I've been re-reading Glory of Their Times and came back to Rube Bressler's chapter. It's one of my favorite chapters because Bressler is one of the least heralded players in the book but was clearly such an incredible athlete.
Bressler was a pitcher by trade, but by 1920 he was a 25 year old wash out with a dead arm. He wasn't going to let that send him home though. He decided he'd start hitting instead. And despite being a 215 lifetime hitter while he was pitching, in 1921 he appeared in 109 games and hit 307. He would go on to play 12 full seasons as an everyday hitter and ended his career with a lifetime average of 301.
Joe Wood is another one, and so is Lefty O'Doul. Who else is out there in the pantheon of incredible athletes who may have washed out otherwise?
A card for the thread:
