Sam Nahem
From BR Bullpen
Samuel Ralph Nahem (Subway Sam)
- Bats Right, Throws Right
- Weight 190 lb.
- School Brooklyn College
- Debut October 2, 1938
- Final Game September 11, 1948
- Born October 19, 1915 in New York, NY USA
- Died April 19, 2004 in Berkeley, CA USA
[edit] Biographical Information
Pitcher Sam Nahem was in the majors in 1938, 1941-42, and 1948.
As a rookie in 1938, he won his only game, a nine-inning stint in which he gave up three runs. He came back in 1941 with the 1941 Cardinals, going 5-2.
He threw a submarine slider against right-handed hitters and an overhand curve against lefties. He once said he wished that God had given him movement on his fastball, but He didn't.
He was with Montreal in 1939 and Houston in 1940. He led the league in ERA in 1940.
Sam served three years in the Army during World War II. In addition to his baseball career, Nahem passed the bar exam and was a licensed attorney.
Nahem was a very unusual ballplayer, one who passed the time in the minors by "reading all of Balzac". He grew up in a Syrian Jewish neighborhood and his first language was Arabic.
He was a college quarterback and missed several years of baseball due to World War II. He played service ball along with Leon Day and pitched in front of as many as 50,000 fans in Germany.
He was a union organizer after his baseball days.
