Jim Devlin

Born: April 16, 1866
Died:
MLB Debut: June,28, 1886
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Jim Devlin started the 1886 season with Troy in the Hudson River League. He was signed by the Giants in early June after a contract dispute that lasted several weeks. A few weeks later, he made his major league debut at the age of 20 on June 28, 1886, with the New York Giants, coming into the game in the eighth inning in relief of future Hall of Famer Tim Keefe. His nerves got the better of him and he allowed five runs in his first inning. He was sent back to New York, and in the middle of August he was conditionally released to Syracuse.

In January of 1887, Devlin signed with the Philadelphia Athletics in the National League. He started the season on the reserve list because his motion was so deliberate and slow, runners were stealing at will. (There was a rule change going into the 1887 season that resulted in his changing his motion.) In early June he was loaned out to Lynn. He was recalled to join the Athletics on their road trip at the end of July. He started two games for the club, losing both while allowing 19 runs. He was released in early September, and he signed on with Ashland, where he played with Harry Lyons and Charlie Alcott. All three were subsequently signed by Chris Von der Ahe - Lyons later in the fall of 1887, and Alcott and Devlin during the off-season.

Jim Devlin was signed to pitch for the Browns for 1888. After the 1887 season, the Browns traded their two veteran starters, Caruthers and Foutz, leaving a hole in the pitching staff. Devlin, Fred Nyce and Pete Somers were signed to help fill that hole. At 22, Devlin was the oldest pitcher on the staff going into the 1888 season, but he was behind Silver King, Nat Hudson and Ed Knouff on the depth chart. He played in four games for the Browns in Spring Training, and then lost his first start of the regular season in late April by giving up a run in the bottom of the tenth inning. When the Browns left town on their first road trip (prior to the Whites home opener on April 28), Devlin was left in St. Louis.

As April ended and May started, there were rumors that Devlin would be transferred to the Whites while Harry Staley would be transferred to the Browns. That didn't happen because of the rules involving player transfers. Still, he was listed as the starter for the Whites for their second game. That game was rained out (and the make-up the next day), and Ed Sproat ended up starting the Whites second game. At the end of June, Devlin was again in St. Louis when the Whites returned from their disastrous road trip. Joe Murphy started the first game back home on June 20 against Des Moines. The sale of Jack Crooks to Omaha that day left the Whites with only eight players on the roster after that game, but he was still listed in the lineup for the game on June 21, which was rained out. Devlin was listed in the lineup as the right fielder and ninth player for the game on June 22. Des Moines protested that he was not eligible, the umpire agreed, and the Whites forfeited the game. On June 23 the scenario repeated itself. The Whites folded later that day. On July 24, Devlin finally appeared with the Whites. He played right field and pitched in their final match, an exhibition game against the Missouri Amateur Athletics Club.

He ultimately started 11 games with the Browns in 1888, finishing with a 6-5 record. His performance in 1888 earned him another shot with the Browns in 1889. Again he was the oldest pitcher on the staff, but he was behind King, Hudson and Icebox Chamberlain (acquired late in 1888) on the depth chart. He pitched in 9 games, but he never really gained traction with the Browns. In early July he was purchased by Minneapolis of the Western Association. He lasted a month with Minneapolis, was released by them, and signed with St. Joseph (also in the Western Association).

Devlin pitched in the minor leagues through 1897, but never again pitched in the majors. Perhaps if he had gotten more opportunities to pitch regularly, he could have had more success in the major leagues. In St. Louis, he had the misfortune to be behind much stronger pitchers, and he never seemed to gain the trust of manager Comiskey. Devlin retired after the 1897 season, at the age of 31. He died just three years later, in December of 1900, from pneumonia.



Major League record for Jim Devlin

Batting stats
Year   Team              Pos            Age    G   AB    R    H   2B   3B   HR  RBI   BB    K   SB   CS     AVG    OBP    SLG
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1886   NY-N              P               20    1    1    0    0    0    0    0    1    0    1    0        0.000  0.000  0.000
1887   Phi-N             P               21    2    6    2    2    0    0    0    0    1    0    0        0.333  0.429  0.333
1888   StL-a             P               22   11   37    7   11    1    0    0    3    4    3    2        0.297  0.366  0.324
1889   StL-a             P               23    9   26    4    5    0    0    0    0    1    4    1        0.192  0.222  0.192
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Totals (4 yrs)                                23   70   13   18    1    0    0    4    6    8    3    0   0.257  0.316  0.271
StL-a (2 yrs)                                 20   63   11   16    1    0    0    3    5    7    3    0   0.254  0.309  0.270


Pitching stats
Year   Team              Pos            Age    W    L     ERA    G   GS   CG   SH    S      IP     R   ER    H   HR   BB    K
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1886   NY-N              P               20    0    0   18.00    1    0    0    0    1     2.0     5    4    3    0    4    2
1887   Phi-N             P               21    0    2    6.00    2    2    2    0    0    18.0    19   12   20    0   10    6
1888   StL-a             P               22    6    5    3.19   11   11   10    0    0    90.1    54   32   82    3   20   45
1889   StL-a             P               23    5    3    2.40    9    8    5    0    0    60.0    38   16   56    0   24   37
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Totals (4 yrs)                                11   10    3.38   23   21   17    0    1   170.1   116   64  161    3   58   90
StL-a (2 yrs)                                 11    8    2.87   20   19   15    0    0   150.1    92   48  138    3   44   82




Spring stats for the Browns

Batting stats
  Date       Opponent      Pos.    AB    R   BH   2B   3B   HR	SB   BB    K
3/29/1888    Whites          p      4    1    0                  0         1
 4/1/1888    New Orleans     p      2    1    1                  0    1
 4/7/1888    Whites          p      4    0    1                  0
4/14/1888    Detroit         p      4    0    1                  0
Totals (4 G)                       14    2    3    0    0    0   0    1    1
0 HBP; 2 putouts, 32 assists and 9 errors
(Note walks allowed were counted as errors for the pitcher)

Pitching stats
  Date       Opponent      Pos.    IP    R   ER    H   BB    K  HBP   WP
3/29/1888    Whites          p      4    2    1    3    1    3    0    1
 4/1/1888    New Orleans     p      9    2    1    8    1    8    0
 4/7/1888    Whites          p      9    6    4    6    2    5    1    1
4/14/1888    Detroit         p      9    2    1    6    3    1    0    1
Totals (4 G)                       31   12    7   23    7   17    1    3