Charles Frederick Koenig
Born: 1/11/1868-St Louis, Mo
Died: 5/14/1938-St Louis, Mo
Charles Koenig was nicknamed Silver because of his startlingly white colored hair, and he rec’d the surname of King after sportswriters anglicized the Germanic name Koenig.
Silver debuted with the Kansas City Cowboys in 1886 at the age of 18, pitching in 5 games and compiling a 1-3 record. When the franchise folded, he signed on to play with the St. Louis Browns. King won his 1st 7 games with the Browns on his way to a 32-12 record.
Powerfully built, with long arms, and huge hands, he was known for his speed as well as his control.. King used a side arm motion, one of the 1st pitchers to do so, and he utilized the very edge of the pitcher’s box, making the ball appear to be coming from 3rd base.
His best season came in 1888, using his “crossfire” pitching motion he compiled a 45-21 record with a 1.64 ERA in 585 IP.
As a player Silver King was always complaining about his salary, so when the Player’s league formed in 1890 he followed the money and signed with the Chicago Pirates. King won 30 games, led the League in ERA, and actually pitched a no hitter that he lost by a score of 2-1.
When the Player’s League folded he signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates for $5,000, becoming the highest paid player in the game. King got his money, and the Pirates got a 14-29 record from the King. “Thank you….thank you very much.”(Insert Elvis voice here). The Pirates released their high priced free agent, who then signed with the NY Giants.
After 1 1/2 fairly unsuccessful seasons he was released once again in 1893 and signed on with Reds. Some of Silver King’s problems may have been the introduction of the pitching rubber, which limited his pitching angle.
Complaining about the money once again, King retired and went to work for his father as a bricklayer, where he said he could make more money.
He attempted a comeback in 1896(Maybe bricklaying wasn’t all it was stacked up to be!!!!) signing with the Washington Senators for 2 uneventful seasons. After the 97 season he retired and hit the bricks once again.
“I threw some curves, but I never knew about such things as a spitball, fade away, shine ball and all those tricks. You simply had to be a Colossus or you couldn’t stand the gaff.”-Silver King
Pitching Record Year Team G GS CG SHO GF SV IP H BFP HR R ER BB SO SH WP HBP BK W L ERA 1886 KC N 5 5 5 0 0 0 39 43 188 1 35 21 9 23 8 0 1 3 4.85 1887 STL a 46 44 43 2 2 1 390 401 1666 4 231 164 109 128 0 17 32 12 3.78 1888 STL a 66 65 64 6 1 0 585.2 437 2294 6 205 107 76 258 0 0 45 21 1.64 1889 STL a 56 53 47 2 2 1 458 462 1920 15 257 160 125 188 29 0 35 16 3.14 1890 CHI P 56 56 48 4 0 0 461 420 1975 5 233 138 163 185 13 17 0 30 22 2.69 1891 PIT N 48 44 40 3 4 1 384.1 382 0 7 243 133 144 160 22 0 0 14 29 3.11 1892 NY N 51 47 45 1 5 0 410.1 392 0 15 250 151 171 170 21 0 0 22 24 3.31 1893 NY N 7 7 4 0 0 0 49 69 0 4 58 47 26 13 5 0 0 3 4 8.63 1893 CIN N 17 15 8 1 2 1 105 119 0 2 69 57 56 30 0 0 0 5 6 4.89 1893 TOT N 24 22 12 1 2 1 154 188 0 6 127 104 82 43 5 0 0 8 10 6.08 1896 WAS N 22 16 12 0 6 1 145.1 179 0 3 106 66 43 35 0 4 0 0 10 7 4.09 1897 WAS N 23 19 12 0 4 1 154 196 0 7 118 82 45 32 0 3 11 0 6 9 4.79 Total NL(6 Years) 173 153 126 5 21 4 1287 1380 188 39 879 557 494 463 0i 63 11i 0 61 82 3.90 Total AA(3 Years) 168 162 154 10 5 2 1433.2 1300 5880 25 693 431 310 574 29 17 112 49 2.71 Total PL(1 Year ) 56 56 48 4 0 0 461 420 1975 5 233 138 163 185 13 17 0 30 22 2.69 Total (10 Years) 397 371 328 19 26 6 3181.2 3100 8043 69 1805 1126 967 1222 0i105 45i 0i203 153 3.19 Year Team G GS CG SHO GF SV IP H BFP HR R ER BB SO SH WP HBP BK W L ERA
