The Top 5 Pitchers in Chicago White Sox Team History

The Chicago White Sox are a Major League Baseball team with a long and historic past. The White Sox currently play in the American League's Central Division. The team is one of the American League's charter clubs, established in 1901. The White Sox won their last World Series in 2005.

Throughout their history, the team has been blessed by some of the greatest arms in the game. As a fan of the team and the sport, I have picked the top 5 pitchers in Chicago White Sox history below:

#5 Billy Pierce

Why Billy Peirce is not a Hall of Famer is beyond me. During his career, he made the all-star squad seven times, pitched an amazing 51 consecutive scoreless innings and seven shut-outs in 1953. He also delivered amazing post-season performances for the Giants later in his career. Billy finished his eighteen season career with a 3.27 ERA and 211 wins.

#4 Red Faber

Red Faber is most commonly known as the last legal spitballer in professional baseball. In 1921, he had 39 starts, 25 wins and a league high ERA for a team that only won a total of 62 games. When a pitcher wins nearly half of your games, you know he is a special player. Previously, he led the Sox to a 1917 World Series Championship, where he pitched three winning efforts.

#3 Hoyt Wilhelm

Relievers are often overlooked on these types of lists, so I decided to include Hoyt Wilhelm, who may be the best overall reliever in White Sox history. The Hall of Famer pitched five consecutive seasons with an ERA under 2.00 as a reliever, which is virtually unheard of these days. In addition to this accomplishment, he also pitched for 12 wins and 27 saves in 1964. Hoyt played for numerous teams during his 21 year career and finished it with 227 saves.

#2 Ed Walsh

Ed Walsh was credited with forty wins and six saves in 1908, pulling off one of the greatest pitching seasons in history. Ed also beat rival Cubs two times during the 1906 World Series Championship. Ed finished his amazing 14-year career with 195 wins and an awesome 1.82 ERA.

#1 Ted Lyons

Ted Lyons is an often overlooked Chicago White Sox Hall of Fame pitcher. During his 21 seasons, he won 260 games, which included 22 in 1927 for a team that only won 70. The White Sox were terrible during most of his 21 seasons, yet he was able to post Hall of Fame statistics nearly each season. He finished his career with a 3.67 ERA, which a great number was considering how bad the White Sox were during his time with the club.

Sources

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago_White_Sox

http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.com/

http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/