Ray Collins (baseball)
Ray Collins | |
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Pitcher | |
Born: Colchester, Vermont, U.S. | February 11, 1887|
Died: January 9, 1970 Burlington, Vermont, U.S. | (aged 82)|
Batted: Left Threw: Left | |
MLB debut | |
July 19, 1909, for the Boston Red Sox | |
Last MLB appearance | |
October 7, 1915, for the Boston Red Sox | |
MLB statistics | |
Win–loss record | 84–62 |
Earned run average | 2.51 |
Strikeouts | 511 |
Teams | |
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Career highlights and awards | |
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Ray Williston Collins (February 11, 1887 – January 9, 1970) was a starting pitcher in Major League Baseball who played his entire career for the Boston Red Sox. A native of Colchester, Vermont, Collins batted and threw left-handed. He debuted on July 19, 1909, and played his final game on October 7, 1915. He was a member of the 1912 Red Sox championship team, and also the 1915 Red Sox but did not play in that year's World Series.
Playing career
A graduate of the
Collins became a regular in Boston rotation in 1910. In his first full season, he pitched a one-hitter against the Chicago White Sox and compiled a 13–11 record, making him the second-winningest pitcher on the Red Sox behind Eddie Cicotte (15–11). He was 3–6 at one point in 1911, but turned his season around, finishing at 11–12 with a 2.40 ERA.
Collins missed the first two months of the 1912 season with a knee injury, during which time the Red Sox christened their new stadium,
Collins enjoyed his best season yet in 1913, finishing at 19–8, as his .714
Collins became the ace of Boston pitching staff in 1914 with a 20–13 record and a 2.51 ERA. His six shutouts ranked him fourth in the American League that season, and he was one of only three pitchers in the league to reach the 20-win plateau, joining Walter Johnson (28) and
In 1915, the Red Sox were in the enviable position of having too many good (and younger) pitchers: Rube Foster, Ernie Shore, Dutch Leonard, and Babe Ruth made up the best rotation in major league baseball. Then Collins was relegated to the bullpen. Starting only nine games, the fewest since his rookie year, Collins finished with a 4–7 record and a 4.30 ERA in 25 pitching appearances. He did not pitch a single inning in the 1915 World Series as Boston defeated the Philadelphia Phillies in five games. After the season the Red Sox expected him to take a cut in his $5400 salary, but Collins, at age 29, announced his retirement from professional baseball stating simply that he was "discouraged by his failure to show old-time form."
Later years
After his playing career, Collins returned to the University of Vermont where he served as baseball coach from 1923 to 1928. During and after his baseball career, he was a dairy farmer in Colchester, Vermont, operating the family farm until 1960, and was co-founder of the Burlington Milk Cooperative Creamery (later part of HP Hood). Collins headed the Colchester draft board during World War II and represented Colchester in the Vermont House of Representatives from 1943 to 1946, serving on the agriculture and traffic committees.[1] During the 1950s, he served on UVM's board of trustees, presiding over the school's transition from private to public university. Collins had five children with wife Lillian, the last surviving of whom (Ray Jr.) died on September 14, 2013, aged 99.[2]
Collins died in Burlington, Vermont, at age 82.
In 2012, Collins was part of the inaugural class of the Vermont Sports Hall of Fame.[3]
References
- ^ Potter, Bonnie (November 22, 1918). "Ray Collins: Colchester's local hero". Colchester (Vermont) Sun.
- ^ "RAY W. COLLINS JR., MD's Obituary on The Burlington Free Press". The Burlington Free Press.
- ^ "Vermont Sports Hall of Fame > Ray Collins". www.vermontsportshall.com.
External links
- Vermont Sports Hall of Fame profile
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or Baseball Reference, or Baseball Reference (Minors), or Retrosheet
- Ray Collins at Find a Grave