Ernie Koob

Ernest Gerald Koob

• Bats Left, Throws Left
• Height 5' 10", Weight 160 lb.
• School Western State Normal School
• High School St. Joseph (MI) High School
• Debut June 23, 1915
• Final Game August 30, 1919
• Born September 11, 1892 in Keeler, MI USA
• Died November 12, 1941 in Lemay, MO USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Ernie Koob pitched 21 seasons, 1912 to 1930, four in college, four in the Major Leagues and 14 in the minors.

He served in the U.S. Air Service during World War I (BN). After earning a degree at Western Michigan University (it was called Kalamazoo Normal College then), playing under the name of Smith while in college, he pitched for the St. Louis Browns from 1915 to 1919.

His ERA as a rookie was 2.36, and in his second year he went 11-8 with an ERA of 2.54.

He pitched a no-hit game against the Chicago White Sox in 1917, winning 1 to 0. He also pitched a no-hit game for Louisville in the American Association on May 11, 1920.

He was a foreman at a St. Louis, MO manufacturing firm. He died at age 48 from pulmonary tuberculosis at St. Rose Sanitarium in Lemay, MO, survived by his wife and daughter, and is buried at Calvary Cemetery in St. Louis.

Koob holds the record for most walks in a season by a player who did not record a hit. Playing for the Browns in 1916, Koob went 0 for 41 with 15 walks. He may have gotten the idea from teammate Burt Shotton, whose 110 walks that year were by far the best on the team and the best in the league.

Principal Sources are The Baseball Necrology by Bill Lee and his obituary at The Deadball Era

Related Sites

• Ernie Koob at the SABR Bio Project