James F. Macullar (January 16, 1855 – April 8, 1924), also known as "Little Mac", was an American
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) ...
player from
Boston, Massachusetts. He played mostly at
shortstop
Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball or softball fielding position between second and third base, which is considered to be among the most demanding defensive positions. Historically the position was assigned to defensive specialists wh ...
, but did play many games in
center field, for three different teams in two leagues. He holds the record for career games played at shortstop by a left-handed thrower, at 325, and is the only lefty to ever play more than 250 games at that position. Nicknamed "Little Mac", due to his small stature (5'6", 155 lbs), he was briefly a
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 sq ...
for the
Syracuse Stars in 1879. Finishing with a 5-21 record, he never managed again.
In the winter of 1879–80, Macullar and
Hick Carpenter became the first North Americans to play in the
Cuban League
The Cuban League was one of the earliest and longest lasting professional baseball leagues outside the United States, operating in Cuba from 1878 to 1961. The schedule usually operated during the winter months, so the league was sometimes known a ...
. They were signed by the Colón club and were so dominant that other teams refused to play against them.
He died in
Baltimore, Maryland
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
on April 8, 1924, at the age of 69, and was interred at Baltimore Cemetery.
Baseball Almanac player page
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See also
* List of Major League Baseball player–managers
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Macullar, Jimmy
1855 births
1924 deaths
Syracuse Stars (NL) players
Cincinnati Red Stockings (AA) players
Baltimore Orioles (AA) players
Baseball players from Boston
Major League Baseball shortstops
19th-century baseball players
Auburn (minor league baseball) players
Syracuse Stars (minor league baseball) players
Topeka (minor league baseball) players
Des Moines Prohibitionists players
Lincoln Rustlers players
Major League Baseball player-managers