Spokane Smoke Eaters

The 1902 Spokane Smoke Eaters of Spokane, Washington, finished last, 46-75, but their pitching staff included two notable names: 43-year-old Tony Mullane, near the end of a career that produced 284 major league wins, and 24-year-old Jack Pfiester, five years before he led the National League in ERA.

The Pacific Northwest League was a six-team Class B circuit in 1902, the first year of formal minor league classification. Butte and Helena, Montana, joined Seattle, Tacoma, Portland and Spokane, and Butte won the pennant. John J. Grim managed Spokane, which played at Natatorium Park. The year before, as the Blue Stockings, Spokane had also finished last, at 41-67.

Mullane began 1902 as an umpire in the league, gave that up, and signed with Spokane as a player, appearing in 20 games. Known as "the Count" and "the Apollo of the Box," he became the first ambidextrous pitcher in major league history in 1882. Pfiester pitched the full season for Spokane, going 13-15. With the Chicago Cubs he posted a 1.15 ERA in 1907, earned the name "Jack the Giant Killer" for beating New York, and was on the mound for the 1908 Merkle game.

"Smoke eater" is American slang for a firefighter; no 1902 source explaining why Spokane used the name has been found, so the connection is unconfirmed. In 1903 the league reorganized under a new name, and Spokane's club, renamed the Indians through a Spokesman-Review contest, finished second at 82-68 under new managers. Whether the 1902 ownership carried over has not been documented.