Unluckiest Man in Baseball History

[Bothrops Atrox]

I have no pity for a player that got to play in 5 world series and, this and isn't really an and, won an MVP.

I have no pity for anybody who gets played a lot of money to play a game. I don't think we are being asked to pity any of these players, minus a guy like Chapman. But given the previous mentioning of Mattingly, Mathewson, Sutton, etc. I think Pendelton fits nicely in with the direction this thread had already taken.

Chances are, if we have heard of the player, he would not qualify as THE unluckiest man in baseball. I can see the angle for guys like Campanella and Gehrig, but their bad luck didn't really come in baseball, but outside of it.

Do i think Pendleton is really THE unluckiest man in baseball history? Of course not. But based on all of the other posts, I didn't think most of anybody else was really doing that either.

[Second Base Coach]

I forgot about Pendleton. He was on FIVE losing World Series teams? He picked a heck of a year to not be on the Braves roster as noted above.

Pee Wee Reese was on six losing teams, but one winner of course. Keeping with the Dodgers theme. Tommy John was in the 1977, 1978, 1981 Yankee Dodgers series of Series. He switched sides and still was on the losing end of all three. He missed playing in the 1974 Series because that was the year he got hurt.

[Herr28]

I have no pity for anybody who gets played a lot of money to play a game. I don't think we are being asked to pity any of these players, minus a guy like Chapman. But given the previous mentioning of Mattingly, Mathewson, Sutton, etc. I think Pendelton fits nicely in with the direction this thread had already taken.

Chances are, if we have heard of the player, he would not qualify as THE unluckiest man in baseball. I can see the angle for guys like Campanella and Gehrig, but their bad luck didn't really come in baseball, but outside of it.

Do i think Pendleton is really THE unluckiest man in baseball history? Of course not. But based on all of the other posts, I didn't think most of anybody else was really doing that either.

One helluva glove man at 3B too. He left a big hole in Busch when he went to Atlanta. Poor former catcher Todd Zeile couldn't plug a hole that size.

[ol' aches and pains]

Don Sutton, in a Win the World Series sense.

His Dodgers won the Series the year before his rookie season.
The Dodgers won the Series again the year he retired mid-season.

He played in several World Series, but never for a winner. Close... so close...

Ernie Banks and Luke Appling each played about 2500 games, and never reached the post-season.

[pheasant]

Off the top of my head, the unluckiest guys were:

Lyman Bostock- gunman mistook him for man dating his former girlfriend
Lou Gehrig
Christy Mathewson-freak accident with poisonous gas sealed his fate
Herb Score-freak accident effective ends his greatness
Ray Chapman-freak accident kills him
JR Richard-phenomenal stuff, yet freak stroke takes away his career. Was very similar to R. Johnson
Jackie Robinson--tremendous stress of breaking the color barrier and the immense discrimination that he faced killed him at a young age.

[Herr28]

Off the top of my head, the unluckiest guys were:

Lyman Bostock- gunman mistook him for man dating his former girlfriend
Lou Gehrig
Christy Mathewson-freak accident with poisonous gas sealed his fate
Herb Score-freak accident effective ends his greatness
Ray Chapman-freak accident kills him
JR Richard-phenomenal stuff, yet freak stroke takes away his career. Was very similar to R. Johnson
Jackie Robinson--tremendous stress of breaking the color barrier and the immense discrimination that he faced killed him at a young age.

The manager of my adult baseball team in Austin was a clubhouse boy for the Astros in the late 1970s and very early 1980s. he said JR Richard was a great guy, on top of being an unbelievable pitcher. Then after the stroke, my buddy said that JR ran out of money in Houston, and ended up homeless and living under an overpass. Apparently, a minister or someone involved with a church down there recognized him and was able to help him get back on his feet. I can't remember now if there was also some issues with addiction during that time. Anyway, JR Richard attempted to join the Senior Professional Baseball League in Florida back in the very early 1990s, but showed up way too overweight, and was sent packing. I think that was bad, being that he could've used the cash. I hear now he works with kids in Houston or something? But I don't know how often my buddy gets over there to see what is going on. Sure fell on tough times after that stroke ended a great career at age 30.

[pheasant]

The manager of my adult baseball team in Austin was a clubhouse boy for the Astros in the late 1970s and very early 1980s. he said JR Richard was a great guy, on top of being an unbelievable pitcher. Then after the stroke, my buddy said that JR ran out of money in Houston, and ended up homeless and living under an overpass. Apparently, a minister or someone involved with a church down there recognized him and was able to help him get back on his feet. I can't remember now if there was also some issues with addiction during that time. Anyway, JR Richard attempted to join the Senior Professional Baseball League in Florida back in the very early 1990s, but showed up way too overweight, and was sent packing. I think that was bad, being that he could've used the cash. I hear now he works with kids in Houston or something? But I don't know how often my buddy gets over there to see what is going on. Sure fell on tough times after that stroke ended a great career at age 30.

That is a really sad story. I watched JR pitch as a kid. I was excited when Ryan joined him on the Astros. What a tragedy.

On another note, you remind me of another set of unlucky players:

The 1985 Cardinals. The horrible call by the ump cost these guys a World Series. How unfortunate that the ump happened to be out of position for that obvious call. Wow!

[Herr28]

That is a really sad story. I watched JR pitch as a kid. I was excited when Ryan joined him on the Astros. What a tragedy.

On another note, you remind me of another set of unlucky players:

The 1985 Cardinals. The horrible call by the ump cost these guys a World Series. How unfortunate that the ump happened to be out of position for that obvious call. Wow!

Hey, I got an idea! Let's never speak of that call again! Always with the 1980s disappointments with you, huh pheasant...

[ol' aches and pains]

The 1985 Cardinals. The horrible call by the ump cost these guys a World Series. How unfortunate that the ump happened to be out of position for that obvious call. Wow!

I've never bought into the notion that Denkinger's call cost the Cardinals a World Series. If they were the better team, they had a chance to prove it the next day in game seven. They didn't.

[icee82]

There are a lot of players that luck was not shining on them.

At the top of the list would be two players that are forever connected. Ray Chapman of the Indians was killed by a high and rising fastball thrown by Yankees' submarine pitcher Carl Mays. Of course Chapman lost his life and Mays probably lost a Hall of Fame career. He had five seasons in which he won 20 or more games. He also won 18 games one season and 19 in another season. No matter how you look at it, this was a Hall of Fame career. He has forever been "blackballed" for this incident and it is really a shame because he was a much better pitcher than many of the Hall of Famers. Everyone is lobbying for Greg Maddox but yet he only won 20 games twice. Of course it is a different era.

J.R. Richard
Lou Gehrig
Dizzy Dean (had a fabulous career until Earl Averill hit a line drive off his big toe)
Herb Score
Mark Prior
Jim Greengrass
Frank Pastore (a young pitcher for the Reds who was struck on the elbow by a Steve Sax line drive and was never the same)
Dave Dravecky

[Ubiquitous]

I've never bought into the notion that Denkinger's call cost the Cardinals a World Series. If they were the better team, they had a chance to prove it the next day in game seven. They didn't.

So if a meteor was to fall from the sky and crush Ozzie Smith they would only win the series if they were the better team?

What if the umps blow a call in the 7th game as well preventing the Cardinals from winning it all? Seems to me the Cardinals did what was necessary to win but the umps gave the lesser more chances to win. Sort of like the US Olympic basketball team against the Russians or do you think that it also holds true that if the US team was the better team they would have won that game as well?

[Bothrops Atrox]

The call was the difference between an 8% win probability for KC and a 34% win probability. Of course it did not solely determine the outcome of the game or series, but it was a massively important umpire mistake.

[Dude Paskert]

I'll add Walt Bond to the mix...giant guy with a ton of power who didn't catch on with the Indians despite having two 2 HR games in a 12 game callup in '62, then had to try to establish himself as a power hitter in the Astrodome in the mid '60s, and finally died of leukemia in the same year that it seemed like he might finally stick with the Twins.
Not likely that he was going to be a big star, but I think with better luck in organizations and without the terrible illness he could have been a good player.

[Victory Faust]

Mike Reiser, Pete's older brother. He signed a contract with the Yankees out of high school, but caught scarlet fever and died.

[ol' aches and pains]

So if a meteor was to fall from the sky and crush Ozzie Smith they would only win the series if they were the better team?

What if the umps blow a call in the 7th game as well preventing the Cardinals from winning it all? Seems to me the Cardinals did what was necessary to win but the umps gave the lesser more chances to win. Sort of like the US Olympic basketball team against the Russians or do you think that it also holds true that if the US team was the better team they would have won that game as well?

Dang, I didn't think about the meteor scenario!

Of course Denkinger's blown call was a blow to the Cardinals, but they had their best pitcher going in game seven. Tudor had won 21 games with a 1.93 ERA, a league-leading 10 shutouts, and league-leading WHIP. And he and the bullpen gave up 11 runs, while the Cardinals' offense scored none. So it's not like the Royals stole the World Series, I'm sorry.