Hank Gehring, Savvy St. Paul Spitball Artist
I'm currently working on a short biography of Henry "Hank" Gehring, a pitcher during the early years who pitched in various leagues, including the American Association. I wanted to write about him after being invited to write a different bio for a book the local SABR chapter is preparing on Minnesota-born ballplayers. It took some doing, but I convinced the group that Gehring was someone who should not be left out of this compendium, despite his limited experience in the major leagues. His story is both relevant and poignant. Gehring became a major leaguer in 1907 when he was called up to the American League's Washington Senators. He'd been with Des Moines of the Western League where the manager, Mike Kelley, had a connection with Joe Cantillon, the manager of the Senators. Born in the heart of St. Paul to a family of Swiss immigrants in 1881, Gehring was the sixth born of nine children, the first U.S.-born son of John and Annie Gehring. He was married to Bertha H...
