Books and articles about Red Lucas

Lucas broke in as a pitcher but lacked a good fastball, so efforts were made to convert him into an infielder to take advantage of his hitting ability. His exceptional control eventually made him a top NL righthander, but his reputation as a good-hitting pitcher far overshadowed his accomplishments on the mound. He won 109 games for the perennial second-division Reds from 1926 through 1933, with highs of 18 in 1927 and 19 in 1929. In 1933 he walked only 18 in 220 innings, and his 1.61 bases on balls per nine innings places him 20th all-time.

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In 1929, '31, and '32 he led the NL in complete games and in one stretch in 1931-32 completed 27 consecutive starts, a modern record. For his career he completed 68% of 301 starts. Among his best-pitched games were a 15-inning, 1-0 win over the Giants (7/16/33) and a 3-0 win over the Dodgers (7/22/27) in which he issued no walks, faced the minimum 27 batters, and gave up only one scratch hit.

His career batting average was .281 and his 114 pinch hits and 437 pinch at-bats (a .261 average) were ML records for many years. He still ranks in the top ten in both categories. (LRD)

FROM THE BASEBALL CHRONOLOGY » July 22, 1927: Red Lucas of the Reds pitches a 3-0 one-hitter against Dazzy Vance and the Dodgers. The "hit" is a sixth-inning grounder by Hank DeBerry which goes between the legs of Cincinnati 2B Hughie Critz. » May 10, 1929: The visiting Reds beat the Braves, 5–2, behind Red Lucas. Joe Stripp homers for Cincy, which scores another 3 unearned runs on Maranville’s 1st error of the year. Boston’s Lester Bell homers and teammate CF Earl Clark sets 2 NL records that will last the century: most putouts in a game (12) and most chances (13). » May 26, 1929: St. Louis veteran Pete Alexander tosses a five hitter at the Reds and wins 5–2. Red Lucas takes the loss. » August 25, 1929: The second largest crowd ever to pack the Reds' ballpark—35,432—watches their team split a pair with the pennant-bound Cubs. The Reds win the opener, 6–3, behind Red Lucas' 17th victory, while Guy Bush wins his 18th in the nitecap, 10–1. » October 6, 1929: At Boston, the Giants close the season by beating the Braves, 9–4. In the 9th, the Braves put in two coaches, Johnny Evers at 2B and Hank Gowdy at catcher, Gowdy's 10th game of the year. Roy Parmelee is the winner with Red Lucas pitching the last four innings. Lucas leads the National League in complete games (28) and pinch hits: Lucas hits .293 in 140 at bats. » August 22, 1930: Dazzy Vance is given little support against the Reds. Pitcher Red Lucas' fly ball in the 8th is misjudged and two runs score, and Brooklyn loses, 4–1. » July 16, 1933: Red Lucas of the Reds pitches a 15-inning 1-0 win over Roy Parmelee and the Giants in the opener of a doubleheader. » September 3, 1933: At Cincinnati, the Reds clip the Pirates, 9–3, the first loss for the Bucs in nine games. The Pirates now trail the Giants by eight games. Red Lucas goes all the way for the win, as the Reds shell rookie Ralph Birkofer. After the game, Edd Roush's old-timers defeat Buck Herzog's Nine, 8–5, called after five innings on account of "tiredness." Ninety three old timers turn out and about half take a turn at the plate. Roush's squad includes Pat Duncan, Larry Kopf, Bill Rariden, and Rube Bressler, all stars on the Reds 1919 team. Donie Bush and Honus Wagner are the shortstops. » November 17, 1933: Pittsburgh sends Alan Comorosky and Tony Piet to Cincinnati in exchange for P Red Lucas. As a pitcher, Lucas will feast on the Reds over the rest of his career, going 14–0 against them. Piet hit .323 for the season, but was in the doghouse over a contract dispute and never started a game after July. » June 20, 1934: New manager Pie Traynor paces the Pirates to a 6–5 win over the Braves, stopping a losing skein of five games. Traynor laces three doubles and single and counted the winning run in the 9th inning. Arky Vaughn is 4-for-4 for the winners to raise his average to .363, two points off the leaders (Leslie: /365; Medwick: .365; Terry: .363) Wally Berger keeps the Braves in the game with a two-run homer in the first and a game tying homer in the 9th. Leon Chagnon, in relieve of Red Lucas, is the winner. » July 28, 1934: Pittsburgh's Red Lucas, whose hitting keeps him in the lineup in close games, is relieved after 250 consecutive innings as a starting pitcher. » May 25, 1935: Babe Ruth has a last hurrah, hitting three home runs at Pittsburgh. The first shot is hit off Red Lucas, while the last two homers come off veteran Guy Bush. The final one, the last of his 714 career home runs, is the first to clear the RF grandstand at Forbes Field and is measured at 600 feet. With that, Ruth sits down in the dugout—Pittsburgh's—next to rookie Mace Brown. Ruth, who hit three homers in a game just once in the American League (May 21, 1930), is the first player to turn this hat trick in both leagues. Ruth lifts himself in the 7th inning, finishing the day at 4-for-4 and six RBIs. But Ruth's old teammate Waite Hoyt, in relief of Bush, is the winner as Pittsburgh defeats the hapless Braves, 11–7. » June 29, 1935: Gabby Hartnett goes 4-for-4 and drives home the game winner in the Cubs 2–1 victory over the Pirates. Chuck Klein's homer accounts for the other score to back Lon Warneke's win over Red Lucas. Chicago moves into 2nd place with the victory. » August 28, 1936: The Giants win their 15th in a row, beating Pittsburgh 7-4 in 14 innings. First base coach Bill Terry inserted himself as a pinch hitter and delivered a bases-loaded single to break the 1-1 tie in the 14th. The streak will be stopped the next day by Red Lucas.