Louis Henry Fiene (December 29, 1884 – December 22, 1964) 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, ...

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 ...

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

from 1906 to 1909."Lou Fiene Statistics and History"
''baseball-reference.com''. Retrieved 2010-11-26.

Biography

Fiene was born in

Fort Dodge, Iowa Fort Dodge is a city in and the county seat of Webster County, Iowa, United States, along the Des Moines River. The population was 24,871 in the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, a decrease from 25,136 in 2000 United States Census, 2000. F ...

. Known as "Big Finn," he started his professional baseball career in 1904. That season, he led the

Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League The Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League was a Class B level Minor League Baseball organization that operated for the better part of 60 seasons, with teams based in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymo ...

in wins (23) and

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 number ...

(2.45). He joined the American Association's

Toledo Mud Hens The Toledo Mud Hens are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Toledo, Ohio, and play their home games at Fifth Third Field. A baseball team nicknamed the ...

, and in 1905, he went 11–13."Lou Fiene Minor League Statistics & History"
''baseball-reference.com''. Retrieved 2010-11-26. Fiene was then purchased by the White Sox. In

spring training Spring training, also called spring camp, is the preseason of the Summer Professional Baseball Leagues, such as Major League Baseball (MLB), and it is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spri ...

of 1906, he claimed to have mastered the

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 ...

pitch. He pitched in just six games that season, going 1–1, while Chicago won the

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...

. Fiene didn't pitch much in 1907, either. He spent most of 1908 back in the American Association with the

Minneapolis Millers The Minneapolis Millers were an American professional minor league baseball team that played in Minneapolis, Minnesota, through 1960. In the 19th century a different Minneapolis Millers were part of the Western League. The team played first in ...

, and he won 20 games. That performance earned him a roster spot on the White Sox again. In 1909, he pitched a career-high 72 innings in the major leagues and went 2–5. In 1910, Fiene went back to Minneapolis and compiled a record of 15–6. He hurt his arm after that"There is Gratitude in Baseball - Fiene's Case Proves It"
''The Milwaukee Journal'', April 19, 1914, p. 23. and ended up playing at

first base A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

and in the

outfield The outfield, in cricket, baseball and softball is the area of the field of play further from the batsman or batter than the infield. In association football, the outfield players are positioned outside the goal area. In bat and ball games ...

for a few years. Fiene died in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, at the age of 79.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fiene, Lou 1884 births 1964 deaths Major League Baseball pitchers Chicago White Sox players Cedar Rapids Rabbits players Toledo Mud Hens players Minneapolis Millers (baseball) players Mobile Sea Gulls players Kansas City Blues (baseball) players Milwaukee Brewers (minor league) players Baseball players from Iowa Sportspeople from Fort Dodge, Iowa 20th-century American sportsmen