Chief Hogsett

Elon Chester Hogsett was born in Brownell in 1903.  He pitched for town teams in Brownell and Ness City and played football at Bethany College in Lindsborg.

A lefthander, Brownell began pitching professionally in 1925 and was given the nickname “Chief.”  At the end of the 1925 season, the Detroit Tigers purchased his contract, and he made his debut with Detroit three years later.

In 1930, Hogsett won nine games for the Tigers.  He was 11-9 in 1932.  By 1933, he became a reliver and added a sidearm delivery in 1934.  That season, he pitched in the World Series, as the Tigers lost to the Cards and 1935 when they beat the Cubs.

In 1936, the Tigers traded Hogsett to the St. Louis Browns.  Manager Rogers Hornsby put him in the rotation and he responded with 13 wins.  The following season he won only six and was traded to Washington for the 1938 season.

After the 1938 season, Hogsett pitched for the Minneapolis Millers and Indianapolis Indians in the American Association.  In 1944, he attempted a comeback with Detroit at the age of 40.  He pitched in three games before returning to the minor leagues.

In his 11 years in the major leagues, Hogsett won 63 games.

Hogsett moved to Hays after his baseball career.  He was a liquor salesman and died in Hays in 2001 at the age of 97.

For more, read Chief Hogsett’s Society for American Baseball Research bio.