Quote:
Originally Posted by PilotMan
Wow! Talk about not getting his chance. He had lots of promise in '37 and '38. Mighty impressive speed there.
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I agree. Boston must've had a lot of outfielders they liked better. Alas... we have to move on.
2035 - RP Gene Daugherty (Philadelphia)
This righty was drafted out of high school. He got a fair number of strikeouts with his live arm, but his pitches weren't terribly tricky, so he gave up some hits. He made normal, steady progress through the minors and made his debut for the Phillies in '40. In his first three years ('40-'42), he combined for 17 games, 28 2/3 innings, 14 earned runs, 4 walks, and 23 Ks. He was about ready to take the league by storm. And he did, sort of, in 2043. He was named to the All-Star team - 57 games, 93 1/3 innings, 6-2, 2.31. He had only two saves, so he must have been in a setup role all season. That's pretty much how he pitched the next several seasons, though the ERA went up and down with his proclivity for surrendering gopher balls and such. He went to arbitration after the '45 season, but signed with Atlanta in time for the 2047 season. He made the All-Star team again that season and in '48 helped bring a NL championship to Peachtree Land. Alas, in the '49 season, his control started to slip and he grooved the ball in a few too many times (9 HRs in 36 IP), which sent his ERA to near 5. The Braves decided they could do without him and didn't re-sign him. As of 4/1/50, he remains unsigned. He's asking for over $7 million a year, and even with inflation, he's not worth it. His major league career is about over, but it's been a good one.
Since Daugherty is the first guy that's still active, we get more detail on his career scouting. His peak potential rating was about 89, but he never got that high. His best actual rating came a few years later and was an 83. That's not bad. He's currently rated 73/73, which is major league fringe at best.
Daugherty pitched 399 games in the bigs, all in relief. He was 32-25, 3.28 with 10 saves. He was 1-0, 5.40 in 6 playoff appearances.
NEXT: Toronto takes a pitcher as a streak ends.