1859
Born October 17, 1859
Hoagland, OH, USA
Buck Ewing Marquee Hall of Fame 1939
b. October 17, 1859 · Troy Trojans 1880–1882, New York Gothams 1883–1884, New York Giants 1885–1892, Cleveland Spiders 1893–1894, Cincinnati Reds 1895–1897
He is remembered as a catcher, and he was one, but the job never held him. He caught 636 of his 1,315 games. He played 253 at first base, 235 in the outfield, 127 at third, 51 at second and 34 at shortstop, and he pitched in nine more.
He batted .303 over eighteen seasons, with 1,625 hits, 178 triples and 1,129 runs. He led the National League in home runs in 1883, with ten, and in triples in 1884, with 20. His best season came late: .344 with 122 runs for the Cleveland Spiders in 1893, at thirty-three.
He played for the New York clubs that won the pennant and the World Series in 1888 and again in 1889. In 1890 he left for the Players' League, and he was back in the National League the next year. He died in 1906, three days after his forty-seventh birthday. The Hall elected him in 1939.
Batting, season by season
| Year | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1880 | TRO | 13 | 45 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 0 | .178 |
| 1881 | TRO | 67 | 272 | 40 | 68 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 25 | 7 | 8 | 0 | .250 |
| 1882 | TRO | 74 | 328 | 67 | 89 | 16 | 11 | 2 | 29 | 10 | 15 | 0 | .271 |
| 1883 | NYG | 88 | 376 | 90 | 114 | 11 | 13 | 10 | 41 | 20 | 14 | 0 | .303 |
| 1884 | NYG | 94 | 382 | 90 | 106 | 15 | 20 | 3 | 41 | 28 | 22 | 0 | .277 |
| 1885 | NYG | 81 | 342 | 81 | 104 | 15 | 12 | 6 | 63 | 13 | 17 | 0 | .304 |
| 1886 | NYG | 73 | 275 | 59 | 85 | 11 | 7 | 4 | 31 | 16 | 17 | 18 | .309 |
| 1887 | NYG | 77 | 318 | 83 | 97 | 17 | 13 | 6 | 44 | 30 | 33 | 26 | .305 |
| 1888 | NYG | 103 | 415 | 83 | 127 | 18 | 15 | 6 | 58 | 24 | 28 | 53 | .306 |
| 1889 | NYG | 99 | 407 | 91 | 133 | 23 | 13 | 4 | 87 | 37 | 32 | 34 | .327 |
| 1890 | NYI | 83 | 352 | 98 | 119 | 19 | 15 | 8 | 72 | 39 | 12 | 36 | .338 |
| 1891 | NYG | 14 | 49 | 8 | 17 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 18 | 5 | 5 | 5 | .347 |
| 1892 | NYG | 105 | 393 | 58 | 122 | 10 | 15 | 8 | 76 | 38 | 26 | 42 | .310 |
| 1893 | CLV | 116 | 500 | 117 | 172 | 28 | 15 | 6 | 122 | 41 | 18 | 47 | .344 |
| 1894 | CLV | 53 | 211 | 32 | 53 | 12 | 4 | 2 | 39 | 24 | 9 | 18 | .251 |
| 1895 | CIN | 105 | 434 | 90 | 138 | 24 | 13 | 5 | 94 | 30 | 22 | 34 | .318 |
| 1896 | CIN | 69 | 263 | 41 | 73 | 14 | 4 | 1 | 38 | 29 | 13 | 41 | .278 |
| 1897 | CIN | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
| Career | — | 1315 | 5363 | 1129 | 1625 | 250 | 178 | 71 | 883 | 392 | 294 | 354 | .303 |
Pitching, season by season
| Year | Team | W | L | G | GS | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1882 | TRO | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9.00 |
| 1884 | NYG | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 8.0 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 1.13 |
| 1885 | NYG | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 4.50 |
| 1888 | NYG | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 7.0 | 8 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 2.57 |
| 1889 | NYG | 2 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 20.0 | 23 | 9 | 8 | 12 | 4.05 |
| 1890 | NYI | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9.0 | 11 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 4.00 |
| Career | — | 2 | 3 | 9 | 4 | 1 | 47.0 | 55 | 18 | 23 | 23 | 3.45 |
On this day & linked events
1906
Died October 20, 1906
1880
Major-league debut: Buck Ewing
Buck Ewing made a major-league debut on September 9, 1880.
1897
Final major-league game: Buck Ewing
Buck Ewing played a final major-league game on May 27, 1897.
Image: Unknown author Unknown, public domain