1868
Born December 5, 1868
Romeo, MI, USA
Frank Bowerman Marquee
b. December 5, 1868 · Baltimore Orioles 1895–1898, Pittsburgh Pirates 1898–1899, New York Giants 1900–1907, Boston Doves 1908–1909
Frank Bowerman caught for the New York Giants for eight seasons under John McGraw, including the 1904 club that refused to play a World Series and the 1905 one that won it. He shared the job with Roger Bresnahan, who is in the Hall of Fame and who got the bigger games.
He was a large man for the era and had a reputation for toughness that occasionally spilled over — he was involved in more than one incident with spectators and opponents, which in the era's press was reported approvingly.
Born in Romeo, Michigan in 1868, Bowerman caught 1,037 games across fifteen seasons and batted .250. He died on November 30, 1948, five days short of eighty.
Batting, season by season
| Year | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1895 | BLN | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
| 1896 | BLN | 4 | 16 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | .125 |
| 1897 | BLN | 38 | 130 | 16 | 41 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 21 | 1 | 13 | 3 | .315 |
| 1898 | BLN/PIT | 74 | 257 | 22 | 73 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 30 | 9 | 10 | 5 | .284 |
| 1899 | PIT | 110 | 427 | 51 | 111 | 16 | 10 | 3 | 53 | 12 | 16 | 10 | .260 |
| 1900 | NYG | 80 | 270 | 25 | 65 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 42 | 6 | 22 | 10 | .241 |
| 1901 | NYG | 59 | 191 | 20 | 38 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 14 | 7 | 23 | 3 | .199 |
| 1902 | NYG | 109 | 373 | 38 | 93 | 14 | 6 | 0 | 27 | 13 | 30 | 12 | .249 |
| 1903 | NYG | 64 | 210 | 22 | 58 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 31 | 6 | 21 | 5 | .276 |
| 1904 | NYG | 93 | 289 | 38 | 67 | 11 | 4 | 2 | 27 | 16 | 20 | 7 | .232 |
| 1905 | NYG | 98 | 297 | 37 | 80 | 8 | 1 | 3 | 41 | 12 | 19 | 6 | .269 |
| 1906 | NYG | 92 | 285 | 23 | 65 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 42 | 15 | 18 | 5 | .228 |
| 1907 | NYG | 96 | 311 | 31 | 81 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 32 | 17 | 28 | 11 | .260 |
| 1908 | BSN | 86 | 254 | 16 | 58 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 25 | 13 | 15 | 4 | .228 |
| 1909 | BSN | 33 | 99 | 6 | 21 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 7 | 0 | .212 |
| Career | — | 1037 | 3410 | 345 | 853 | 102 | 38 | 13 | 393 | 130 | 242 | 81 | .250 |
Pitching, season by season
| Year | Team | W | L | G | GS | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1904 | NYG | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9.00 |
| Career | — | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9.00 |
On this day & linked events
1948
Died November 30, 1948
1895
Major-league debut: Frank Bowerman
Frank Bowerman made a major-league debut on August 24, 1895.
1909
Final major-league game: Frank Bowerman
Frank Bowerman played a final major-league game on July 13, 1909.
Image: American Tobacco Company, public domain