Will White | |||
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Pitcher | |||
Born: Caton, New York |
October 11, 1854|||
Died: August 31, 1911 Port Carling, Ontario |
(aged 56)|||
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MLB debut | |||
July 20, 1877, for the Boston Red Caps | |||
Last MLB appearance | |||
July 5, 1886, for the Cincinnati Red Stockings | |||
MLB statistics | |||
Win–loss record | 229–166 | ||
Earned run average | 2.28 | ||
Strikeouts | 1,041 | ||
Complete games | 394 | ||
Teams | |||
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Career highlights and awards | |||
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William Henry "Whoop-La" White (October 11, 1854 – August 31, 1911) was an American baseball pitcher and manager from 1875 to 1889. He played all or parts of 10 seasons in Major League Baseball, primarily for the Cincinnati Reds in the National League (1878–1880) and the in the American Association (1882–1886). He had three 40-win, and one 40-loss, seasons in Cincinnati. During the 1882 and 1883 seasons, he led the American Association in wins, compiling an 83–34 win–loss record and a 1.84 earned run average (ERA).
Over the course of 10 major league seasons, White compiled a 229–166 record with a 2.28 ERA. His career ERA ranks ninth on the all-time List of Major League Baseball career ERA leaders. White also set a number of major league pitching records and still holds several. His 1879 totals of 75 complete games, 75 games started, 680 innings pitched, and 2,906 batters faced remain major league records. He was also the player-manager of the Red Stockings for 71 games during the 1884 season, compiling a 44–27 managerial record. He is also remembered as the first, and for many years only, major league player to wear eyeglasses on the baseball field.
White was born in 1854 in the town of Caton in Steuben County, New York. His parents were Lester White (born c. 1820), a farmer, and his wife, Adeline (born c. 1823). The couple had at least eight children: Oscar Leroy (born c. 1844), James (born 1847), Melville (born c. 1851), William, Phebe Davis (born c. 1856), Estelle (born c. 1858), George (born c. 1862) and Hattie (born c. 1867); they also adopted a girl named Phebe Maynard (born c. 1876) when they were in their fifties. White's ancestors likely immigrated to America during the colonial period.