Bert Whaling

Albert James Whaling (June 22, 1888 – January 7, 1965) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher from to for the Boston Braves. Whaling was a member of the "Miracle" Braves team that went from last place at mid-season to win the National League pennant and the 1914 World Series.

Whaling excelled defensively as a catcher with a strong throwing arm however, his fielding prowess was not enough to overcome his deficiencies as a hitter at the major league level so, he played the majority of his career in the minor leagues. He started the 1909 season with the Salt Lake Mormons of the Inter-Mountain League before the team relocated to Livingston, Montana at mid-season, but the league was disbanded at the end of the season. He reported to spring training in March , but was released by the Naps in April.

Whaling then resigned with the Seattle Giants where he began the 1912 season as their starting catcher. During the deadball era, catchers played a huge defensive role, given the large number of bunts and stolen base attempts, as well as the difficulty of handling the spitball pitchers who dominated pitching staffs. A newspaper report in 1912 called Whaling the best catcher to have ever played in the Northwestern League (The league had been created in 1905, 7 years prior to the newspaper report).

Whaling signed a contract to play for the Boston Braves in October 1912, and made his major league debut with the team on April 22, 1913 at the age of 25. Only four other rookie catchers in Major League Baseball history have accomplished the feat. When Whaling failed to provide much offense, Braves manager, George Stallings gave Gowdy the starting catcher's job. The team went from last place to first place within a two-month period, becoming the first team to win a pennant after being in last place on the Fourth of July. The Braves went on to sweep Connie Mack's heavily favored Philadelphia Athletics in four games in the 1914 World Series, although Whaling never got a chance to play in the series. The team became known as the "Miracle" Braves and remain one of the most storied comeback teams in baseball history.

While he was a weak hitter and a slow runner, Whaling developed a reputation as a fine defensive catcher. In his final major league season, 1915, Whaling hit .221 in 72 games (42 at-bats), once again as the back up to Gowdy. After threatening to join the outlaw Federal League, Whaling signed with the Tigers in December 1915.

Whaling played with the Vernon Tigers for two seasons before joining the United States Navy during World War I. After his discharge from military service, Whaling then became a journeyman baseball player. In , he signed to play for the Great Falls Electrics however, two months later he was reported to be playing in Arizona for the Copper Queen Mine baseball team. In , he played in Medicine Hat, Alberta before applying for the job of manager for the Regina Senators of the Western Canada League in . In May , he was signed as a player for the Regina club.

After his playing career, Whaling returned to the Los Angeles area where he worked in the film industry as a sound man. He died at the Sawtelle Veterans Hospital in Los Angeles County on January 21, , at the age of 76. The cause of death was listed as metastatic adenocarcinoma. He was buried in the Los Angeles National Cemetery.