Ernie White

Ernest Daniel White (September 5, 1916 – May 22, 1974) was an American professional baseball player who pitched in the Major Leagues from 1940–1943 and 1946–1948. A native of Pacolet Mills, South Carolina, he threw left-handed, batted right-handed, stood 5 ft 11 ¹⁄₂ in (1.82 m) (182 cm) tall and weighed 175 pounds (79 kg).

White pitched for two National League clubs, the St. Louis Cardinals and Boston Braves, during his seven-year MLB career, and was a member of three pennant-winners and one World Series champion. In 108 games, he won 30 and lost 21 contests, with an earned run average of 2.78. All thirty victories came during his first four years in the league as a Cardinal. He served in the U.S. Army during World War II and missed the 1944–1945 seasons.

He pitched a complete-game shutout in Game 3 of the 1942 World Series, defeating the New York Yankees 2–0 at Yankee Stadium, as the Cardinals beat New York in five games in the only World Series ever lost by the Yanks during Joe McCarthy's 15+-year term as manager. During the previous season, 1941, White enjoyed his best campaign, winning 17 of 24 decisions, compiling an ERA of 2.40, and finishing sixth in the NL Most Valuable Player poll.

Because of a sore arm, White pitched in only one game and four innings for the 1947 Braves, and spent most of that campaign as a coach on the staff of Boston manager Billy Southworth. But he was able to return to the mound for 15 games and 23 innings with Boston's 1948 NL championship team before embarking on a 15-year (1949–1962; 1964) career as a minor league manager in the farm systems of the Boston/Milwaukee Braves, Cincinnati Reds, Kansas City Athletics, Yankees and New York Mets, winning three league championships. His 1952 Columbia Reds won 100 regular-season games, but lost in the Sally League playoffs. White also spent one season, 1963, as pitching coach of the Mets on the staff of legendary Casey Stengel.

Ernie White died in Augusta, Georgia, at the age of 57 from complications following knee surgery.