Pud Galvin

James Francis "Pud" Galvin (December 25, 1856 – March 7, 1902), an American professional baseball pitcher, was Major League Baseball's first 300-game winner. The nickname "Pud" supposedly originated because he made the hitters "look like Pudding". Galvin was also nicknamed "The Little Steam Engine", a tribute to his durability.

A native of St. Louis, Missouri, Pud played in an era where 2-man pitching rotations were common - hence his 6,003 innings pitched and 646 complete games, both of which are second only to the career totals of Cy Young. Incredibly, Pud pitched over 70 complete games in both and and 65 in . He is the only player in baseball history to win 20 or more games in 10 different years without winning a pennant, finishing his career with a total of 364 wins and 310 losses.

Professional career

Galvin debuted for St. Louis of the National Association in , the franchise's inaugural season. He spent the next 6½ seasons with Buffalo in the International Association and later of the National League before being traded to the Pittsburg Alleghenys midseason in . He pitched for the Allegheny ballclub from to . Pud jumped to the Pittsburgh Burghers before the 1890 season, but returned to the Alleghenys (now named the "Pirates") after only one season. On June 14, 1892 Galvin was traded to the St. Louis Browns. He retired after the season.

Post-retirement

Pud Galvin died poor at age 45 on March 7, 1902 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and, as a Roman Catholic, is buried in Calvary Cemetery, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in by the Veterans Committee.

Trivia

• On August 20, 1880, Galvin became the first major league pitcher to throw a no-hitter on the road, leading his Buffalo Bisons to a 1-0 victory over the Worcester Ruby Legs.
• Galvin is the first baseball player to be widely known for using performance enhancing drugs. In 1889, over 100 years before the current steroid controversy in Major League Baseball, Galvin openly used the Brown-Séquard elixir, which contained monkey testosterone.

Notes

See also

• 300 win club
• Top 100 winning pitchers of all time
• List of Major League Baseball leaders in career wins
• Top 100 strikeout pitchers of all time
• List of Major League Baseball no-hitters

External links

• Baseball Hall of Fame
• PudGalvin.com - site dedicated to the Hall of Fame pitcher
• Bio page