Alfred Thomas Papai (May 7, 1917 – September 7, 1995) was an American

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

who played between the and seasons for the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Centra ...

(1948, 1950),

St. Louis Browns The St. Louis Browns were a Major League Baseball team that originated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as the Milwaukee Brewers. A charter member of the American League (AL), the Brewers moved to St. Louis, Missouri, after the 1901 season, where they ...

(1949),

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

(1950) and

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) American League Central, Central Division. The club plays its ...

(1955). Listed at , 185 lb., Papai batted and threw right-handed. He was born in

Divernon, Illinois Divernon is a village in Sangamon County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,139 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Springfield, Illinois Metropolitan Statistical Area. History A post office has been in operation at Divernon sinc ...

. A

knuckleball A knuckleball or knuckler is a baseball pitch (baseball), pitch thrown to minimize the spin of the ball in flight, causing an erratic, unpredictable motion. The air flow over a seam of the ball causes the ball to change from Laminar flow, lamin ...

er specialist, Papai was one of 29 players to pitch for both St. Louis clubs. In his only major league full-season he went 4–11 with a 5.06

ERA An era is a span of time. Era or ERA may also refer to: * Era (geology), a subdivision of geologic time * Calendar era Education * Academy of European Law (German: '), an international law school * ERA School, in Melbourne, Australia * E ...

for the helpless Browns. In parts of four seasons, he posted a 9–14 record with a 5.37 ERA in 88 appearances, including 18

stars A star is a luminous spheroid of plasma held together by self-gravity. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked eye at night; their immense distances from Earth make them appear as fixed points of ...

, eight

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, four saves, 70

strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It means the batter is out, unless the third strike is not caught by the catcher and the batter reaches first base safe ...

s, 138 walks, and innings of work. Papai also enjoyed a brilliant minor league career as the pitching staff ace for the

Houston Buffaloes The Houston Buffaloes, Houston Buffalos, or Buffs were an American minor league baseball team, and were the first minor league team to be affiliated with a Major League Baseball, Major League franchise, which was the St. Louis Cardinals. The clu ...

of the

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

, posting 20-win seasons for them (1947, 1951–53). He went 21–10, with a 2.45 ERA for the 1947 Dixie Series Champion Buffs and 23–9, with a 2.44 ERA for the 1951 Texas League kings. He also pitched in the

Venezuelan Winter League The Venezuelan Professional Baseball League (, or LVBP) is the top-level professional baseball league in Venezuela. The league's champion takes part in the Caribbean Series each year. History Background and predecessors Baseball had been play ...

during the 1951–52 and 1952–53 seasons, compiling a 15–16 mark with a 2.25 ERA in 47 appearances. Papai died in

Springfield, Illinois Springfield is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Illinois. Its population was 114,394 at the 2020 United States census, which makes it the state's List of cities in Illinois, seventh-most populous cit ...

, at the age of 78.

References

External links

, o
Retrosheet
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Papai, Al 1917 births 1995 deaths Allentown Cardinals players Baseball players from Sangamon County, Illinois Boston Red Sox players Chicago White Sox players Corpus Christi Giants players Houston Buffaloes players Indianapolis Indians players Knuckleball pitchers Lynchburg Cardinals players Major League Baseball pitchers Memphis Chickasaws players Oklahoma City Indians players Patriotas de Venezuela players Rochester Red Wings players St. Louis Browns players 20th-century American sportsmen St. Louis Cardinals players Springfield Cardinals players Worthington Cardinals players Sportspeople from Sangamon County, Illinois

See also

References

External links