Books and articles about Phil Marchildon

A fiery and outspoken Ontario native, Marchildon went 17-14 for the 1942 Athletics. He became a gunner in the WWII Royal Canadian Air Force, was shot down on his 26th mission in 1944, and lost forty pounds during a nine-month ordeal as a POW in Germany. He returned to baseball in 1945 after recuperating at home. Teammate George Kell said later that "[W]hen he came back he was very quiet and very serious about everything he did. Mr. Mack said he'd really changed. He'd been through a lot. But he said very little about it."

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Marchildon led the last-place 1946 A's with 13 wins, but tied two teammates with an AL-high 16 losses. In 1947 he helped pull his club out of the cellar with a 19-9 record. He had a perfect game with two outs in the eighth inning in a game against Cleveland when he walked Ken Keltner. Marchildon gave up two singles that tied the score in the ninth, but won his own game with a double in the 12th. (NLM)

FROM THE BASEBALL CHRONOLOGY » May 3, 1942: The Tigers edge the A's, 8–7 in Game One of a twinbill. Rudy York, who clouted two homers yesterday, hits two more in the opener, one short of Ty Cobb's American League record for two straight games. Phil Marchildon allows two hits in game two to stop the Tigers, 1–0. » July 6, 1945: P Phil Marchildon rejoins the Athletics. In the Canadian Air Force, he was shot down and in a German prison camp for nine months. » April 15, 1947: With yesterday's opener in Washington rained out, the A's open at Yankee Stadium before 39,344. Under new manager Bucky Harris, the Yanks manage just six hits off Phil Marchildon as the A's win, 6–1. Eddie Joost and Elmer Valo pull off a double steal in the 5th when the A's increase their lead to 3–0. Joost scores on the swipe of home. Former A's vet George McQuillan, playing 1B for Nick Etten, scores New York's only run. Spud Chandler takes the loss. » June 6, 1948: Ted Williams, Stan Spence, and Vern Stephens hit successive HRs for the Red Sox against Fred Hutchinson of the Tigers. It is the second 3-straight-HR game by the BoSox during the season, with Spence, Stephens, and Bobby Doerr having accomplished the feat off Phil Marchildon of the A's on April 19.