Three Finger Brown was born in 1876 with the normal compliment of fingers on his right hand. His full name was Mordecai Peter Centennial Brown. His baseball moniker occured after a farming accident when he was 7 years old. His forefinger had to be amputated, the middle finger was gnarled, and he lost the use of his little finger.
Despite the deformity of his right hand, it was not a handicap for Brown in the baseball world. When he gripped the baseball and threw it, it gave Brown a very nasty curveball. That along with his incredible pitching control (he averaged less than 2 walks per game during his entire career), Brown was the ace of the great Chicago Cubs team at the beginning of the 20th century.
Brown helped the Cubs win 2 World Series and 4 National League pennants from 1906-1910. He won 20 games or more six years in a row and was usually among the league leaders in wins, e.r.a., and even saves.
Brown jumped to St. Louis Terriers of the Federal League in 1914 to became their player-manager. Brown did not last the season as the Terriers headed towards the league cellar. He was traded in September and finished the season with the Brooklyn Tip Tops.
In 1915, Brown joined the Chicago Whales and while pitching for his former Cubs teammate, Joe Tinker, helped the Whales to the Federal League's last championship.
After the Federal League folded, Brown rejoined the Cubs for one last fling and retired after an unsucessful 1916 campaign.
Brown was elected into the Hall of Fame in 1949.
| Three Finger Brown | ||||||||||
| Batted: Both - Threw: Right | ||||||||||
| Year | Team | G | W | L | S | ERA | IP | H | BB | K |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1914 | STL | 26 | 12 | 6 | 0 | 3.29 | 175 | 172 | 43 | 81 |
| 1914 | BKN | 9 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 4.21 | 57.2 | 63 | 18 | 32 |
| 1915 | CHI | 35 | 17 | 8 | 4 | 2.09 | 236.1 | 189 | 64 | 95 |
| FL Totals | 70 | 31 | 19 | 4 | 2.80 | 469 | 424 | 125 | 208 | |
| Brown was player-manager for the St. Louis Terriers in 1914. He led them to a 62-89 record. | ||||||||||