Walter William Pierce (April 2, 1927 – July 31, 2015) was an American starting pitcher in Major League Baseball between 1945 and 1964 who played most of his career for the Chicago White Sox.

[3] A seven-time All-Star, he led the American League (AL) in complete games three times despite his slight build, and in wins, earned run average (ERA) and strikeouts once each.

He was one of the principal figures in Chicago's fierce rivalry with the New York Yankees; particularly notable were his matchups with Whitey Ford, with the two left-handers opposing one another as starters 14 times from 1955 to 1960.

After joining the San Francisco Giants in 1962, Pierce played a pivotal role in helping them win the NL pennant, going 12–0 in home games and getting a three-hit shutout and a save in a three-game playoff against the Los Angeles Dodgers to clinch the title.

After starting out as a first baseman, he switched to pitching to emulate his hero, Detroit Tigers star Tommy Bridges, who like Pierce had a slight build.

[8] He attended Highland Park Community High School where his teammates included future major league pitcher Ted Gray,[9] and pitched six shutouts as a junior in 1944,[8] earning the nickname "Mr.

[10] He was the starting and winning pitcher in an East-West All-American Boys' Game sponsored by Esquire magazine, held on August 7, 1944, at the Polo Grounds in New York, with Connie Mack managing Pierce's East All-Stars; one reporter wrote, "His fast ball was amazing when one considers that he only weighs 140 pounds.

[12] The game was held as a benefit for World War II community memorials, and two days prior to the event the participating players were guests of Babe Ruth on his weekly radio program.

On May 29, 1949, in just his sixth start with Chicago (and the 11th of his career), the 22-year-old Pierce was matched against 42-year-old Negro league legend Satchel Paige in a road game against the defending World Series champion Cleveland Indians.

[31] Pierce was chosen to start the All-Star Game for the AL – the first White Sox pitcher ever to do so – and allowed only one hit through three innings (a single by Stan Musial).

"[32] During the early 1950s, Richards preferred to arrange his rotation so that Pierce started only every fifth or sixth day, holding him back against weaker teams but using him more often for big games against the powerful Yankees and Indians.

Catcher Sherm Lollar later observed that although it was essentially a compliment to Pierce's ability, he might have picked up more victories and won 20 games sooner in his career had he faced each opponent more equally.

Pierce's 1954 season was interrupted when he reported pain in his left arm in a May 25 win over Cleveland; after several days of difficulty in determining the problem, he had oral surgery to remove an infected wisdom tooth and adjacent molar on June 3.

[39] Playing the Yankees on June 25, 1953, he was part of a rare defensive shift; leading 4–2 in the ninth inning, he was moved to first base, with Harry Dorish entering in relief.

He then retook the mound, and after issuing a walk, gained the final two outs to finish the victory; the White Sox set an AL record by using five first basemen in the game.

[40] Pierce was also an excellent baserunner,[7] and was used as a pinch runner 30 times between 1949 and 1957[5] – even scoring as a substitute for three-time stolen base champion Minnie Miñoso in a 5–4 victory over the Yankees on June 22, 1956.

Buoyed by the arrival of rookie shortstop Luis Aparicio, who sparked the team in leading the league in stolen bases, the White Sox enjoyed a two-month offensive surge from June 4 to August 3 in which they averaged eight runs in Pierce's 13 starts; he won 11 of the games, losing only those immediately before and after the All-Star break, the latter being a 2–1 loss to Ford and the Yankees.

In Game 5 he entered in the eighth inning to protect a 1–0 lead, but only issued an intentional walk before Lopez again changed pitchers; the White Sox held on for the 1–0 win.

"[55] Although they never finished below third place from 1952 through 1960, the "Go-Go White Sox" were a team which thrived on speed, defense and pitching rather than hitting, and Pierce struggled for offensive support throughout his time with the club.

By 1955 it was regularly noted that Chicago's offensive struggles were placing undue pressure on the pitching staff, wearing them out with "one tense game after another, never having a comfortable margin that might permit a little breather now and then";[58] Pierce was described as "the unluckiest pitcher in the majors" that year due to the lack of scoring.

They were your classic 'stylish' left-handers, equal in guile and guts, but Ford had those howitzers of Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra, Bill Skowron and Hank Bauer behind him, while Pierce came armed with popguns.

Nellie Fox, Luis Aparicio and Minnie Miñoso supported him with hustle and chink singles and I always marveled at the fact that Pierce could duel Ford on even terms despite those odds.

Giants manager Alvin Dark declared his intent to use Pierce as the ace of a young pitching staff that included developing talents such as Juan Marichal, Gaylord Perry and Mike McCormick.

[73] In a road game against the Reds on June 14, he allowed a leadoff double to Vada Pinson, but was then accidentally spiked in the left ankle while covering first base on a groundout by Don Blasingame, an injury which required 14 stitches.

The injury likely cost him what would have been his eighth All-Star selection, and he did not return to the field until he lasted only three innings in a loss on July 15; he then made three relief appearances before picking up a win on August 2.

[5] But over the course of the year he proved to be a pitcher who thrived in blustery Candlestick Park, winning all 11 of his home starts as the Giants tied the Dodgers for the NL pennant with a record of 101–61, forcing a three-game playoff.

His 186 career victories with the White Sox rank fourth on the club's all-time list, behind Hall of Famers Ted Lyons, Red Faber and Ed Walsh.

[81] After leaving baseball, he was a White Sox television color analyst in 1970, briefly a partner in Oldsmobile and Cadillac dealerships,[15] a stockbroker, then worked as a sales and public relations representative for the Continental Envelope[82] company from 1974 until retiring in 1997.

[93] Pierce told one interviewer of his wife, "She's not only a loyal fan, but a smart one, and there was the day I had to go to Marty Marion – he was the White Sox manager then – and tell him that he'd better change our bunt sign because Gloria had stolen it, so very likely the opposition would be stealing it too.

(For several years while he was with the White Sox, they had also maintained a summer residence in the south side's landmark Flamingo-on-the-Lake Apartments, where teammate Jim Rivera and his family also lived.