Stump Weidman

Pitcher
  • Card series: Beginnings: 1880's
  • City: Detroit
  • Team: Wolverines
  • League: National League

George Edward Weidman (1861-1905) hurled more innings for the Detroit Wolverines than any other pitcher. Six of his nine ML seasons were with that club. Stump pitched for Rochester University as a youth and must have gotten great guidance from his amateur battery-mate: future Hall of Famer Buck Ewing. His record suggests a bit of hard luck, perhaps typified by his debut with the Buffalo Bisons in 1880 where, despite a 3.40 ERA, Weidman was 0-9. In ’81, with Detroit, Weidman had the lowest ERA in the NL at 1.80, going 8-5. 1882 saw yet another fateful stroke as Stump matched up with famed John Montgomery Ward in a pitching duel for the ages. The game went 17 scoreless innings until Old Hoss Radbourn broke Weidman’s heart with an 18th inning HR. For five straight years Stump lost 20+ games, suggesting managerial confidence and abysmal support. After leaving the Wolverines for a year in KC, Weidman returned for a satisfying, pennant-winning season, contributing 13 wins.

  • Stump played minor league ball in Canada, umpired awhile, and concluded his pro ball life with the Providence Clamdiggers in 1893
  • His life was cut short by cancer: Weidman did not survive surgery attempting to remove a tumor in his throat

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