Ken Chase
From BR Bullpen
Kendall Fay Chase (Lefty)
- Bats Left, Throws Left
- Height 6' 2", Weight 210 lb.
- Debut April 23, 1936
- Final Game October 1, 1943
- Born October 6, 1913 in Oneonta, NY USA
- Died January 16, 1985 in Oneonta, NY USA
[edit] Biographical Information
New York native Ken Chase spent nine seasons in professional baseball from 1935 to 1943. The left-hander started his pro career with a 11-11 record in 32 outings for the Panama City Pilots of the class D Georgia-Florida League in 1935. He led the league with 220 strikeouts.
Ken made his big league debut with the Washington Senators on April 23, 1936, appeared in one game, giving up three earned runs and spent the rest of the 1936 season with the Chattanooga Lookouts of the Southern Association with a 3-10 record in 47 games.
Ken was with Chattanooga again in 1937, went 5-12 with a 3.66 ERA in 20 games and finished up the year for the Senators with a 4-3 record and a 4.13 ERA in 14 games. He would remain with the Washington team for several years, accumulating a 44-67 record, before being traded along with Johnny Welaj to the Boston Red Sox for Stan Spence and Jack Wilson, on December 13, 1941.
Chase promptly had his best career won-loss record at 5-1 with the Red Sox but blew it all apart in 1943 with a 0-4 start with the Red Sox. Ken did not finish things off real well when he went 4-12, after being sold to the New York Giants, to wrap up 1943 and his career. He left town with big league numbers of 53-84 and a 4.27 ERA in 188 games, including 160 starts and 62 complete games, with four shutouts while pitching 1,165 innings.
Ken had a couple of good memories of his 1939 season, although he lost a no-hitter in the ninth inning, when Skeeter Webb garnered the first of two hits, but Chase held on to beat Bob Feller and the Cleveland Indians‚ 2-0.
On April 29, 1939, Chase gave up hit number 2,721 of Yankee captain Lou Gehrig's career. Gehrig never recorded another hit as he willingly pulled himself out of the lineup the next day. He never played another game.
His most productive season came in 1940 with the Senators, when he set career numbers with 15 wins, a 3.23 ERA, and 129 strikeouts. Unfortunately, he struggled with poor control during the season, allowing 143 walks and 12 wild pitches to lead the American League.
Following his playing retirement, Chase remained active to run his family dairy farm near Cooperstown, NY. He died in his hometown of Oneonta, NY on January 16, 1985, at the age of 71.
