A long rest between innings

Paul Schreiber seemingly is done facing major league hitters on Sept. 2, 1923 as he finishes up a mindless inning of relief for Brooklyn in a 12-3 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies at Ebbets Field.

That game also comes on the one-year anniversary of Schreiber’s major league debut for Brooklyn as he faces a trio of Hall of Famers in Ross Youngs, Frankie Fritsch and George Kelly during one inning of Brooklyn’s 5-2 loss to the New York Giants at the Polo Grounds.

Paul Schreiber

He is all of 20 when he pitches with Brooklyn for the final time in 1923.

Schreiber then kicks around in the minor leagues until 1931, playing in such exotic Pennsylvania ports of call as Wilkes-Barre, Harrisburg, York and Scranton before last appearing in a game for Allentown in 1931.

From there, Schreiber spends the next 14 seasons confining his pitching to tossing batting practice for the New York Yankees, spending nearly a decade and a half serving up pregame meatballs for the crushing by the likes of Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig and Joe DiMaggio.

That is until late in the 1945 season, when 80 years ago today New York activates Schreiber – by this time, 42 years old – to have him pitch the last 3 1/3 innings of a 10-0 loss to the Detroit Tigers before a Tuesday afternoon crowd of 18,482 at Yankee Stadium.

Schreiber retires 10 of the 12 batters he faces – he walks the other two – as he sets the record, which still stands, for the longest gap between major league games.

In this case, 22 years and two days. Or, if you prefer, 8,038 days.

Schreiber is one of three 40-something pitchers – Red Ruffing and Jim Turner being the others – the Yankees dust off in 1945, the last season the majors are shorthanded as players complete their service in World War II.

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