Urban Clarence "Red" Faber (September 6, 1888 – September 25, 1976) was an American right-handed

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or dr ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (A ...

from through , playing his entire career for the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...

. He was a member of the 1919 team but was not involved in the

Black Sox scandal The Black Sox Scandal was a Major League Baseball game-fixing scandal in which eight members of the Chicago White Sox were accused of throwing the 1919 World Series against the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for money from a gambling syndicate l ...

. In fact, he missed the World Series due to injury and illness. Faber won 254 games over his 20-year career, a total which ranked 17th-highest in history upon his retirement. At the time of his retirement, he was the last legal

spitball A spitball is an illegal baseball pitch in which the ball has been altered by the application of a foreign substance such as saliva or petroleum jelly. This technique alters the wind resistance and weight on one side of the ball, causing it to m ...

er in the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league b ...

; another legal spitballer, Burleigh Grimes, was later traded to the AL and appeared in 10 games for the

Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one ...

in 1934. Faber was inducted into the

Baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests. It serves as the central point of the history of baseball in the United States and displays baseball-r ...

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarc ...

Early life

Faber was born on a farm near

Cascade, Iowa Cascade is a city in Dubuque and Jones counties, Iowa, United States. The Dubuque County portion is part of Dubuque Metropolitan Statistical Area, while the Jones County section is part of Cedar Rapids Metropolitan Statistical Area. The populat ...

, on September 6, 1888. He was of

Luxembourgish Luxembourgish ( ; also ''Luxemburgish'', ''Luxembourgian'', ''Letzebu(e)rgesch''; Luxembourgish: ) is a West Germanic language that is spoken mainly in Luxembourg. About 400,000 people speak Luxembourgish worldwide. As a standard form of th ...

ancestry. While Faber was a child, his father managed a tavern and later ran the Hotel Faber in Cascade. His father became one of the wealthiest citizens in Cascade. As a teenager, Faber attended college prep academies in

Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin Prairie du Chien () is a city in and the county seat of Crawford County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 5,506 at the 2020 census. Its ZIP Code is 53821. Often referred to as Wisconsin's second oldest city, Prairie du Chien was est ...

and

Dubuque, Iowa Dubuque (, ) is the county seat of Dubuque County, Iowa, United States, located along the Mississippi River. At the time of the 2020 census, the population of Dubuque was 59,667. The city lies at the junction of Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin, a r ...

. By the age of 16, Faber was receiving $2 to pitch Sunday games with a local baseball team in Dubuque. In 1909, Faber pitched a season for St. Joseph's College, later known as Loras College. In a game against

St. Ambrose University St. Ambrose University is a private Catholic university in Davenport, Iowa. It was founded as a school of commerce for young men in 1882. History Foundation St. Ambrose was founded as a seminary and school of commerce for young men in 1882, know ...

that year, he set a school record for strikeouts in a nine-inning game (24). Former Dubuque minor league owner Clarence "Pants" Rowland encouraged Faber to sign with the Class B Dubuque Miners of the

Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League The Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League was a Minor League Baseball organization that operated for the better part of 60 seasons, with teams based in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska and Wisconsin. The league began pla ...

Minor leagues

Faber started well in the minor leagues. He pitched 15 games for Dubuque in 1909 and returned to the team in 1910, registering an 18–19

win–loss record In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. The statistic is commonly used in standings or rankings to compare teams or individuals. It is defined as wins divided by the total number of match ...

and a 2.37

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the numb ...

(ERA) in 44 games. He threw a perfect game for the Dubs against the Davenport Prodigals in September of that season. He also spent time with minor league clubs in Pueblo and Des Moines.

Major leagues

Early career

Faber broke into the major leagues in 1914, starting 19 games and relieving in another 21; he posted a 2.68 ERA while winning 10 games and

saving Saving is income not spent, or deferred consumption. Methods of saving include putting money aside in, for example, a deposit account, a pension account, an investment fund, or as cash. Saving also involves reducing expenditures, such as recur ...

a league-leading four games (a statistic that was not invented until 1959, and became an official baseball stat only in 1969). Through the 1910s, he varied between starting and relieving for a team that enjoyed a wealth of pitching talent. In he won 24 games, tied for second in the

behind Walter Johnson, and led the league with 50 appearances. In one game that season, he pitched a three-hitter with only 67 pitches. In he had a record of 16–13, and at one point started—and won—three games in two days. He saved his best work for the

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the Worl ...

against the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisio ...

. After winning Game 2 in

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but losing Game 4 on the road, he came into Game 5 (at home) in relief and picked up the win as the Sox came back from a 5–2 deficit in the seventh inning to win 8–5. Faber went the distance in the clinching Game 6 two days later at the

Polo Grounds The Polo Grounds was the name of three stadiums in Upper Manhattan, New York City, used mainly for professional baseball and American football from 1880 through 1963. The original Polo Grounds, opened in 1876 and demolished in 1889, was built fo ...

, picking up his third win of the Series by a 4–2 score. As a consequence, he holds the all-time American League record for pitching decisions in a single World Series with four. Faber once tried to steal third base when it was already occupied. He said that he saw the lead runner rounding third base on the previous play and he thought that the runner had scored a run. When the pitcher slowly entered his windup, Faber ran toward third base. However, in one game against Boston, he stole home, a rare feat for a pitcher. Faber spent most of 1918 in the United States Navy due to World War I. He returned in 1919 only to develop arm trouble. He had lost much weight during the war. He finished the year with a 3.83 ERA – the only time in his first nine seasons he posted a mark over 3.00. Those problems, along with a case of the flu possibly related to the

Spanish flu The 1918–1920 influenza pandemic, commonly known by the misnomer Spanish flu or as the Great Influenza epidemic, was an exceptionally deadly global influenza pandemic caused by the H1N1 influenza A virus. The earliest documented case wa ...

pandemic, prevented him from playing in the

scandal A scandal can be broadly defined as the strong social reactions of outrage, anger, or surprise, when accusations or rumours circulate or appear for some reason, regarding a person or persons who are perceived to have transgressed in some way. Th ...

-torn World Series against the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

. Years later, catcher

Ray Schalk Raymond William Schalk (August 12, 1892 – May 19, 1970) was an American professional baseball player, coach, manager and scout. He played as a catcher in Major League Baseball for the Chicago White Sox for the majority of his career. Known f ...

said that had Faber been available, the fix would likely have never happened. Had Faber been healthy, he would almost certainly have gotten some of the starts that went to two of the conspirators, Eddie Cicotte and/or

Lefty Williams Claude Preston "Lefty" Williams (March 9, 1893 – November 4, 1959) was an American pitcher in Major League Baseball. He is probably best known for his involvement in the 1919 World Series fix, known as the Black Sox Scandal. Career Willia ...

Success in the 1920s

Faber enjoyed the greatest success of his career in the early 1920s. The

live-ball era The live-ball era, also referred to as the lively ball era, is the period in Major League Baseball beginning in (and continuing to the present day), contrasting with the pre-1920 period known as the "dead-ball era". The name "live-ball era" comes ...

was beginning, but, thanks to a rule change allowing active 17

pitchers to continue throwing it the remainder of their careers after its 1920 ban, he made one of the most successful transitions of all pitchers. He took advantage of

Comiskey Park Comiskey Park was a baseball park in Chicago, Illinois, located in the Armour Square neighborhood on the near-southwest side of the city. The stadium served as the home of the Chicago White Sox of the American League from 1910 through 1990. Bui ...

's spacious dimensions, surrendering only 91

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s—barely one homer per month—from 1920 to 1931. He was one of only six pitchers to win 100 or more games in both the "dead ball" (through 1920) and live ball eras. Faber finished the 1920 season with 23 wins and led the league in games started. During the summer of 1921, Faber and several other players had to leave a road trip in Washington after receiving subpoenas for the Black Sox trial in Chicago. Faber made the trip but was not asked to testify and returned to the White Sox without missing a start. He won 25 in 1921 and 21 in 1922, leading the league in ERA (1921–1922), innings (1922) and

complete game In baseball, a complete game (CG) is the act of a pitcher pitching an entire game without the benefit of a relief pitcher. A pitcher who meets this criterion will be credited with a complete game regardless of the number of innings played—pitche ...

s (1921–1922). He was also among the league leaders in

strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is den ...

s each year, while pitching at least 25 complete games and over 300

innings An innings is one of the divisions of a cricket match during which one team takes its turn to bat. Innings also means the period in which an individual player bats (acts as either striker or nonstriker). Innings, in cricket, and rounders, is ...

. Faber achieved most of his success with White Sox teams that were usually barely competitive. They had been one of the top teams in the league in the late 1910s, with a powerful offense. After much of the core of that team was permanently banned in the Black Sox Scandal, the White Sox had only two winning seasons in Faber's last 13 years, never finishing above fifth place. In the season, Faber posted a terrific 25–15

for a scandal-decimated team that limped to a 62–92 finish; from 1921 to 1929 his record was 126–103. In 1927 Faber broke up a 21-game

hitting streak In baseball, a hitting streak is the number of consecutive official games in which a player appears and gets at least one base hit. According to the Official Baseball Rules, such a streak is not necessarily ended when a player has at least 1 pla ...

by a still capable 40-year-old

Ty Cobb Tyrus Raymond Cobb (December 18, 1886 – July 17, 1961), nicknamed "the Georgia Peach", was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) center fielder. He was born in rural Narrows, Georgia. Cobb spent 22 seasons with the Detroit Tigers, the l ...

. Perhaps his last great performance was a one-hitter at age 40 in .

Later career

In his last few seasons, Faber returned to relief pitching, coming out of the bullpen 96 times between 1931 and 1933. Faber announced his retirement before the 1934 season. He had pitched 20 consecutive years for the White Sox. He ended his career at age 45 with a 254–213 career record, a 3.15 ERA and 1471 strikeouts. He holds the White Sox franchise record for most games pitched, and held the team records for career wins, starts, complete games and innings until they were later broken by

Ted Lyons Theodore Amar Lyons (December 28, 1900 – July 25, 1986) was an American professional baseball starting pitcher, manager and coach in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played in 21 MLB seasons, all with the Chicago White Sox. He is the franchise le ...

. After retiring as a player, Faber entered auto sales and real estate. He returned as a White Sox coach for three seasons. Faber and catcher Ray Schalk started 306 games as a

battery Battery most often refers to: * Electric battery, a device that provides electrical power * Battery (crime), a crime involving unlawful physical contact Battery may also refer to: Energy source *Automotive battery, a device to provide power t ...

, third-most of any such duo since 1900.

Personal life

In 1947, Faber married Frances (Fran) Knudtzon, who was nearly 30 years younger than he. Faber said that he was too old for her, but she insisted that they get married. Fran was Lutheran and a divorcee, and the couple married quickly, making the marriage unpopular among Faber's Catholic family. However, some became more accepting with time.Cooper, pp. 223-224. The couple had a son the next year, Urban C. Faber II, nicknamed "Pepper". When he was 14 he suffered a broken neck in a near-fatal swimming accident, causing long-term health problems. Grave of Urban Clarence Faber (1888–1976) at Acacia Park Cemetery, Norwood Park Township

Grave of Urban Clarence Faber (1888–1976) at Acacia Park Cemetery, Norwood Park Township

Faber helped to found Baseball Anonymous, a charitable organization that assisted former baseball players who had run into financial or physical problems. Later he worked on a

Cook County Cook County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of Illinois and the second-most-populous county in the United States, after Los Angeles County, California. More than 40% of all residents of Illinois live within Cook County. As of 20 ...

highway surveying team until he was nearly 80. He was a longtime smoker, and after suffering two heart attacks in the 1960s began to experience increasing heart and lung issues. He died in Chicago in 1976 and was interred in Acacia Park Cemetery there.

Notes

References

External links

Interview with Red Faber
conducted by

Eugene Murdock Eugene Converse Murdock (April 30, 1921 – July 23, 1992) was an historian and author best known for his research into baseball. Early life and education Eugene C. Murdock was born in Lakewood, Ohio, on April 30, 1921, and attended school ther ...

on March 15, 1976, in