Ed Killian was a high-profile player during baseball’s Dead Ball Era right after the turn of the last century, 1903-10. Pitching in baseball’s Dead Ball Era, Ed Killian, a sinkerball pitcher, holds the major league record for yielding the least amount of home runs per innings pitched, allowing just one homer for every 178 innings. Born in Racine Wisconsin. Nicknamed ‘Twilight Ed’ because of the large amount of extra inning games he pitched in. He pitched one season with Cleveland and then was traded to the Detroit Tigers. He had 14-20 in his first year in Detroit, and followed that year with a splendid 23-14 mark, with a 2.27 ERA, completing 33 of 37 games, 331 innings and led the American League with 8 shutouts in 1905. Ed Killian was suspended in August 1906 when after complaining over his salary and the lack of run support he came to the ballpark drunk and took a bat and tore up the whole clubhouse. He was fined for costs and was left behind on the next road trip. Ed Killian posted a 24-12 record, with a miserly 1.78 earned run average which helped the Tigers reach the 1907 World Series. He pitched 3 more seasons with Detroit, and in 1909 posted his career best 1.71 ERA with an 11-9 record as the Tigers won another pennant. |