Keefe is credited with originating the forkball, which came naturally to him – he lost the middle finger on his pitching hand in a childhood accident. In his one respectable year, with the Athletics in 1920, he was 6-7 (2.97), with half his wins coming in relief. He continued in the minors until 1932 when he went to Philadelphia’s Shibe Park to pitch batting practice for the exercise; he stayed for 19 years, 7 as a coach, and he pitched batting practice for the AL at nine All-Star games. In 1950 he became the Athletics’ traveling secretary.
