On this date (July 10) in 1932, Philadelphia Athletics’ righty Edwin Americus (Eddie) Rommel (often terms the “father of the knuckleball”) earned his 171st and final major league victory – and it was hard-earned to be sure.
Rommel, at age 34 and in his 13th season with the Athletics, came on in relief of starter Lew Krausse in the bottom of the second, with the Athletics trailing 3-2. Seventeen innings later, Rommel had his final MLB win, as the Athletic prevailed 18-17. That win came after Rommel had surrendered 14 runs (13 earned) on nine walks, while also giving up a single-game recorded 29 hits. Notably, the Athletics had just finished a series in Philadelphia (against the White Sox) and were traveling to Cleveland for a one-game (make-up game) stand before playing in Philadelphia again on July 11. In an apparent cost-saving move, they brought only two pitchers (Krausse and Rommel) to Cleveland. Rommel pitched in only five more MLB games (all in 1932) – going 0-2, 3.86 in those games and 1-2, 5.51 on the season. He finished his MLB pitching career with a 171-119, 3.54 record in 501 appearances (249 starts – 145 complete games.)
If Rommel’s name sounds familiar, not only did he win 171 MLB games, he also spent 22 years (1938-59) as a major league umpire – working a half dozen All Star games and two World Series.
In Eddie Rommel’s 29-hit final victory, Indians’ shortstop and number-two hitter Johnny Burnett collected a single-game MLB record nine hits (11 at bats), with eight of those safeties coming off Rommel. Burnett had seven singles and two doubles, with four runs scored and two RBI.
The 29-outing was not indicative of Rommel’s skills on the mound. In 1922, he led the American League in victories, despite pitching for an under-performing (or under-talented) Athletics team. That season, Rommel went 27-13, 3.29, while the Athletics went 65-89. Then, in 1925, Rommel again led the AL in wins with a 21-10, 3.69 record – pitching for an improved Athletics squad (88-64).
On Opening Day in 1926, Eddie Rommel was involved in what has become a legendary Opening Day match up. It came on April 13, with Rommel and his Athletics facing future Hall of Famer Walter Johnson and the Senators. The game ended in a 1-0 Senators win, with both Rommel and Johnson going the distance Johnson’s effort – his final Opening Day start (at age 38) – gave him the longest Opening Day shutout ever. Over his career, Johnson won a record nine Opening Day games (against five Opening Day losses) and tossed a record seven Opening Day shutouts. Arguably, no one made Johnson work harder for an Opening Day win than Eddie Rommel.
Primary Resources: Baseball-Reference.com; Baseball-Almanac.com; “Eddie Rommel,” by Tim Deal, Society for American Baseball Research.
BASEBALL ROUNDTABLE ON THE TOP 100 BASEBALL BLOG LIST
Baseball Roundtable is on the Feedspot list of the Top 100 Baseball Blogs. To see the full list, click here.
I tweet baseball @DavidBBRT
Follow/Like Baseball Roundtable’s Facebook Page here. More baseball commentary; blog post notifications; PRIZES.
Member: Society for American Baseball Research (SABR); The Baseball Reliquary; The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.
