Charles Vedder Sitton (September 22, 1881 – September 11, 1931), also known as Carl, C. V. and Vet Sitton, was a

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

player and coach. He attended

Clemson College Clemson University () is a public land-grant research university near Clemson, South Carolina, United States. - The blue-shaded pattern denotes university property. This shows Clemson University is ''outside'' of the Clemson city limits. Founded ...

, where he played baseball and

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

for coach

John Heisman John William Heisman ( ; October 23, 1869 – October 3, 1936) was a player and coach of American football, baseball, and basketball, as well as a sportswriter and actor. He served as the head football coach at Oberlin College, Buchtel College ...

. On the

team, Sitton was a

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, ...

, going 6–0 as a senior captain. On the

team, he was an

end End, END, Ending, or ENDS may refer to: End Mathematics *End (category theory) * End (topology) * End (graph theory) * End (group theory) (a subcase of the previous) * End (endomorphism) Sports and games *End (gridiron football) *End, a division ...

notable for end runs. He later coached baseball for Clemson. In his second season in the minor leagues, Sitton led two teams to a regional pennant. In 1908, he pitched for the

Jacksonville Jays Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...

, and won the

South Atlantic League The South Atlantic League, often informally called the Sally League, is a Minor League Baseball league with teams predominantly in states along the Atlantic coast of the United States from New York to Georgia. A Class A league for most of its h ...

(SALLY), and then for the

Nashville Vols The Nashville Vols were a Minor League Baseball team that played in Nashville, Tennessee, from 1901 to 1963. Known as the Nashville Baseball Club during their first seven seasons, they became the Nashville Volunteers (regularly shortened to Vols) ...

, and won the

Southern Association The Southern Association (SA) was a higher-level minor league in American organized baseball from 1901 through 1961. For most of its existence, the Southern Association was two steps below the Major Leagues; it was graded Class B (1902-19 ...

. He was then the first Clemson athlete to play major-league baseball in with the

Cleveland Naps The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. Since , the team has played its home gam ...

before returning to the minors. He used the now-illegal

spitball A spitball is a now-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 ...

Early life

Sitton was born to Henry Philip and Amy Wilkinson Sitton in

Pendleton, South Carolina Pendleton is a town in Anderson County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 3,489 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is a sister city of Stornoway in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. The town is located southeast of Cl ...

on September 22, 1881, the second of five children. He was named after a renowned Charleston

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...

minister. Known on the sports pages as Carl or C. V., his family called him Vedder. Sitton's grandfather, John B. Sitton, built the first brick building in the town square of the Old Pendleton district; his father and an uncle, Augustus, fought for the

Confederacy A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

. Augustus was later prominent in the Red Shirt movement.

Clemson

Sitton enrolled in

in 1901, attending through 1903 but never graduating. He played football and baseball for coach

Clemson Tigers The Clemson Tigers are the sport, athletic teams that represent Clemson University, located in Clemson, South Carolina. They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I level (NCAA Divis ...

Football

According to one source, "Vetter Sitton and

Hope Sadler David Hope Sadler (October 12, 1882 – August 29, 1931) was an American football player for John Heisman's Clemson Tigers of Clemson University. He was captain of the SIAA champion 1902 and 1903 Clemson Tigers football teams coached by Hei ...

were the finest

s that Clemson ever had perhaps". Sitton played on the left and Sadler on the right on Clemson's football teams. Both were All-Southern football players in

1902 Events January * January 1 ** The Nurses Registration Act 1901 comes into effect in New Zealand, making it the first country in the world to require state registration of nurses. On January 10, Ellen Dougherty becomes the world's ...

and

1903 Events January * January 1 – Edward VII is proclaimed Emperor of India. * January 10 – The Aceh Sultanate was fully annexed by the Dutch forces, deposing the last sultan, marking the end of the Aceh War that have lasted for al ...

. In 1915, John Heisman selected the 30 best Southern football players, and mentioned Sitton 23rd. 1902 saw a 44–5 beatdown of

Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology (commonly referred to as Georgia Tech, GT, and simply Tech or the Institute) is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Established in 1885, it has the lar ...

in which Sitton scored first on an 80-yard

end run In gridiron football, an end run is a running play in which the player carrying the ball tries to avoid being Tackle (football move), tackled by running outside the end (or flank) of the offensive line. It is distinct from a Dive (American footbal ...

. The day before the game, Clemson sent in scrubs to Atlanta, checked into a hotel, and partied until dawn. The varsity sat well rested in

Lula, Georgia Lula is a city in Hall County, Georgia, Hall and Banks County, Georgia, Banks counties in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The population was 2,822 at the 2020 census, and the town has both Hall and Banks county zoning. Lula is t ...

as those who bet on Tech were fooled. Vet Sitton Clemson

In 1903, Sitton was reportedly injured before the

contest. Tech rooters thought perhaps it was another ruse from Heisman. It was no ruse, but Sitton's substitute Gil Ellison played well enough for a 73–0 rout. The 24–0 win over Davidson saw one writer note "Clemson playing against eleven wooden men, would attract attention;" and Sitton had a 60-yard touchdown run. The 1903 Tigers went on to play in the South's first conference championship game, tying

Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is an area of North West England which was historically a county. The county was bordered by Northumberland to the north-east, County Durham to the east, Westmorland to the south-east, Lancashire to the south, and the Scottish ...

11–11. The tying score came after Cumberland muffed a punt. Cumberland expected a

trick play A trick play, also known as a gadget play, gimmick play or trickeration, is a play in gridiron football that uses deception and unorthodox tactics to fool the opposing team. A trick play is often risky, offering the potential for a large gain or a ...

when

Fritz Furtick Fritz Malholmes Furtick (July 15, 1882 – May 5, 1962)U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918 atabase on-line Registration State: Kansas; Registration County: Saline; Roll: 1643837. was an American football halfback for the ...

simply ran up the middle for a touchdown. One account of the play reads "Heisman saw his chance to exploit a weakness in the Cumberland defense: run the ball where the ubiquitous Red Smith wasn't. So the next time Sitton started out on one of his slashing end runs, at the last second he tossed the ball back to the fullback who charges straight over center (where Smith would have been except that he was zeroing in on the elusive Sitton) and went all the way for the tying touchdown."

Baseball

He was also a

starting pitcher In baseball (hardball or softball), a starting pitcher or starter is the first pitcher in the game for each team. A pitcher is credited with a game started if they throw the first pitch to the opponent's first batter of a game. Starting pit ...

for the

team, "one of the best pitchers Clemson ever had". and "one of the best twirlers in the country." According to one account, "Sitton is considered one of the best college twirlers in the south ... He is a heady pitcher, and knows just what to do in every emergency." He posted an 18–4 career record, including records of 5-2, 7-2, and 6-0 in his three years on the varsity. He was

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

of the 1903 team.

Pro baseball

After college Sitton played baseball in a number of cities, batting and throwing right-handed. He had his pitching debut with the

, leading the team to the

(SALLY) championship in his second season in 1908.

Nashville Vols

Sitton was then a starting pitcher for the

champion 1908

. The club, under manager

Bill Bernhard William Henry "Strawberry Bill" Bernhard (March 16, 1871 – March 30, 1949) was an American professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1899 to 1907 for the Philadelphia Phillies, Philadelphia Athletics, and Cl ...

, entered the final day of that season with an opportunity to win the league pennant. The championship would be decided by the last game of the season, between the Vols and the

New Orleans Pelicans The New Orleans Pelicans are an American professional basketball team based in New Orleans. The Pelicans compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Confere ...

Sulphur Dell Sulphur Dell, formerly known as Sulphur Spring Park and Athletic Park, was a baseball park in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. It was located just north of the Tennessee State Capitol building in the block bounded by modern-day Jackson Street ...

. Both teams had the same number of losses (56), but the Pelicans were in first place with 76 wins to the Vols' second-place 74. A crowd of 11,000 saw Sitton use his

to outpitch

Ted Breitenstein Theodore P. ("Ted" or "Breit") Breitenstein (June 1, 1869 – May 3, 1935) was an American Major League Baseball pitcher from St. Louis, Missouri who played from to for the St. Louis Browns/Cardinals and the Cincinnati Reds. He is best known ...

for a complete-game, nine-strikeout, three-hit, 1–0 shutout, giving Nashville its third Southern Association pennant by .002 percentage points. The Nashville team and the fans mobbed the pitcher on the mound.

Grantland Rice Henry Grantland Rice (November 1, 1880 – July 13, 1954) was an American sportswriter and poet known as the "Dean of American Sports Writers". He coined the famous phrase that it was not important whether you “won or lost, but how you playe ...

called it "the greatest game ever played in

Dixie Dixie, also known as Dixieland or Dixie's Land, is a nickname for all or part of the Southern United States. While there is no official definition of this region (and the included areas have shifted over the years), or the extent of the area i ...

". According to one account, "By one run, by one point, Nashville has won the Southern League pennant, nosing New Orleans out literally by an eyelash. Saturday's game, which was the deciding one, between Nashville and New Orleans was the greatest exhibition of the national game ever seen in the south and the finish in the league race probably sets a record in baseball history". ''

Nashville Banner The ''Nashville Banner'' is a defunct daily newspaper of Nashville, Tennessee, United States, which published from April 10, 1876 until February 20, 1998. The ''Banner'' was published each Monday through Friday afternoon (as well as Saturdays unt ...

'' sportswriters

Fred Russell Fred Russell (August 27, 1906 – January 26, 2003) was an American sportswriter from Tennessee who served as sports editor for the ''Nashville Banner'' newspaper for 68 years (1930–1998). He was a member of the Heisman Trophy Committee, presi ...

and George Leonard created all-time team lists of the top Nashville players from 1901 to 1919 and from 1920 to 1963. Sitton was named a pitcher on the former team.

Cleveland Naps

Nap Lajoie Napoléon Lajoie (; September 5, 1874 – February 7, 1959), also known as Larry Lajoie, was an American professional baseball second baseman who played 21 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). Nicknamed "the Frenchman", he represented both Ph ...

soon lured Sitton from the Nashville club, making him the first Clemson player to play in the major leagues. Sitton was optimistic when he arrived at spring training to replace the ailing Glenn Liebhardt. He pitched well in the preseason, including a shutout against Mobile. Sitton made his major-league debut on April 24, 1909 against

Rube Waddell George Edward "Rube" Waddell (October 13, 1876 – April 1, 1914) was an American pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB). A left-hander, he played for 13 years, with the Louisville Colonels, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Chicago Orphans in the Nati ...

and the St. Louis Browns, winning the game. He also won his second game, against

Walter Johnson Walter Perry Johnson (November 6, 1887 – December 10, 1946), nicknamed "Barney" and "the Big Train", was an American professional baseball player and Manager (baseball), manager. He played his entire 21-year baseball career in Major League Ba ...

and the Washington Senators. Although Sitton had an early 3–0 record, he was overshadowed by other pitchers on the club such as

Cy Young Denton True "Cy" Young (March 29, 1867 – November 4, 1955) was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher. Born in Gilmore, Ohio, he worked on his family's farm as a youth before starting his professional baseball career. Young entered t ...

and

Addie Joss Adrian "Addie" Joss (April 12, 1880 – April 14, 1911), nicknamed "the Human Hairpin", was an American professional baseball pitcher. He pitched for the Cleveland Bronchos of Major League Baseball, later known as the Naps, between 1902 and 19 ...

. With his high hits–to–innings ratio, he was relegated to the

bullpen In baseball, the bullpen (or simply the pen) is the area where relief pitchers warm up before entering a game. A team's roster of relief pitchers is also metonymically referred to as "the bullpen". These pitchers usually wait in the bullpen if ...

. Sitton played his last game in the majors on September 2, 1909, against the

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

; he did not finish the game, losing 6–1. He appeared in a total of 14 games (five as a starter), posting a 3–2 record and a 2.88

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 ...

. Sitton had as many hits as innings pitched and a 1:1

strikeout-to-walk ratio In baseball statistics, strikeout-to-walk ratio (K/BB) is a measure of a pitcher's ability to control pitches, calculated as strikeouts divided by bases on balls. A hit by pitch is not counted statistically as a walk, and therefore not counted in ...

. Sitton once when up to bat told umpire

Tim Hurst Timothy Carroll Hurst (June 30, 1865 – June 4, 1915) was an American sports official who worked as an umpire and manager in Major League Baseball and as a boxing referee in championship fights. His baseball umpiring career lasted 16 seasons f ...

he was going to use "three healthy swings". After striking out he told Hurst, "Well, I guess I had my three healthies". Hurst responded "That's all right young fellow, take three more; I like the breeze this hot day."

Return to minors

Sitton then returned to the minors, playing with the

Montreal Royals The Montreal Royals were a minor league professional baseball team in Montreal, Quebec, during 1897–1917 and 1928–1960. A member of the International League, the Royals were the top farm club ( Class AAA) of the Brooklyn Dodgers from 1939; pi ...

Atlanta Crackers The Atlanta Crackers were a Minor League Baseball team based in Atlanta, Georgia, between 1901 and 1965. The Crackers were Atlanta's home team until the Atlanta Braves moved from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 1966. History Atlanta played its inaugu ...

Troy Trojans The Troy Trojans are the sports teams of Troy University. They began playing in the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA's Division I (NCAA), Division I-A in 2001 in sports, 2001, became a American football, football only member of the ...

, and Binghamton Bingoes.

Clemson as coach

He was head baseball coach of the Clemson Tigers in 1915 and 1916. Before his hiring, Sitton was known as a frequenter of Clemson games. Sitton posted a 26–18–1 career coaching record.

Traveling salesman

After 1916, Sitton's career as baseball player and coach apparently ended. He surfaced again in the 1920s as an employee of the California-based Hercules Powder Company, a former munitions firm which manufactured fertilizer. Sitton lived in the Daniel Ashley Hotel in

Valdosta, Georgia Valdosta is a city in and the county seat of Lowndes County, Georgia, Lowndes County in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. As the principal city of the Valdosta Metropolitan Statistical Area, Valdosta metropolitan statistical area, ...

at the beginning of the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

, and lost his job around 1931.

Death

On the morning of September 11, 1931, at age 49, Sitton borrowed a car from a Valdosta native and drove to the Lowndes County Fairgrounds. There, parked near the baseball diamond, he shot himself in the head. No motive was directly stated; his suicide was likely because he lost his job.

Notes

References

Bibliography

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sitton, Carl 1881 births 1931 suicides 1931 deaths American football ends Major League Baseball pitchers Atlanta Crackers players Binghamton Bingoes players Clemson Tigers baseball coaches Clemson Tigers baseball players Clemson Tigers football players Cleveland Naps players Columbus Senators players Jacksonville Jays players Montreal Royals players Nashville Vols players Troy Trojans (minor league) players All-Southern college football players People from Pendleton, South Carolina Players of American football from Anderson County, South Carolina Baseball players from Anderson County, South Carolina Suicides by firearm in Georgia (U.S. state) Baseball coaches from South Carolina 20th-century American sportsmen