Charlie Devens appeared in a grand total of 16 games for the New York Yankees in the early 1930s, rendering him a near-unknown to begin our year-long Yankees Birthdays series. Despite his abbreviated tenure in New York though, Devens has a surprisingly interesting story.
Devens’ Yankee (and big-league) debut, the only game in which he appeared that season, was a complete-game victory. His final appearance as a Yankee (and his last in the majors)—the only game in which he appeared that season-was a complete-game victory. He
was a World Series champion as a rookie, as that 107-win club swept away the Cubs at Wrigley Field. And he witnessed, and oft recounted, Babe Ruth’s legendary “Called Shot.” Devens, for the record, was a true believer that the Bambino did in fact call that shot.
Charles “Charlie” Devens
Born: January 1, 1910 (Milton, MA)
Died: August 13, 2003 (Scarborough, ME)
Yankees Tenure: 1932-1934
Details are sparse regarding Devens’ early life but two things are certain. He was the scion of a prominent Boston banking family and, by 1931 at the absolute latest, he was a star pitcher for the Harvard Crimson. Devens’ was also a multi-sport athlete, playing halfback for the football team while at Harvard in addition to toiling on the diamond.
Devens got himself in academic trouble in 1931, however. In May of that year, Devens failed his divisional examinations and was declared ineligible for the rest of the baseball season. Moreover, if he did not pass his final examinations, he would be declared ineligible for football as well. Apparently, Devens struggled with academics. Months after losing eligibility to play baseball, he was declared ineligible for football as well. Although the article that mentions his ineligibility does not explicitly mention it, it seems likely that he had not passed those final examinations.
Regardless, Devens’ time playing baseball at Harvard was finished. But his overall baseball career was not. On June 30, 1932, Devens signed with the Yankees. Interestingly, as part of the signing, the club promised Devens’ father they would keep him on the roster for the entire season. That perk was in addition to a hefty $5,000 signing bonus.
Being on the Yankees’ roster was no guarantee of playing time. In fact, Devens appeared in one lone contest in 1932. But he made the most of it. On September 24, at Fenway Park, Hall of Fame skipper Joe McCarthy gave him the ball. He tossed a two-run complete game versus Boston, leading the Yanks to an 8-2 victory. There had to be some element of luck involved in terms of stranding runners, as Devens handed out seven free passes, along with surrendering six hits.
That was his only appearance in 1932. But due to the promise of keeping him on the roster, Devens ended up as part of the 1932 World Series championship team. And that World Series, famously, involved Babe Ruth’s legendary “Called Shot.”
Decades after the event, Devens made it clear he still thought, 70 years later, that the Bambino called his shot:
“The pitcher, Charlie Root, got strike two called on Ruth, and Babe put up a finger and pointed. To me, it looked like he was pointing to the center-field stands. On the next pitch, he hit it into them.”
New York evidently did not promise Devens’ father they would keep him on the roster forever. Because in mid-April 1933, they optioned the former Harvard star to the Newark Bears of the International League. According to skipper McCarthy, the move was made to ensure Devens got consistent work, something the competitive big-league club could not promise him.
It had to be a bit of a blow for Devens, who just the week before threw a no-hitter against Yale in an exhibition game. He still found himself with the Bronx Bombers in 1933, appearing in 14 games, winning three. Still only 23 years old, it is perhaps not surprising he struggled with command, walking 50 batsmen in 62 innings.
1934, his final season of baseball, was more of the same. Devens made 27 appearances with Newark. But he got one more big-league moment. In late September, the Yankees called on him to start against the Philadelphia Athletics. As he had in his debut. Devens met the moment. He strode off the mound at the end of the game having thrown an 11-inning complete game as the Yanks emerged victorious 4-3.
It was the last game he ever pitched. His prospective father-in-law made it clear he did not want a ballplayer for a son-in-law. So Devens gave up the game for love, as he himself recalled. He began working for the State Street Trust Company, eventually becoming a vice-president for the company. In 1954, he became president of Incorporated Investors, then one of America’s largest and oldest mutual funds.
His granddaughter Sarah Devens went on to become one of the greatest collegiate athletes in the history of Dartmouth University, skilled in hockey and lacrosse and arguably its greatest female athlete ever. Tragically, Sarah took her own life in 1995, prior to the start of her senior year, in an unspeakable loss for the Devens family.
Charlie Devens lived to the ripe old age of 93. He died not long after recounting his memory of the Babe’s “Called Shot” to the 21st-century press. Devens was the last living member of that last championship ballclub to feature the Babe: the 1932 World Series-winning Yankees.
References
Callaghan, Gerry and Sonja Steptoe. “An End Too Soon.” Sports Illustrated. July 24, 1995.
Charlie Devens. Baseball-Reference.
“Devens, last living Yankee from Babe Ruth’s final championship game, dies.” Lewiston Sun Journal. August 16, 2003.
“Devens, Once Harvard Star, Sent by Yanks to Newark.” New York Times. April 16, 1933.
“Harvard Loses Devens.” New York Times. May 7, 1931.
Rogers III, C. Paul. “Lefty Gomez.” SABR.
“Two Harvard Stars Ruled Ineligible.” New York Times. July 9, 1931.
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