SMOKY JOE WOOD

SMOKY JOE WOOD

"My friend, there is no one alive who throws the ball harder than Joe Wood." - Walter Johnson

Read an interview with Smoky Joe's son.

In the Spring of 1913, Joe Wood somehow injured his arm and although he put together three more very good years, was never the bound-for-glory pitcher he was in 1912.

Pedro Martinez? Roger Clemens? Babe Ruth? Awesome Red Sox pitchers all, but none of them ever approached Joe Wood in 1912.

34 wins against only 5 losses, 258 strikeouts in 344 innings and a 1.91 ERA. Oh, Joe was only 22 years old and already had a 23-17 season under his belt.

After that, used only sparingly in the hopes that his young arm would rebound, he went 11-5, 10-3 and 15-5, before he quit. Then he went on to work his own rehab program at home and earned an invitation from his old roommate Tris Speaker, now player/ manager of the Indians, to play for him--as an outfielder. The multitalented Wood hit .296 as a regular outfielder in 1918. The next three years he played only part time, then hit .297 in 505 ABs in 1922, then retired.

In Joe Wood's two careers, he had a 117-53 (.671), 2.03 record as a pitcher and a .298 batting average in 1450 at bats. Had it not been for the injury, Joe Wood would be in the Hall of Fame. His son Bob thinks he should be anyway. No matter what you think about that, Joe Wood was a great player. Lawrence Ritter's interview with him in The Glory of Their Times, shows he was also an interesting person.