View source for Jack Quinn (baseball)

{{Short description|American baseball player (1883–1946)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}}
{{more footnotes needed|date=March 2012}}
{{Infobox baseball biography
|name=Jack Quinn
|image= 1921 Jack Quinn.jpeg
|caption=Quinn in 1921
|position=[[Pitcher]]
|birth_date={{birth date|1883|7|1}}
|birth_place=[[Štefurov|Stefuró]], [[Austria-Hungary]]
|death_date={{death date and age|1946|4|17|1883|7|1}}
|death_place=[[Pottsville, Pennsylvania]], U.S.
|bats=Right
|throws=Right
|debutleague = MLB
|debutdate=April 15
|debutyear=1909
|debutteam=New York Highlanders
|finalleague = MLB
|finaldate=July 7
|finalyear=1933
|finalteam=Cincinnati Reds
|statleague = MLB
|stat1label=[[Win–loss record (pitching)|Win–loss record]]
|stat1value=247–218
|stat2label=[[Earned run average]]
|stat2value=3.29
|stat3label=[[Strikeout]]s
|stat3value=1,329
|stat4label=[[Save (baseball)|Save]]s
|stat4value=56
|teams=
* [[New York Highlanders]] ({{mlby|1909}}–{{mlby|1912}})
* [[Boston Braves (baseball)|Boston Braves]] ({{mlby|1913}})
* [[Baltimore Terrapins]] ({{mlby|1914}}–{{mlby|1915}})
* [[Chicago White Sox]] ({{mlby|1918}})
* [[New York Yankees]] ({{mlby|1919}}–{{mlby|1921}})
* [[Boston Red Sox]] ({{mlby|1922}}–{{mlby|1925}})
* [[Philadelphia Athletics]] ({{mlby|1925}}–{{mlby|1930}})
* [[Brooklyn Dodgers|Brooklyn Robins / Dodgers]] ({{mlby|1931}}–{{mlby|1932}})
* [[Cincinnati Reds]] ({{mlby|1933}})
|highlights=
* 2× [[World Series champion]] ({{wsy|1929}}, {{wsy|1930}})
}}
'''John Picus Quinn''' (born '''Joannes''' "'''Jan'''" '''Pajkos''', July 1, 1883 – April 17, 1946) was a Slovak-American professional [[baseball]] player.<ref name="Jack Quinn statistics">{{cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/q/quinnja01.shtml |title=Jack Quinn statistics |publisher=Baseball-Reference.com |access-date=November 12, 2019}}</ref> He played as a [[pitcher]] for eight teams in three major leagues (the [[American League|American]], [[Federal League|Federal]], and [[National League (baseball)|National]]), most notably as a member of the [[Philadelphia Athletics]] dynasty that won three consecutive American League pennants from 1929 to 1931, and won the [[World Series]] in 1929 and 1930. Quinn made his final major league appearance at the age of 50.<ref name="kashatus103">Kashatus (2002), p. 103.</ref>

==Biography==
Born in Stefuró, [[Kingdom of Hungary|Hungary]] (modern-day [[Štefurov]], [[Slovakia]]), Quinn emigrated to America as an infant with his parents Michael Pajkos and Maria Dzjiacsko, arriving in New York on June 18, 1884. His mother died near [[Hazleton, Pennsylvania]], shortly after the family's arrival in the US, and Quinn's father moved the family to Buck Mountain, near [[Mahanoy City, Pennsylvania]]. In 1887 Quinn's father remarried, to Anastasia ("Noska") Tzar.

Quinn spent his early years working as a swimmer and [[blacksmith]], while playing recreational ball for mining teams. He got his start as a professional in an unusual way. While watching a semi-pro game in [[Connellsville, Pennsylvania|Connellsville]], the 14-year-old Quinn threw a foul ball back from the stands to the catcher, hitting his mitt right in the middle. The visiting [[Manager (baseball)|manager]], from the nearby town of Dunbar, was impressed by the throw, and he offered Quinn a contract.

Quinn went on to spend 23 seasons in the major leagues with eight different teams. He won 247 games and lost 218 games, also collecting 57 [[Save (baseball)|saves]]. Quinn debuted on April 15, 1909, and he played until he was 50 years old; his final game was on July 7, 1933. Quinn's professional longevity enabled him to achieve several age-related milestones. He was the oldest Major League player to win a game until [[Jamie Moyer]] broke the record on April 17, 2012.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://scores.espn.go.com/mlb/recap?gameId=320417127 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120420235900/http://scores.espn.go.com/mlb/recap?gameId=320417127 |url-status=dead |archive-date=April 20, 2012 |title=Jamie Moyer becomes oldest pitcher to win game in majors as Rockies hold off Padres |agency=[[Associated Press]] |work=[[ESPN.com]] |date=April 17, 2012 |access-date=April 18, 2012}}</ref> Quinn is also the oldest to lead his league in a major category (saves, in 1932—although saves were unknown in that era, and were only retroactively awarded in 1969).  He is furthermore the oldest pitcher to start games in the [[World Series]] (with the [[Philadelphia Athletics]], in [[1929 World Series|1929]]) and on Opening Day (with the [[Brooklyn Dodgers]], in 1931).<ref name="kashatus105">Kashatus (2002), p. 105.</ref> He was the oldest player to hit a home run in the majors, at age 46, until 47-year-old [[Julio Franco]] did so in 2006.  He remains the oldest Major League pitcher to hit a home run.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://calltothepen.com/2016/05/09/mlb-history-five-oldest-pitchers-hit-homerun/6/ | title=MLB History: Five Oldest Pitchers to Hit a Homerun | date=9 May 2016 }}</ref>  He was the oldest person to ever play for the [[Cincinnati Reds]], and at the time of his retirement, the eight teams for which he had played also constituted a record, which has since been broken. He was also the last major leaguer who had played in the 1900s decade to formally retire (not counting [[Charley O'Leary]], who in 1934 made a comeback stint). Quinn is one of only 31 players in baseball history to date who have appeared in a Major League game in four decades. He remains the oldest player to play regularly, having pitched 87{{fraction|1|3}} innings in 1932 at age 48 and 49, and 15 innings in 1933 at age 49 and 50. (Franco and [[Phil Niekro]] were also regular players at age 48, but were one and five months younger respectively during their seasons at that age.)

During his career, Quinn played alongside 31 different members of the [[National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum|Baseball Hall of Fame]] and collected two [[World Series ring]]s in three tries. He was also one of the last pitchers in baseball permitted to throw the [[spitball]], grandfathered in along with sixteen others reliant on the pitch when it was banned in 1920. He frequently used his spitball after he was grandfathered in, in addition to his [[fastball]], [[curveball|curve]], and [[changeup]].

Quinn posted a .184 [[batting average (baseball)|batting average]] (248-for-1349) with 90 [[run (baseball)|runs]], 38 [[double (baseball)|doubles]], eight [[home run]]s, 115 [[runs batted in]] and drawing 89 [[bases on balls]]. He recorded a .969 [[fielding percentage]] including playing several games in the outfield.

Quinn died in [[Pottsville, Pennsylvania]] on April&nbsp;17, 1946, three months after being diagnosed with a liver infection.<ref>{{cite news |title=Jack Quinn, 60, Famed Pitcher for 25 Years, Dies in Pottsville, Pa. |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/evening-star-obituary-for-jack-quinn/181011433/ |access-date=September 13, 2025 |work=[[The Washington Star|The Evening Star]] |agency=[[Associated Press]] |date=April 18, 1946 |location=[[Washington D.C.]] |page=A2|via=[[Newspapers.com]]}}</ref> His wife passed on July&nbsp;9, 1940 in [[Dolton, Illinois]] due to injuries related to a fall and necessary amputation of her right leg.<ref>{{cite news |title=Mrs. Jack (Picus) Quinn. |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-plain-speaker-obituary-for-jack-quin/181011815/ |access-date=September 13, 2025 |work=[[The Plain Speaker]] |date=July 12, 1940 |location=[[Hazleton, Pennsylvania]] |page=21|via=[[Newspapers.com]]}}</ref>

In 2006, Jack Quinn was inducted posthumously into the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://polishsportshof.com/inductees/baseball/jack-quinn/ |title=Jack Quinn « National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame and Museum |website=polishsportshof.com |access-date=17 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130928090939/http://polishsportshof.com/inductees/baseball/jack-quinn/ |archive-date=28 September 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Baseball}}
* [[List of Major League Baseball career wins leaders]]
* [[List of Major League Baseball annual saves leaders]]
* [[List of Major League Baseball players who played in four decades]]
* [[List of Major League Baseball career hit batsmen leaders]]

==References==
* Kashatus, William C. (2002). ''Diamonds in the Coalfields: 21 Remarkable Baseball Players, Managers, and Umpires from Northeast Pennsylvania''. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. {{ISBN|978-0-7864-1176-4}}.
* {{cite journal |last=Scott |first=E. Michael D. |year=2008 |title=John 'Jack Quinn' Picus: Not Polish, Not Welsh, and Not Born in America at All |journal=NINE: A Journal of Baseball History and Culture |volume=16 |issue=2 |pages=93–106 |doi=10.1353/nin.2008.0008 |s2cid=154595809 |url=http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/nine/v016/16.2scott.html |url-access=subscription }}
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Jack Quinn (baseball)}}
{{Baseballstats|mlb=120843|espn=26532|br=q/quinnja01|fangraphs=1010605|brm=quinn-007joh}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20060614064510/http://thedeadballera.com/Obits/Quinn.Jack.Obit.html The Deadball Era]
*{{Find a Grave}}
*[https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/jack-quinn/ Jack Quinn] at [[Society for American Baseball Research|SABR]] Bio Project

{{s-start}}
{{succession box | before = [[Watty Clark]] | title = [[Brooklyn Dodgers|Brooklyn Robins/Dodgers]] [[Opening Day]] <br /> [[Starting pitcher]]| years = 1931 | after = [[Waite Hoyt]]}}
{{s-end}}

{{1929 Philadelphia Athletics}}
{{1930 Philadelphia Athletics}}
{{Los Angeles Dodgers Opening Day starting pitchers}}
{{Boston Red Sox Opening Day starting pitchers}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Quinn, Jack}}
[[Category:Emigrants from Austria-Hungary to the United States]]
[[Category:Major League Baseball pitchers]]
[[Category:New York Highlanders players]]
[[Category:Boston Braves players]]
[[Category:Baltimore Terrapins players]]
[[Category:20th-century American sportsmen]]
[[Category:Chicago White Sox players]]
[[Category:New York Yankees players]]
[[Category:Boston Red Sox players]]
[[Category:Philadelphia Athletics players]]
[[Category:Brooklyn Robins players]]
[[Category:Brooklyn Dodgers players]]
[[Category:Cincinnati Reds players]]
[[Category:Baseball players from Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania]]
[[Category:1883 births]]
[[Category:1946 deaths]]
[[Category:Macon Brigands players]]
[[Category:Toledo Mud Hens players]]
[[Category:Richmond Colts players]]
[[Category:Rochester Hustlers players]]
[[Category:Vernon Tigers players]]
[[Category:Hollywood Stars players]]
[[Category:Johnstown Johnnies players]]
[[Category:Minor league baseball managers]]
[[Category:American people of Polish descent]]
[[Category:Major League Baseball players from Slovakia]]
[[Category:Burials at Charles Baber Cemetery]]