Benjamin Franklin Shibe (January 23, 1838 – January 14, 1922) was an American sporting goods and baseball executive who was owner and president of the Philadelphia Athletics of the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

from 1901 until his death. He is credited with the invention of the automated stitching machinery to make standardized baseballs.

Shibe Park Shibe Park, known later as Connie Mack Stadium, was a ballpark located in Philadelphia. It was the home of the Philadelphia Athletics of the American League (AL) and the Philadelphia Phillies of the National League (NL). When it opened April 12, 1 ...

was named in his honor from 1909 to 1954. Shibe died in 1922, and is buried in

West Laurel Hill Cemetery West Laurel Hill Cemetery is a historic rural cemetery located in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1869, is 200 acres in size and contains the burials of many notable people. It is affiliated with Laurel Hill Cemetery in neighboring P ...

, Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania. Shibe was a leader of the local baseball fraternity no later than the 1870s. According to Neil Lanctot, the Shibe club was the most notable nonprofessional club in operation 1877 to 1881, when there was no professional league team based in Philadelphia after the demise of the original Athletics. Prior to purchasing the Athletics, Shibe and his sons worked for A. J. Reach & co., a Philadelphia sporting goods manufacturer. Shibe and his sons bought 50 percent of the Athletics from

Charles Somers Charles W. Somers (October 13, 1868 – June 29, 1934) was an American executive in the coal industry in Cleveland, Ohio, who also achieved prominence in professional baseball. The financial resources from his business interests allowed Somers to ...

in . At that time, he was named club president, a title he would retain until his death.Biography of John Shibe from the Philadelphia Athletics Historical Society
He took on manager

Connie Mack Cornelius McGillicuddy (December 22, 1862 – February 8, 1956), better known as Connie Mack, was an American professional baseball catcher, manager, and team owner. The longest-serving manager in Major League Baseball history, he holds untoucha ...

and two sportswriters as part-owners. In 1913, Shibe made Mack a full partner, ceding him complete authority over the baseball side of the operation. When Shibe died in 1922, his sons Tom and John became president and vice-president of the A's, respectively. However, Mack was now the operating head of the franchise. Tom died in 1936, with John following in 1937. Their heirs would retain a minority stake in the team until 1950. Ben Shibe tombstone

References

External links

Shibe Park information
from Retrosheet *Ben Shibe a
SABR
(Baseball Biography Project)
Photograph of Benjamin Shibe, Connie Mack, and others at the groundbreaking of Shibe Park (later Connie Mack Stadium), in 1908
courtesy Temple University Libraries 1838 births 1922 deaths Sportspeople from Philadelphia 19th-century American businesspeople Major League Baseball executives Major League Baseball owners Philadelphia Athletics owners Philadelphia Athletics executives Burials at West Laurel Hill Cemetery {{baseball-business-bio-stub