Pitchers throwing sidearm/underhanded

[brianp-beme]

Another Obak...Jess Garrett was a pitcher for Portland in the PCL, but not sure if this 1910 card depicts his pitching motion or his pioneering cornhole delivery.

Brian

[brianp-beme]

Walter Johnson's E120 American Caramel, V61 Neilson's Chocolates and this W573 strip card all share the same photo of his sidearm slinging style.

Brian

[ValKehl]

Growing up, I loved baseball, and because I wasn't very good at it, I did whatever I could to get on the field in Little League and Pony League, including some pitching. Not having much of a fastball to go with my dinky curve, in an effort to throw batters off stride, I frequently threw a submarine fastball and curve along with my regular three-quarter arm pitches. My influence for the submarine pitches was Ted Abernathy, who reached the majors with my beloved Washington Senators in 1955 and had a bit of success. I'm not aware that any of his baseball cards show him pitching in this manner, but it is mentioned on the back of his 1960 Topps card (not my card - the pic below is borrowed from the Internet).

My collection of cards of all the 1924 Senators players includes cards of Byron "By" Speece. In 1924, his only year with the Senators, Speece appeared in 21 games, pitched 54.1 innings and had a 2.65 ERA. In the 1924 WS, Speece appeared in 1 game, pitched 1 inning and gave up 1 earned run. Speece played professional ball until age 48, his last 3 years being with the Seattle Rainiers of the PCL. Below are his 1943 and 1944 Centennial Flour cards, which show and mention his submarine pitching style.

[Aquarian Sports Cards]

LOL Ted Abernathy's "Buggywhip" delivery is "mighty hard to hit" which explains his career ERA of 6.04. at that point (he did actually develop into a decent major leaguer though)

[GeoPoto]

I'll open the pre-war door with Walter and then include a guy from my days as a Senators fan:

Dave Baldwin didn’t talk to the baseball or scream at the hitters. Offering no self-styled Mark Fidrych or Al Hrabosky theatrics on the mound, the relief pitcher was a quiet guy to the point of being shy, almost unnoticeable.

Yet in 176 games over six seasons with the Washington Senators, Milwaukee Brewers and Chicago White Sox, Baldwin fashioned a big-league career distinguishable for its unusual approach. As he informed a quizzical President Richard Nixon one night in the dugout, “I’m the pitcher who throws funny.”

Pushing off the rubber, the Arizona native resembled the USS Baldwin — he was a submarine pitcher. He delivered it side-arm, too. For certain, the right hander was someone who went against the conservative MLB grain of the 1960s and ‘70s, when the drop-down pitching style was ridiculed or roundly discouraged.

“I had managers tell me, ‘You throw like a girl,’ ” he said.

Baldwin would slowly swivel his body so that he faced left field in mid-windup, often aim the ball well behind a right-handed hitter’s back to the point it seemed unnatural, and, picking up momentum, he would dip into a crouch and snap off an assortment of sweeping and baffling pitches.

https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1706104583
https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1706104587
https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1706104590

[BabyRuth]

This set is underrated, but so cool

[kkkkandp]

From the N172 set. Keefe pitched only his last year at the now normal 60' 6."

[Hankphenom]

Originally Posted by ValKehl

Growing up, I loved baseball, and because I wasn't very good at it, I did whatever I could to get on the field in Little League and Pony League, including some pitching. Not having much of a fastball to go with my dinky curve, in an effort to throw batters off stride, I frequently threw a submarine fastball and curve along with my regular three-quarter arm pitches. My influence for the submarine pitches was Ted Abernathy, who reached the majors with my beloved Washington Senators in 1955 and had a bit of success. I'm not aware that any of his baseball cards show him pitching in this manner, but it is mentioned on the back of his 1960 Topps card (not my card - the pic below is borrowed from the Internet).

My Senators of that time had TWO submariner relievers, Abernathy and Dick Hyde, who led the league in E.R.A. one year.

[ValKehl]

Originally Posted by Hankphenom

My Senators of that time had TWO submariner relievers, Abernathy and Dick Hyde, who led the league in E.R.A. one year.

Hank, thanks for jogging my pathetic memory. Yes, I saw Dick Hyde pitch when I was growing up. I think his 1958 Topps card is his only card that shows him pitching. I no longer have this card to show, but there are several on eBay: https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_fro...+hyde&_sacat=0