Frank Bowerman

Frank Bowerman
File:Frank Bowerman, Boston Doves, ca. 1910.jpg Frank Bowerman baseball card
Catcher/First baseman
Born: (1868-12-05)December 5, 1868 Romeo, Michigan
Died: Romeo, Michigan
Batted: Right Threw: Right
MLB debut
August 24, 1895, for the Baltimore Orioles
Last MLB appearance
July 13, 1909, for the Boston Doves
MLB statistics
Fielding percentage	.965
Putouts	4,893
Assists	1,180
Batting average	.250
Runs batted in	393
Teams
Baltimore Orioles (1895–1898) Pittsburgh Pirates (1898–1899) New York Giants (1900–1907) Boston Doves (1907–1909)

Frank Eugene Bowerman (December 5, 1868 – November 30, 1948) was an American catcher in Major League Baseball with the Baltimore Orioles, the Pittsburgh Pirates, the New York Giants, and the Boston Doves, as well as a player-manager for the Doves in his last season in professional baseball. While always playing in the shadows of Wilbert Robinson and Roger Bresnahan, he was a solid player who could play any position in the diamond, and he even pitched an inning for the Giants in 1904. He was also the first to catch Hall-of-Famer Christy Mathewson.

Bowerman was known for having a short fuse, as he repeatedly got into fights with players, umpires, and fans. In one such case in 1903, he punched a heckler in the face and got arrested. He also started a fight with manager Fred Clarke while with the Pirates and gave him a black eye.

The Doves hired him as manager during the 1909 season, but his fiery temper did not go well with his team, and he was relegated to player-only status after only 76 games.

Bowerman died in his birthplace of Romeo, Michigan five days shy of his 80th birthday.

See also

• List of Major League Baseball player–managers

External links

• Career statistics and player information from Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors)
• The Deadball Era