Phillies Greats Player Profile; Grover Cleveland (Pete) Alexander

On today’s edition of Phillies Greats, Player Profile, is a name with a tragic story; Grover Cleavland (Pete) Alexander.

Grover Cleveland or Pete Alexander was born on February 26th, 1887 in Elba Nebraska as one of thirteen children born to Maraget Cootey and William Alexander. Alexander recalled his childhood as a time of “long working days and short sleeping nights”. It was during this time however when Alexander became known as a “corn shucker” around his small farm community, usually being tasked with stoning chickens with his “rocket arm” on nights when the family needed a hot meal. Despite poor grades and rough formidable years, Alexander graduated from St. Paul HS in 1905.

Cleveland took on a job as a lineman with a telephone company, winning a job with a local ballclub in Galesburg where he would first make a name for himself after shoving a no-hitter against Canton on July 22nd, 1909. Alexander would soon be shipped to Indianapolis and then Syracuse not long after where he would break out and begin getting looks from major league clubs.

In 1911, Alexander would get his break when the Phillies drafted him from Syracuse for $500, the team was never too high on the young hurler but with some endorsement from Catcher Pat Moran the club opted to bring Alexander north after spring ball, and it paid off. In his rookie campaign, Alexander boasted one of the greatest lines ever seen by a first-year player; 28-13, 2.57 ERA, and 227 SO with 31 complete games and seven shutouts.

Ole’ Pete would go on to turn himself into one of the best pitchers of the day with the Phillies over the next seven seasons, recording a 190-88 record with a 2.12 ERA from 1911-1917 all the while leading the Philadelphia club to their first ever pennant in 1915. This is widely regarded as the time when Pete Alexander solidified himself as a Baseball legend, known to make even the greatest hitters grow irate at the dish.

It would however be in the midst of World War I when the Phillies would carry out one the most disheartening trades in league history. Anticipating Alexander to be drafted into the military, the Phils opted to send their Triple Crown winning pitcher to the Chicago Cubs for Catcher Pickles Dillhoefer who recorded only 11 ABs with the Phils, A Pitcher; Mike Prendergast who’d be out of Baseball in just two years, and $55,000. Cleveland was indeed drafted into the Military in mid-1918 and was shipped to Europe’s front lines by July of that same year.

During a grueling seven weeks on the front lines, Alexander suffered from severe muscle damage, shrapnel shards lodged into his earlobes, and began seeing early signs of epilepsy as he experienced frequent seizures which he attempted to cover up with a growing alcohol problem that haunted the great pitcher for the rest of his life.

Upon his return to the Windy City in 1919, Alexander would dominate once again but the good fortunes neglected to last. Following 1920, the HOFer wouldn’t record an ERA under three again until his age 40 season, seven years later. With his play declining on the field, Alexander’s issues with the bottle continued to grow through his years in Chicago. By 1925, new manager Joe McCarthy came on the record saying he thought that Alexander’s drinking was hurting the team and opted to send him to St. Louis midseason for the waiver price. Manager Rogers Hornsby’s Cardinals were in the midst of a pennant race and welcomed the addition of Alexander who had a renaissance during the second half of the year, pitching to a 9-7 mark with a 2.91 ERA.

It would however be during the 1926 World Series against the New York Yankees that Alexander would make his informal goodbye to Baseball. After pitching complete games in contests one and two, the Cards called on Ole’ Pete in the 7th inning of game seven after starter Jesse Haines loaded the bases up with two outs. Alexander would face young gun Yankee Shortstop Tony Lazzeri and after nearly surrendering a home run that went just feet past the left field foul pole, the Great Grover Cleveland Alexander pulled out his signature curveball one last time and struck out the flaunting Lazzeri. Alexander pitched the final two innings without batting an eye, and the St. Louis Cardinals were crowned World Champions of Baseball.

Alexander spent another three seasons with the Cardinals, posting average numbers while continuing to fall down a spiraling path of depression and alcoholism. On December 11th, 1929 twelve years to the day the Phillies sent Alexander to the Cubs, Chicago would send the aging drunk back to Philadelphia for one last hurrah. Alex’s run with the Phils was brief as the former great appeared in just nine games posting a 9.00 ERA, and was released soon after.

Ole’ Pete attempted a few comebacks in the early 1930s but never was able to stick. He eventually ended up as a novelty act working for pennies a day, which usually ended at the end of a tavern counter by night’s end. As the years went by, Alexander was a name lost in the years only to reemerge in 1938 when he was elected to the Pro-Baseball Hall of Fame. Many of his voters didn’t expect the aging drunk to show, however pulling together what he had left, Alexander attended the ceremony affably and recalled the day as a spot of joy in a pit of darkness. Cleveland is on the record when asked about his election to the hall, saying “I’m in the Hall of Fame… And I’m proud to be here, but I can’t eat the Hall of Fame”.

Alexander’s life would continue to flounder through the 1940s as he “hopped from motel-to-motel”, regularly suffering from severe epileptic seizures and eventually being diagnosed with Cancer in his ear which resulted in its amputation in 1947. Ole’ Pete would die of an epileptic seizure in 1950, in a Nebraska motel room at the age of 63 and was buried with full military honors.

Pete (Grover Cleveland) Alexander, will ultimately go down as one of the saddest stories in Baseball history. A man and a legend lost to disease, but even after fighting a World War, suffering from Epilepsy and Cancer, and ultimately losing his battle with alcoholism, the Great Alexander still played through it all making himself into one of the sports legends. Alexander finished his Phillies career with 190 wins and 91 losses along with a 2.18 ERA, and 1409 Strikeouts, all the while gaining three ERA titles and three triple crowns with the Fightins.