Two undated portrait photographs of William Matthews, a minor league baseball pitcher who was born in Pottsville, January 5, 1977.
A limited amount of information is available about him in Baseball Reference.
However, Walter S. Farquahar‘s sports column, “Sportitorial,” was discovered in the Pottsville Republican of January 29, 1968, which gives some additional information:
BILL MATTHEWS: A LEGEND HERE
Pennsylvania’s Hall of Fame, athletically, is said to desire information regarding William Matthews.
He was an item of everyday conversation here for many years.
Arthur Womrath, the circulating library originator, revived baseball here, after a great State League showing, in 1894. In 1899, Matthews was not on that team, because he was in uniform, in Puerto Rico at the time.
He was taken on about 1900, and stayed on through 1902, after which season, almost the entire Pottsville team of 1902, was taken over by York, of the then-emerging Tri-State League. The Pottsville team, always of double-A class, carried on through 1903 here.
He played in the Tri-State for at least 12 years, for several teams. in 1915, the league began to wabble, and the York team was transferred to Reading. It wasn’t necessary to have new uniforms, then, the new owners simply retained the “R” in York, eliminating only three letters. He may have played for Lancaster too.
Bill was a right hander. with a very strong grip. And much of his time in the Tri-State was when the spitball was at its height. That gave him a great advantage.
In 1915, we remember distinctly, Bill’s pitching an exhibition at Tumbling Run, which proved his span of activity. He was cited as being desired by several major teams, who might have profited by his spitball throwing, as did the several teams who took on Jack Quinn, up to 1933, at least. afterward in the war years, he pitched for Sun Ship of Chester. After hat, local teams took him on occasionally, for playoff games.
Bill’s strong grip earned him a job at Tumbling Run, where he turned the big wheel, which released or impounded water. It was said, hereabout, his hands alone were strong enough to swing the big wheel. As he became older and weaker, he no longer could move the wheel, a pitiful sight to see. His home was on the north side of No. 1 dam in line with the breast. That was his life: nobody has occupied the plot since, that we know of.
Two of the men who played with Matthews here became big leaguers for the Phillies, for 10 years: Jack Titus of St. Clair, an outfielder who always stood high in battling averages, and Mike Doolin of Ashland, who went first to jersey City, then to the Phillies. It was said of him he was the best fielding shortstop in baseball – his skill was emphasized by the legend, “He could throw accurately while standing on his head.”
Titus, fast as a deer, was among the top base-stealers of the National League and a great outfielder. Doolin was an acrobatic shortstop. Both deserve enshrinement in the National Hall of Fame. And Bill Matthews’ 15 years of service in a league which could entice players away from the majors, surely deserved state-wide enshrinement.
We can’t recall the year of Bill’s death, but he still was on the job in the 1930s. He may have died at the time World War II was absorbing all attention.
Additional information is sought about this minor league baseball player from the coal regions.
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Portraits of Matthews are from Baseball Reference. Article transcribed from Newspapers.com.
Corrections and additional information should be added as comments to this post.