St. Louis Browns RHP Tom Phillips was born on April 1, 1889 in Phillipsburg, Pennsylvania. Phillipsburg is a small mining community located in the central mountains of Pennsylvania. It is the same hometown of former St. Louis Cardinals first baseman, Matt Adams. There is no connection between the towns name and the family of Tom Phillips.
St. Louis Browns RHP Tom Phillips was born on April 1, 1889 in Phillipsburg, Pennsylvania. Phillipsburg is a small mining community located in the central mountains of Pennsylvania. It is the same hometown of former St. Louis Cardinals first baseman, Matt Adams. There is no connection between the towns name and the family of Tom Phillips. It is written that he was often celebrated by his family because he was the first to make it "out of the mines" of the small community.
There is little recorded of the early life of Tom Phillips. He was a 26-year old "rookie" when he appeared for the Wilkes-Barre Barons in 1915. His 12-12 record in 31 games drew he attention of the Browns, who invited him to finish out the season with St. Louis. With no transaction history on record, Tom Phillips made his MLB debut on September 13, 1915, against the Philadelphia Athletics. He lead the Browns to an 8-2 complete game victory, giving up two runs (one earned run) on seven hits, two walks, and three strike outs. He would appear in four more games that September, but his best outing was his first game. He would start three more games, allowing more than six hits in each competition while failing to strike out more than a single batter. His final statistics with the Browns include twelve walks, five strike outs, nine earned runs, an ERA of 2.96, while reaching a 1-3 record. These numbers did not result in an invitation to the Browns in 1916.
However after taking a year away from the game, Tom Phillips would return to baseball with the Little Rock Travelers in 1917, and later the New Orleans Pelicans (1918), and Milwaukee Brewers (1919).
He would see some brief moments in the Major Leagues, as he appeared in 32 games for the Cleveland Indians in 1919 (3-2, 3.11 ERA), and 18 games with the Washington Senators from 1921-22 (4-7, 4.56 ERA). He would spend most of his remaining career was in the minor leagues, returning to the Pelicans (1920-21), and then for the Minneapolis Millers (1922-23).
Known as "Big Tom" (standing 6'2"), he returned to his home town after retiring from baseball. There is little recorded of his life after baseball, except he passed at the age of 40 due to diabetes complications. He was considered to be hero within his family, and many would later be named "Tom" in honor of the Browns player.
BROWNS DAILY QUOTE
“He is said to be quite a hitter when he feels like hitting, but grouches and sulks when he does not whang a double or a triple every few minutes. In other words, he worries more about his batting average than about the club’s record of games won. Fielder Jones could not stand for that a minute. Jones is a baseball theor
BROWNS DAILY QUOTE
“He is said to be quite a hitter when he feels like hitting, but grouches and sulks when he does not whang a double or a triple every few minutes. In other words, he worries more about his batting average than about the club’s record of games won. Fielder Jones could not stand for that a minute. Jones is a baseball theorist and teamwork exponent, hence he decided to let Walker go.”
~ Description of the conflict between Tillie Walker and Browns manager Fielder Jones
BROWNS' BIRTHDAYS ON THIS DAY
No one was born on this day
TRANSACTIONS
1916 - The Browns traded Clarence "Tillie" Walker to Boston Red Sox for $3,500. Tillie Walker was known throughout the American League for his Bat and his arm. Browns manager Branch Rickey once compared his natural ability to the great Ty Cobb of the Tigers. He was known as one of the great players of the "Deadball Era". The Sporting News once described his arm as the "Talk of the American League". Tillie Walker spent three seasons with the Browns, appearing in 318 games while hitting a .284 average. He was one of the best outfielders of his era. In 1914, he led all American League outfielders with 312 putouts, 30 assists, 6 double plays, and with a .972 fielding percentage. At the same time, he hit 24 doubles (6th in the A.L.), 16 triples (4th), 78 RBIs (7th), and built a 4.8 WAR (8th). With all of these incredible stats, why would the Browns trade him? Tillie Walker may not have been the best teammate in the Browns locker room. In 1916, manager Fielder Jones once said that Walker "worried more about his batting average than the success of the team." Fielder was a strong supporter of team chemistry above player individuality. Fielder had enough of Walker's poor attitude.
The 1929 St. Louis Browns would finish in fourth place in the American League, with a record of 79-73. This team would a winning percentage over .575 in four of the seven months of the season. They started the season with a 25-15 record through June 1, and by July 4th they were in 2nd place. Month-long slumps through July and September wo
The 1929 St. Louis Browns would finish in fourth place in the American League, with a record of 79-73. This team would a winning percentage over .575 in four of the seven months of the season. They started the season with a 25-15 record through June 1, and by July 4th they were in 2nd place. Month-long slumps through July and September would slide the team to their fourth place finish.
1929 Season Breakdown: