Hugh Bedient

Hugh Carpenter Bedient

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 185 lb.
• High School Falconer High School
• Debut April 26, 1912
• Final Game September 29, 1915
• Born October 23, 1889 in Gerry, NY USA
• Died July 21, 1965 in Jamestown, NY USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Hugh Bedient had a terrific rookie season, winning 20 games and starring in the World Series, but was unable to equal that success during the remainder of his brief major league career.

Born in Gerry, New York, Bedient went to high school in Falconer, New York. He earned his first taste of fame in 1908 for striking out 42 men in a 23-inning semi-pro game (and years later earned notoriety again when Ripley's Believe It or Not featured the feat). After pitching for the Fall River Indians in 1910 and the Providence Grays in 1911, he joined the Boston Red Sox in 1912. As a rookie, he went 20-9 and pitched in four games in the 1912 World Series, earning a victory over Christy Mathewson of the New York Giants in Game 5. After going 15-14 in 1913 and 8-12 in 1914, he jumped to the upstart Federal League for the 1915 campaign. In what would be his last major league season, he went 16-18 for the Buffalo Blues and led the league with 10 saves. After his major league days, Bedient pitched several years for the Toledo Mud Hens (1916-1917 and 1921-1923) and also for the Portland Beavers (1924) and Atlanta Crackers (1925). He developed arm problems early in the 1917 season and dropped out of baseball for almost four years.

Bedient's son, Hugh Bedient Jr., was a high school star, pitching five no-hitters. After playing in college and in the minors, injuries stopped his career. He enlisted in the Army Air Corps, and became the first ex-minor leaguer killed in the line of duty since World War I when he was one of eleven crewmen involved in a mid-air collision in 1940. Source: Baseball in Wartime.

Notable Achievements

• AL Saves Leader (1915)
• 15 Wins Seasons: 3 (1912, 1913 & 1915)
• 20 Wins Seasons: 1 (1912)
• 200 Innings Pitched Seasons: 3 (1912, 1913 & 1915)
• Won a World Series with the Boston Red Sox in 1912

Related Sites

• Hugh Bedient at the SABR Bio Project