{{Short description|American baseball player (1906–1937)}} {{Use mdy dates|date=December 2020}} {{Infobox baseball biography |name=Benny Frey |image=Benjamin Frey, 1929 AP photo (cropped).jpg |position=Pitcher |bats=Right |throws=Right |birth_date={{birth date|1906|4|6}} |birth_place=Dexter, Michigan, U.S. |death_date={{death date and age|1937|11|1|1906|4|6}} |death_place=Spring Arbor Township, Michigan, U.S. |debutleague = MLB |debutdate=September 18 |debutyear=1929 |debutteam=Cincinnati Reds |finalleague = MLB |finaldate=September 22 |finalyear=1936 |finalteam=Cincinnati Reds |statleague = MLB |stat1label=Win–loss record |stat1value=57–82 |stat2label=Earned run average |stat2value=4.50 |stat3label=Strikeouts |stat3value=179 |teams= *Cincinnati Reds ({{mlby|1929}}–{{mlby|1932}}) *St. Louis Cardinals ({{mlby|1932}}) *Cincinnati Reds ({{mlby|1932}}–{{mlby|1936}}) }} '''Benjamin Rudolph Frey''' (April 6, 1906 – November 1, 1937) was a right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball from 1929 to 1936, playing primarily with the Cincinnati Reds. He was a sidearm pitcher with a sweeping motion that was effective against right-handed hitters. Frey suffered an arm injury which ultimately led to his retirement and subsequent suicide.
==Professional career== After spending time with the Toledo Mud Hens, Frey entered the major leagues in 1929 with the Cincinnati Reds.<ref>{{cite news |title=Benny Frey Wins First Start for Cincy Outfit |newspaper=The Toledo News-Bee |date=September 19, 1929 |page=18 |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=P-1XAAAAIBAJ&pg=5988,2157677&dq=benny+frey&hl=en |access-date =December 11, 2012}}</ref> In 1930, Frey lost 18 games, most in the National League. During the 1932 season, he was traded to the Cardinals, along with Harvey Hendrick for Chick Hafey. The Cardinal's general manager, Branch Rickey, would send Frey back to the Reds for cash.<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Verducci |first1=Tom |title=The Mets Are a Historical Disaster |url=https://www.si.com/mlb/2023/08/11/mets-disaster-season-2023-mlb-historic-collapses |access-date=September 2, 2023 |magazine=Sports Illustrated |date=August 11, 2023}}</ref>
His best season was 1934 when he was 11–16 for the Reds with a 3.52 ERA (adjusted ERA+ of 116), finishing sixteenth in the 1934 National League Most Valuable Player voting. Frey suffered an arm injury and was sent down to a minor league team in Nashville for the 1937 season. Frey refused to report to Nashville and asked to be put on the voluntarily retired list.<ref name=sabr>{{cite web |url=https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/benny-frey/ |title=Benny Frey |first1=Chris |last1=Rainey |website=sabr.org |publisher=Society for American Baseball Research |access-date=December 30, 2020}}</ref>
==Career statistics== Frey appeared in 256 major league baseball games (127 as a starter) and had a lifetime record of 57–82 in 1160 innings pitched. His lifetime earned run average of 4.50 was good for an adjusted ERA+ of 90.
==Personal life and death== Frey was born in Dexter, Michigan. Frey committed suicide on November 1, 1937, in Spring Arbor Township, Michigan, at the home of his sister. He had run a hose from his car's exhaust into the back seat and died of carbon monoxide poisoning.<ref>{{cite book |title=Baseball and American Culture |first1=Frank |last1=Hoffmann |first2=Edward J. |last2=Rielly |first3=Martin |last3=Manning |year=2003 |publisher=Haworth Press |isbn=0-7890-1485-8 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=j84eSC3b90YC&q=%22benny+frey%22+suicide&pg=PA274}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Coleman |first=Loren |author-link=Loren Coleman |title=The Copycat Effect: How the Media and Popular Culture Trigger the Mayhem in Tomorrow's Headlines |title-link=The Copycat Effect|publisher=Paraview Pocket Books |year=2004 |isbn=978-0-7434-8223-3 |language=en |page=210}}</ref> Frey had been in despair over his injured arm, which he did not think would ever recover sufficiently for a return to the major leagues.<ref>{{cite news |title=Benny Frey, Former Red Hurler, Passes |newspaper=Windsor Daily Star |location=Windsor, Ontario |date =November 2, 1937 |page=3 (Section 2) |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=cBg_AAAAIBAJ&pg=6265,4993967&dq=benny+frey&hl=en | access-date=December 11, 2012}}</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== {{baseballstats |mlb=114426 |espn= |br=f/freybe01 |fangraphs= |brm=frey--001ben |retro=F/Pfreyb101}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Frey, Benny}} Category:1906 births Category:1937 suicides Category:1937 deaths Category:Baseball players from Washtenaw County, Michigan Category:People from Dexter, Michigan Category:Major League Baseball pitchers Category:Cincinnati Reds players Category:St. Louis Cardinals players Category:Suicides in Michigan Category:Suicides by carbon monoxide poisoning Category:Nashville Vols players Category:20th-century American sportsmen Category:Toledo Mud Hens players