Frank Hiller used a brilliant high school and college
pitching record as a springboard to 12 professional
baseball seasons, the longest professional status of any
Lafayette College alumnus. He was undefeated at
Irvington (NJ) High School and compiled a 22-2 record
at Lafayette before being signed into the professional
ranks by the New York Yankees.
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He had also been the
interest of the Philadelphia Athletics. Bucky Harris,
manager of the Athletics in 1943 remarked, "I like the
boy because he has intestinal fortitude, the most
important thing for a pitcher to have next to a steel
arm." After several seasons in the minor leagues,
Hiller made his first major league appearance for the
Yankees in 1946. He was traded to the Chicago Cubs in
1950 and welcomed the trade by turning in his best major
league season. He posted a 12-5 record with a 3.53 earned
run average while appearing in 38 games. That same year,
and again in 1951, he won complete nine-inning games
while facing the minimum of batters (27), but did not pitch
a no-hitter. This is believed to be a major league record. In
1952, Hiller was traded to the Cincinnati Reds and he
concluded his big league career with the New York Giants
in 1953. He retired after pitching for the San Francisco Seals
of the Giants minor league system in 1954. In five full and
two partial big league seasons, Hiller pitched in 138 games
with a record of 30-32.
