Doyle Lade

Who was Doyle Lade?

Doyle Marion Lade was a Major League Baseball pitcher who pitched for the Chicago Cubs from 1946 to 1950. Born in Fairbury, Nebraska, Lade began his baseball career when he was signed by the Cleveland Indians as an amateur free agent in 1941. He spent the 1941 season with Oklahoma City of the Texas League, where he had a 6–10 record and an earned run average of 3.66. At the end of the 1941 season, he was traded to Savannah of the South Atlantic League for Hugh Klaerner. On July 8, 1942, while playing for the Shreveport Sports of the Texas League, Lade pitched a no-hitter against San Antonio and won the game 1–0, with his solo home run providing the only run support for Shreveport. In August, he was purchased by the Chicago White Sox effective at the conclusion of the Texas League season, and was considered the top prospect of the four players acquired.

After the 1942 season ended, Lade signed up for military service, and spent the next few years as a member of the United States Coast Guard. When he returned to the White Sox for the 1946 season, he was placed on the original major league roster, but instead began the season for Shreveport. On July 9, 1946, Lade's contract was purchased from the Chicago White Sox by the Chicago Cubs. In his time in the minors in 1946, he won 12 games and at one time pitched 32 consecutive scoreless innings.