Doc White, a graduate in dental surgery from Georgetown, was the mainstay of the Hitless Wonder White Sox pitching staff. He first signed with the Phillies, tied for the league lead with 20 losses in 1902, and jumped to Chicago. In September 1904 he threw five consecutive shutouts; the string was stopped when he hurled both ends of a doubleheader. During his career he pitched 24 1-0 games, winning 13 of them. The most notable was an 11-inning win over Washington’s Walter Johnson; five days later the two battled to a 1-1 tie in 17 innings.
White was an exceptional control pitcher. He set an early American League record by going 65 consecutive innings without issuing a walk. In 1906, when he led the AL with a 1.52 ERA and went 18-6 for the World Champions, he walked only 38 in 219 innings. When he won a league-high 27 the following year, he walked only 38 in 291 innings.
White was also a violinist, balladeer, and songwriter; in 1910, he combined with Ring Lardner on “A Little Puff of Smoke, Goodnight,” a bestseller in sheet music. He was a college coach, and, after owning a Texas League franchise for a time, became a traveling evangelist.
