Today in White Sox History: October 11
Don Cooper is hired as A-ball pitching coach, immediately starts fixing ’em
1899
The new American League was formed, in Chicago. The city didn’t have a team in the league at that point, but soon got the St. Paul, Minn. franchise along with its player/manager, Charles Comiskey. They set up shop on the South Side at the 39th Street Grounds, at 39th and Princeton.
1906
Winning their second road game of the Fall Classic, the White Sox knocked off the Cubs, 3-0, to retake a World Series lead, two games to one. Ed Walsh shut out the Cubs on a 12-K two-hitter.
The White Sox managed just four hits off of Jack Pfiester, but one was a bases-clearing triple with two outs in the top of the sixth from George Rohe that accounted for all three runs in the game. Walsh walked to lead off the sixth inning, and came around to score what would end up as the decisive first run of the contest.
The undistinguished Rohe (1.0 WAR in 77 games for the White Sox in 1906) had gotten off to an outstanding start in the Series, going 2-for-9 with two triples, a run, three RBIs, two walks and a hit-by-pitch through three games; he’d go 5-for-12 over the next three games as well. By today’s voting standards, Rohe would have had a shot at World Series MVP had that award existed in 1906.
1987
The White Sox hired possibly the best pitching coach in franchise history, Don Cooper, for Low-A South Bend Silver Hawks. In 1989, he’d moved up to the High-A Sarasota White Sox and jumped to the Double-A Birmingham Barons in 1992. Cooper moved up to the Triple-A Nashville Sounds in 1995 and stayed two years, although before and after than he was designated as the pitching coordinator for all of Chicago’s minor leagues.
In July 2002, in his 15th year of working with the White Sox, Cooper moved to the South Side, as the club’s pitching coach — a job he held through the 2020 season.
Matt Thornton is likely Cooper’s first real success story, but his ability to help struggling arms begat the “Coop’ll Fix ’Em” mantra, repeated over his two decades at the helm. Other notable success stories for Cooper include Esteban Loaiza, Edwin Jackson, José Quintana, Bobby Jenks and Philip Humber, among many others.
1991
White Sox manager Jeff Torborg — who was named Manager of the Year for 1990 — resigned to take a job as manager of the New York Mets.
It was a strange move, and the real reason for it wasn’t made known until years later: Torborg told individuals and provided examples of how White Sox GM Ron Schueler forced him out, wanting to hire his own man — Gene Lamont.
2005
The White Sox began their third-ever ALCS on a disappointing note, trailing throughout and losing at home to the Angels, 3-2. José Contreras went 8 1⁄3 innings and generally outpitched opposing starter Paul Byrd, who got the win. The only extra-base hit of seven total hits was a Joe Crede home run in the third inning.
While at the time the Angels taking away home-field advantage felt like a major blow, this would be the only White Sox loss of the entire postseason. And with Contreras getting all but two outs and Chicago blistering through the next four throwing complete games, Neal Cotts finishing the game in the ninth would represent the only relief appearance in the series.