Rip Hagerman

Zerah Zequiel Hagerman

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 2", Weight 200 lb.

• Debut April 16, 1909
• Final Game May 11, 1916
• Born June 20, 1886 in Lyndon, KS USA
• Died January 30, 1930 in Albuquerque, NM USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Rip Hagerman, born Zerah Zequiel Hagerman, was the first American player to appear in the Cuban Winter League before making it to the majors. He went 15-6 in the 1909 season to tie Jose Mendez for the best record in the CWL shortly before his debut in The Show. Source: Cuban Baseball: A Statistical History by Jorge Figueredo Because he was about a foot taller than the Cuban players in the league, he was given the oxymoronic nickname "Chequita", meaning little one.

Hagerman was with the Topeka White Sox in 1908. He also played for the 1911 Denver Grizzlies, going 14-7. In 1912, he pitched for Lincoln in the Western League, notching 315 strikeouts in 51 games and going 23-18. One source says he played for Lincoln in 1910-12, so perhaps he wasn't with Denver the entire 1911 season. He played for the Portland Beavers in 1913 and 1916.

Larry Kopf hit his first major league home run off Hagerman.

In December, 1916, Hagerman ran over a 13-year-old girl in Anaheim, CA, killing her, after she ran into the street chasing a tennis ball. A coroner's jury exonerated him of any blame.

Related Sites

• Rip Hagerman at the SABR Bio Project
• Find-A-Grave Memorial for Rip Hagerman