	—	—	—	0	2	0
5-19	RIC*	0*	2	0	—	—	—	—	1	0	0	0
5-20	RIC*	5	1	3*	—	—	—	—	—	0	3	0
Total	5 G	13	5	6	1	—	—	3	1	0	6	0

NOTES: (1) In the “OPP” column, an asterisk indicates the game was played at the opponent’s ballpark. (2) In the “AB” column, an asterisk indicates that Layne also had a sacrifice bunt. (3) In the “H” column, an asterisk indicates that Layne also had a stolen base.

 

Table D-2. Bobby Layne’s SWC Batting and Fielding Stats for 1946

Date	OPP	AB	R	H	D	T	HR	RBI	W	PO	A	E
4-6	BAY	3	0	0	—	—	—	—	1	1	2	0
4-13	RIC*	6	0	2	—	—	—	1	—	0	1	0
4-19	TCU	5	0	0	—	—	—	—	—	0	3	0
4-24	SMU	1	1	0	—	—	—	—	—	0	0	?
5-4	TAM*	4	0	3	—	—	—	—	—	0	1	1
5-8	BAY*	2	0	0	—	—	—	—	—	1	2	0
5-13	RIC	3	0	0	—	—	—	—	—	1	0	?
5-17	TAM	2	0	0	—	—	—	—	1*	0	4	0
5-25	SMU*	3	0	0	—	—	—	—	1	1	2	0
Total	9 G	29	1	5	—	—	—	1	3	4	15	1

NOTES: (1) In the “OPP” column, an asterisk indicates the game was played at the opponent’s ballpark. (2) In the “W” column, an asterisk indicates that Layne also reached base by having been hit by a pitched ball.

 

Table D-3. Bobby Layne’s SWC Batting and Fielding Stats for 1947

Date	OPP	AB	R	H	D	T	HR	RBI	W	PO	A	E
3-27	SMU	4	0	1	—	—	—	2	0*	1	2	0
4-2	RIC*	4	2	1	—	—	—	—	0*	1	2	0
4-11	TAM	1*	0	0	—	—	—	—	0*	0	1	0
4-17	BAY*	5*	1	1	—	—	—	—	0*	0	2	0
4-22	BAY	3	1	0	—	—	—	—	—	0	1	0
4-25	TCU*	4	0	0	—	—	—	—	—	0	0	0
4-28	SMU*	3	0	0	—	—	—	—	1	0	4	2
5-1	RIC	2	0	1	—	—	—	—	—	1	4	0
5-6	TCU	3	1	1	1	—	—	2	1	0	2	0
5-14	TAM*	2	0	1	—	—	—	0	2	0	1	0
Total	10 G	31	5	6	1	—	—	4	4	3	19	2

NOTES: (1) In the “OPP” column, an asterisk indicates the game was played at the opponent’s ballpark. (2) In the “AB” column, an asterisk indicates that Layne also had a sacrifice bunt. (3) In the “W” column, an asterisk indicates that Layne also reached base by having been hit by a pitched ball.

 

Table D-4. Bobby Layne’s SWC Batting and Fielding Stats for 1948

Date	OPP	AB	R	H	D	T	HR	RBI	W	PO	A	E
4-2	TAM*	3	1	0	—	—	—	—	1	0	1	0
4-9	TCU	2	0	1	—	—	—	3	—	0	4	0
4-13	SMU	4	4	2	1	—	—	1	1*	0	2	0
4-23	RIC*	3	0	0	—	—	—	—	1	0	0	0
5-1	BAY	4	0	0	—	—	—	—	—	0	1	0
5-7	SMU*	4	0	1	—	—	—	—	—	0	2	0
5-14	TAM	5	0	1	—	—	—	1	—	0	0	0
Total	7 G	25	5	5	1	—	—	5	3	0	10	0
∑∑	31 G	98	16	22	3	—	—	13	11	7	50	3

NOTES: (1) In the “OPP” column, an asterisk indicates the game was played at the opponent’s ballpark. (2) In the “W” column, an asterisk indicates that Layne also reached base by having been hit by a pitched ball. (3) The ∑∑ row gives the grand total of Layne’s Batting and Fielding stats 1944, 1946–1948).

 

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Appendix E

Game-By-Game Summaries of Bobby Layne’s Professional Baseball Career

A June 10, 1948, article in the Lubbock Morning Avalanche with the headline “Bobby Layne Signs With Hubber Squad” and a sub-headline “Texas U. Athlete Turns Pro” reported “that Layne was signed to a straight playing contract.”1. Layne was the starting pitcher for the Hubbers the very next day.

June 11, 1948—“Layne Loses Initial Start” was the headline for the Associated Press article that appeared in the Beaumont (Texas) Enterprise.2. The brief article reported, “Bobby Layne, the ex-Texas Longhorn football and baseball star, made his initial debut in pro ball here [Lamesa, Texas] for the Lubbock Hubbers and although it was a losing effort he occasioned some eye-brow raising with his performance. Layne struck out 12 men and walked eight as Lamesa defeated Lubbock, 7–6. He allowed eight hits, including a home run by George Sturdivant in the fourth with one on and another circuit clout by Ed Skrabcz in the fifth with none on.” As reported in the Lubbock Morning Avalanche, “Layne didn’t help his own cause with eight bases on balls, four of which came in the three-run first inning. He walked the first three men, gave up a single and double that scored the runs, then eased himself out of trouble.”3. Layne did hurl a complete game.

June 15, 1948—The Amarillo Gold Sox defeated Lubbock, 13–9, in Bobby Layne’s second pro game, played on the Hubbers home field, Rosenthal Field. “Layne was sent to the showers in a five-run fourth.”4. Bobby Layne’s pitching line according to the box score was 3 1–3 IP, 9 R, 8 H, 1 W, 3 SO, 1 HP. Layne was the losing pitcher.

June 18, 1948—Squaring off again against the Lamesa Loboes, this time at Rosenthal Field, Bobby Layne achieved his first professional victory as his Hubbers triumphed, 4–3. Going into the top of the ninth, Lubbock held a 4–1 advantage. However, Jim Skidgel went down swinging, but Walt Buckel lined a single into center field. Chris Hawkins then lofted a drive that cleared the screen in left field for two runs. Henry Melillo grounded out for the second death of the frame, but Jack Burke walked and Tony Fiarito doubled to center field, putting runners as third and second. Hubbers manager Jackie Sullivan yanked Layne at this point and inserted Royce Mills who then struck out George Sturdivant to end the game.  “Layne was in great form last night, throwing a blazing fastball and mixing it up with a sinker that was almost unhittable.”5. He struck out 14 and walked only three.

June 23, 1948—Bobby Layne picked up his second professional victory in his next game, against the Abilene Blue Sox. Again, he needed late-inning help. Going into the top of the eighth inning Layne was in complete control, having allowed just a pair of runs while the Hubbers had tallied nine times. Things changed quickly—Layne walked the first-up batter and a fielding error allowed the next batter to reach first. Gus Stathos then belted a homer over the left field wall to make the score 9–5. Then, “after Layne had pitched up another single, gotten an out on an infield fly, and walked the next batter, he walked to the showers and Royce Mills came in, who got the first batter he faced to bounce into a double play to end the inning.”6. While Abilene managed to add three runs in the ninth, Lubbock came out on top, 9–8, with Layne getting the win.

June 27, 1948—For the fourth straight game Bobby Layne was unable to produce a complete game. In a game against the Borger Gassers, Layne was ineffective and after being tagged for five homers was replaced by Lefty Dale John Grove who earned credit for the 14–10 Lubbock victory.7.

July 2, 1948—“Bobby Layne had everything last night that they said he didn’t have in the Southwest Conference and behind his masterful five-hit hurling, the Lubbock Hubbers rolled to their eighth straight victory, a 7–0 whitewashing of the Clovis Pioneers.”8. “Layne showed more control and more stuff than he has in any of his other starts. He had good curves, a sharp sinker, and a beautiful change of pace that confused the Pioneers constantly.” His pitching line was 9.0 IP, 5 H, 1 W, 8 SO.

July 7, 1948—It was another pretty-good game for Bobby Layne when he took the mound against the Albuquerque Dukes. However, he was saddled with the loss as the Hubbers bats were relatively silent. Trailing 3–2 after going into the last of the seventh, Layne was pinch hit for. The Dukes eventually won the game, 5–2. In his seven innings Layne gave up only six hits, but they were well-placed. In the first frame, “Will Dixon doubled to center with two away, went to third on a wild pitch, and scored on Hershel Martin’s single after Ron Bowen had walked.”9. In the fourth frame Leonard Pill led off with a single, went around to third on Dick Dawson’s sacrifice and Lester Mulcahy’s infield out, and then trotted in ahead of Frank Shone after he hit a 3–0 pitch over the fence for his home run.” Layne walked six and struck out six.

July 11, 1948—Thanks to a powerhouse offense put on by the Hubbers, Bobby Layne was able earn a complete game victory despite being rapped for rapped for ten hits and issuing a dozen bases on balls. Lubbock defeated the Clovis Pioneers three touchdowns to three field goals—21–9. Layne fanned eight.10.

July 15, 1948—The Pampa Oilers got the best of Bobby Layne, 7–6. He opened the game by hitting leadoff batter R.C. Otey with a pitched ball. Otey was forced at second by Bob Bedford, who was forced by Dave Teyema, who was caught in a hot box. In the rundown, Hubber second baseman threw wildly and Teyema went all the way to third; he then scored on Jack Riley’s single. Lubbock’s Virgil Richardson gave Layne a 3–1 lead in the third stanza when he clouted a homer with two men on the bases. But Layne couldn’t hold the advantage, being touched for a pair of tallies in the fourth, a single marker in the fifth, and three runs in the sixth. Layne left the game when he was pinch hit for in the top of the eighth.11.

July 18, 1948—“Bobby Layne, displaying one of his better mound performances, held the heavy-hitting Oilers to six hits, four of which they bunched in the second inning for a temporary 4–1 lead. After that Layne grew stronger, although he wiped his brow after every pitch, the heat was so intense.”12. Despite the blazing heat Layne turned in a complete-game effort to emerge with a 10–4 victory. He struck out seven and walked only one in twirling a six-hitter.

July 22, 1948—In his penultimate professional diamond game, Bobby Layne came up with the W in spite being shelled for 12 runs in eight and a third innings by the Lamesa Loboes. He surrendered 15 hits and walked seven while fanning only two. Fortunately for Layne, his teammates had very productive at bats—16 runs on 19 hits.13.

July 25, 1948—“As for the Hubbers, Bobby Layne yesterday should have reported to the Chicago Football Bears. He couldn’t pitch the Hubbers to victory and he gave up three touchdowns during the course of a dreary Sunday afternoon. Bobby leaves Wednesday to report to the Bears and he should have little trouble getting accustomed to the gridiron again. After what he has been through, he can take anything they throw at him.”14. In his final professional baseball game he pitched for just two-thirds of an inning, yielding five hits and walking three; each of the eight baserunners scored.

Table E summarizes the pitching stats Bobby Layne assembled in his professional baseball career on a game-by-game basis.

 

Table E. Bobby Layne’s Performance Stats with the Lubbock Hubbers (1948)

Game Date	OPP	IP (S/R)	R	H	W	K	W/L
6-11	LAM*	9.0 (S*)	7	8	8	12	L
6-15	AMA	3.1 (S)	9	8	8	3	L
6-18	LAM	8.2 (S)	3	9	3	14	W
6-23	ABI	7.1 (S)	5	7	5	4	W
6-27	BOR*	?.? (S)	?	?	1	5	—
7-2	CLO	9.0 (S*)	0	5	1	8	W
7-7	ALB	7.0 (S)	3	6	6	6	L
7-11	CLO*	9.0 (S*)	9	10	12	8	W
7-15	PAM*	7.0 (S)	7	8	6	4	L
7-18	PAM	9.0 (S*)	4	6	1	7	W
7-22	LAM*	8.1 (S)	12	15	7	2	W
7-25	ABI*	0.2 (S)	8	5	3	0	L

 NOTES: (1) The stats shown were culled from the relevant text accounts and box scores given in the newspaper game accounts (See notes 2–14). (2) The “OPP” column gives the opposing team—LAM (Lamesa); AMA (Amarillo); ABI (Abilene); BOR (Borger); CLO (Clovis); ALB (Albuquerque); PAM (Pampa). An asterisk indicates the game was played at the opponent’s ballpark.

 

APPENDIX E NOTES

1. “Bobby Layne Signs With Hubber Squad,” Lubbock Morning Avalanche, June 10, 1948, 8.

2. “Layne Loses Initial Start,”Beaumont (Texas) Enterprise, June 12, 1948, 8.

3. “Layne Loses Initial Game to Lamesa 7–6,” Lubbock Morning Avalanche, June 12, 1948, 8.

4. “Amarillo Trips Hubbers, 13–9, Lubbock Morning Avalanche, June 16, 1948, 7.

5. “Hubbers Edge Lamesa, 4–3 … Bobby Layne Whiffs 14 Batters to Notch First Mound Triumph,” Lubbock Morning Avalanche, June 19, 1948, 8.

6. “Hubs Win Again Behind Layne,” Lubbock Morning Avalanche, June 24, 1948, 8.

7. “Hubbers Are In First Division Again With Win Over Borger,” Lubbock Evening Journal, June 28, 1948, 3.

8. Joe Kelly, “Bobby Layne Blanks Clovis Pioneers, 7–0,” Lubbock Morning Avalanche, July 3, 1948, 3.

9. “Frank Shone Beats Lubbock Hubbers, 5–2,” Albuquerque Journal, July 8, 1948, 6.

10. “Hubs Blast Clovis, 21–9, on Sunday,” Lubbock Morning Avalanche, July 12, 1948, 3.

11. “Richardson Tops Lubbock Hitters,” Lubbock Morning Avalanche, July 16, 1948, 7.

12. “Hubbers Back in Win Column at Home to Lick Pampa, 10–4,” Lubbock Morning Avalanche, July 19, 1948, 3.

13. “Hubs Take Slugfest From Lamesa, 16–12” Lubbock Morning Avalanche, July 23, 1948, 4.

14. “Abilene Gives Hubbers Sound Drubbing, 21–8,” Lubbock Morning Avalanche, July 26, 1948, 3.