Books and articles about Addie Joss

Contemporaries of 6'3" Addie Joss admired him as much as almost anyone who ever put on a major league uniform. His untimely death from an attack of tubercular meningitis in April 1911 shocked the baseball world; Cleveland's opener in Detroit was postponed due to funeral services in Toledo. So well thought of was Joss that the top AL players of the day formed an all-star team to play the Indians for the benefit of his widow.

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After winning 25 games in his second pro season at Toledo (Western Association), Joss pitched a one-hitter in his 1902 debut. He led the AL with five shutouts that season, and he won at least 20 games each year from 1905 through 1908. His career-high 27 victories in 1907 tied him for the AL lead with Chicago's Doc White. Joss used a good fastball and an exceptional curve to five times record ERAs of 1.83 or less. His 1908 league-leading ERA of 1.16 is the eighth-lowest ever. On October 2, 1908 Joss and Chicago's 40-game winner, Big Ed Walsh, squared off in one of the game's most memorable pitching duels. Cleveland, Chicago, and Detroit (who ultimately prevailed) were locked in a pennant race, adding to the tension of the contest. Walsh tossed a four-hitter, striking out 15 and allowing only one run. Joss, however, was even better, setting down 27 straight for a perfect game. Two years later, he no-hit the White Sox again.

Perhaps most remarkable of Joss's feats was his completion of 234 of his 260 starts. In his final season he was plagued by arm injuries, making just 13 appearances. His lifetime 1.88 ERA ranks second all-time to Ed Walsh's 1.82. Joss pitched only nine years; it was his ERA that convinced the Veterans Committee to bend the 10-year career minimum rule and let him into the Hall of Fame. (EW)

FROM THE BASEBALL CHRONOLOGY » April 26, 1902: In his ML debut, Cleveland's Addie Joss hurls a one-hitter against the Browns to win 3-0. The only hit is a scratch single by Jesse Burkett. » June 22, 1902: Cleveland plays its 3rd straight Sunday game in a minor park, this time in Ft. Wayne, Indiana. Cleveland beats Washington, 6-4, behind Addie Joss. » August 31, 1902: In Ft. Wayne, Indiana, a Sunday crowd of 3,500 watch a matchup of Cleveland's Addie Joss and Boston's Cy Young. Boston pushes over two runs in the 11th to win, 3-1. » May 17, 1903: With Sunday baseball banned in Cleveland, the Blues and Highlanders play at Columbus, Ohio. with Cleveland's Addie Joss defeating Clark Griffith , 9-2. Dave Fultz is not in New York's lineup today because he opposes Sunday baseball. » July 15, 1903: With ground rules limiting hits into the crowds to three bases, Cy Young drives home Lou Criger in the 10th inning for a 4-3 win over visiting Cleveland. Addie Joss takes the loss. » May 4, 1904: At Detroit, Cleveland starter John Hickey loads the bases in the 5th and is lifted for Addie Joss, who gives up a bases-clearing triple. Addie holds the Tigers scoreless after that, but the 3-2 loss-according to the ruling at the time-goes to Joss [this loss will bounce back and forth between the two pitchers]. » September 4, 1907: For his 32nd birthday tomorrow, Cleveland fans give manager Nap Lajoie a wagon load of gifts, including a live black sheep. Addie Joss pitches a one-hitter against Detroit. » September 26, 1907: After Cleveland's Addie Joss fired a one-hitter against the Highlanders yesterday, teammate Heinie Berger matches him today, also against hapless New York. Thsi is the 2nd time this century that teammates have thrown back-to-back one-hitters (as noted by Steve Boren). » October 2, 1908: In a great pitching duel, Ed Walsh is almost perfect, giving up four hits and striking out 15 in eight innings, but Cleveland's Addie Joss is perfect, setting down 27 straight White Sox for a 1–0 victory. The only run scores on a passed ball by Ossee Schreckengost. It is the high point of Joss's career. He will finish 24–12 with a 1.16 ERA. » May 20, 1909: After five losses, Walter Johnson picks up his first win, outdueling Cleveland's Addie Joss 3-2. Johnson strikes out 10 and drives in the winning run. » May 27, 1909: In a game featuring a record-setting 44 assists by both teams (as noted by historian Joe Dittmar), the Naps nip the Browns, 5-2. The NL high assist marks of April 23, 1903 and May 15, 1909 (NY vs. Cin) fall short of today's record. Addie Joss for Cleveland and Barney Pelty for St. Louis are the pitchers as each team records 22 assists. » April 20, 1910: Cleveland's Addie Joss pitches his 2nd no-hitter 1–0 over Chicago. Joss's 10 assists help prevent any infield spoilers. Terry Turner's 6th inning double off Doc White scores the Naps only run. » April 14, 1911: Cleveland's great pitcher Addie Joss dies unexpectedly from tubercular meningitis. Beset with arm injuries last season, Joss made just 13 appearances last year, but his career ERA of 1.88, compiled in nine seasons, will earn him a plaque in Cooperstown. » April 17, 1911: Addie Joss's funeral is held at Toledo with Billy Sunday preaching the sermon. The funeral is the 2nd largest in the city's history. His Cleveland teammates insist on being there, forcing postponement of the season opener. » July 24, 1911: An AL all-star team plays the Naps in Cleveland, raising $12,914 for the late Addie Joss's family. The all-stars win 5–3. Joe Wood and Walter Johnson pitch for the all stars, while Cy Young twirls for the Naps. » August 8, 1946: A single by Frank Hayes deprives Bob Feller of a no-hitter against the White Sox. Hayes was traded by Cleveland in June, just weeks after catching Feller's April 30th no-hitter. It it the eighth one-hitter of Feller's career. His 10 games of less than two hits better Addie Joss's old mark of 9. » January 30, 1978: Former P Addie Joss and former executive Larry MacPhail are voted into the Hall of Fame by the Special Veterans Committee. » August 7, 1978: Eddie Mathews, Addie Joss, and Larry MacPhail are inducted at Cooperstown.