Waite Hoyt (September 9, 1899 - August 25, 1984) was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball, one of the dominant pitchers of the 1920s. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1969. Hoyt was born in Brooklyn, New York, and at the age of 15 was signed to a professional contract by New York Giants manager John McGraw. Because of his young age, he was immediately nicknamed "The Schoolboy Wonder." Hoyt would not achieve his greatest success, however, as a Giant.
After a brief stint with the Boston Red Sox, Hoyt joined the New York Yankees in 1921, and rose to instant stardom, pitching three games in the World Series for his team without giving up a single earned run - over his career, he would win six American League pennants with the Yankees. In his finest year, 1927, Hoyt would post a record of 22 wins and 7 losses for the Yankees, with an ERA of only 2.64. Although Hoyt pitched for 8 more years after leaving the Yankees in 1930, he would never again achieve that level of success.
Hoyt finished his career with a win-loss record of 237-182 and an ERA of 3.59 over 21 seasons. He then went into broadcasting, and worked as a broadcaster for the Cincinnati Reds for 24 years.
Waite Hoyt was also known as "The Merry Mortician" because he worked as a funeral director during the offseason.
