Frank Eugene Bowerman (December 5, 1868 – November 30, 1948) was an American

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 catc ...

and

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

with the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. As one of the America ...

, the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

, the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...

, and the Boston Doves, as well as a player-manager for the Doves in his last season in professional baseball. While always playing in the shadows of

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

and

Roger Bresnahan Roger Philip Bresnahan (June 11, 1879 – December 4, 1944), nicknamed "the Duke of Tralee", was an American baseball player and manager (baseball), manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). As a player, Bresnahan competed in MLB for the Washingto ...

, he was a solid player who could play any position in the diamond, and he even pitched an inning for the Giants in . He was also the first to catch Hall-of-Famer

Christy Mathewson Christopher Mathewson (August 12, 1880 – October 7, 1925), nicknamed "Big Six," "the Christian Gentleman," "Matty," and "the Gentleman's Hurler," was an American professional baseball pitcher who played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball for ...

. Bowerman was known for having a short fuse, as he repeatedly got into fights with players, umpires, and fans. In one such case in , he punched a heckler in the face and was arrested. He also started a fight with manager Fred Clarke while with the Pirates and gave him a black eye. The Doves hired him as manager during the season, but his fiery temper did not go well with his team, and he was relegated to player-only status after only 76 games. In 1037 games over 15 seasons, Bowerman posted a .250

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 ...

(853-for-3410) with 345 runs, 13

home runs In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run ...

, 393 RBI and 81 stolen bases. He finished his career with a .965

fielding percentage In baseball statistics, fielding percentage, also known as fielding average, is a measure that reflects the percentage of times a baseball positions, defensive player properly handles a batted or thrown ball. It is calculated by the sum of putout ...

. Bowerman died in his birthplace of Romeo, Michigan on November 30, 1948, at the age of 79.

External links

The Deadball Era
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bowerman, Frank 1868 births 1948 deaths Baseball players from Macomb County, Michigan Major League Baseball catchers Baltimore Orioles (NL) players Pittsburgh Pirates players New York Giants (baseball) players Boston Doves players Boston Doves managers Major League Baseball player-managers Michigan Wolverines baseball players People from Romeo, Michigan Minor league baseball managers Detroit Creams players Twin Cities Hustlers players Scranton Miners players Norfolk Braves players Indianapolis Indians players Kansas City Blues (baseball) players 19th-century baseball players 19th-century American sportsmen

See also

External links