Dickey Kerr

Who was Dickey Kerr?

Richard Henry "Dickey" Kerr was a starting pitcher for the Chicago White Sox from 1919-1921. As a rookie, he won 13 games and both his starts in the 1919 World Series, which would lead to the permanent suspensions of eight of his teammates in the Black Sox Scandal. In later years, Kerr would receive praise for his honest play during the Series.

In 1921, he went 19-17 and led the league in giving up 357 hits in 308⅔ innings pitched. After the season, he was suspended from organized baseball for violating the reserve clause in his contract.

Kerr attempted a comeback in 1925, pitching in 12 games and compiling a record of 0-1 in 36⅔ innings, mostly out of the bullpen. He finished his career with a record of 53 wins against 34 losses for a winning percentage of .609. His career ERA over three-plus seasons was 3.84.

After his playing days, Kerr was a coach and minor league manager. He was baseball coach at Rice University in 1927. Stan Musial played for Kerr while he was the manager of the Daytona Beach Islanders. But after Musial injured his pitching arm, his career was in serious jeopardy. Kerr allowed Musial and his family to live with him for the winter while he decided what to do. During this time, Kerr convinced Musial that he was a better hitting prospect than he had been as a pitcher. In 1958, the appreciative Musial used a significant amount of that season's salary to buy Kerr a new house.