Edward W. Dowling (January 17, 1867 – March 24, 1944), better known as Robert Joseph Glenalvin, was an American

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professional ...

second baseman and

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities ...

. He played for the Chicago Colts of the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team ...

in the and seasons. His professional career in Minor League Baseball spanned from the 1887 to 1899 seasons, where he served as the

player-manager A player-coach (also playing coach, captain-coach, or player-manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. A player-coach may be a head coach or an assistant coach. They may make changes to the s ...

for several minor league teams. Glenalvin was also an

umpire An umpire is an official in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The term derives from the Old French nonper, ''non'', "not" and ''per'', ...

in the minor leagues from the 1909 through 1914 seasons.

Early life

Glenalvin was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, as Edward W. Dowling. His father, William W. Dowling, was a minister. Dowling had three sisters and a brother. The family moved to

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

, Missouri, in 1877.

Playing career

His parents objected to him playing professional baseball, and only consented to it if he used an assumed name. Under the name Bob Glenalvin, he began his

career with the Lincoln Tree Planters of the Western League in 1887. He struggled and left the team in May. He caught on with teams representing Oskaloosa and Webster City in the Iowa State League, before the league collapsed. He finished the 1887 season with Wichita in the Western League and then signed with

Dubuque Dubuque (, ) is the county seat of Dubuque County, Iowa, United States, located along the Mississippi River. At the time of the 2020 census, the population of Dubuque was 59,667. The city lies at the junction of Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin, a r ...

of the Central Interstate League for the 1888 season. Glenalvin played for Colorado Springs in the

Colorado State League The Colorado State League was an unaffiliated minor league baseball league that played between 1885 and 1898 involving teams from Colorado. Cities represented * Aspen, CO: Aspen Silver Kings 1889; Aspen Miners 1896, 1898-1899 * Colorado Spring ...

and Grand Island of the Illinois–Indiana League in 1889 and began the 1890 season as the

for the Wheeling National Citys of the

Tri-State League The Tri-State League was the name of six different circuits in American minor league baseball. History The first league of that name played for four years (1887–1890) and consisted of teams in Ohio, Michigan and West Virginia. The second leagu ...

During the 1890 season, the Chicago Colts of the

signed Glenalvin to be their second baseman. Their previous second baseman,

Fred Pfeffer Nathaniel Frederick Pfeffer (March 17, 1860 – April 10, 1932), nicknamed "Dandelion" and "Fritz", was an American baseball player. He was a second baseman in Major League Baseball between 1882 and 1897. His final game took place on June 14, 18 ...

, had signed with the

Chicago Pirates The Chicago Pirates was a baseball team in the Players' League for a single season in 1890. The team played its home games at South Side Park (II). Its powerful National League rivals were the Chicago White Stockings which later became the Cubs. ...

of the Players' League for the 1890 season. Glenalvin played 66 games for Chicago, compiling a .268

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

. Pfeffer returned to the Colts after the Players' League folded following the 1890 season, and Glenalvin secured his release from Chicago to become the player-manager of the Portland Webfeet of the Pacific Northwest League in 1891. Portland won the league's championship and agreed to face the San Jose team, champions of the California League, in a best-of-19 game series, which lasted from November 1891 to January 1892. In the 19th game, Glenalvin pulled his team off of the field in protest of a call made by the

. San Jose was declared the winner in a forfeit. In 1892, Glenalvin was named manager and captain of the

Los Angeles Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team h ...

of the California League. He began the 1893 season in the same roles. The Colts signed Glenalvin in August 1893. He played in 16 games for the Colts late in the 1893 season, and batted .344. The Colts sold Glenalvin to the Detroit Tigers of the Western League before the 1894 season to be their second baseman, captain, and manager for $600 ($ in current dollar terms). After the 1894 season, Glenalvin accused team owner George Vanderbeck of exceeding the league's salary limits and of not paying him the additional $812 that he was promised on top of his permitted salary. Glenalvin brought this discrepancy to the league's attention in 1895, and they ruled in favor of Glenalvin, ordering Vanderbeck to pay him by March 1 or forfeit the franchise. Glenalvin signed on as the player-manager for Terre Haute in May 1895. In 1896, Glenalvin partnered with

Robert Leadley Robert H. Leadley (November 11, 1858 – May 19, 1936) was an American professional baseball manager, administrator, and team owner whose career spanned from 1884 to 1897. He was a manager in Major League Baseball for the last portion of the ...

to re-establish the Pacific Northwest League as the New Pacific League. Glenalvin captained, managed, and played second base for the Portland Gladiators. The league collapsed at midseason and Glenalvin became the manager of the Milwaukee Brewers of the Western League for the remainder of the season. After the 1896 season, Glenalvin and Leadley bought the Grand Rapids Gold Bugs of the Western League, and he played the 1897 season as their captain, manager, and second baseman. In 1898, Glenalvin played for the St. Paul Saints of the Western League, and led the league in

sacrifice hit In baseball, a sacrifice bunt (also called a sacrifice hit) is a batter's act of deliberately bunting the ball, before there are two outs, in a manner that allows a baserunner to advance to another base. The batter is almost always put out, an ...

s. He considered retiring, but returned to St. Paul for the 1899 season. His mother, who was ill at the time, made him promise that he would retire from baseball.

Later career

In 1902, Glenalvin accepted a position as an editor for the Christian Board of Publication, which produced religious papers. His father served as the

editor-in-chief An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies. The highest-ranking editor of a publication may also be titled editor, managing ...

. He also wrote short stories for a Sunday school publication called "Our Young People". In 1907, Glenalvin was reported to be working in the

lumber industry The wood industry or timber industry (sometimes lumber industry -- when referring mainly to sawed boards) is the industry concerned with forestry, logging, timber trade, and the production of primary forest products and wood products (e.g. furni ...

in Redding, California. Glenalvin returned to baseball as an

in the Western League in 1909. He signed on to umpire in the

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

for the 1910 season. Glenalvin umpired in the

Central League The or is one of the two professional baseball leagues that constitute Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship plays against the winner of the Pacific League in the annual Japan Series. It currently consi ...

in 1911, but was dismissed in May due to complaints from managers. In June, he began to umpire in the

Central Association The Central Association was an American minor league baseball league. It began operations in 1908, as it was essentially renamed from the 1907 Iowa State League. The Central Association ran continuously through 1917. It was reorganized thirty year ...

, but was not brought back to start the season in 1912. The Central Association brought Glenalvin back in May 1912 In 1913, the league president again hired new umpires for the start of the season, and hired Glenalvin to return to umpiring in the Central Association in June 1913. The Central Association re-signed Glenalvin before the 1914 season, but he did not return for the 1915 season.

Personal life

Glenalvin married Jessie ( née Laing) in February 1892. His real name became a part of the public record when he filed for his marriage license. Glenalvin resided in

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

in his later life. He died at

Henry Ford Hospital Henry Ford Hospital (HFH) is an 877-bed tertiary care hospital, education and research complex at the western edge of the New Center area in Detroit, Michigan. The flagship facility for the Henry Ford Health System, it was one of the first hos ...

after having a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which ma ...

on March 24, 1944.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Glenalvin, Bob 19th-century baseball players Chicago Colts players Detroit Tigers managers Portland Gladiators players 1867 births 1944 deaths Baseball players from Indianapolis Lincoln Tree Planters players Wheeling National Citys players Wheeling Nailers (baseball) players Los Angeles Seraphs players Los Angeles Angels (minor league) managers Los Angeles Angels (minor league) players Detroit Creams players Terre Haute Hottentots players Grand Rapids Gold Bugs players Indianapolis Hoosiers (minor league) players Indianapolis Indians players Kansas City Blues (baseball) players Milwaukee Brewers (minor league) players Milwaukee Creams players Grand Rapids Bob-o-links players St. Paul Saints (Western League) players St. Paul Apostles players