Charles Andrew "Duke" Farrell (August 31, 1866 – February 15, 1925) was a

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the ( home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the ca ...

. Born in Oakdale, Massachusetts, he played for eight teams during his 18-year career. He made his major-league debut in 1888 and retired as a player after the 1905 season. He then entered coaching, ran a hotel, and became a deputy

U.S. marshal The United States Marshals Service (USMS) is a federal law enforcement agency in the United States. The USMS is a bureau within the U.S. Department of Justice, operating under the direction of the Attorney General, but serves as the enforce ...

Career

Farrell had a career year in 1891 with the Boston Reds of the

American Association American Association may refer to: Baseball * American Association (1882–1891), a major league active from 1882 to 1891 * American Association (1902–1997), a minor league active from 1902 to 1962 and 1969 to 1997 * American Association of Profe ...

, batting .302 and recording league-leading home run (12) and RBI (110) totals. Farrell's 12 home runs that season were nearly a quarter of his career total. In a 1900 game for Brooklyn, Farrell was an unwitting party to an argument between a player and umpire that resulted in a forfeit being awarded to Brooklyn. On a close play at home plate, umpire

John Gaffney John H. Gaffney (June 29, 1855 – August 8, 1913), nicknamed the "King of Umpires" and "Honest John" was an American umpire and manager in Major League Baseball. He was baseball's first great umpire, and played a pioneering role in the use of m ...

called Farrell safe. St. Louis catcher

Wilbert Robinson Wilbert Robinson (June 29, 1864 – August 8, 1934), nicknamed "Uncle Robbie", was an American catcher, coach and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played in MLB for the Philadelphia Athletics, Baltimore Orioles, and St. Louis Cardinals ...

reacted angrily to Gaffney's call, throwing the ball at the umpire and punching him in the chest. Gaffney ejected Robinson and then awarded a forfeit to Brooklyn when Robinson would not leave the playing field. A 1913 newspaper article said that Farrell was widely recognized among old-time baseball men as the best-dressed man in the game. Over an 18-season career, Farrell hit .277 in 1,565 games, with 1,572 hits in 5,682 at bats with 52 homers and 916 RBI.

A false record

For over a century, it was incorrectly believed that Farrell held the single-game major league record for most baserunners thrown out attempting to steal by a catcher, at eight; this record supposedly was set during a game on May 11, 1897. However, in 2016, research done by

Society for American Baseball Research The Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) is a membership organization dedicated to fostering the research and dissemination of the history and record of baseball primarily through the use of statistics. Established in Cooperstown, New ...

writer Brian Marshall revealed that while Farrell did have eight assists in that game, he actually threw out "only" five would-be basestealers.

Later life

Farrell served as a deputy U.S. marshal after his playing career. He also managed a hotel in

Marlboro, Massachusetts Marlborough is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 41,793 at the 2020 census. Marlborough became a prosperous industrial town in the 19th century and made the transition to high technology industry in the ...

. In 1910 and 1911, Farrell was a coach for the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...

. He coached for the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eigh ...

in 1912 and then became a scout for a couple of years before rejoining the Yankees as a pitching coach in 1915. In the early 1920s, he became a coach and scout for the Boston Braves. He died in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

in 1925, ten days after undergoing abdominal surgery. He was buried at Immaculate Conception Cemetery in Marlborough, Massachusetts, aged 58.

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* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Farrell, Duke 1866 births 1925 deaths 19th-century baseball players Chicago White Stockings players Chicago Pirates players Boston Reds (AA) players Pittsburgh Pirates players Boston Americans players Washington Senators (1891–1899) players New York Giants (NL) players Brooklyn Superbas players Major League Baseball catchers Baseball players from Massachusetts New York Yankees coaches Lawrence (minor league baseball) players Salem (minor league baseball) players People from West Boylston, Massachusetts Sportspeople from Worcester County, Massachusetts Burials in Massachusetts

Career

A false record

Later life

See also

References

External links