VANGILDER ENJOYED LONG CAREER WITH ST. LOUIS BROWNS

The strapping righthander known as "Big Elam" -- he stood 6-feet-1 and weighed about 200 pounds during his playing days -- put together a fairly impressive major-league career, which began in 1919 at age 23.

Vangilder is the Browns' record-holder in games pitched. He played 11 years in the major leagues starting in 1919. Vangilder, who died in Cape Girardeau in 1977 at the age of 81, pitched in 323 games during his nine-year stint with the Browns.

Vangilder started playing locally for a Southeast Missouri independent team, the Jungle Giants, when he was 15. He also played for the Capahas, Cape's storied baseball team that is still going strong. His son, Kenny Vangilder of Cape Girardeau, said he's not really sure how his father was even discovered by the Browns.

"I don't know, but they found out about him somehow," said a laughing Kenny.

And quite a discovery it was. During his 11-year career in the majors -- nine spent with the Browns and two with the Detroit Tigers -- Vangilder compiled a 99-102 pitching record. He was also pretty good with the bat, being used as a pinch-hitter on numerous occasions. Vangilder hit as high a .344 in one season and also belted 11 homers and 10 doubles that same campaign. His career batting average was .243, exceptional for a pitcher and better than what some position players hit these days.

But Vangilder made his biggest marks as a pitcher, particularly during the 1922 season when the Browns took the fabled New York Yankees to the wire, losing the American League pennant by only one-half game.

Vangilder appeared in 43 games in 1922, going 19-13 with a 3.31 earned-run average. He issued only 48 walks in 245 innings of work. That was also the season in which he batted .344 and belted 11 homers.

The next season, 1923, was Vangilder's busiest in the majors as he pitched 282 innings.

Vangilder's major league career ended in 1929, his second year with Detroit, when he pitched in only six games.

Vangilder, who maintained his ties with the Capahas throughout his pro career, later played again for the Capahas after leaving professional baseball.

Kenny Vangilder, who played five years of minor league baseball himself and farmed with his father for many years, said that one of Elam's favorite topics was legendary slugger Babe Ruth.

"He said he (Ruth) was the best hitter he ever saw," said Kenny. "There was nothing like him."

Kenny said his father's top salary was about $6,000 a season, which he received after his standout season of 1922.

"It's crazy what the players are making now," said Kenny. "But I guess that was a lot of money for back then."

Speaking to a Southeast Missourian reporter about the salaries when he played, Elam said, "We seldom made more than $7,000 a year, and never worried about it too much. We played at a time when ball players were just that...not business."

Vangilder's wife, Helen, passed away in 1984. In addition to son Kenny, the Vangilders had a daughter, Betty Lou (Dawson), who lives in Sikeston.

One of Elam's four grandchildren, Kenny's son Clay Vangilder, turned out to be a pretty fair pitcher himself, at Murray State University and also with the Capahas.