Fergy Malone facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Fergy Malone |
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| Catcher | |||
| Born: August 1844 County Tyrone, Ireland |
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| Died: January 1, 1905 (aged 60) Seattle, Washington |
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| debut | |||
| May 20, 1871, for the Philadelphia Athletics | |||
| Last appearance | |||
| April 17, 1884, for the Philadelphia Keystones | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Batting average | .274 | ||
| Home runs | 1 | ||
| Runs batted in | 157 | ||
| Teams | |||
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Fergy Malone (born August 1844 – died January 1, 1905) was an early professional baseball player. He was a catcher during the 1860s and 1870s. Fergy played for the Philadelphia Athletics in 1871. His team won the very first professional baseball league championship that year.
Fergy Malone was born in County Tyrone, which is now part of Northern Ireland. He was one of only a few players from Ireland in the early professional baseball leagues. He was one of four Irish players in the first National Association season. He was also one of five in the first National League season.
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Playing Baseball
Fergy Malone was mostly a catcher for his teams. This was a very tough position back then. Catchers did not use a face mask or even a proper glove. Imagine catching fast pitches without much protection! A few catchers started using buckskin mittens around 1870. But gloves and masks only became common later in the 1870s.
Teams and Roles
Malone played as the main catcher for several teams. These included the Philadelphia Athletics from 1871 to 1872. He also played for the Philadelphia White Stockings in 1873. Then he joined the Chicago White Stockings in 1874.
In 1873 and 1874, Fergy was the captain of his team. Today, this role is like being the team's manager. He returned to the Philadelphia White Stockings in 1875. He played in eight games that year. In 1876, he went back to the Philadelphia Athletics. This was for the first season of the new National League. He caught 20 out of 60 games that season.
Highest Paid Player
In 1874, Fergy Malone was the highest paid player in professional baseball. He earned $2,800 that year. That was a lot of money back then!
Later Career and Life
Fergy Malone was 34 years old when his team, the Athletics, were removed from the National League. The league became smaller in 1877. He later returned to major league baseball in 1884. This was with a league called the Union Association. He managed the Philadelphia team in that league. He also played in one game.
In his major league career, Fergy Malone played in 220 games. He had a batting average of .274. He hit one home run and had 157 runs batted in. He also scored 200 runs. He was a player-manager for his teams in 1873, 1874, and 1884. As a manager, he won 47 games and lost 66.
Fergy Malone passed away in 1905 in Seattle, Washington. He was 60 years old. He is buried in New Cathedral Cemetery in Philadelphia.
Civil War Veteran
The Society for American Baseball Research says that Fergy Malone was a veteran of the American Civil War. He joined the army on July 15, 1864. He served as a private and corporal in Company A of the 196th Pennsylvania Infantry. Another baseball player, Dick McBride, served with him.
See also
- List of Major League Baseball player–managers
