Born in Lawrence, Massachusetts, Donovan won his "Wild Bill" nickname while playing for Hartford in the minors. When Hartford teammate Cy Seymour was returned to the Major Leagues after throwing wildly over a fence behind home plate, Donovan walked nine consecutive batters. Donovan received a $10 fine and a new nickname. Donovan served as the head football coach at Georgetown University in 1898, leading the Hoyas to a record of 7–3.\n', '

Donovan made his major league debut on April 22, 1898. During his first three seasons, he was a seldom used reliever on Superbas teams that won consecutive National League pennants, in 1899 and 1900. With the departure of pitchers Joe McGinnity and Gus Weyhing from the team after the 1900 season, Donovan became a starting pitcher of 38 games, posting a 25–15 won–loss record with a 2.77 earned run average (ERA) in 351 innings.\n', '

Donovan moved to the American League\'s Detroit Tigers in 1903, where he would continue his pitching success alongside teammates George Mullin, Sam Crawford, and later Ty Cobb. In the 1907 season, the team won the American League pennant behind Donovan\'s league-leading winning percentage of .862, in which he went 25–4, a mark that remains the highest single-season winning percentage in Tigers history.[citation needed] Appearing in three World Series (1907–09), he went 1–4 with a 2.88 ERA. Donovan also became the first pitcher to lose consecutive deciding games in the World Series in 1908–09.[citation needed]\n', '

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