Gus Weyhing


August "Gus" Weyhing was a pitcher for nine professional baseball teams in a career that spanned 14 years from to. He was small for a pitcher by today's standards, listed at 5 feet 10 inches tall and between 120 and 145 pounds. He enjoyed quite a bit of success, winning 25 games or more for six years in a row, capped by a 32 win season in for the Philadelphia Phillies. He completed 46 of his 49 starts that year, hurled six shutouts, and logged 469 innings pitched. He collected 216 wins in his first eight professional seasons. Weyhing was nicknamed "Cannonball", "Rubber Arm", and "Rubber-Winged Gus". Weyhing was known to be a poor hitter and suspect fielder. He holds the dubious honor of having hit the most batters in a career.

Baseball career

Weyhing was a solid pitcher, though he never led the league in any specific categories. He did have a few career highlights, however. In one memorable week in the 1888 season, Weyhing pitched three consecutive complete game victories against Brooklyn to eliminate that team from the pennant race. In addition, Weyhing came close to throwing a perfect game when he hurled a no-hitter on July 31, 1888, against the Kansas City Cowboys. He walked one batter and another reached base via an error.
He set the record for most hit baseman with 278.

Accusations of theft

One odd report, taken from the local Louisville, Kentucky newspaper, tells the tale of Weyhing's possible involvement in a pigeon theft. The following report is from newspaper accounts in Louisville in 1892:
It appears that Weyhing was either cleared of the charges, or found guilty and took care of the matter before the 1892 season commenced. He was with the Phillies all of 1892, and won 32 games for the team.