Brock Rutherford
by Martín Abresch
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The greatest player in National Baseball League history, Rutherford began his career with the Brooklyn Bluebirds but was traded to the St. Louis Explorers prior to the 1923 season. Even at the time, the trade was considered to be one of the most lopsided in history, and Rutherford wasted little time in making Brooklyn look foolish. In 1923, he won the pitching Triple Crown and led the St. Louis Explorers to their third NBL Championship. The Explorers won their division 10 times during Rutherford's tenure, including eight years in a row from 1923-30, and they won the NBL Championship five times (1923, 1925, 1930, 1937-38).
For his career, Brock Rutherford went 544-180 with a 1.91 ERA. He won the pitching Triple Crown eight times (1921, 1923, 1926-29, 1932, 1937), including four years in a row from 1926 to 1929. His first Triple Crown win came as a 23-year old in 1921 and the last time came as a 39-year old in 1937. He led the league in strikeouts for 19 consecutive seasons (1920-38) and in pitching WAR for 16 consecutive seasons (1923-38). He also led the league in wins (1921, 1923, 1926-30, 1932-33, 1936-38), ERA (1921, 1923-29, 1931-32, 1935, 1937), innings pitched (1929, 1932, 1935-38), and WHIP (1923-32, 1934-38). Several awards began midway through Rutherford's career. The first All-Star Game was held in 1933, and Rutherford was named to eight All-Star teams (1933-38, 1940-41). The Most Valuable Player award was introduced in 1932: he won the award twice (1934-35). The Royal Ricketts Award was introduced in 1937, when Rutherford was 39: he won the first two awards (1937-38). He was named Pitcher of the Month 35 times.
In 1947, Brock Rutherford was unanimously elected to the Hall of Fame.