[Highlander]

Chief Bender- Bender was the #2 overall pick in the 1902 draft by the Boston Beaneaters. He played his first season with them in 1903 at age 19. He stayed in Boston until 1915 when he was traded to the Yankees, along with OF Tim Hendryx, for OF Ward Miller and 3B Fred Thomas. He stayed with the Yankees, pitching in a very limited role (20-30 IP or so each season), for the next 3 years until he retired after his 1918 season at age 34.

Bender's numbers were-

236-224 (45th in wins), 22 Saves, 4122.2 IP (42nd), 2.50 ERA (24th), 1.22 WHIP, 2257 K (T-73rd), 4.9 K/9, 80.8 WAR (26th)

Bender was one of the worst luck pitchers in the game. He led the league in losses twice, despite ERAs of 2.14 and 2.39 in those seasons. He often pitched 15-20 games in relief in addition to his 39ish starts per season many years. In 1910, he led the league in saves, with 6, when he also started 38 games. Picking his best season is tough, as he had 4 or so seasons that were all very good (other than his record) and very similar. I'll go with his 1905 season as an example- 21-20, 360.2 IP, 2.05 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 238 Ks, 8.2 WAR. Chief was also tied for 5th in Shut Outs for his career with 52.

Chief won 1 World Series, was named to 7 All-Star teams and won the Cy Young Award once. Despite only pitching full time for about 12 seasons, and despite having such bad luck record-wise, Bender was voted into the HOF in his first year with 87.1% of the vote.