Harry Wright
Encyclopedia
William Henry "Harry" Wright (January 10, 1835 – October 3, 1895) was an English
-born American
professional baseball
player, manager
, and developer. He assembled, managed, and played center field for baseball's first fully professional team, the 1869 Cincinnati Red Stockings
. It was there where he is credited with introducing innovations such as backing up infield plays from the outfield and shifting defensive alignments based on hitters' tendencies. For his contributions as a manager and developer of the game, he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame
in 1952 by the Veterans Committee
. Wright was also the first to make baseball into a business by paying his players up to seven times the pay of the average working man.
er Samuel Wright and his wife, Annie Tone Wright. His family emigrated to the U.S. when he was nearly three years old, and his father found work as a bowler, coach, and groundskeeper at the St George's Cricket Club in New York. Harry dropped out of school at age 14 to work for a jewelry manufacturer, and worked at Tiffany's for several years.
Both Harry and George, twelve years younger, assisted their father, effectively apprenticing as cricket "club pros". Both brothers played baseball for some of the leading clubs during the amateur era of the National Association of Base Ball Players
(NABBP). Harry was already twenty-two when the baseball fraternity convened for the first time in 1857, at which time he joined the Knickerbocker Base Ball Club. He did not play in a game with the Knickerbockers until July 8, 1858, playing the outfield against Excelsior of Brooklyn
. The Knickerbockers lost the game, 31-13.
In 1863, the Knickerbocker club all but withdrew from official competition, and Wright joined Gotham of New York, primarily playing shortstop. Here, he joined his brother George, who had become a member of the team the previous year. During the winter of 1864-65, the Wrights played the curious game of "ice base ball".
, where he had been hired on salary at the Union Cricket Club. When baseball boomed less than a year later in 1866, the first full peacetime season, he became, in effect, club pro at the Cincinnati Base Ball Club, although he is commonly called simply a baseball "manager" from that time. By now, Wright was 31, probably past his athletic prime.
Cincinnati fielded a strong regional club in 1867. With Wright working as the regular pitcher, and still a superior player at that level, the team won 16 matches and lost only to the Nationals of Washington DC on their historic tour. For 1868 he added four players from the East and one from the crosstown Buckeye club, a vanquished rival. The easterners, at least, must have been compensated by club members if not by the club.
When the NABBP permitted professionalism for 1869, Harry augmented his 1868 imports (retaining four of five) with five new men, including three more originally from the East. No one but Harry Wright himself remained from 1867; one local man and one other westerner joined seven easterners on the famous First Nine. The most important of the new men was brother George, probably the best player in the game for a few years, the highest paid man in Cincinnati at $1400 for nine months. George at shortstop remained a cornerstone of Harry's teams for ten seasons.
The Red Stockings toured the continent undefeated in 1869 and may have been the strongest team in 1870, but the club dropped professional base ball after the second season, its fourth in the game. As it turned out, the Association also passed from the scene.
During this early era, the rules of the sport for many years prohibited substitution during games except by mutual agreement with opponents, and the role of a team manager was not as specifically geared toward game strategy as is true in the modern era; instead, managers of the period combined the role of a field manager with that of a modern general manager
in that they were primarily responsible for signing talented players and forming a versatile roster, as well as establishing a team approach through practice and game fundamentals.
, the founder and President of the Boston Red Stockings, Wright moved from managing the "Cincinnati Red Stockings" to work professionally with the first-ever base ball team in Boston, the "Boston Red Stockings". The team was to play in the newly-formed National Association of Professional Base Ball Players
, now known more often as simply the National Association.
The Red Stockings finished third in the NA's inaugural season. Wright, now 36 years old and the second-oldest player in the league, was the team's regular center fielder
, playing 30 of the team's 31 games at that position. He also pitched in nine games in relief of Albert Spalding
, notching one win.
In 1872, the Red Stockings won its first championship, beating the Baltimore Canaries
by 7½ games. They won again the next season, finishing four games ahead of the Philadelphia Athletics.
1874 turned out to be Wright's last year as the team's regular center fielder. He had been the oldest player in the NA for three years running. It was also his third straight championship as manager. That year, he organized what turned out to be a fairly disastrous attempt to take baseball back home to the British Isles.
In 1875, the final year of the NA, the Red Stockings were an amazing 71-8, finishing a full 15 games ahead of the Athletics. Wright, now the oldest player in the league, continued to play regularly in center field for Boston until 1874. After that, he played in just three more games, one in each of the next three seasons.
. They became the "Red Caps" now, in deference to the resurrected Red Stockings name for the new Cincinnati Club. Although they once again stumbled in their first year in a new league, finishing fourth in 1876, they went on to win two more pennants in the following two seasons with Wright at the helm. The team finished second in 1879, but then slipped badly, finishing sixth in the next two seasons, which wound up being Wright's last two seasons in Boston.
, one of the stronger NL teams of the era. In 1882, his first season as Grays manager, the team finished in second place, just three games behind the powerful Chicago White Stockings
led by Cap Anson
. The team dropped to third the following year, and Wright moved on again.
While in Providence, Wright instituted the concept of a farm team
. Wright assembled a team of amateurs, which would play at Messer Street Grounds
while the Grays were on the road, with the intention that if one of the senior members was injured, he could be easily replaced from among these players.
. The Quakers had joined the National League the previous year, finishing dead last with an abysmal record of 17-81. Under Wright, they improved enough to finish in sixth place in 1884. In 1885, the team finished above .500 for the first time, going 56-54 and finishing in third place, a distant 30 games behind the White Stockings and 28 games behind second-place New York Giants
.
The Quakers continued to improve under Wright in 1886, finishing with a record of 71-43, although their position in the league fell to fourth. In 1887, the team finished in second place, just 3½ games behind the champion Detroit Wolverines
. Unfortunately, that was to be the high-water mark of Wright's tenure in Philadelphia, as the team hovered in the middle of the pack, finishing between third and fifth every year from 1888 until 1893 (although he missed a large portion of the 1890 season due to problems with his eyesight).
During Wright's tenure in Philadelphia, he often clashed with team owners Al Reach
and Colonel John I. Rogers
. After the 1893 season, his contract was not renewed. The National League, in recognition of Wright's standing, offered him the position of Chief of Umpires. During his career, Wright had often served as umpire, even for games involving rival teams, due to his high ethical standards.
, just short of 61 years old. He is buried in West Laurel Hill Cemetery
, Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania
.
Wright was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame
in 1953. He was inducted into the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame in 2005. His brother George Wright is also a member of both Halls; a third brother, Sam
, also played professionally.
FanFest on July 14, 2009.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
-born American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
professional baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
player, manager
Manager (baseball)
In baseball, the field manager is an individual who is responsible for matters of team strategy on the field and team leadership. Managers are typically assisted by between one and six assistant coaches, whose responsibilities are specialized...
, and developer. He assembled, managed, and played center field for baseball's first fully professional team, the 1869 Cincinnati Red Stockings
Cincinnati Red Stockings
The Cincinnati Red Stockings of were baseball's first fully professional team, with ten salaried players. The Cincinnati Base Ball Club formed in 1866 and fielded competitive teams in the National Association of Base Ball Players 1867–1870, a time of a transition that ambitious Cincinnati,...
. It was there where he is credited with introducing innovations such as backing up infield plays from the outfield and shifting defensive alignments based on hitters' tendencies. For his contributions as a manager and developer of the game, he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 25 Main Street in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests serving as the central point for the study of the history of baseball in the United States and beyond, the display of...
in 1952 by the Veterans Committee
Veterans Committee
The Veterans Committee is the popular name of the National Baseball Hall of Fame Committee to Consider Managers, Umpires, Executives and Long-Retired Players, a committee of the U.S...
. Wright was also the first to make baseball into a business by paying his players up to seven times the pay of the average working man.
Early life
Born in Sheffield, England, he was the eldest of five children of professional cricketCricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
er Samuel Wright and his wife, Annie Tone Wright. His family emigrated to the U.S. when he was nearly three years old, and his father found work as a bowler, coach, and groundskeeper at the St George's Cricket Club in New York. Harry dropped out of school at age 14 to work for a jewelry manufacturer, and worked at Tiffany's for several years.
Both Harry and George, twelve years younger, assisted their father, effectively apprenticing as cricket "club pros". Both brothers played baseball for some of the leading clubs during the amateur era of the National Association of Base Ball Players
National Association of Base Ball Players
The National Association of Base Ball Players was the first organization governing American baseball. The first, 1857 convention of sixteen New York City clubs...
(NABBP). Harry was already twenty-two when the baseball fraternity convened for the first time in 1857, at which time he joined the Knickerbocker Base Ball Club. He did not play in a game with the Knickerbockers until July 8, 1858, playing the outfield against Excelsior of Brooklyn
Excelsior of Brooklyn
The Brooklyn Excelsiors were an amateur baseball team that played in Brooklyn, New York. Formed in 1854, the Excelsior ballclub featured stars such as Jim Creighton, Asa Brainard, and Candy Cummings.-1860 Championship Season:...
. The Knickerbockers lost the game, 31-13.
In 1863, the Knickerbocker club all but withdrew from official competition, and Wright joined Gotham of New York, primarily playing shortstop. Here, he joined his brother George, who had become a member of the team the previous year. During the winter of 1864-65, the Wrights played the curious game of "ice base ball".
Cincinnati
Wright left New York on March 8, 1865, bound for CincinnatiCincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
, where he had been hired on salary at the Union Cricket Club. When baseball boomed less than a year later in 1866, the first full peacetime season, he became, in effect, club pro at the Cincinnati Base Ball Club, although he is commonly called simply a baseball "manager" from that time. By now, Wright was 31, probably past his athletic prime.
Cincinnati fielded a strong regional club in 1867. With Wright working as the regular pitcher, and still a superior player at that level, the team won 16 matches and lost only to the Nationals of Washington DC on their historic tour. For 1868 he added four players from the East and one from the crosstown Buckeye club, a vanquished rival. The easterners, at least, must have been compensated by club members if not by the club.
When the NABBP permitted professionalism for 1869, Harry augmented his 1868 imports (retaining four of five) with five new men, including three more originally from the East. No one but Harry Wright himself remained from 1867; one local man and one other westerner joined seven easterners on the famous First Nine. The most important of the new men was brother George, probably the best player in the game for a few years, the highest paid man in Cincinnati at $1400 for nine months. George at shortstop remained a cornerstone of Harry's teams for ten seasons.
The Red Stockings toured the continent undefeated in 1869 and may have been the strongest team in 1870, but the club dropped professional base ball after the second season, its fourth in the game. As it turned out, the Association also passed from the scene.
Manager
General manager (baseball)
In Major League Baseball, the general manager of a team typically controls player transactions and bears the primary responsibility on behalf of the ballclub during contract discussions with players....
in that they were primarily responsible for signing talented players and forming a versatile roster, as well as establishing a team approach through practice and game fundamentals.
The National Association years
From an invitation in 1870 by Ivers Whitney AdamsIvers Whitney Adams
Ivers Whitney Adams was an American baseball executive and businessperson, and founder of the first professional baseball team in Boston, the Boston Red Stockings.- Baseball :...
, the founder and President of the Boston Red Stockings, Wright moved from managing the "Cincinnati Red Stockings" to work professionally with the first-ever base ball team in Boston, the "Boston Red Stockings". The team was to play in the newly-formed National Association of Professional Base Ball Players
National Association of Professional Base Ball Players
The National Association of Professional Base Ball Players , or simply the National Association , was founded in 1871 and continued through the 1875 season...
, now known more often as simply the National Association.
The Red Stockings finished third in the NA's inaugural season. Wright, now 36 years old and the second-oldest player in the league, was the team's regular center fielder
Center fielder
A center fielder, abbreviated CF, is the outfielder in baseball who plays defense in center field – the baseball fielding position between left field and right field...
, playing 30 of the team's 31 games at that position. He also pitched in nine games in relief of Albert Spalding
Albert Spalding
Albert Goodwill Spalding was a professional baseball player, manager and co-founder of A.G. Spalding sporting goods company.-Biography:...
, notching one win.
In 1872, the Red Stockings won its first championship, beating the Baltimore Canaries
Baltimore Canaries
The Baltimore Canaries were a professional baseball club in the National Association from 1872 to 1874.-History:The team was usually listed as Lord Baltimore in the box scores of the day, and were also referred to as the Yellow Stockings...
by 7½ games. They won again the next season, finishing four games ahead of the Philadelphia Athletics.
1874 turned out to be Wright's last year as the team's regular center fielder. He had been the oldest player in the NA for three years running. It was also his third straight championship as manager. That year, he organized what turned out to be a fairly disastrous attempt to take baseball back home to the British Isles.
In 1875, the final year of the NA, the Red Stockings were an amazing 71-8, finishing a full 15 games ahead of the Athletics. Wright, now the oldest player in the league, continued to play regularly in center field for Boston until 1874. After that, he played in just three more games, one in each of the next three seasons.
The National League years
In 1876, the Boston club joined the new National LeagueNational League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...
. They became the "Red Caps" now, in deference to the resurrected Red Stockings name for the new Cincinnati Club. Although they once again stumbled in their first year in a new league, finishing fourth in 1876, they went on to win two more pennants in the following two seasons with Wright at the helm. The team finished second in 1879, but then slipped badly, finishing sixth in the next two seasons, which wound up being Wright's last two seasons in Boston.
Providence
After leaving the Red Caps, Wright quickly picked up with the Providence GraysProvidence Grays
The Providence Grays were a Major League Baseball team based in Providence, Rhode Island who played in the National League from until . The Grays played at Messer Field in the Olneyville neighborhood. The team won the National League title twice, in and...
, one of the stronger NL teams of the era. In 1882, his first season as Grays manager, the team finished in second place, just three games behind the powerful Chicago White Stockings
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago . The Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the National...
led by Cap Anson
Cap Anson
Adrian Constantine Anson , nicknamed "Cap" and "Pop", was a National Association and Major League Baseball first baseman...
. The team dropped to third the following year, and Wright moved on again.
While in Providence, Wright instituted the concept of a farm team
Farm team
In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team or nursery club, is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a higher level at a given point...
. Wright assembled a team of amateurs, which would play at Messer Street Grounds
Messer Street Grounds
Messer Street Grounds is a former baseball ground located in Providence, Rhode Island. The ground was home to the Providence Grays baseball club of the National League from 1878 to 1885....
while the Grays were on the road, with the intention that if one of the senior members was injured, he could be easily replaced from among these players.
Philadelphia
In 1884, Wright was brought in to manage the Philadelphia QuakersPhiladelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
. The Quakers had joined the National League the previous year, finishing dead last with an abysmal record of 17-81. Under Wright, they improved enough to finish in sixth place in 1884. In 1885, the team finished above .500 for the first time, going 56-54 and finishing in third place, a distant 30 games behind the White Stockings and 28 games behind second-place New York Giants
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....
.
The Quakers continued to improve under Wright in 1886, finishing with a record of 71-43, although their position in the league fell to fourth. In 1887, the team finished in second place, just 3½ games behind the champion Detroit Wolverines
Detroit Wolverines
The Detroit Wolverines were a 19th century baseball team that played in the National League from 1881 to 1888 in the city of Detroit, Michigan. In total, they won 426 games and lost 437, taking their lone pennant in 1887. The team was disbanded following the 1888 season.-Franchise...
. Unfortunately, that was to be the high-water mark of Wright's tenure in Philadelphia, as the team hovered in the middle of the pack, finishing between third and fifth every year from 1888 until 1893 (although he missed a large portion of the 1890 season due to problems with his eyesight).
During Wright's tenure in Philadelphia, he often clashed with team owners Al Reach
Al Reach
Alfred James Reach was an Anglo-American sportsman who, after becoming one of the early stars of baseball in the National Association, went on to become an influential executive, publisher, sporting goods manufacturer and spokesman for the sport.Born in London, Al Reach was a regular for the...
and Colonel John I. Rogers
John Rogers (baseball)
John Ignatius Rogers , was part-owner of the Philadelphia Phillies from to , and majority owner from 1899 to . He also owned the Philadelphia Phillies of the short-lived National Football League of 1902.Rogers was born to Irish immigrant parents in Philadelphia on May 27, 1844...
. After the 1893 season, his contract was not renewed. The National League, in recognition of Wright's standing, offered him the position of Chief of Umpires. During his career, Wright had often served as umpire, even for games involving rival teams, due to his high ethical standards.
Managerial overview
In 23 seasons of managing in the National Association and National League, Wright's teams won six league championships (1872–1875, 1877, 1878). They finished second on three other occasions, and never finished lower than sixth. Wright finished his managerial career with 1225 wins and 885 losses for a .581 winning percentage.Death
Wright died of a lung ailment on October 3, 1895 in Atlantic City, New JerseyAtlantic City, New Jersey
Atlantic City is a city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States, and a nationally renowned resort city for gambling, shopping and fine dining. The city also served as the inspiration for the American version of the board game Monopoly. Atlantic City is located on Absecon Island on the coast...
, just short of 61 years old. He is buried in West Laurel Hill Cemetery
West Laurel Hill Cemetery
West Laurel Hill Cemetery is a cemetery located in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania, United States. It is the site of many notable burials, and has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1992...
, Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania
Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania
Bala Cynwyd is a community in Lower Merion Township which is located on the Main Line in southeastern Pennsylvania, bordering the western edge of Philadelphia at US Route 1 . It was originally two separate towns, Bala and Cynwyd, but is commonly treated as a single community...
.
Wright was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 25 Main Street in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests serving as the central point for the study of the history of baseball in the United States and beyond, the display of...
in 1953. He was inducted into the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame in 2005. His brother George Wright is also a member of both Halls; a third brother, Sam
Sam Wright
Samuel Wright Jr. was an American shortstop in Major League Baseball for a total of four seasons. He played for the New Haven Elm Citys , Boston Red Caps , and Cincinnati Reds . In 45 games played, he batted .168, had 29 hits, four doubles, five RBIs, scored 10 runs, and one base on balls in 173...
, also played professionally.
2009 auction controversy
In July 2009, Hunt Auctions stopped bidding on several lots of 19th-century letters sent to Wright and removed them from the auction. This was in response to an FBI investigation regarding the possibility that they were stolen from the New York Public Library sometime prior to 1986. The library was once in possession of four scrapbooks of letters that had been sent to Wright between 1865 and 1894, but in an assessment of the collection conducted during 1986 and 1987, three of the four volumes were discovered missing. FBI investigators are trying to determine "whether those items were among the items apparently stolen from the public library collection". The lots, over 20 in total, were part of a live auction Hunt Auctions was conducting during the Major League BaseballMajor League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
FanFest on July 14, 2009.
External links
(major league manager) (major league player)- Retrosheet. "Harry Wright". Retrieved 2006-08-29.
- http://www.henrychadwick.com/wright_and_spalding.html
- Biography-West Laurel Hill Cemetery web site
- Harry Wright at Cricket Archive
- Harry Wright: The Father of Professional Base Ball by Christopher Devine, 2003 (Google Books result)