Ed Lagger

 

Ed Lagger pitched eight games in relief for the 1934 Philadelphia Athletics.

Edwin Joseph Lagger was born July 14, 1912, in Joliet, Illinois, just southwest of Chicago, to Louis, a lawyer, and Eliza Lagger. The 1920 census found them living at 703 W Jefferson Street in Joliet, a house which they owned. Louis was 42 and in his own law practice, Eliza was 41, and the kids were Louis Jr., 18; Dorothy, 16; Edwin, 7; and Robert, 3.

In the 1930 census the family’s address is 701 W Jefferson and there is no 703; I’m not sure what happened there. They own the home, which is valued at $12,000, and they own a radio set. Louis and Eliza are 53 and 51, and have been married for 30 years. Dorothy has moved out, but has been replaced in the house by Louis Jr.’s wife Geraldine; Louis Jr. is a clerk for a railroad. 17-year-old Edwin and 13-year-old Robert are in school. Ed graduated from high school that year, and entered the University of Notre Dame.

In the spring of 1932 Ed started pitching for the Notre Dame varsity. The first newspaper mention I found of him was in the Indianapolis Times, April 21:

IRISH BEAT LEAGUERS

NOTRE DAME, Ind., April 21.—Ed Lagger, sophomore right-hander, made his debut with Notre Dame Wednesday and hurled the collegians to a 4 to 2 triumph over South Bend’s Central League team. He allowed seven hits and struck out nine.

Ed transferred to Northwestern University for his junior year. I didn’t find any 1933 mentions of him; the Wilmette Life reported on March 22, 1934:

Wildcat Baseball Prospects Look Up

A strong pitching staff plus a veteran infield and outfield figures to make Northwestern a contender for the Big Ten baseball championship this year…

Ed Lagger, 200-pound right hander, who played one year at Notre Dame before transferring to Northwestern, is expected to be a regular pitcher this year…

…which seems to suggest that he wasn’t a regular pitcher the year before. On April 14 he beat Bradley 10-2, allowing two unearned runs, striking out 14, and hitting a grand slam. On April 19 the Indianapolis Times said that he “showed indications at Bradley that he may develop into a starting hurler;” the next day Ed started Northwestern’s conference opener against Michigan and won 3-1, allowing just four singles. On the 22^nd the Springfield Daily Illinois State Journal reported that “Ed Lagger is the name of Northwestern’s hurling ace. Needless to say they’ve nicknamed him ‘Old Style.’” It didn’t take him long to progress from possibly developing into a starter to being the ace of the staff.

On April 27 the Daily Northwestern reported:

The Northwestern baseball team joins as one in announcing that their big right-hand pitcher, Ed “Moose” Lagger wears long woolen underwear all the time. We trust that Ed knows the difference between winter and summer—although around Chicago—it is difficult to guess whether it’s going to rain or snow.

From the Madison Wisconsin State Journal, May 5:

…It is expected that Ed Lagger, big right hander, will hurl for the visitors. Lagger, a transfer from Notre Dame, was a fast ball pitcher with a world of speed when at Notre Dame but he is reported to have mastered the art of controlling his curve now and that makes him one of the most effective chuckers in the Big Ten…

On May 18 Ed pitched a two-hitter against the University of Chicago, winning 3-0, striking out twelve, and hitting a triple. This game was looked back on in the July 18 Daily Northwestern:

Last spring, Coach Paul Stewart had a big, burly 200 pounder tossing ‘em over for him. His name was Edward [sic] Lagger and he managed to win four of the five Western conference victories the Purple garnered.

On one particularly muggy Friday, Ed was given the nod by Stewart to go in and see what he could do against Chicago. Lagger accepted the compliment and pitched one of the best efforts of the Big Ten season. He let Kyle Anderson’s hardhitting club down with two hits and was positively brilliant all the way through.

After the contest he was approached by a gentleman every college ball player dreams of doing business with. It was a major league scout. He was Earl Mack, son of Cornelius McGillicuddy of the Philadelphia Athletics. The upshot of the matter was that Lagger went down and had a talk with the manager of the A’s.

Now Ed is a quiet sort of a chap and doesn’t have much to say. So very few knew what had transpired between he and Mack. But after the Northwestern nine had concluded its schedule, the big right-hander packed his trunk and left for Philadelphia, where he joined that city’s American league entry.

He is still with them. He has been in two ball games and while he didn’t best Mel Harder in a hurling duel or let the Yankees down with a brace of hits, he has nevertheless shown Mr. Mack enough to stay with the club…

Backing up slightly, on June 5 the AP reported that Ed would be joining the Athletics the following week, and on the 6^th the Iowa City Daily Iowan added that “Lagger, who played one year at Notre Dame before going to Northwestern to complete his college work, is a powerful fellow, standing 6 feet 3 inches in his socks and he weighs 220 pounds.”

On June 15 Ed made his debut, at home against the Indians, relieving Roy Mahaffey to start the sixth inning with the Athletics down 5-3. He gave up four runs that inning, three on a homer by Earl Averill, then allowed three more in the seventh before being relieved with two out. Mack didn’t use him again for three weeks; on July 6 in Boston Ed pitched the last 2 2/3 innings and allowed the last two runs in an 18-6 loss.

Ed’s next game was on July 24 in Cleveland; he relieved Johnny Marcum to start the fifth inning with the Athletics down 9-4 and allowed just one unearned run in four innings. He relieved in five games during August, the highlight being a three-up, three-down ninth inning vs. Cleveland on the 18^th. For the year, and for his major league career, he had an 11.00 ERA in 18 innings in eight games, allowing 27 hits and 14 walks, and striking out two.

Despite the lack of success, Ed was retained on the Philadelphia reserve list over the offseason. On January 24, 1935, the Sporting News named him as one of the A’s pitchers “almost certain to be optioned before the training trip starts.” On February 21 the Daily Northwestern reported “Ed Lagger, big right-hand pitcher last spring who went direct from the campus to the major leagues at the call of Connie Mack, will leave for California to get in shape for another big league season.”

An AP story dated April 6 said:

Ed Lagger is wearing an Oklahoma City uniform. He is held on option by the Philadelphia Athletics.

But I didn’t find any evidence that Ed pitched for Oklahoma City, or anywhere else, in 1935 or afterward. It seems as though those eight games for Philadelphia were his entire professional career. In the 1935 Joliet city directory he is still shown as a student at 701 W Jefferson; in 1937 he is a chemist, at the same address. That year he got married. From the Chicago Daily News, May 22:

Helene Rita Kramer, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Frank J. Kramer, 318 Campbell street, Joliet, who will be married to Edwin J. Lagger, son of Attorney and Mrs. Louis Lagger, 701 West Jefferson street, Joliet, May 29 at St. Raymond’s Catholic church in that city. Miss Kramer is a teacher in a Joliet school.

In the 1938 city directory Ed, still listed as a chemist, and Helene are living at 619 Cowles Avenue; son Louis was born that year, in July. In the 1940 census they are at that same address, renting the house for $45 a month. They are both 27 years old. Ed is a chemist for a chemical company and made $1830 the previous year; it says that in 1935 his residence was Santiago, California, which must have been for the Athletics’ training camp. Louis is one year old.

In October 1940 Ed filled out a draft registration card, which says that he is 6-4 235, has blue eyes, black hair, and a dark complexion, and is employed by Blockson Chemical Company on Patterson Road. In December son Edwin J. Jr. was born. In February 1943 son Thomas was added. Apparently somewhere along the way three other children were born, for a total of six.

The 1945 Joliet city directory lists Ed as a foreman at Blockson Chemical Co., and the family is living at 902 Caton Avenue. By 1955 he is listed as a foreman at US Rubber, and in 1960 he is a “dispr” (dispatcher?), back at Blockson. He was only 48 at that time, but after that I lose track of him, other than a 1968 announcement of son Thomas’s engagement. Ed passed away at age 69 on November 10, 1981. Helene followed him in 2005, aged 92.

https://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/L/Plagge101.htm

https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/l/laggeed01.shtml