Cap Anson

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Anson played a role in establishing the racial segregation in professional baseball that persisted until the late 1940s. On several occasions, Anson refused to take the field when the opposing roster included black players. His demands may have been cited as representative of player attitudes by team owners of the International League when they voted on July 14, 1887 to ban the signing of new contracts with black players. After retiring as a player, Anson briefly managed the New York Giants. He ran several enterprises in Chicago, including opening a billiards and bowling hall and running a semi-professional baseball team he dubbed "Anson's Colts". Anson also toured extensively on the vaudeville circuit, performing monologues and songs. Many of his business ventures failed. As a result, Anson lost his ownership stake in the Chicago franchise and filed for bankruptcy. In 1939, Anson was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

In Their Own Story

On August 24, 1886, Anson scored six runs in a single game, one of the few players ever to achieve this feat. His best season came in 1881 when he led the league in batting (.399), OBP (.442), OPS (.952), hits (137), total bases (175), and RBIs (82). He was a prolific run producer, leading the league in RBIs seven times between 1880 and 1888. Anson was also an innovator on the field; he claimed to use some of the first "hit and run" plays and became the first player to hit three consecutive home runs, five homers in two games, four doubles in a game, and perform two unassisted double plays in a single game. Despite his declining years, Anson led the league in walks in 1890 and won his eighth RBI crown in 1891. When he was fired as manager after the 1897 season, it marked the end of his 27-year playing career. The following year, newspapers dubbed the team the "Orphans" because they had lost their "Pop."

Reader's Guide

Anson was born in Marshalltown, Iowa. Beginning in 1866, he spent two years at the high-school age boarding school of the University of Notre Dame after being sent there by his father in hopes of curtailing his mischievousness. His time away did little to discipline him. Soon after he returned home, his father sent him to the University of Iowa, where his bad behavior resulted in the school asking him to leave after one semester. Anson played on a number of competitive baseball clubs in his youth, and in 1871 began to play professionally for the Rockford Forest Citys in the National Association, primarily as a third baseman. While playing there, he gained the nickname "The Marshalltown Infant", because of his youth. He was a large and powerful man, standing 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) tall and weighing about 220 pounds (100 kg). When the Rockford club folded at the end of the 1871 season, Anson signed with the Philadelphia Athletics. In 1872 and 1873, Anson finished in the league's top five in batting average, on-base percentage (OBP), and on-base plus slugging (OPS). His numbers declined slightly in 1874 and 1875, but he was still good enough that Chicago White Stockings secretary-turned-president William Hulbert sought him to improve his club for the 1876 season. Hulbert broke league rules by negotiating with Anson and several other stars while the 1875 season was still in progress, and ultimately founded the new National League to forestall any disciplinary action. Anson, who had become engaged to a Philadelphia native in the meantime, had second thoughts about going west, but Hulbert held Anson to his contract and he eventually warmed to the Windy City. The White Stockings won the first league title, but fell off the pace the following two seasons. During this time, Anson was a solid hitter, but not quite a superstar. Both his fortunes and those of his team would change after Anson was named captain-manager of the club in 1879. His new role led to the nickname "Cap", though newspapers typically called him by the more formal "Captain Anson" or "Capt. Anson". Led by Anson, who now primarily played first base, the White Stockings won five pennants between 1880 and 1886. They were helped to the titles by new managerial tactics, including the use of a third-base coach, having one fielder back up another, signaling batters, and the rotation of two star pitchers. In the

Did You Know?

• Anson was one of the first players to tally over 3,000 career hits.
• He innovated managerial tactics such as signals between players and the rotation of pitchers.
• Anson was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1939.
• He was the first player to hit three consecutive home runs and five homers in two games.