Lon Warneke was born on Sunday, March 28, 1909, in Mount Ida, Arkansas. Warneke was 21 years old when he broke into the big leagues on April 18, 1930, with the Chicago Cubs. His biographical data, year-by-year hitting stats, fielding stats, pitching stats (where applicable), career totals, uniform numbers, salary data and miscellaneous items-of-interest are presented by Baseball Almanac on this comprehensive Lon Warneke baseball stats page.
"Brooklyn players recently held a discussion over the pitching merits of (Lon) Warneke and all of them agreed that he was just about the best hurler in the National League this year. 'Not many pitchers in our league will win as many as 20 games this season,' said Bill Clark, star southpaw of the Robins, 'but I think Warneke will reach that total. He may be the only one to win that many games. I've watched him closely in the games he pitched and I've him up as the sort of pitcher who will not go through a long period of ineffectiveness. He may lose two or three in a row, but if he does it will be because of a lack of batting support.'" - Sports Editor Bill Reed in The Reading Eagle (07/20/1932, 'How Warneke Got Control', Page 10)
Lon WarnekeLon "The Arkansas Hummingbird" Warneke Autograph on a TCMA Reprint Baseball Card |
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Biographical Data | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Lon WarnekeLon Warneke Pitching Stats |
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Year | Age | Team | G | GS | GF | W | L | PCT | ERA | CG | SHO | SV | IP | BFP | H | ER | R | HR | BB | IBB | SO | WP | HB | BK | HLD |
1930 | 21 | Cubs | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 33.76 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.1 | 11 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - |
1931 | 22 | Cubs | 20 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 4 | .333 | 3.22 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 64.1 | 299 | 67 | 23 | 33 | 1 | 37 | 2 | 27 | 0 | 3 | 1 | - |
1932 | 23 | Cubs | 35 | 32 | 1 | 22 | 6 | .786 | 2.37 | 25 | 4 | 0 | 277.0 | 1,117 | 247 | 73 | 84 | 12 | 64 | 4 | 106 | 5 | 2 | 0 | - |
1933 | 24 | Cubs | 36 | 34 | 1 | 18 | 13 | .581 | 2.00 | 26 | 4 | 1 | 287.1 | 1,175 | 262 | 64 | 83 | 8 | 75 | 3 | 133 | 6 | 3 | 0 | - |
1934 | 25 | Cubs | 43 | 35 | 7 | 22 | 10 | .688 | 3.21 | 23 | 3 | 3 | 291.1 | 1,198 | 273 | 104 | 116 | 16 | 66 | 5 | 143 | 4 | 2 | 0 | - |
1935 | 26 | Cubs | 42 | 30 | 11 | 20 | 13 | .606 | 3.06 | 20 | 1 | 4 | 261.2 | 1,066 | 257 | 89 | 102 | 19 | 50 | 7 | 120 | 10 | 3 | 0 | - |
1936 | 27 | Cubs | 40 | 29 | 7 | 16 | 13 | .552 | 3.45 | 13 | 4 | 1 | 240.1 | 1,024 | 246 | 92 | 108 | 10 | 76 | 11 | 113 | 5 | 4 | 0 | - |
1937 | 28 | Cardinals | 36 | 33 | 1 | 18 | 11 | .621 | 4.53 | 18 | 2 | 0 | 238.2 | 1,051 | 280 | 120 | 139 | 32 | 69 | 8 | 87 | 6 | 0 | 0 | - |
1938 | 29 | Cardinals | 31 | 26 | 3 | 13 | 8 | .619 | 3.97 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 197.0 | 855 | 199 | 87 | 102 | 14 | 64 | 5 | 89 | 6 | 2 | 0 | - |
1939 | 30 | Cardinals | 34 | 21 | 7 | 13 | 7 | .650 | 3.78 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 162.0 | 675 | 160 | 68 | 73 | 14 | 49 | 5 | 59 | 2 | 2 | 0 | - |
1940 | 31 | Cardinals | 33 | 31 | 2 | 16 | 10 | .615 | 3.14 | 17 | 1 | 0 | 232.0 | 969 | 235 | 81 | 103 | 17 | 47 | 5 | 85 | 3 | 3 | 0 | - |
1941 | 32 | Cardinals | 37 | 30 | 5 | 17 | 9 | .654 | 3.15 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 246.0 | 1,014 | 227 | 86 | 100 | 19 | 82 | 14 | 83 | 0 | 3 | 0 | - |
1942 | 33 | Cardinals | 12 | 12 | 0 | 6 | 4 | .600 | 3.29 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 82.0 | 336 | 76 | 30 | 34 | 8 | 15 | 2 | 31 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1942 | 33 | Cubs | 15 | 12 | 3 | 5 | 7 | .417 | 2.27 | 8 | 1 | 2 | 99.0 | 403 | 97 | 25 | 33 | 2 | 21 | 3 | 28 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - |
1943 | 34 | Cubs | 21 | 10 | 5 | 4 | 5 | .444 | 3.16 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 88.1 | 354 | 82 | 31 | 40 | 3 | 18 | 3 | 30 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - |
1945 | 36 | Cubs | 9 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 1 | .000 | 3.86 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14.0 | 61 | 16 | 6 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - |
Career | G | GS | GF | W | L | PCT | ERA | CG | SHO | SV | IP | BFP | H | ER | R | HR | BB | IBB | SO | WP | HB | BK | HLD | ||
15 Years | 445 | 343 | 65 | 192 | 121 | .613 | 3.18 | 192 | 30 | 13 | 2,782.1 | 11,608 | 2,726 | 984 | 1,164 | 175 | 739 | 77 | 1,140 | 50 | 27 | 1 | 0 |
Lon WarnekeLon Warneke Hitting Stats |
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Year | Age | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | GRSL | RBI | BB | IBB | SO | SH | SF | HBP | GIDP | AVG | OBP | SLG |
1930 | 21 | Cubs | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
1931 | 22 | Cubs | 20 | 19 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .263 | .263 | .368 |
1932 | 23 | Cubs | 35 | 99 | 8 | 19 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 20 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .192 | .216 | .222 |
1933 | 24 | Cubs | 39 | 100 | 9 | 30 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 13 | 3 | 0 | 13 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | .300 | .320 | .440 |
1934 | 25 | Cubs | 52 | 113 | 12 | 22 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .195 | .216 | .221 |
1935 | 26 | Cubs | 44 | 91 | 9 | 20 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 4 | .220 | .253 | .231 |
1936 | 27 | Cubs | 40 | 84 | 9 | 17 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 10 | 0 | 2 | 4 | .202 | .239 | .250 |
1937 | 28 | Cardinals | 36 | 80 | 10 | 21 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 7 | 0 | 12 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .263 | .322 | .300 |
1938 | 29 | Cardinals | 31 | 71 | 5 | 23 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .324 | .342 | .366 |
1939 | 30 | Cardinals | 34 | 52 | 4 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 3 | .192 | .263 | .250 |
1940 | 31 | Cardinals | 33 | 86 | 6 | 18 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 13 | 5 | 0 | 24 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 4 | .209 | .253 | .267 |
1941 | 32 | Cardinals | 37 | 77 | 6 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 11 | 0 | 18 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .117 | .227 | .117 |
1942 | 33 | Cardinals | 12 | 30 | 2 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .333 | .394 | .333 |
1942 | 33 | Cubs | 15 | 32 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .188 | .188 | .188 |
1943 | 34 | Cubs | 21 | 26 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .192 | .323 | .231 |
1945 | 36 | Cubs | 9 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .333 | .000 |
Career | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | GRSL | RBI | BB | IBB | SO | SH | SF | HBP | GIDP | AVG | OBP | SLG | ||
15 Years | 459 | 962 | 87 | 215 | 26 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 97 | 52 | 0 | 148 | 62 | 0 | 4 | 32 | .223 | .266 | .267 |
Lon WarnekeLon Warneke Fielding Stats |
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Team | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
1930 Cubs | P | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 6.75 |
1931 Cubs | P | 20 | 7 | 193 | 10 | 0.5 | 9 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .900 | 1.26 |
1932 Cubs | P | 35 | 32 | 831 | 67 | 1.9 | 66 | 11 | 55 | 1 | 7 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .985 | 2.14 |
1933 Cubs | P | 36 | 34 | 862 | 80 | 2.2 | 80 | 8 | 72 | 0 | 7 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.51 |
1934 Cubs | P | 43 | 35 | 874 | 73 | 1.7 | 73 | 15 | 58 | 0 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.26 |
1935 Cubs | P | 42 | 30 | 785 | 63 | 1.5 | 62 | 15 | 47 | 1 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .984 | 2.13 |
1936 Cubs | P | 40 | 29 | 721 | 60 | 1.5 | 59 | 15 | 44 | 1 | 1 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .983 | 2.21 |
1937 Cardinals | P | 36 | 33 | 716 | 52 | 1.4 | 50 | 10 | 40 | 2 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .962 | 1.89 |
1938 Cardinals | P | 31 | 26 | 591 | 40 | 1.3 | 38 | 4 | 34 | 2 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .950 | 1.74 |
1939 Cardinals | P | 34 | 21 | 486 | 37 | 1.1 | 37 | 9 | 28 | 0 | 4 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.06 |
1940 Cardinals | P | 33 | 31 | 696 | 60 | 1.8 | 60 | 10 | 50 | 0 | 5 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.33 |
1941 Cardinals | P | 37 | 30 | 738 | 51 | 1.4 | 51 | 8 | 43 | 0 | 3 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 1.87 |
1942 Cardinals | P | 12 | 12 | 246 | 19 | 1.6 | 19 | 6 | 13 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.09 |
1942 Cubs | P | 15 | 12 | 297 | 28 | 1.9 | 28 | 8 | 20 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.55 |
1943 Cubs | P | 21 | 10 | 265 | 25 | 1.2 | 25 | 3 | 22 | 0 | 2 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 2.55 |
1945 Cubs | P | 9 | 1 | 42 | 6 | 0.7 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | n/a | n/a | n/a | 1.000 | 3.86 |
Career | POS | G | GS | OUTS | TC | TC/G | CH | PO | A | E | DP | PB | CASB | CACS | FLD% | RF |
P Totals | 445 | 343 | 8,347 | 672 | 1.5 | 664 | 126 | 538 | 8 | 31 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .988 | 2.15 | |
15 Years | 445 | 343 | 8,347 | 672 | 1.5 | 664 | 126 | 538 | 8 | 31 | n/a | n/a | n/a | .988 | 2.15 |
Lon WarnekeLon Warneke Miscellaneous Stats |
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Baserunning Statistics | Other Positions | Common Hitting Ratios | Common Pitching Ratios | |||||||||
Team | SB | CS | SB% | PH | PR | DH | AB/HR | AB/K | AB/RBI | K/BB | K/9 | BB/9 |
1930 Cubs | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 33.76 |
1931 Cubs | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 3.8 | 9.5 | 0.73 | 3.78 | 5.18 |
1932 Cubs | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 5.0 | 11.0 | 1.66 | 3.44 | 2.08 |
1933 Cubs | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 3 | n/a | 50.0 | 7.7 | 7.7 | 1.77 | 4.17 | 2.35 |
1934 Cubs | 0 | 0 | .000 | 1 | 8 | n/a | 0.0 | 12.6 | 14.1 | 2.17 | 4.42 | 2.04 |
1935 Cubs | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 2 | n/a | 0.0 | 10.1 | 6.1 | 2.40 | 4.13 | 1.72 |
1936 Cubs | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 84.0 | 9.3 | 16.8 | 1.49 | 4.23 | 2.85 |
1937 Cardinals | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 6.7 | 8.0 | 1.26 | 3.28 | 2.60 |
1938 Cardinals | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 10.1 | 11.8 | 1.39 | 4.07 | 2.92 |
1939 Cardinals | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 7.4 | 6.5 | 1.20 | 3.28 | 2.72 |
1940 Cardinals | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 86.0 | 3.6 | 6.6 | 1.81 | 3.30 | 1.82 |
1941 Cardinals | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 4.3 | 19.3 | 1.01 | 3.04 | 3.00 |
1942 Cardinals | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 7.5 | 10.0 | 2.07 | 3.40 | 1.65 |
1942 Cubs | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 6.4 | 32.0 | 1.33 | 2.55 | 1.91 |
1943 Cubs | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 4.3 | 0.0 | 1.67 | 3.06 | 1.83 |
1945 Cubs | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | n/a | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 6.00 | 3.86 | 0.64 |
Career | SB | CS | SB% | PH | PR | DH | AB/HR | AB/K | AB/RBI | K/BB | K/9 | BB/9 |
15 Years | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 1 | 13 | n/a | 240.5 | 6.5 | 9.9 | 1.54 | 3.69 | 2.39 |
Lon WarnekeLon Warneke Miscellaneous Items of Interest |
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Team | Roster | Uniform Numbers | Salary | All-Star | World Series |
1930 Chicago Cubs | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
1931 Chicago Cubs | n/a | Undetermined | n/a | - |
1932 Chicago Cubs | 17 | Undetermined | n/a | Stats |
1933 Chicago Cubs | 16 | Undetermined | Stats | - |
1934 Chicago Cubs | 16 | Undetermined | Stats | - |
1935 Chicago Cubs | 12 | Undetermined | - | Stats |
1936 Chicago Cubs | 12 | $15,500.00 | Stats | - |
1937 St. Louis Cardinals | 18 | Undetermined | - | - |
1938 St. Louis Cardinals | 18 | Undetermined | - | - |
1939 St. Louis Cardinals | 21 | Undetermined | Stats | - |
1940 St. Louis Cardinals | 21 | Undetermined | - | - |
1941 St. Louis Cardinals | 18 | Undetermined | Stats | - |
1942 St. Louis Cardinals | 18 | $15,000.00 | - | - |
1942 Chicago Cubs | 19 | " " | - | - |
1943 Chicago Cubs | 32 | Undetermined | - | - |
1945 Chicago Cubs | 36 | Undetermined | n/a | - |
Lon Warneke Stats by Baseball Almanac |
Did you know that Lon Warneke hit the first triple in All-Star history? The 1933 All-Star Game was played on July 6, 1933, at Chicago's Comiskey Park - the first Midsummer Classic in baseball history. Warneke, who had his first of three 20-win seasons the year before, made the inaugural senior circuit pitching staff and in the third inning relieved Bill Hallahan, with the junior circuit ahead 3-0. Warneke pitched through the sixth inning, gave up one run, allowed six hits, and struck out only two batters; Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig. During the sixth inning, Warneke sharply hit a ball past right-fielder Ruth, for a triple - the first ever during an All-Star Game.
Did you know that Lon Warneke, on April 14, 1936, surrendered a home run to Eddie Morgan during his Major League debut, during his first at-bat, with the first pitch thrown to him, and, Morgan was pinch hitting?
Lon Warneke | 1933 DeLong Baseball Card (#16)Baseball Almanac Research Library
The Arkansas Hummingbird threw a one-hitter on April 17, 1934, Opening Day. During his second start of the 1934 season, on April 22, 1934, Warneke threw another one-hitter, but a game which he will be known most for was August 30, 1941, a no-hitter, the third in franchise history for the St. Louis Cardinals. Baseball Almanac is honored to present this exclusive description of that no-hitter researched and written by author Rich Westcott (RichWestcott.com / Rich Westcott Books), originally appearing in his book No-Hitters (McFarland, 02/15/2000, 'Lon Warneke', Page 146):
Lon Warneke (Box Score: 08-30-1941)
The St. Louis Cards and the Brooklyn Dodgers waged a torrid battle for the pennant in 1941. The Cards trailed the Dodgers by one and one-half games when Lon Warneke faced the Cincinnati Reds on Saturday, August 30, before 9859 fans at Crosley Field. Warneke, with a 14-7 record, opposed the Reds' newest ace, Elmer Riddle, who had won 15, lost only two.
Warneke coasted through the first four innings, allowing only two balls to be hit to the outfield. Linus Frey closed the first inning with a high fly to center, and Frank McCormick lined to right at the start of the second.
Frank McCormick opened the fifth with a hard grounder to second which Frank Crespi fielded and then threw high over first baseman Johnny Mize's head for an error. Jim Gleeson fanned on a 3-2 pitch and McCormick was doubled trying to steal second.
Mike McCormick became Warneke's second and last strikeout victim for the second out in the seventh. Frey next drew Lon's lone walk, and Frank McCormick then hit the Red's only well-tagged ball of the game, lining one to deep left. Don Padgett backed against the left field wall to catch it.
Gleeson started the eighth with a high pop in back of third. Jimmy Brown backpedaled steadily, jumped, caught the ball, fell and dropped it. It was the kind of play that could have been scored either way. It was ruled an error. Ernie Lombardi followed with a grounder to second and Crespi started a double play via shortstop Marty Marion and Mize. Harry Craft ended the frame with a pop to Marion.
Now Warneke, with a 2-0 lead, had only three men to go. Four times before he had come within one hit of a no-hitter. Manager Bill McKechnie sent veteran Lloyd Waner to bat for Eddie Joost to start the ninth. Warneke got him on a pop to short. Ernie Koy batted for Riddle and hit one through the middle. But Marion glided over, made a fine stop and throw to nip the speedy Koy.
Warneke had relied on curves and a change of pace throughout the game, using his fast ball only 10 or 12 times and then usually as a waste pitch. Now, he threw Bill Werber a fast curve and the third baseman lifted a pop to Mize near first base to end the game.
The happy Cards mobbed Warneke and almost carried him to the clubhouse. The game was more than just a no-hitter, because the Dodgers had lost twice that day and the Cards were now in first place.
The Cards had threatened to score in the second, fourth and fifth, but it was not until the seventh that they got their two runs. Brown walked with two out and Johnny Hopp singled. Padgett then hit a terrific liner which kept curving away from center fielder Craft. Harry got both hands on the ball in right center but could not hold it and it went for a two-base eror, both runners scoring.
Warneke finished the season with a 17-9 record. The Cards lost the flag to Brooklyn by two and one-half games.
Lon Warneke was the thirty-fourth former Major League ballplayer who became a full-time Major League umpire and the only one in history has has both played and umpired in an All-Star Game (played in 1933, 1934 & 1936 | umpired in 1952) and a World Series (played in 1932 & 1935 | umpired in 1954).