Harold Newhouser (May 20, 1921 – November 10, 1998), known as "Prince Hal" and "Hurricane Hal," was an American professional baseball player. He played as a pitcher in Major League Baseball from 1939 to 1955, especially for the Detroit Tigers. He was chosen for seven All-Star Games in a row from 1942 to 1948. He was the first pitcher to win the Most Valuable Player Award twice in consecutive years, in 1944 and 1945. Newhouser was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in 1992. The Detroit Tigers retired his uniform number 16 in 1997.

Tigers scout Wish Egan signed Newhouser for his hometown team in 1939. He began his career in the minor leagues that year and joined the major league team late in the season. He made his first start on September 26, 1939. His early years were difficult, as he did not win more than nine games in a season from 1939 to 1943. His best year came in 1944, when he won 29 games—the highest total for a pitcher since 1931—and earned the MVP award. He continued to perform well in 1945, winning another MVP Award, the Pitching Triple Crown, and pitching the winning game in the World Series against the Chicago Cubs.

Newhouser remained a reliable pitcher after World War II, winning more games (170) than any other pitcher in the 1940s. By 1950, injuries to his throwing shoulder reduced his performance. He was released by the Tigers during the 1953 season. Former teammate Hank Greenberg, who was general manager of the Cleveland Indians, helped him return to baseball. Newhouser joined the Indians in 1954 as a relief pitcher and played during their pennant-winning season. He retired after the 1954 season.

After retiring as a player, Newhouser worked as a scout for the Baltimore Orioles. He helped discover players like Milt Pappas and Dean Chance. Later, he worked at a bank for 20 years before returning to scouting for the Houston Astros. He advised the Astros to draft shortstop Derek Jeter from high school. When the Astros chose Phil Nevin instead, Newhouser left baseball.

Early life

Harold "Hal" Newhouser was born on May 20, 1921, in Detroit, Michigan. He was the second child of Theodore and Emilie Newhouser. Theodore, who came from Czechoslovakia, worked as a drafter in the automobile industry and had been a gymnast before. Emilie was born in Austria. Before Hal was born, the Newhousers moved from Pittsburgh to Detroit. His parents were not interested in baseball, even after his older brother, Dick, was discovered by a Detroit Tigers scout named Wish Egan and played for the Tigers' minor league teams for a few years. During the Great Depression, Newhouser sold newspapers, set up pins at a bowling alley, and collected plastic bottles to recycle. He used the money he saved to attend trade school.

As a teenager, Newhouser played in a fast-pitch softball league. After the Detroit Tigers won the 1935 World Series, he decided he wanted to pitch for his hometown major league team. At fifteen, he began pitching in a sandlot ball league for the first time. Over three seasons, he won 42 games and lost only 3. While attending Wilbur Wright Vocational High School, he played for the school's baseball team. Egan, who had previously noticed Hal's athletic skills while scouting his brother, encouraged him to leave the school team and join American Legion Baseball instead. Newhouser performed well in Legion play, winning 19 games in a row at one point. He also struck out 20 or more hitters in a game five times.

"I knew when I was fifteen I was going to play in the big leagues. No doubt in my mind."

While at Wilbur Wright Vocational High School in Detroit, Newhouser learned machining. Although he was skilled at machining, he found the work too risky, especially after driving several classmates to the hospital for injuries they had suffered. Instead, he studied to become a drafter at Chrysler, where his father worked. While playing in the minor leagues, Newhouser studied for his exams, which he took in September when the major league Tigers called him up. When he was invited to spring training for the team in 1940, he fell behind in his studies and was not allowed to graduate with his classmates in June 1940. Starting in September of that year, he spent three hours each morning at school before going to Briggs Stadium, even before 1940 World Series games. He graduated in January 1941.

Professional career

Newhouser's talent was noticed by teams in the MLB, especially the Tigers and the Cleveland Indians. After returning from a Legion ball tournament on the evening of August 6, 1938, Newhouser signed with the Tigers at age 17. Egan, who had been scouting him earlier, helped Newhouser make the decision. Egan convinced Newhouser to sign with the Tigers by offering a $500 bonus. After signing, Newhouser gave $400 to his parents and saved $100 for himself. Soon after, Indians scout Cy Slapnicka arrived at the Newhouser home with a $15,000 check and a new car, offering them to Newhouser if he signed with Cleveland. Newhouser told Slapnicka he had already signed with Detroit.

Newhouser began his career in 1939 with the Tigers' Class D team, the Alexandria Aces of the Evangeline Baseball League. He won his first professional game there, striking out 18 batters. He later won seven more games and was promoted to the Class A Beaumont Exporters of the Texas League. Newhouser started strong in Beaumont, winning his first four games, but then struggled, losing 13 games in a row. His poor performance and temper upset the Tigers' front office. Egan persuaded them to bring Newhouser up to the major league team near the end of the season to monitor him more closely. He joined a pitching staff that included veterans like Schoolboy Rowe, Tommy Bridges, and Bobo Newsom, as well as younger players like Dizzy Trout and Fred Hutchinson. Manager Del Baker included young players in the rotation for the final games of the season. On September 26, 1939, Newhouser made his major league debut in a doubleheader against the Indians. In the game, he gave up three hits and four walks in five innings before the game was called due to darkness. Newhouser was credited with the 0–3 loss.

In 1940, Newhouser became a more regular part of the Tigers' rotation. He started 20 games and had a 9–9 record with a 4.86 ERA. On May 2, Newhouser recorded his first win, allowing only six hits in a 5–3 victory against the Washington Senators. Detroit won the American League pennant, finishing one game ahead of Cleveland and two games ahead of the New York Yankees. The Tigers played in the 1940 World Series against the Cincinnati Reds. Newhouser, the youngest player on the team, did not play in the Series. He watched from the dugout as the Reds won in seven games. In 1941, Newhouser remained a regular in the Tigers' rotation, finishing with a 9–11 record and a 4.79 ERA.

During the 1942 season, Newhouser performed well against a weaker league due to many players serving in the military during World War II. He finished the season with a 2.45 ERA, 11 complete games, and five saves, earning his first All-Star selection. Despite his strong pitching, Newhouser had inconsistent support from the offense and finished 8–14. In June, Newhouser planned to join the Army Air Corps during a game but was denied service in July due to a heart condition.

In 1943, the Tigers made changes to their lineup. Steve O'Neill became the new manager, replacing Paul Richards, who had previously played for the Philadelphia Athletics. Richards was responsible for helping Newhouser and other young players reach their potential. Newhouser credited Richards for his strong start, including 14 strikeouts in a game against the Yankees on May 27, the most since 1938. Through early June, Newhouser had a 0.90 ERA, better than Dutch Leonard's full-season record. Newhouser was selected for his second All-Star Game, recording a strikeout in three innings. However, he struggled later in the season, losing nine games in a row and finishing 8–17 with 111 walks. His poor performance in September would have likely led to his release if not for the shortage of talent due to the war.

Before the 1944 season, Newhouser was offered a full-time job at Chrysler. His family encouraged him to take the job, believing it was more secure than a baseball career, especially after his 34–52 record in his first four years. Newhouser chose to continue in baseball. At wartime spring training in Evansville, Indiana, Richards told Newhouser, "You've been a thrower. I'm going to make you a pitcher." Richards taught Newhouser to throw a slider and control his emotions.

Newhouser's training paid off in 1944, his breakout season. He had a 29–9 record with a 2.22 ERA, winning the Most Valuable Player Award. His season started poorly, as he gave up five runs in two innings, leading manager Steve O'Neill to send him to the bullpen for a week. On April 27, O'Neill gave Newhouser one last chance to stay in the rotation. Newhouser pitched a 12-inning shutout against the Chicago White Sox, leading to his success. He was selected for his third All-Star Game on July 11, giving up two runs in one and two-thirds innings.

The 1944 pennant race was highly competitive, with the Tigers, Yankees, and St. Louis Browns all in contention. After the Yankees lost a late-season series to the Browns, they were eliminated. With two days left, Detroit and St. Louis were tied. Newhouser won his 29th game against the Washington Senators, but the Browns also won their game, leaving the final game to decide the pennant. Detroit lost their last regular-season game to the Senators, while the Browns defeated the Yankees to win the pennant. Newhouser narrowly beat teammate Dizzy Trout for the MVP award, with 236 votes compared to Trout's 232. Newhouser's 187 strikeouts helped him win. Years later, Newhouser expressed disappointment for not reaching 30 wins, which had not been achieved in the American League since 1931. He blamed two factors: a tied game before the playoffs and a decision to use Trout instead of him in the final game.

In 1945, Newhouser led the league with 25 wins and a 1.81 ERA, with only nine losses. He also led the league in innings pitched

Career overall

Hal Newhouser was considered the best pitcher by the player who spoke about him. He ended his career with a record of 207 wins and 150 losses, and an ERA of 3.06. He led the American League in wins four times, and in strikeouts, complete games, and ERA twice. He also led in complete games once. Between 1940 and 1949, he had 1,579 strikeouts and 170 wins, the highest totals for any pitcher in that decade. To date, his 207 wins place him 107th all-time in career wins, tied with Bob Lemon and Carl Mays.

According to Bill James' Win Shares system, Newhouser was ranked as the top pitcher in the American League from 1945 to 1948. James believed Newhouser would have won the Cy Young Award if it had been available during those years.

He ranks among the top five pitchers in numerous Tigers records. He ranks first in wins above replacement, with 58.8, two more than second-place Justin Verlander. His 33 shutout wins as a Tiger rank third all-time. His 200 wins, 212 complete games, and 1,770 strikeouts place him fourth, and his 2,944 innings pitched ranks fifth. His eleven consecutive pitching wins from June and July 1946 set a Tigers record that would not be matched until Verlander pitched 12 straight in 2011.

Newhouser had problems with his pitch control early in his career, especially with his curveball. Even between innings, his curveballs sometimes went from well-located to hanging over the plate. After improving his curveball, he used three types: an overhand (12–6) curveball, a three-quarter curve that broke down and inside on right-handed batters, and a slower curve. He often used the overhand curve when he had two strikes on a hitter.

A consistent part of his career was his high walk rate, even during his best years. In his 223 starts during his All-Star years from 1942 to 1948, he allowed at least one walk in all but seventeen of them. He is the Tigers' career leader in this statistic. The Detroit Free Press called his style of play "making good the hard way" because he succeeded despite allowing many walks. In contrast, he was known for his ability to generate strikeouts, especially during his peak years. In 1981, James P. Maywar wrote in The Baseball Research Journal that Newhouser was the tenth-best strikeout pitcher of all time. He was

Post-playing activities

After retiring from baseball, Newhouser worked as a scout for the Baltimore Orioles and eventually became their head scout. His first major discovery was Milt Pappas, a pitcher he saw play at Cooley High School in Detroit. He persuaded the Orioles to sign Pappas in 1957. He also convinced the team to sign Dean Chance a few years later. After this, Newhouser left baseball for twenty years and became the vice president of a bank in Pontiac, Michigan.

Newhouser later worked as the Michigan area scout for the Houston Astros. He followed 17-year-old Derek Jeter during his time at Kalamazoo Central High School in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and urged Astros officials to select Jeter in the 1992 Major League Baseball draft. Before the draft, Dan O'Brien told Newhouser that the Astros planned to choose pitcher Phil Nevin from Cal State Fullerton because Nevin required a smaller signing bonus. Jeter was instead selected sixth overall by the New York Yankees. Disappointed by this decision, Newhouser retired from scouting and left baseball entirely.

In his later years, Newhouser struggled with emphysema and heart problems. He passed away on November 10, 1998, at the age of 77 at Providence Hospital in Southfield, Michigan.

Personal life

Hal Newhouser married Beryl in 1941, two years after they met at a party. The couple had two daughters named Charlene and Sherrill. They remained married until Hal passed away in 1998. The family lived in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.

Honors and recognition

In 1962, Newhouser was inducted into the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame.

Newhouser’s reputation as a "wartime pitcher," during which his most dominant seasons occurred when there was less offensive talent, made it difficult for him to be inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum early. In 1975, his final year of eligibility, Newhouser received 155 votes, or 42.8% of voters, which was not enough for induction. After 30 years of being on the ballot, Newhouser was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1992 by the Veterans Committee. He was inducted with pitchers Rollie Fingers and Tom Seaver, and umpire Bill McGowan, in front of a then-record crowd of 20,000 people on August 2, 1992.

On July 27, 1997, the Tigers retired Newhouser’s number 16 during a ceremony at Tiger Stadium. He was the fourth Tigers player to have a number retired, joining Al Kaline, Hank Greenberg, and Charlie Gehringer. He was the first Tigers pitcher to have his number retired.

Bill James ranked Newhouser as the 36th-best pitcher of all time in his 2001 book The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract.

In 2015, Newhouser was one of the ten inaugural inductees of the Michigan Baseball Hall of Fame.

According to Newhouser’s biography on MLB.com, he led the American League in:

• Strikeouts (1944, 1945)
• Wins (1944–1946, 1948)
• Innings pitched (1945)

• Strikeouts (1941–1949)
• Games played (1942–1947)
• Innings pitched (1944–1949)
• Wins (1944–1949)