George W. Bausewine (March 22, 1869 – July 29, 1947) was an American professional baseball

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

and

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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 ...

(MLB). He umpired in the

National League National League often refers to: *National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada *National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...

during the 1905 season. He had previously been a pitcher in professional baseball, and he spent part of one season pitching in MLB for the Philadelphia Athletics.

Career

Playing career

Bausewine first played professional baseball at the age of 18 for the Utica Pent-ups

minor league baseball Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National Le ...

club of the

International League The International League (IL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the United States. Along with the Pacific Coast League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major ...

in 1887. He also played for the Altoona club of the

Pennsylvania State Association The Pennsylvania State Association was a class D level league of minor league baseball that existed from 1934 until 1942. The league franchised were entirely based in Western Pennsylvania. History The Pennsylvania State Association was compose ...

, and the

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club of the

Ohio State League The Ohio State League was a minor league baseball league that operated in numerous seasons between 1887 and 1947, predominantly as a Class D (baseball), Class D level league. League franchises were based in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Wes ...

that year. In 1888, the Ohio State League became the Tri-State League and he played a full season with the Canton Nadjys. Bausewine moved around to several minor league clubs in 1889, including the

London Tecumsehs The historic London Tecumsehs were a professional men's baseball team in London, Ontario, Canada, that were first formed in 1868 — a merger of the Forest City Base Ball Club and the London Base Ball Club — which, according to George Railton's ...

of the International League, before being signed by the

Philadelphia Athletics The Philadelphia Athletics were a Major League Baseball team that played in Philadelphia from 1901 to 1954, when they moved to Kansas City, Missouri, and became the Kansas City Athletics. Following another move in 1967, they became the Oakland ...

of the American Association on September 10. He pitched in seven game for the Athletics that season; he had a 1–4

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, and completed all six of the games he started. In

innings pitched In baseball, the statistic innings pitched (IP) is the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of Batter (baseball), batters and baserunners that have been put out while the pitcher is on the Baseball field#Pitcher's mou ...

, he

struck out In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It means the batter is out, unless the third strike is not caught by the catcher and the batter reaches first base safel ...

18 batters and had a 3.90

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

. He was released from the team before the 1890 season on April 5. After his return to the minor leagues in 1890, he played for various teams until 1895, including teams in

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Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It is located on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River. Albany is the oldes ...

Allentown, Pennsylvania Allentown (Pennsylvania Dutch language, Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Allenschteddel'', ''Allenschtadt'', or ''Ellsdaun'') is a city in eastern Pennsylvania, United States. The county seat of Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, Lehigh County, it is the List o ...

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, and

Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania Wilkes-Barre ( , alternatively or ) is a city in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. Located at the center of the Wyoming Valley in Northeastern Pennsylvania, it had a population of 44,328 in the 2020 census. It ...

Umpiring career

Bausewine's first stint as a professional umpire came in the

Western Association The Western Association was the name of five different leagues formed in American minor league baseball during the 19th and 20th centuries. The oldest league, originally established as the Northwestern League in 1883, was refounded as the Wester ...

in 1890, when he took a hiatus from pitching after he was unable to sign with another major league club. He lasted about a month in that role before he was assaulted by a team executive; he returned to play in the minor leagues for a few years. He was a member of the

umpiring crew for the season, and he appeared in 123 games that year; he worked 100 games as the home plate umpire, and 23 at first base. Although it was his only season at the major league level, he is credited with 13 player or manager ejections, including future

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player

Honus Wagner Johannes Peter "Honus" Wagner ( ; February 24, 1874 – December 6, 1955) was an American baseball shortstop who played 21 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1897 to 1917, mostly with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Nicknamed "the Flying Dutc ...

. On August 2, Wagner was called out at first base on a close play, who showed his displeasure during warmups the next inning by throwing a baseball near Bausewine, who then ejected him from the game. Wagner received a three-game suspension and a $40 fine for his actions from League President

Harry Pulliam Harry Clay Pulliam (February 9, 1869 – July 29, 1909) was an American baseball executive who served as the sixth President of the National League (baseball), National League. He served from 1903 until his death in 1909. He was president during ...

. This was Wagner's third suspension of the season. Wagner commented that Bausewine was in no danger of his throw and probably would not have done anything had the Giants not said that he had tried to hit him.Hageman, p. 75–76 On August 5, 1905, Bausewine was umpiring a game between 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 ...

and the

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with the score tied 5–5 in the ninth inning. The Giants argued with him over a close call at third base, and the team refused to return to the game. Bausewine ruled the game a

forfeit Forfeit or forfeiture may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Forfeit'', a 2007 thriller film starring Billy Burke * "Forfeit", a song by Chevelle from '' Wonder What's Next'' * '' Forfeit/Fortune'', a 2008 album by Crooked Fingers ...

to the Pirates. New York appealed the forfeiture to League President Pulliam‚ but he upheld the decision by Bausewine.

Personal life

After his umpiring career, he settled in

Norristown, Pennsylvania Norristown is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough with Home Rule Municipality (Pennsylvania), home rule status and the county seat of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States, in the Delaware Valley, Philadelphia metropolitan area. Located ...

, with his wife Emma. He and wife had two children, a son and a daughter. He joined the local police department as an

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...

. He served the department for 29 years, retiring in 1944 as their

chief of police A chief of police (COP) is the title given to an appointed official or an elected one in the command hierarchy, chain of command of a police department, particularly in North America. A chief of police may also be known as a police chief or somet ...

. That year, Bausewine was convicted of a bribery charge related to allegations that he accepted payments in exchange for not investigating gambling operations. In 1946, the

Supreme Court of Pennsylvania The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania is the highest court in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Judiciary of Pennsylvania, Unified Judicial System. It began in 1684 as the Provincial Court, and casual references to it as ...

overturned the conviction, declaring that the evidence against Bausewine was "clearly insufficient". Bausewine died in his sleep on July 29, 1947, in Norristown at the age of 78, and is interred at

Arlington Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia. ...

Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania Drexel Hill is a neighborhood and census-designated place (CDP) located in Upper Darby Township, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 29,181 at the 2020 census, an increase over 28,043 in 2010, and accounting for over one-third of Up ...

References

General * Specific

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bausewine, George 1869 births 1947 deaths Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball umpires Philadelphia Athletics (AA) players 19th-century baseball players 19th-century American sportsmen Baseball players from Philadelphia Utica Pent-Ups players Canton Nadjys players Jersey City Skeeters players London Tecumsehs (baseball) players St. Paul Apostles players Albany Senators players Allentown Colts players Syracuse Stars (minor league baseball) players Wilkes-Barre Coal Barons players Burials at Arlington Cemetery (Pennsylvania)