[The Professor]

THE ARKANSAS TRAVELLER
"Poets are like baseball pitchers. Both have their moments. The intervals are the tough things." - Robert Frost






An instant in time, a moment and nothing more, is all that is given to some that they might make their mark. As it is in the world at large, so too is it in the world of sports.

Henry Eugene Bearden was born September 5, 1920 in Lena, Arkansas. Armed with a nasty knuckleball, the young hurler was one of the prospects acquired by the Cleveland Indians in 1946 from the powerful New York Yankees for catcher Sherm Lollar and 2B Ray Mack.

In 1948 the American League came to know all too well the mastery of the "Arkansas Traveller" as he dazzled them with his baffling pitch. His 17-10 record in a season in which the Indians fell just short of the Boston Red Sox in the chase for the AL Pennant gave Cleveland faithful great hope. What magic could a rotation built around legendary Bob Feller, the solid Bob Lemon and the young knuckler do? Bearden was honored after the season as the AL's Rookie of the Year, the first player to recieve the award (Brooklyn's Jackie Robinson had recieved the award as a dual-league award in 1947).

1949 was no disappointment. Bearden teamed with Lemon to form the AL's most dominating 1-2 pitching punch. American League batters couldn't lay off his out pitch despite his marked penchant for wildness (107 walks, compared to 133 the previous season). With his sterling 2.40 ERA, a career best, Bearden also posted a 19-8 mark. His strong sophomore performance was all the more important considering the unfortunate injury to Bob Feller, an injury from which the former legend never quite did recover. On May 14, Bearden pitched what may have been his greatest masterpiece, no-hitting the Philadelphia Athletics.

Under the steady hand of George "The Bull" Uhle, the 1949 Indians led the American League from wire to wire, earning the right to play the Boston Braves for the World Championship. Bearden, for his part, earned the start in Game 1 of the 1949 World Series. Perhaps overwhelmed, the southpaw gave up 3 earned runs over 8 innings in a 4-2 loss. He struggled again in Game 4, giving up homers to Johnny Mize and Bob Elliott, losing the game 4-2 yet again.

During Spring Training many American League hitters believed that they finally could figure Bearden out. They could not have been more wrong. Bearden not only showed that his rough World Series outing was a fluke, he simply dominated the American League. As the Indians rolled to a second straight pennant, Bearden was truly their ace. His 22-8 record was the league's best, as was his 2.65 ERA. For the second straight season he finished 18 games, though he couldn't restrain his wildness (133 BB). In his third season, settled in as the ace of one of the great teams of all time (the Indians won 106 games) Bearden set his sights on the World Championship.

As in 1949, he took the ball for Game 1 and went the distance, showing the National League representative Dodgers just how dangerous he could be in an 8-1 hammering. He returned for Game 4 and dueled with Brooklyn's Preacher Roe for 8 heart-pounding innings, garning no decision in a game which the Indians would lose 3-4 in 11 innings. He would see no more action as the Dodgers completed their stunning upset two games later.

Nevertheless, for his brilliance, Bearden was a runaway selection as the American League Cy Young Award Winner. Around the circuit, from city to city, there was no pitcher more feared. It seemed the "Arkansas Traveller" would be twirling his magic for years to come.

...and then he was finished.

He reported to spring training in 1951 out of shape, his control was worse than usual, and the once unhittable knuckler simply didn't dance as it once had. Uhle and the Indians ownership were astounded as Bearden failed to earn a spot in the starting rotation for the coming season. Instead he was relegated to part-time duty out of the bullpen. He started only 6 games, appearing in 35 total, and saw his ERA balloon to 5.97. By the time of the Indians' late season pennant run Bearden was in San Diego with the AAA Padres. While he watched, his mates grabbed a third straight pennant and finally captured a World Series title.

...now, as we come nearer the midway point of the 1952 season, Gene Bearden remains in the Minor Leagues. His knuckler has recovered some of its mystery, his 9-1 mark is the best in the Indians' farm system. One can only wonder if Gene Bearden will find his way back to the Major Leagues. Memories of the tall southpaw and his unhittable pitch are fading from the minds of the batters he once tormented and questions remain as to just what happened in the few short months between the 1950 World Series and the start of 1951's spring training, so short a time but all the distance between the pinnacle of greatness and the depths of obscurity.

NOTE: In real life, Gene Bearden truly did take the American League by storm in 1948 with a 20-7 record and a league best 2.43 ERA. In the famous playoff against the Boston Red Sox (Sox fans will recall not so fondly the name of Denny Galehouse), Bearden earned his 20th win. He was a valuable member of the last Indians World Championship Team. However, by the next season, hitters had figured him out and he never approached the heights of his rookie campaign...