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17-739: Clarence Mitchell may refer to: Clarence Mitchell (baseball) (1891–1963), American Major League Baseball pitcher Clarence Mitchell (bishop) , Canadian Suffragan Bishop of the Diocese of Niagara Clarence Mitchell Jr. (1911–1984), American civil rights activist Clarence Mitchell III (1939–2012), American politician from Baltimore, Maryland Clarence Mitchell IV (born 1962), American radio host and former politician Clarence C. Mitchell (1897-1986), American lawyer and politician Brick Mitchell (Clarence Leon Mitchell, c. 1894–1963), American football player and coach [REDACTED] Topics referred to by

34-540: A member of the Brooklyn Robins. In 1919, he batted a career high .367 (18-for-49) for Brooklyn. He was also used in the outfield and at first base. On October 10, 1920, in Game 5 of the 1920 World Series , Mitchell made history when, with men on first and second and no outs, he hit a rising liner that Cleveland Indians second baseman Bill Wambsganss caught. Wambsganss was able to double up the lead runner, Pete Kilduff , who

51-559: A pitch. Preacher Roe , who played for the Brooklyn Dodgers in the 1950s, was renowned both for his ability to control the spitball and to throw it without getting caught and described his methodology in a 1955 article in Sports Illustrated . "The Outlawed Spitball Was My Money Pitch" was published a year after he retired. Another famous user of the pitch was Gaylord Perry , who went so far as to title his autobiography Me and

68-436: A poorly lit game. In Major League Baseball (MLB), the spitball was banned in two stages. In the winter of 1919–1920, managers voted to partially ban the spitball. Each team was allowed to designate up to two pitchers who would be permitted to throw spitballs. After the 1920 season, the use of the spitball was banned with the exception of a group of 17 existing spitballers, who became legacy spitballers who were allowed to throw

85-513: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Clarence Mitchell (baseball) As coach Clarence Elmer Mitchell (February 22, 1891 – November 6, 1963) was an American Major League Baseball pitcher . He played in the majors from 1911 to 1932 for the Detroit Tigers , Cincinnati Reds , New York Giants , Brooklyn Robins , Philadelphia Phillies and St. Louis Cardinals . Mitchell

102-405: Is sometimes used to describe a pitch that moves like a spitball without saliva, such as the forkball or split-finger fastball . It is sometimes used simply as slang for the knuckleball . There is also the remote term of God-given spitter , which is when the ball is naturally dampened by moist air or light rainfall, which allows pitchers to be able to throw pitches with sharper breaks, much like

119-499: The Spitter and chronicled the clever ways in which he avoided detection. For example, Perry would put Vaseline on his zipper because umpires would never check a player's groin. Don Drysdale also used the pitch regularly, as did Lew Burdette . Drysdale would apply oil to the back of his hair to put on the ball to make it sink. Mike Fiers has been accused of doctoring the baseball during both his no-hitters. The name dry spitter

136-598: The last legal lefthanded spitball pitcher. After being released from the majors after the 1932 season at age 41, he played several more years in the minors, including three years in the Pacific Coast League for the Mission Reds . Spitball The invention of the spitball has been popularly credited to a number of individuals, among them Elmer Stricklett and Frank Corridon . Numerous accounts, however, refer to different players experimenting with versions of

153-623: The pitch legally until they retired. Of the exempted group, Burleigh Grimes lasted the longest, retiring in 1934. The complete list of exempted spitballers is: Ray Fisher (played through 1920); Doc Ayers (1921); Ray Caldwell (1921); Phil Douglas (1922); Dana Fillingim (1925); Marv Goodwin (1925); Dutch Leonard (1925); Allen Russell (1925); Allen Sothoron (1926); Dick Rudolph (1927); Stan Coveleski (1928); Urban Shocker (1928); Bill Doak (1929); Clarence Mitchell (1932); Red Faber (1933); Jack Quinn (1933); and Grimes. In March 1955, MLB Commissioner Ford Frick advocated for

170-402: The popularity of "freak deliveries" led to a great deal of controversy throughout the 1910s regarding the abolition of the spitball and related pitches. In his autobiography , Ty Cobb wrote that such "freak pitches [...] were outlawed when the owners greedily sold out to home runs ." In addition, there were serious issues with the spitball, including some that affected safety. A variation on

187-582: The return of the spitball, telling a sportswriter, "If I had my way, I'd legalize the old spitter. It was a great pitch and one of the easiest to throw. There was nothing dangerous about it." Despite the Commissioner's enthusiasm, the pitch remained illegal. The spitball is now banned in Major League baseball. It is a pitching violation in NCAA Baseball. However, it is still sometimes thrown in violation of

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204-431: The rules. In 1942 , Leo Durocher , then-manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers , fined Bobo Newsom for throwing a spitball and "lying to me about it." Typically, a lubricant is hidden behind the pitcher's knee or under the peak of his cap. Others will place the ball in their mitt and then cough on or lick it. Another tactic pitchers use is to soak their hair in water before going out to the mound, and then rub their hair before

221-411: The same term This disambiguation page lists articles about people with the same name. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Clarence_Mitchell&oldid=1096661864 " Category : Human name disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description

238-478: The spitball throughout the latter half of the 19th century, and it remains unlikely that any one individual "invented" the spitball. Ed Walsh , however, is certainly responsible for popularizing it. Walsh dominated the American League from 1906 to 1912, primarily on the strength of his spitball, and pitchers around the league soon copied his spitball or invented their own trick pitch. The dramatic increase in

255-448: The standard spitball called for the pitcher to smear the entire surface of the normally white ball with a mixture of tobacco spittle and dirt or mud in order to stain it the same deep brown color as the infield which made it nearly impossible for batters to see (and sometimes avoid) in low-light conditions. In August 1920, Ray Chapman was killed when he was struck in the temple by a pitch thrown by known spitball pitcher Carl Mays during

272-416: Was known for throwing the spitball, and he was one of the 17 pitchers allowed to continue throwing the pitch after it was outlawed in 1920. He was a very good hitting pitcher in his 18-year major league career, posting a .252 batting average (324-for-1287) with 138 runs , 7 home runs , 133 RBI and drawing 72 bases on balls . He drove in 10 or more runs in six seasons, with a season high of 28 in 1922 as

289-410: Was still running toward third, then tagged out Otto Miller , who had come down from first base. Mitchell is the only player in Major League history to hit into an unassisted triple play in a World Series. In his next at bat, Mitchell hit into a double play, making him responsible for five outs in two consecutive trips to the plate, another World Series record. Mitchell also has the distinction of being

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