Athletes - Mickey McDermott

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	Athletes - Mickey McDermott

Maurice Joseph "Mickey" McDermott Jr. (April 29 1929 - August 7 2003) was an American left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who is best known not for his accomplishments, but for what he didn't accomplish. A "can't miss" prospect, McDermott failed to live up to his potential due in part to his wildness on and off of the pitcher's mound.

Pre-professional career

Mickey McDermott was the third son of Maurice McDermott Sr., a police officer and former minor league baseball player. Maurice, replaced at first base on the Hartford Senators in the Eastern League by future Hall of Famer Lou Gehrig, had determined one of his three sons would grow up to be a baseball player and fulfill his dream. The first son, Jimmy, died at the age of seven and his second son, Billy, was born with deformed legs. That left only Mickey to dump all of Maurice's dreams on.

McDermott started playing first base, his father's position, until his coach at St. Mary's Grammar School noticed that his ball had a natural curve when thrown. By the time he was playing in the parochial school league for St. Patrick's High, he was averaging twenty strikeouts per game. McDermott played for the semi-pro Ferrara Trucking Company at the age of 13 against adults and some major league baseball players moonlighting to pick up some extra money. He went to his first tryout also at the age of 13 with the Brooklyn Dodgers. Mule Haas, a scout for the Dodgers, said that he wanted to sign McDermott, but because of his age it was illegal. At the age of 15, his father changed is birth certificate to make him appear 16 year old. Joe Cronin, general manager of the Red Sox, did some research and found out McDermott was only 15. Cronin and McDermott's father worked it out so that McDermott's father got a $5,000 signing bonus and two truck loads of Ballantine Beer for McDermott.

Professional career

Minor leagues

McDermott was assigned to the Red Sox's Double A affiliate, the Scranton Red Sox of the Eastern League. He ended up the season with a 16-6 record with a 3.29 ERA and 136 strikeouts in 175 innings. On July 14, 1946, at the age of 17, McDermott threw a no-hitter against the Albany Senators, making him possibly the youngest pitcher to throw a no-hit game in the high minors.

The following season, McDermott was moved up to Boston's Triple-A affiliate, the Louisville Colonels where he had a tough time with his control. Subsequently, he was sent back to Scranton to work on his mechanics. In Scranton, something clicked and he ended up going 12-4 with 4 shutouts for the rest of the season, averaging almost one strikeout per nine innings. During the playoffs, McDermott, threw his second minor league no-hitter. Playing at home against the Utica Blue Sox, McDermott walked Richie Ashburn in the ninth inning. Ashburn took second on a fielders's choice and reached third on a sacrifice fly. With two outs, the catcher called for a curve, but McDermott missed the sign and threw a fastball. The catcher, expecting a curve, couldn't catch the ball as it went sailing past him. Ashburn scored the only run of the game to give Utica the victory and McDermott the no-hit loss.

Major leagues

McDermott made it onto the Boston Red Sox's roster for at the beginning of the 1948 season. He appeared in seven games during the first two months of the season, mostly in lopsided losses. In 23 innings, he had 16 strikeouts and 35 walks. Because of his dismal performance, McDermott was sent back to Scranton for more seasoning. After the minor league season ended, he was called back up when the major league roster which had expanded for the playoff run. While with Scranton, McDermott threw his third career minor league no-hitter.

After the 1949 spring training, McDermott was assigned to the Louisville Colonels. On May 24, he struck out 20 St. Paul Saints to set a new American Association record that was never broken (the American Association folded in 1963). Over the next four games after his 20 strikeout performance, he struck out 19, 18, 17 and 19 to set a record for the most strikeouts over a five game period, 93. Under pressure from sports writers, Boston, which was already 11 games out of first place, brought up McDermott to help their ailing pitching staff.

McDermott got his first big league win when Ellis Kinder left the game in the first inning, too drunk to pitch. McDermott pitched eight innings of shutout baseball before being lifted for a reliever. He finished the season with a 5-4 record and 2 shutouts, but his strikeout to walk ratio was still about one for one. McDermott continued to improve on his control. His peak came in 1953 when he went 18-10. The following year, he was traded to the lowly Washington Senators for Jackie Jensen. McDermott never really got back on track after the trade. He finished his career with a 69-69 record playing for several different teams, each on thinking that they could reach that untapped potential that he showed as a youth. After refusing to sign with the Tigers for the 1959, the Tigers sold his contract to the Dallas Eagles of the Texas League, who he also refused to sign with. Then Bill Veeck, owner of the triple A Miami Marlins of the International League, signed him to pitch on the same staff as Satchel Paige and Virgil Trucks.

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