H A L L   O F   F A M E   I N D U C T E E S

Billy Pierce · Elected 1966
Pitcher, St. Louis Maroons, Cleveland Barons, Chicago Colts · 1951-1965

If there's one thing that separates Billy Pierce from his fellow retired UL aces like Stu Miller, it's that Pierce was not just great, but consistently great.  Five All-UL nominations, a Cy Young Award and UL Pitcher of the Decade, Pierce put up a string of impressive seasons back-to-back, and with the exception of his first and last seasons, he never won less than 16 games.   For 12 straight seasons, Pierce put up an ERA under 3.55.  In  this period, he won 245 games, threw 3,608 innings and struck out 3,246 batters.  Although Pierce helped bring three pennants to Chicago at the end of his career (going 72-46 and pitching over 1,000 innings across four seasons), and had a great spell in Cleveland (16-7, 2.63 ERA), most will remember him as a Maroon, where he won 192 games over ten years.

Which of his seasons was the greatest?  Well, 1954 was his Cy Young campaign, when in an offensive environment he went 24-6 with a 2.42 ERA striking out 343 in 317 innings.  It could be argued that that 1962, his first year in Chicago, was equally impressive; he went 25-6 with a .254 ERA in 340 innings.  In 1956, Pierce set a UL record for strikeouts, with 371 in just 277 innings. Most strikingly of all, in 1964 and at the age of 36, Pierce completed 27 of his 38 starts, winning 24 games and pitching 323 innings with a 2.90 ERA -- an incredible season by anyone's standards.  Was it too much?  1965 saw Billy start only 12 games, move to the bullpen and finish with an era in the 5s, the first time since 1953 that he'd an ERA over 3.60.  Only on his trips to the postseason did Pierce's star shine less bright; in the first UL World Series in 1957 he pitched well (1-1, 2.08), in 1963, he pitched well in his one start, but ended up with the loss; in '64, he got hammered, giving up 12 runs (8 earned) in 8.2 innings spread over two losses. Ironically, it was 1965, when Pierce didn't pitch at all, that finally brought him that elusive championship, following which he retired.

Pierce retires as the all-time leader in wins (although Johnny Antonelli will probably pass him next year, as might Gene Conley and Lew Burdette).  He certainly has a hat in the best pitcher in UL history argument, and while his contemporaries may yet go on to put up more eye-popping numbers, a Hall of Fame plaque would be a fitting end for this star.  For 12 straight years, Pierce put up consecutive seasons of greatness, undiminished by major injuries or ineffectiveness; he was, as the title implies, the best pitcher of the UL's first ten years.  (Doug Aiton)

  
AWARDS & ACCOLADES
Hall of Fame (1966)
Pitcher of the Decade (1951-60), All-Decade Team (1951-60)
Cy Young Award (1954), All-UL Team (1954, 1956, 1962)
Strikeout Champion (1953, 1954, 1955), WHIP Champion (1954, 1961)
7-time Pitcher of the Month, 4-time Player of the Week

  

Career Pitching Stats Year/Team Age G GS W L SV ERA IP HA R ER HR BB K CG SHO WHIP   1951 St. Louis 23 33 33 12 12 0 3.96 222.2 212 113 98 0 71 108 7 0 1.27 1952 St. Louis 24 37 37 18 10 0 3.88 301.2 277 145 130 0 120 182 16 1 1.32 1953 St. Louis 25 39 39 23 10 0 3.53 308.2 264 145 121 0 110 279 17 2 1.21 1954 St. Louis 26 37 37 24 6 0 2.42 313.0 241 94 84 0 71 343 19 6 1.00 1955 St. Louis 27 40 39 17 13 0 3.36 308.1 280 131 115 0 58 344 15 2 1.10 1956 St. Louis 28 37 37 23 11 0 3.00 297.1 260 110 99 0 57 371 17 3 1.07 1957 St. Louis 29 37 37 19 9 0 2.79 261.2 214 89 81 0 58 179 6 2 1.04 1958 St. Louis 30 36 36 12 15 0 3.54 277.1 270 125 109 0 69 181 15 2 1.22 1959 St. Louis 31 40 40 22 10 0 3.06 326.2 272 123 111 22 73 245 16 4 1.06 1960 St. Louis 32 39 38 21 12 0 3.25 307.2 254 123 111 20 73 289 20 2 1.06 1961 Cleveland 33 28 28 16 7 0 2.63 225.2 191 76 66 13 34 211 16 5 1.00 1962 Chicago 34 41 41 25 6 0 2.54 340.1 261 110 96 27 69 320 18 8 0.97 1963 Chicago 35 38 38 18 18 0 3.28 318.2 283 123 116 44 81 244 21 2 1.14 1964 Chicago 36 38 38 24 12 0 2.90 323.0 253 108 104 38 108 240 27 3 1.12 1965 Chicago 37 34 12 5 10 3 5.36 127.2 143 80 76 23 39 77 5 0 1.43 Total UL 15 yrs. 554 530 279 161 3 3.20 4260.1 3675 1695 1517 187 1091 3613 235 42 1.12