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Ned Garvin
Virgil Lee Garvin (January 1, 1874 – June 16, 1908), nicknamed "the Navasota Tarantula", was an American pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB). He pitched in 181 games with six teams from 1896 to 1904. Garvin was known for his bad luck as a pitcher; he had a strong career earned run average (ERA) of 2.72, but his win–loss record (57–97) suffered because he played on poorly performing teams. He was known for throwing a pitch that made an atypical curve as it approached the batter.
Off the field, Garvin was prone to fighting and excessive drinking, and Garvin's behavior led to the end of his MLB career in 1904. Over the course of his career, he was implicated in the assaults of a team traveling secretary and an insurance salesman, the shooting of a saloonkeeper and the attempted murder of a black man at a barber shop. Garvin died of tuberculosis less than four years after his last major league appearance.
Garvin was born in Navasota, Texas. He entered professional baseball in 1895 with a Texas League team in Sherman, Texas. After playing for part of the next year with a minor league team in New Haven, Connecticut, Garvin made his major league debut with the Philadelphia Phillies in 1896. He returned to the minor leagues with a team in Reading, Pennsylvania, where he played in 1897 and 1898.
Near the beginning of the 20th century, Garvin developed an unusual pitch that curved in the opposite direction of the typical curveball thrown by a right-handed pitcher. Garvin's long fingers allowed him to hold the ball with a unique grip. Sportswriter Hugh Fullerton described the pitch, writing that "the ball appeared to be moving with great speed. As it came near the batter the ball seemed to hesitate in the air and then suddenly curve down and in, just as a left hander's slow curve does. The ball was a freak. Garvin did not understand its full worth and it remained for [pitcher Christy Mathewson] to develop and use it intelligently."
Some sources credit Garvin with teaching star pitcher Mathewson about his signature pitch. Mathewson became well known for a related pitch known as the fadeaway, and a similar pitch known as a screwball exists in modern baseball. However, baseball authors Rob Neyer and Bill James credit a minor leaguer named Dave Williams with showing the fadeaway to Mathewson.
Early in his career, Garvin showed a tendency to drink heavily and to enter into violent confrontations. "It wasn’t a high-paying job and not a particularly highly looked-upon job, at the time. Not many baseball players were considered particularly good guys; they didn’t have a very good reputation in the country. But Virgil was especially bad," said baseball author Kris Rutherford. The lanky pitcher was known as "The Navasota Tarantula".
In 1900, he shot at a black man who he said had refused to shine his shoes. In the ensuing attempted murder trial, shoeshine James Harrison testified that Garvin had entered the barber shop where he was working and asked Harrison if he knew "what they did with negroes in Texas". Harrison was able to flee through a door. Garvin began to fire gunshots, and one bullet lodged in the door through which Harrison had fled. The next year Garvin knifed a man during a barroom fight.
Garvin once attempted to use his propensity for fighting in a sanctioned activity, challenging championship boxer Terry McGovern to a bout. In 1900, teammate Clark Griffith was said to be willing to bet $1,000 that McGovern could not knock Garvin out within six rounds. Griffith said that Garvin weighed 140 pounds. Though McGovern was a foot shorter than the 6'3" pitcher and weighed 122 pounds, Griffith said that it would still be a fair fight if the inexperienced Garvin could get his pre-fight weight down to 135 pounds. Griffith put up a $500 wager on the matter, but the fight never came to fruition.
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Ned Garvin
Virgil Lee Garvin (January 1, 1874 – June 16, 1908), nicknamed "the Navasota Tarantula", was an American pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB). He pitched in 181 games with six teams from 1896 to 1904. Garvin was known for his bad luck as a pitcher; he had a strong career earned run average (ERA) of 2.72, but his win–loss record (57–97) suffered because he played on poorly performing teams. He was known for throwing a pitch that made an atypical curve as it approached the batter.
Off the field, Garvin was prone to fighting and excessive drinking, and Garvin's behavior led to the end of his MLB career in 1904. Over the course of his career, he was implicated in the assaults of a team traveling secretary and an insurance salesman, the shooting of a saloonkeeper and the attempted murder of a black man at a barber shop. Garvin died of tuberculosis less than four years after his last major league appearance.
Garvin was born in Navasota, Texas. He entered professional baseball in 1895 with a Texas League team in Sherman, Texas. After playing for part of the next year with a minor league team in New Haven, Connecticut, Garvin made his major league debut with the Philadelphia Phillies in 1896. He returned to the minor leagues with a team in Reading, Pennsylvania, where he played in 1897 and 1898.
Near the beginning of the 20th century, Garvin developed an unusual pitch that curved in the opposite direction of the typical curveball thrown by a right-handed pitcher. Garvin's long fingers allowed him to hold the ball with a unique grip. Sportswriter Hugh Fullerton described the pitch, writing that "the ball appeared to be moving with great speed. As it came near the batter the ball seemed to hesitate in the air and then suddenly curve down and in, just as a left hander's slow curve does. The ball was a freak. Garvin did not understand its full worth and it remained for [pitcher Christy Mathewson] to develop and use it intelligently."
Some sources credit Garvin with teaching star pitcher Mathewson about his signature pitch. Mathewson became well known for a related pitch known as the fadeaway, and a similar pitch known as a screwball exists in modern baseball. However, baseball authors Rob Neyer and Bill James credit a minor leaguer named Dave Williams with showing the fadeaway to Mathewson.
Early in his career, Garvin showed a tendency to drink heavily and to enter into violent confrontations. "It wasn’t a high-paying job and not a particularly highly looked-upon job, at the time. Not many baseball players were considered particularly good guys; they didn’t have a very good reputation in the country. But Virgil was especially bad," said baseball author Kris Rutherford. The lanky pitcher was known as "The Navasota Tarantula".
In 1900, he shot at a black man who he said had refused to shine his shoes. In the ensuing attempted murder trial, shoeshine James Harrison testified that Garvin had entered the barber shop where he was working and asked Harrison if he knew "what they did with negroes in Texas". Harrison was able to flee through a door. Garvin began to fire gunshots, and one bullet lodged in the door through which Harrison had fled. The next year Garvin knifed a man during a barroom fight.
Garvin once attempted to use his propensity for fighting in a sanctioned activity, challenging championship boxer Terry McGovern to a bout. In 1900, teammate Clark Griffith was said to be willing to bet $1,000 that McGovern could not knock Garvin out within six rounds. Griffith said that Garvin weighed 140 pounds. Though McGovern was a foot shorter than the 6'3" pitcher and weighed 122 pounds, Griffith said that it would still be a fair fight if the inexperienced Garvin could get his pre-fight weight down to 135 pounds. Griffith put up a $500 wager on the matter, but the fight never came to fruition.