1890
Born June 27, 1890
Clinton, NC, USA
Rube Benton Marquee
He told a Chicago grand jury in September 1920 that he had known the 1919 World Series was fixed, that he had seen a telegram naming the players, and — under further questioning — that he had bet on the games himself. The National League barred him after the 1921 season; he pitched three years in the minor leagues and came back to Cincinnati in 1923 over the league president's objection.
Fifteen seasons gave him 150 wins against 144 with a 3.09 earned run average, 2,517 innings and 145 complete games. He won 17 games for the 1919 Giants and 15 for the 1917 pennant winners, and started two games of that World Series.
He was from North Carolina, threw left-handed and pitched until he was thirty-five. No Hall of Fame ballot ever listed him. He died in a car accident in 1937, at forty-seven.
Batting, season by season
| Year | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1910 | CIN | 12 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | .091 |
| 1911 | CIN | 6 | 14 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 0 | .143 |
| 1912 | CIN | 50 | 104 | 6 | 14 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 31 | 1 | .135 |
| 1913 | CIN | 23 | 48 | 8 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 4 | 7 | 0 | .208 |
| 1914 | CIN | 41 | 91 | 4 | 13 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 31 | 1 | .143 |
| 1915 | CIN/NYG | 45 | 76 | 3 | 16 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 16 | 1 | .211 |
| 1916 | NYG | 38 | 78 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 21 | 1 | .090 |
| 1917 | NYG | 35 | 72 | 1 | 12 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 18 | 0 | .167 |
| 1918 | NYG | 3 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | .143 |
| 1919 | NYG | 35 | 67 | 5 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 8 | 0 | .194 |
| 1920 | NYG | 33 | 65 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 14 | 0 | .092 |
| 1921 | NYG | 18 | 21 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | .143 |
| 1923 | CIN | 33 | 80 | 5 | 23 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 12 | 0 | .287 |
| 1924 | CIN | 32 | 46 | 5 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 10 | 0 | .261 |
| 1925 | CIN | 33 | 45 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 0 | .200 |
| Career | — | 437 | 825 | 45 | 142 | 19 | 4 | 1 | 60 | 22 | 188 | 4 | .172 |
Pitching, season by season
| Year | Team | W | L | G | GS | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1910 | CIN | 0 | 1 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 38.0 | 44 | 20 | 23 | 15 | 4.74 |
| 1911 | CIN | 3 | 3 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 44.2 | 44 | 10 | 23 | 28 | 2.01 |
| 1912 | CIN | 18 | 20 | 50 | 39 | 2 | 302.0 | 316 | 104 | 118 | 162 | 3.10 |
| 1913 | CIN | 11 | 7 | 23 | 22 | 0 | 144.1 | 140 | 56 | 60 | 68 | 3.49 |
| 1914 | CIN | 16 | 18 | 41 | 31 | 2 | 271.0 | 223 | 89 | 95 | 121 | 2.96 |
| 1915 | CIN/NYG | 9 | 18 | 45 | 28 | 5 | 237.0 | 222 | 84 | 76 | 109 | 3.19 |
| 1916 | NYG | 16 | 8 | 38 | 30 | 2 | 238.2 | 210 | 76 | 58 | 115 | 2.87 |
| 1917 | NYG | 15 | 9 | 35 | 25 | 3 | 215.0 | 190 | 65 | 41 | 70 | 2.72 |
| 1918 | NYG | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 24.0 | 17 | 5 | 3 | 9 | 1.88 |
| 1919 | NYG | 17 | 11 | 35 | 28 | 2 | 209.0 | 181 | 61 | 52 | 53 | 2.63 |
| 1920 | NYG | 9 | 16 | 33 | 25 | 2 | 193.1 | 222 | 65 | 31 | 52 | 3.03 |
| 1921 | NYG | 5 | 2 | 18 | 9 | 0 | 72.0 | 72 | 23 | 17 | 11 | 2.88 |
| 1923 | CIN | 14 | 10 | 33 | 26 | 1 | 219.0 | 243 | 89 | 57 | 59 | 3.66 |
| 1924 | CIN | 7 | 9 | 32 | 15 | 1 | 162.2 | 166 | 50 | 24 | 42 | 2.77 |
| 1925 | CIN | 9 | 10 | 33 | 16 | 1 | 146.2 | 182 | 66 | 34 | 36 | 4.05 |
| Career | — | 150 | 144 | 437 | 305 | 21 | 2517.1 | 2472 | 863 | 712 | 950 | 3.09 |
On this day & linked events
1937
Died December 12, 1937
1910
Major-league debut: Rube Benton
Rube Benton made a major-league debut on June 28, 1910.
1925
Final major-league game: Rube Benton
Rube Benton played a final major-league game on September 21, 1925.
Image: Unknown author Unknown, public domain