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Joseph H. "Cyclone" Miller, Extra Pitcher
Miller, a native of Springfield, Mass., was a 24-year old rookie in 1884. He pitched for at least five teams that year, including six games for the Grays. He first appeared against first-place Boston on July 15, filling in for a sore-armed Charley Sweeney. Boston played the game under protest, claiming that Miller was still under contract to a minor league team in Worcester. Miller pitched shutout ball for seven innings, but blew his lead and lost a tough 4-3 decision. The next day, with Hoss Radbourn suspended and Sweeney's arm still fragile, Miller suddenly became the ace of the staff for a week. On July 17, he helped beat Boston 5-4, but Sweeney was brought in from right field to nail down the save. The next day, he again shared a victory with Sweeney; the Grays clearly had no confidence that Miller could finish a game. On July 22, Sweeney got a start, but Miller was kept in reserve in right field. When Sweeney was ordered to trade places with Miller in the ninth inning, he stormed off the field instead. Miller was forced to pitch the ninth inning with only two outfielders. He blew a 6-2 lead like he was Heathcliff Slocumb's grandfather, and lost the game 10-6. It was undoubtedly the low point of the Grays' year, and time was running out for Cyclone Miller. Radbourn was reinstated the next day, and a talented amateur pitcher named Ed Conley was also added to the team. Miller started again on July 28, but Hoss Radbourn had to nail down the victory in a game that put the Grays in first place. On July 31 in New York, the lone umpire called in sick. Cyclone Miller was appointed umpire for the day. According to the Journal, "his decisions were wretched, and he evidently tried to throw the game to Providence. The spectators...hissed at Miller throughout the game. The police had to escort Miller off the field, the crowd had become so threatening in its demonstration." The game was called a 3-3 tie due to darkness; Miller surely saved the team from defeat here. This earned him one more start, on August 2 versus Philadelphia. He won 11-2, his only complete game victory for the Grays, but it was the last game he pitched all season. Radbourn began pitching every game, and Conley was fine for emergencies. On September 13, the Grays left home on a big road trip, and Cyclone was left behind to ponder his fate. In October, he and Vincent Nava were "loaned to the military team at Fort Monroe, Virginia, where they will play for the next five or six weeks." Miller pitched only one more year in the bigs, as the best pitcher on the Philadelphia American Association team, in 1886. He died in New London, Conn. in 1916. copyright Rick Stattler 2002 |
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