Mel Harder

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Mel Harder
Pitcher / Manager
Born: (1909-10-15)October 15, 1909
Beemer, Nebraska, U.S.
Died: October 20, 2002(2002-10-20) (aged 93)
Chardon, Ohio, U.S.
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
MLB debut
April 24, 1928, for the Cleveland Indians
Last MLB appearance
September 7, 1947, for the Cleveland Indians
MLB statistics
Win–loss record223–186
Earned run average3.80
Strikeouts1,160
Teams
As player
As manager
Career highlights and awards

Melvin Leroy Harder (October 15, 1909 – October 20, 2002), nicknamed "Chief", was an American right-handed

wins (223), games started (433) and innings pitched (34261⁄3) which were later broken by Bob Feller, and he still holds the club record of 582 career games pitched. He was among the American League's career leaders in wins (9th), games (8th) and starts (10th) when he retired. He was also an excellent fielder, leading AL pitchers in putouts
four times, then a record.

Career

Harder was born in

Lefty Gómez. In 1935 he was second to Wes Ferrell in wins (22) and innings (2871⁄3), and was fifth in the AL with a 3.29 ERA. After developing a sore elbow and bursitis
in his shoulder, he won at least 15 games each season from 1936 to 1939; he led AL pitchers in putouts in 1932, 1933, 1935 and 1938.

Harder was one of the most successful All-Stars of the 1930s, appearing in all four games from 1934 to 1937, and setting a record with 13 consecutive innings without an earned run. He won the 1934 All-Star game after relieving Red Ruffing with none out and two men on in the fifth inning, with an 8–6 lead; one run scored on a double steal, but Harder allowed only one hit in his five innings as the AL won 9–7. He earned a save in the 1935 game, pitching three scoreless innings to finish a 4–1 victory, and another in 1937 with three shutout innings in the 8–3 win; he also finished the 4–3 loss played at Cleveland in 1936 with two innings.

In 1940, he posted a 12–11 record, as the Indians finished one game behind the pennant-winning Detroit Tigers, wasting an early September lead amid clubhouse rancor; it would be the only season in his career in which the Indians came within ten games of the AL flag. After several more years in which his record hovered near .500, earning his 200th victory in 1944, Harder ended his career in 1947 with 1160 strikeouts and a 3.80 ERA. In addition to his 223 victories, his 186 losses remain a club record. Ironically, the Indians won the World Series the year after he retired.

From 1948 into the 1950s, he guided what became known as the Indians' "Big Four" pitching rotation, featuring Feller,

Rookie of the Year in 1955 after Harder helped to develop his curveball. When Sal Maglie was struggling with the Indians, Harder watched some films of Maglie pitching with the Giants and figured out that he wasn't swivelling his foot like he normally did, which kept him from following through with his delivery. "As soon as I went back to the old way, everything was all right," Maglie said.[2] During his coaching career, Harder served as interim manager of the Indians for the last game of the 1961 season and the last two games of 1962, winning all three contests. Late in his tenure, prominent young pitchers as Sam McDowell, Tommy John and Luis Tiant
would come under his guidance. He was fired after the 1963 season, having spent the first 36 years of his adult life in Cleveland.

He later coached with the New York Mets (1964), Chicago Cubs (1965), Cincinnati Reds (1966–68) and Kansas City Royals (1969).

Cleveland

retired his number 18 on July 28, 1990 (he wore 43 and 2 as a coach), and he was named one of the Indians' top 100 players in 2001.[3]

In 2002, Harder died in Chardon, Ohio at age 93;[4] at the time of his death, he had been one of only five living players who had played in the 1920s.

Legacy

Cleveland Indians
in 1990.

Harder is one of only four pitchers to pitch at least twenty seasons with one team (the others are

Cleveland Municipal Stadium in a 1932 game and six decades later threw the first pitch in the construction site of its successor in Jacobs Field (now known as Progressive Field) in 1992.[6]

Joe DiMaggio recalled that he had more difficulty batting against Harder than against just about any other pitcher.[7] Hank Greenberg also named him one of the five toughest pitchers he faced in his career.[8]

Managerial Record

Team Year Regular season Postseason
Games Won Lost Win % Finish Won Lost Win % Result
CLE 1961 1 1 0 1.000 (interim) – – –
CLE 1962 2 2 0 1.000 (interim) – – –
Total[9] 3 3 0 1.000 0 0 –

See also

References

  1. ^ "Early Wynn Stats". Archived from the original on February 24, 2021. Retrieved March 15, 2020.
  2. ^ Terrell, Roy (March 17, 1958). "Part 1: Sal Maglie on the Art of Pitching". Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on December 14, 2021. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  3. ^ "Top 100 Greatest Cleveland Indians Players". Cleveland State University Library. Archived from the original on March 9, 2020. Retrieved November 29, 2007.
  4. ^ "Obituary: Melvin "Mel" L. Harder". The News-Herald. October 22, 2002. Archived from the original on September 4, 2012. Retrieved August 18, 2011.
  5. ^ "Most Seasons Played".
  6. ^ "A first pitch for the ages: On this date in Cleveland Indians history". June 25, 2020.
  7. ^ Jemail, Jimmy (August 8, 1955). "The Question: Who is or was the hardest pitcher for you to hit?". Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on November 25, 2018. Retrieved May 22, 2017.
  8. ISBN 9781461662389. Archived
    from the original on August 19, 2021. Retrieved May 22, 2017.
  9. ^ "Mel Harder Managerial Record". Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 25, 2010.

External links

Sporting positions
Preceded by
n/a
Cleveland Indians pitching coach

1949–1963 		Succeeded by
Preceded by New York Mets pitching coach
1964 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Chicago Cubs pitching coach
1965 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Cincinnati Reds pitching coach
1966–1968 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
Franchise established
 Kansas City Royals pitching coach
1969 		Succeeded by
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