Not only did Dean just miss winning his second straight MVP, he barely
missed winning 30 games for the second straight year. Dean was now 24 years
old; he had won 58 games over the past two seasons, and 107 in his career.
He had one more big season in 1936, then had his amazing career ended prematurely
by a freak arm injury in 1937. Dean was the hardest worker in the league, and may
eventually have wrecked his arm anyways... but he may also have been one of
those guys with a rubber arm, who go on pitching forever. If that was the
case, there is no telling how many games he could have won in his career.
The Cubs' pitching staff was led by Lon Warneke,
Bill Lee, and Larry French. Warneke was the ace; this wasn't one of his
very best years, but he did throw a shutout in the World Series. Bill Lee
was "Big Bill" Lee, who won 169 games in his career; he is not to be confused
with "Spaceman Bill" Lee, who pitched for the Red Sox in the 1970's. Larry
French began his career with Pittsburgh; he was inconsistent, twice winning
18 games in a season, and twice losing 18 games in a season. This was his
first year with the Cubs, and it was probably the best of his career. French
remained a solid pitcher for several more years, and won 197 games in his career.
Other good pitchers in the league included
Cy Blanton, a rookie with the Pirates. Blanton had a tremendous rookie
season, but was a one-year wonder. After a couple of decent seasons, Blanton's
career declined, and he won only 68 games in his career. Teammates "King Carl"
Hubbell and "Prince Hal" Schumacher also had fine seasons for the Giants. Though
Hubbell was the star of the team, Schumacher had his best season, and I think
he rates a slight edge.
Paul Derringer got his career back on track
this year. As a rookie in 1931, Derringer won 18 games. But in 1933, he
had a horrific 7-27 season, then lost 21 games in 1934. With 48 losses in
two seasons, he needed a comeback. This was the first of four 20+ win seasons
for Derringer; "Duke" eventually won 223 games in his career.
