Lou Koupal

A 22-win season in his second year of professional baseball earned righthander Lou Koupal a trial with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1925. The eventual World Champions featured a starting rotation of Lee Meadows, Ray Kremer, Vic Aldridge, Johnny Morrison, and Emil Yde, so the inexperienced Koupal was unable to get consistent work. He later also had brief trials with the Brooklyn Robins (in 1928-29) and Philadelphia Phillies (in 1929-30) before returning to the minors.

After that, Koupal bounced around the International and Pacific Coast Leagues for five more seasons with modest success. Something as simple as a tonsillectomy alleviated shoulder ailments that had plagued Koupal for years, and at age 37 he won 23 games for the Seattle Indians. This afforded him one more shot at the major leagues. After a six-year hiatus, Koupal finished his major-league career with the St. Louis Browns in 1937.

Louis Laddie Koupal (pronounced KO-ple) was born on December 19, 1898, in Tabor, South Dakota, a small town in the southeast corner of the state near Yankton. His parents, Matthias (or Matej) and Anna (Cuka), were both immigrants from the Czech Republic of Bohemian ancestry. Matthias was a farmer. Louis was the youngest of 12 children; he had seven older brothers and four older sisters. The source of his rather unusual middle name is not known.

Nothing is known of Koupal’s childhood. However, by the time he registered for the draft in November 1918, at about 19 years of age, he was working as a bookkeeper in a bank.

The first reports of Koupal playing ball were from 1919, when he was listed as a pitcher for the local town team, with his brother Will as left fielder. In 1920 he pitched a 16-strikeout 5-0 shutout that the local newspaper, the Tabor Independent, called, “the prettiest exhibition of pitching ever seen in these parts.”1 In November 1920, Louis married Beatrice Udlineck. At the time he was employed as an assistant cashier at the Farmer’s Savings Bank in Tabor.2

As Koupal’s reputation grew, he began accepting pitching offers from other area teams in South Dakota and northern Nebraska. He began his professional career with Hastings of the Class D Nebraska State League in 1923 and went 11-15 in 30 games. After the season he was drafted by Fort Smith, Arkansas of the Western Association – but the claim was disallowed by Secretary J. H. Farrell3 because he had earlier been purchased by Omaha of the Class A Western League. In 1924, Koupal’s 22-10 record helped the Buffalos to a 103-61 record and the Western League pennant. Koupal was named to the league’s postseason all-star team.

During that summer, major-league scouts, including Branch Rickey of the Cardinals, came to Omaha to look over the prospect.4 In December 1924, upon a recommendation by chief scout Chick Fraser, Koupal was sold to the Pittsburgh Pirates for cash considerations – said to be “a considerable wad of greenbacks”5 – and pitcher Robert Burns.6 Earlier, Koupal’s Omaha teammate Fresco Thompson had also been acquired by the Pirates. To make room for Koupal, Pittsburgh manager Bill McKechnie released veteran pitcher Jeff Pfeffer.7

Koupal was one of 13 pitchers taken to spring training in Paso Robles, California by the Pirates. After getting their first look at the 5-foot-11, 175-pound Koupal, Pittsburgh writers noted that he possessed “a natural snap delivery, a very deceptive fast ball with a big hop and a sharp breaking curve.” They added that they liked his “unassuming personality, his perceptible nerve, and exceptional coolness under fire.”8 Despite battling a sore arm for part of camp, Koupal made the Pittsburgh opening day roster.

He made his major-league debut against the Cubs in Chicago on April 17. The Cubs hammered Pirates starter Johnny Morrison for seven runs before Koupal replaced him with one out and runners on second and third in the fourth inning. He allowed the two inherited runners to score but held Chicago to just two hits and a walk in 2 2/3 innings before being lifted for a pinch-hitter. Koupal appeared in five more games over the next month, all in relief, but in June was sent to the Kansas City Blues of the American Association under an option agreement.9 He went 1-4 for the Blues before being sent to the Des Moines Demons of the Western League in August in a deal that had Des Moines pitcher Red Oldham going to Pittsburgh.10 Koupal is not shown on the Des Moines roster in Baseball-Reference but season-end statistics published by the league show that he had a 3-6 record.11

The Pirates, coming off a World Series championship in which they defeated the Washington Senators in seven games, invited Koupal to spring training in 1926. His fate seemed to have been sealed when Pittsburgh writers labeled him a disappointment saying, “he failed to show any improvement this spring.”12 An undisclosed illness the previous fall, which resulted in a lengthy hospitalization in Kansas City, may have been a factor. Nonetheless, right before the season the Pirates optioned him to Buffalo of the International League. He had an 8-2 record by early July when Fred Clarke, by then working as a scout for the Pirates, came to Buffalo to look him over, Technically, the Pirates could have recalled him at any time but the Bisons were battling Baltimore for the league lead, so Pittsburgh waited until late August to bring him back to Pittsburgh.

At the time, the Pirates were still in a four-way pennant race with St. Louis, Cincinnati, and Chicago. After a scoreless relief appearance on September 1, Koupal got his first major-league start three days later in Chicago in the second game of a doubleheader. He pitched well but lost a 3-2 decision to the Cubs’ Percy Jones. Koupal again started against the Cubs, on September 9 in Pittsburgh, but surrendered three earned runs in 3 1/3 innings and was charged with the 10-1 loss.

In November 1926, Pittsburgh dealt Koupal and outfielder Walter “Heinie” Mueller to Indianapolis of the American Association to complete a deal for pitcher Carmen Hill, whom the Pirates had obtained from the Indians the previous season for their pennant chase.13 That winter Koupal participated in a game against the Los Angeles Angels of the PCL as a fund-raiser for the Association of Professional Baseball Players of America. While in Southern California he also pitched for Pirrone’s All-Stars and tossed a no-hitter against the Philadelphia Royal Colored Giants.

Koupal had a pedestrian 13-14 record with a 4.58 ERA in 40 games for Indianapolis – but that apparently was good enough to convince the Brooklyn Robins to acquire him in the Rule 5 draft.14 It was hoped that a change of scenery might help Koupal become an effective major-league pitcher. During spring training, he impressed with a sinking fastball and a “cleverly masked delivery. He seems to shoot his pitch out of the front of his shirt and batters aren’t able to gauge it until it is right on top of them”15 Manager Wilbert Robinson added, “That’s a dude of a curve, and this chap [Koupal] seems to be one of those fellows who uses his head on the hill. I can see that now. He’s in there thinking all the time. If he has control and doesn’t get a sore arm, he’ll find plenty for him to do down here.”16

Koupal made the club out of spring training but, for whatever reason, spent most of the first half of the season as the team’s batting practice pitcher. He made 16 relief appearances over the second half and got his only start on September 27 against Pittsburgh. He defeated his former Pirate teammates 8-1. Overall, Koupal had a very impressive 2.41 ERA, albeit in just 37 1/3 innings.

He returned to Brooklyn in 1929 and appeared in 18 games over the first half of the season. In mid-July the Robins purchased pitcher Luther Roy from Philadelphia; to make room, Koupal was sent to the Phillies for the waiver price.17 He got a chance to take a regular turn in the Phillies’ starting rotation and went 5-5. Koupal’s two best games were a 6-2 win over the Pirates on July 31 and a 4-1 win over the Cardinals on September 7.

Koupal opened the 1930 season with Philadelphia but was used sparingly and was ineffective when he did pitch. He was 0-4 with an 8.59 ERA18 when he was sold to the Baltimore Orioles of the American Association in July. Koupal went 7-4 the rest of the season but pitched poorly for the Orioles again in 1931 (7-8, 5.51 ERA). In December Baltimore sold him on an option agreement to the Mission Reds of the Pacific Coast League. The move was welcomed by Koupal, who had been playing winter ball in California for several years.

That offseason it was discovered that the source of Koupal’s trouble the past few seasons was infected tonsils. After finally having them removed, he said, “Physically, I feel better than I have since I started to play ball. For years I would start the game with lots of life but would lose it as the game went on. I couldn’t understand what was wrong with me, but after my tonsils were out, I felt like a new man.”19

Shortly after the season began, however, he was sent to the Portland Beavers, an affiliate of the Phillies in the PCL. Having become healthy, he ended up with a record of 16-6, including eight complete games, and his winning percentage (.727) was third-best in the league.20 Koupal had another strong season with Portland in 1933, going 16-9. In January, however, Portland traded him to the Sacramento Senators for 21-game winner Ed Bryan.

Koupal posted losing records (11-15 and 12-19) in 1934 and 1935 with Sacramento and had identical earned run averages (3.95) in both seasons. After two seasons in Sacramento, in November 1935, Koupal was traded to the Seattle Indians, his fourth PCL team. Catcher John Bottarini was sent to Sacramento in exchange for Koupal and pitcher Paul Gregory.21 Having turned 37 years old22 that previous winter, Koupal had the best season of his career, going 23-11 with 25 complete games. His 2.69 ERA was second-best among league pitchers who qualified.23

Despite Koupal’s advanced age, his stellar season caught the attention of major-league managers, namely Rogers Hornsby with St. Louis. In January 1937 the Browns purchased him, upon the recommendation of their West Coast scout Willis Butler, in a deal that sent cash and pitcher Roy Mahaffey to Seattle.24 Hornsby explained, “We may not be fully understood by the fans in acquiring a man 35 years old25, but our only hope for the present lies in trying to pick up experienced hurlers from the higher minors.”26 He added, “I think an experienced man like Koupal will help us. Pitchers of any kind are scarce and I think I would rather gamble on a veteran than a raw recruit.”27

After a brief contract holdout that spring, Koupal continued to experience bad luck. He broke a finger on his pitching hand while warming up and nursed a sore arm. Therefore, he was used sparingly during the first half of the 1937 season, making just nine relief appearances through July 5. The Browns had finished 57-95-3 in 1936 and would have an even worse year in 1937, playing before very sparse crowds. In July Hornsby was replaced by Jim Bottomley, who inserted Koupal into the starting rotation on July 11. Results were not much better. Koupal stayed with the club all season but finished 4-9 with a 6.56 ERA. The Browns ended up 46-108-2, last in the American League. He returned to the West Coast when St. Louis sold him to the San Francisco Seals for $5,000 that December.28

Koupal’s final stint in St. Louis wrapped up his rather unusual major-league career. In six seasons, spread out between 1925 and 1937 with four different teams in both leagues, Koupal pitched in 101 games. He had a record of 10-21 with a 5.58 earned run average. His lack of success can be traced by modern pitching metrics such as WHIP and BB/SO ratios. Koupal surrendered 436 hits in 335 1/3 innings pitched and struck out just 87 while allowing 156 bases on balls.

Age, injuries, and illness (a bout of lead poisoning) resulted in two sub-.500 seasons with the Seals. Nonetheless, Koupal appreciated the opportunity from manager Lefty O’Doul. After the 1939 season, he told his skipper, “Frank, I want to tell you sincerely that you are the best manager I ever played under, and I appreciate the fact that even when I was going bad – and I know it hurt – you never once said an unkind word to me.”29

Koupal was released by San Francisco in January 1940 and played two more seasons, 1940 with Tacoma of the Western International League and 1941 with the Merced Bears in the Class C California League. He was, however, referred to as a “utility pitcher,” his primary role being a coach and mentor to younger pitchers.30 Koupal played at least one more season in 1942 for the semipro California Shipbuilding Company in Los Angeles, where he worked during World War II.

Lou and his wife Beatrice had two sons, Roman Robert (born in 1922) and Wilbert Lewis (1923). Both enlisted in the Marine Corps during the war. Roman was aboard the U.S.S. Tennessee during the bombing of Pearl Harbor and later saw action in the battles of the Coral Sea and Midway.

After retiring from baseball, Lou Koupal worked as a carpenter for 16 years before contracting lung cancer.31 He died of pneumonia on December 8, 1961, at Community Hospital in San Gabriel, California, not long before his 63rd birthday. Koupal was survived by his wife, two sons, and seven grandchildren and was buried at Resurrection Cemetery in Montebello, California.

Acknowledgments

This biography was reviewed by Darren Gibson and Rory Costello and fact-checked by Dan Schoenholz.

Photo credit: Trading Card DB.

Sources

Unless otherwise noted, statistics from Koupal’s playing career are taken from Baseball-Reference.com and genealogical and family history was obtained from Ancestry.com. The author also used information from clippings in Koupal’s file at the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Notes

1 Tabor (South Dakota) Independent, July 1, 1920: 9.

2 Tabor (South Dakota) Independent, November 4, 1920: 2.

3 “Southern Club Sought Hurler Burch Bought,” Omaha World Herald, August 9, 1924: 12.

4 “Sandy’s Dope,” Omaha World Herald, August 9, 1924: 12.

5 “Barney Burch Sells Pitcher Louie Koupal to Pittsburgh Nationals.” Omaha Bee, December 14, 1924: 16. Koupal’s Baseball-Reference page states that the purchase price was $40,000.

6 “Mound Star Goes to Pitt in Deal,” Omaha World Herald, December 14, 1924: 23. According to Omaha teammate Fresco Thompson, “Omaha Rookie Says He Will Play Second for Buccos,” Pittsburgh Post, January 22, 1925: 2., both the St. Louis Browns and Washington Senators offered $25,000 and $40,000 worth of players for Koupal. Barney Dreyfuss of Pittsburgh matched that offer and Omaha owner Barney Burch accepted because he liked the players offered by the Pirates better. Another source, San Francisco Chronicle, March 25, 1925: 27, said the purchase price for Koupal was $25,000. Another source, “Bisons Obtain Lou Koupal Former Pirate Twirler,” Buffalo (NY) News, April 8, 1926: 30, called Koupal, “the $75,000 beauty.” Still another source, “Barney Has Profited,” Omaha World Herald, August 1, 1929: 31, suggested that Koupal and Thompson were a part of the same deal and Pittsburgh paid $42,000 for the pair.

7 “Big Jeff Dropped from Bucco Staff: Young Star Added,” Pittsburgh Post, December 4, 1924: 26.

8 “Pirate Scouts Praise Louie Koupal, Hurling Phenom of Omaha Fame,” Pittsburgh Post, February 15, 1925: 25.

9 “The Blues Get a Pitcher,” Kansas City Star, June 21, 1925: 10.

10 “Pirates Buy Oldham,” Erie (Pennsylvania) Times, August 11, 1925: 14.

11 “Western League Batting Averages,” Lincoln (Nebraska) Star, October 4, 1925: 12.

12 “Koupal Has Proved Disappointment to Corsairs Manager,” Pittsburgh Press, March 22, 1926: 23.

13 Koupal’s Baseball-Reference page states that he was sold to Indianapolis, but the transaction was actually a trade. “Pitcher Koupal and Outfielder Mueller Secured in Hill Deal,” Indianapolis Times, November 23, 1926: 15.

14 “Tribe Loses Louis Koupal to Brooklyn,” Indianapolis Times, October 5, 1927: 13.

15 “Fast Ball, Masked Delivery are Chief Assets of Hurler,” Brooklyn Standard Union, March 3, 1928:8.

16 “Koupal Impresses Robbie,” Brooklyn Daily Eagle, March 3, 1928: 0.

17 Koupal’s Baseball-Reference page lists this as a trade, but it was actually two separate transactions. “Robins Purchase and Sell Pitchers,” Denver Post, July 21, 1929: 34.

18 Koupal’s 1930 season totals in Baseball-Reference and Retrosheet have slightly difference innings pitched and earned runs totals than the sum of his 13 game logs, resulting in a different ERA.

19 “Pitcher Koupal Signs Contract with Missions,” San Francisco Examiner, February 3, 1932: 21.

20 “Jimmy Deshong Leads Coast League Hurlers,” Sacramento Bee, December 14, 1932: 20.

21 “Pitchers Gregory and Koupal are Traded for Tribe’s Catcher Bottarini,” Sacramento Bee, November 14, 1935: 22.

22 Contemporary news reports said he was 33 or 35 years old. One newspaper report, “Back After Long Detour,” The Sporting News, January 14, 1937: 6, gave a birth date of December 19, 1901, but his WWI draft card and grave marker both show a birth year of 1898. The likely explanation was that Koupal shaved a few years off his age.

23 “Veteran Trio Paced Coast League Pitchers in Effectiveness,” The Sporting News, January 14, 1937: 8.

24 “Seattle Sells Koupal to St. Louis,” Tacoma Daily Ledger, January 10, 1937: 17

25 See note 22.

26 “Breadon Optimistic, But Won’t Say Flag,” The Sporting News, January 14, 1937: 3.

27 “Seattle Sells Koupal to St. Louis.”

28 “Lou Koupal Goes to San Francisco,” Seattle Star, December 6, 1937: 6.

29 “Lou Koupal Balks at Salary,” San Francisco Examiner, February 1, 1939: 16.

30 “21 Players Start Season for Bears,” Merced (California) Express, April 21, 1941: 1.

31 David Trombley, “Major League’s South Dakota Born Players,” (https://usfamily.net/web/trombleyd/SD%20Born.htm#Lou%20Koupal).