Jackson: Koob and Groom double down for the Browns
From SABR member Frank Jackson at The Hardball Times on March 22, 2019:
Of all the pitchers who authored no-hitters, the consensus seems to be the most unlikely of all was the one thrown by Bobo Holloman of the Browns. His career was one season and just 65.1 inning long. He had a 5.23 ERA and a 3-7 record in 22 games. Yet, in his first start, he somehow threw a no-hitter.
Holloman’s no-no, however, is not the least likely no-hit achievement in Browns history. In 1917, an even less likely event–or should I say events–occurred. In fact, it would have been headline news no matter what team achieved it.
The 1916 season had been one of promise for the Browns, as they finished at 79-75, ending a skid of seven consecutive losing seasons. At the dawn of Saturday, May 5, 1917, they were 8-8. The next few games would provide cause for optimism: two Browns’ starting pitchers hurled no-hitters on consecutive days. Even more amazing, their masterpieces came against the Chicago White Sox, who went on to win the World Series that year. Two years later, most of the players held hitless (Buck Weaver, Happy Felsch, Joe Jackson Chick Gandil, Swede Risberg, and Ed Cicotte) would be implicated in the Black Sox scandal. Presumably, no one paid them to take a dive against the Browns.
Read the full article here: https://tht.fangraphs.com/koob-and-groom-double-down-for-the-browns/
- Related link: Read our SABR Games Project stories on Ernie Koob and Bob Groom’s no-hitters in 1917
Originally published: March 29, 2019. Last Updated: March 29, 2019.