Marty O'Toole

Martin James O'Toole

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 11", Weight 175 lb.

• Debut September 21, 1908
• Final Game October 6, 1914
• Born November 27, 1888 in William Penn, PA USA
• Died February 18, 1949 in Aberdeen, WA USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Pitcher Marty O'Toole had his first cup of coffee in the majors with the Cincinnati Reds in 1908. He returned to the minors and went 19-5 with 207 strikeouts for the Sioux City Packers in 1910. The next season, 1911, he struck out 199 batters in 204 innings for the St. Paul Apostles before being acquired by the Pittsburgh Pirates. However, by the time he reached the majors, he had developed a "lame arm", and his big league career only lasted through 1914, when he made his last appearance with the New York Giants. As a result, he became remembered as the "$22,500 Beauty", sarcasm for the amount of money the Pirates paid in return for little results. he did win 15 games and lead the National League in shutouts with 6 in 1912, but he also lost 17 and led the league with 159 walks. It was all downhill from there.

O'Toole pitched in exactly 100 major league games.

In the minors he won 31 games for the Brockton Tigers in 1908 and 26 more for the team in 1909.

The SABR biography of O'Toole indicates that his brothers all played baseball, and Marty mostly grew up in Massachusetts. He was so successful in the minors that several major league teams bid up the price for him. By 1912 Sporting Life reported that the whole family had shoulder problems. O'Toole's main pitch was a spitball. When he failed to be a huge success at the major league level, fans took it out on him verbally. Afterwards he played semi-pro ball and worked at a variety of jobs.

"Outfielder Ham Hyatt says pitcher Marty O'Toole has the greatest spit ball he ever saw. Ham played against the red-haired boy all last summer and ought to know." - Sporting Life, April 6, 1912

Notable Achievements

• NL Shutouts Leader (1912)
• 15 Wins Seasons: 1 (1912)
• 200 Innings Pitched Seasons: 1 (1912)

Related Sites

• Marty O'Toole at the SABR Bio Project