Leslie Mann Baseball Lantern Slide, No. 173

Item Information

Title:
Leslie Mann Baseball Lantern Slide, No. 173
Description:
Jeff Pfeffer, a pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals, stands in front of a warm up plate located on the side of left field at Crosley Field in Cincinnati, Ohio. Pfeffer stands with his feet spread about shoulder width apart as he gazes forward.
Creator:
Mann, Leslie
Creator:
Erker Bros. Optical Co., St. Louis Mo.,
Date:
1920–1925
Format:
Photographs
Location:
Springfield College Archives and Special Collections
Collection (local):
Leslie Mann Baseball Lantern Slide Collection
Subjects:
Baseball
Baseball caps
Baseball fields
Pfeffer, Edward Joseph
St. Louis Cardinals
Pitching
Pitching--Follow Through
Crosley Field, Cincinnati, Ohio
Link to Item:
https://cdm16122.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/p16122coll10/id/132
Terms of Use:
Rights status not evaluated.
This work is licensed for use under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial Share Alike License (CC BY-NC-SA).
CC BY-NC-SA icon
Publisher:
Springfield College
Language:
English
Notes:
This lantern slide shows the proper recovery that a pitcher should have after throwing the baseball to home plate. When throwing the baseball, a pitcher's back foot is lifted off the ground since the ball is thrown with terrific force. However, after the follow through is complete, the pitcher should bring their rear foot forward so that it is on an even level with their front foot, and should have both feet flat on the ground. What this does is it centers the pitcher's body, which is tremendously important because the batter could hit the baseball that the pitcher threw anywhere on the field. For example, the batter could hit a line drive right back at the pitcher and the pitcher will only have a few seconds to react. Pfeffer has done a great job at preparing for this in case that happens. Of course, the pitcher cannot possibly know which pitch a batter could hit right back at them, so they must be prepared for this to occur every pitch. This not only increases the chance that Pfeffer fields the baseball cleanly, but it also allows him to protect himself.
Edward Joseph Pfeffer was born March 4, 1888, in Seymour, Illinois. He was the youngest of seven sons, and the sixth oldest, Francis Pfeffer, also played in the Major Leagues. He played for five seasons and threw a no hitter in 1907. Both of the Pfeffer's brothers were given the nickname of Big Jeff when they played baseball, though the two brothers were never in the Major Leagues at the same time. Pfeffer played in the Central League, a minor league, and was signed in 1911 to the St. Louis Browns. However, he only pitched 10 innings there with an ERA of 7.20, and returned to the Central League in 1912, this time with the Grand Rapids Club. While playing on the team, him and fellow teammate Cy Pieh caught the eye of a famous scout for the New York Giants, Dick Kinsella. However, Kinsella chose to sign Pieh instead, who went on to pitch in only 9 major league games in his career. The Brooklyn Robins signed him instead in 1913, and Pfeffer quickly became the team's ace pitcher. In 1914, he won 23 games and had a 1.97 ERA along with pitching 27 complete games, and in 1915, he won 19 games with a 2.10 ERA and 6 shutouts. In 1916, the Robins won the Pennant and Pfeffer won 25 games along with maintaining an ERA of 1.91. Against the Red Sox in the World Series, the manager of the Robins shockingly chose to start two left handed pitchers rather than Pfeffer in Games 1 and 2, and the Robins lost both. Pfeffer pitched in relief in Game 3 when the team was up 4 to 3. He held the lead, and it was the only win the Robins had that series, losing to the Red Sox 4 games to 1. Pfeffer had a poor 1917 and joined the navy in 1918 for World War 1, but rebounded in 1919 and 1920, winning a combined 33 games. The Robins made the Pennant again in 1920, but Pfeffer only appeared once in the series, and because of this and issues with the owner, Pfeffer demanded a trade. In 1921, he was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals. He seemed to be back to his old self in 1922, winning 19 games. However, in 1923, he went 8-9, and was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1924. Pfeffer would then spend a couple seasons in the Minors before retiring and becoming an umpire in the American Assoication.
I used facial recognition to identify the player in slide 173 as Jeff Pfeffer.
Poor condition;
There are a few noticeable cracks located in the center of the image.
This digital image is made from two separate digital scans; one scan of the lantern slide (reflective); one scan of the image (transparency); the two images were then combined in Photoshop to create the final image.
Lantern slide from the Leslie Mann baseball instruction course, "The Fundamentals of Baseball"
Bennett, John. "Jeff Pfeffer." Society for American Baseball Research, [ https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/25b464c2]. Accessed 3 Apr. 2018. ___Internet Archive___. [http://web.archive.org/web/20180403140847/https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/25b464c2].
Identifier:
LANT-BSBL-173-03
173