Jimmy McAleer

James Robert "Loafer" McAleer (July 10,1864 – April 29, 1931) was an American center fielder, manager, and stockholder in Major League Baseball who helped establish the American League. He spent most of his 13-season playing career with the Cleveland Spiders and went on to manage the Cleveland Blues, St. Louis Browns, and Washington Senators. Shortly before his retirement, he became a major shareholder in the Boston Red Sox.

McAleer's association with the game ended abruptly. During his brief tenure as co-owner of the Red Sox, he quarreled with longtime friend and colleague Ban Johnson, president of the American League. In the wake of this disagreement, McAleer sold off his shares in the Red Sox and ended his relationship with major league baseball.

His rift with Johnson, along with his sudden retirement, damaged his professional reputation; and McAleer received little recognition for his contributions to baseball. Today, he is most often remembered for initiating the customary request that the President of the United States throw out the first ball of the season.

Origins

McAleer was born in Youngstown, Ohio, an industrial center located near the border of western Pennsylvania. His father, Owen McAleer, died at a relatively young age, leaving McAleer's mother, Mary, to support three children. The family resided on the city's quasi-suburban west side, and the McAleer children were raised to value the concept of formal education. McAleer attended local public schools and graduated from Rayen High School, an institution known regionally for its high academic standards. In later years, all three of the McAleer brothers moved on to successful careers, and the eldest of them, Owen McAleer, Jr., served for a time as mayor of Los Angeles, California.

A "strapping six-foot 175-pound outfielder", James McAleer was surprisingly light on his feet and proved an asset to local baseball organizations. He became involved with a Youngstown minor league baseball club in 1882, remaining with the team until 1884. In 1885, McAleer joined another minor league organization in Charleston, South Carolina; and in 1887, he played for a team based in Memphis, Tennessee. His skill as a center fielder was recognized in 1888, while he was playing for a club in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Although his primary focus was organized sports, McAleer was drawn to the field of entertainment. During one season of his minor league career, he became part-owner of the DeHaven Comedy Company, a theatrical road company that was organized in Youngstown. His interest in show business remained a constant, and in later years, McAleer developed a strong friendship with Broadway composer and performer George M. Cohan.

Playing career

Cleveland Spiders (1895)

On April 24, 1889, McAleer broke into the major leagues in Cleveland, Ohio, where he established a reputation as a graceful outfielder. In 1891, Patsy Tebeau became the team's manager, ushering in a period of aggressive tactics that helped bring discredit to the National League. Outfielders were encouraged to block and hold runners, while Tebeau routinely challenged officials. McAleer evidently adapted to this rowdy environment with little difficulty. During an August 18, 1891, game with the Cincinnati Reds, Reds player Arlie Latham tripped McAleer as he rounded third base; McAleer responded by chasing him around the field with a baseball bat. Similarly, on June 27, 1896, McAleer was among several Cleveland players to be fined for brawling by a Louisville, Kentucky, judge.

Despite such episodes, McAleer's versatility as a player enabled him to consistently enhance his team's performance. On April 24, 1894, McAleer assisted in Cleveland's 1-0 victory over Cincinnati with a single in the ninth that drove home Buck Ewing, who had doubled. A later newspaper account described McAleer as an outstanding outfielder who was "blessed with excellent speed". According to the article, McAleer's skills as a sprinter enabled him to steal 51 bases in one year and 41 in another. A serviceable hitter, he accumulated a lifetime batting average of .253. Along with teammates Cy Young, Jesse Burkett, John Clarkson, and Charles Zimmer, McAleer participated in the Spiders' victory over the Baltimore Orioles in the 1895 National League championship games. In an incident typical of the era, the Cleveland players were driven from the field by angry Baltimore fans at the close of the final game.

In 1898—when the Spiders' owners purchased the St. Louis Browns franchise—McAleer opted to stay in Cleveland, taking a brief hiatus from baseball until the Cleveland Blues franchise joined the newly formed American League. McAleer's break from the game coincided with the final unraveling of the Spiders club, which experienced its single worst season in 1899. As baseball historian Bill James observed, the beleaguered team was compelled to cancel its home games due to poor attendance and "turned the last two months of the season into a long road trip". McAleer's subsequent career as a manager overlapped with his playing career, though he did not play professionally between 1903 and 1906. McAleer participated in his last major league game on July 8, 1907.

Managing career

Cleveland Blues

McAleer became player-manager of the Cleveland Blues team in 1900. In July of that year, he presided over the Blues' upset 6-1 loss to the Detroit Tigers. Although the Tigers' manager, Tommy Burns, had agreed to forfeit the game to the Blues because he feared that the umpire, Joe Cantillon, would be injured by an angry crowd, McAleer agreed to play the Tigers using a reserve umpire.

In 1901, McAleer participated in only three games with the Blues before taking over as manager of the American League's St. Louis Browns. The American League, established in 1900 by Ban Johnson, former president of the Western League, was by this time in direct competition with the well-established National League. McAleer, a close friend of Johnson and his associate, Charles Comiskey, played a significant role in the new league's development, recruiting scores of experienced players.

St. Louis Browns

File:Browns1909.jpg

St. Louis Browns (1909)

As manager of the Browns, McAleer lured players such as Hall of Famers Jesse Burkett and Bobby Wallace. In 1902, the Browns took second place in the league, with a record of 78 wins and 58 losses. Between 1903 and 1907, however, the team never ranked higher than fifth or sixth place in the American League. Then, in 1908, the club rebounded, finishing just six-and-a-half games out of first with a record of 83 wins and 69 losses, which landed them fourth place in the American League. Unable to build on this solid performance, the Browns ended the 1909 season with a record of 61-89, earning a miserable seventh place. McAleer was fired at the close of the season.

Washington Senators

On September 22, 1909, McAleer went on to manage the Washington Senators (popularly called the "Nationals"), a team that had been struggling in the "basement of the American League" since the mysterious death of star hitter Ed Delahanty six years earlier. The team fared little better under McAleer's management, finishing with a lackluster 66-85 record (seventh place) at the close of the 1910 season. The high point of the season was a classic game in which McAleer initiated what became a venerable baseball tradition. On April 14, 1910, McAleer demonstrated his flair for the dramatic when he suggested that visiting President William Howard Taft throw out the first ball of a season opener. This game also featured a memorable one-hit performance by pitcher Walter Johnson, who led the Nationals to a 3-0 victory over the Philadelphia Athletics.

Executive career

Boston Red Sox

On September 15, 1911, McAleer announced his resignation as manager of the Senators. In 1912, he became a major stockholder in the Boston Red Sox, purchasing a half-interest in the team for $150,000. That year, the Red Sox took the American League pennant.

Red Sox as 1912 champions

The Red Sox's subsequent participation in the 1912 World Series proved to be one of the most contentious episodes of McAleer's career. Earlier in the season, McAleer had pressured the team's manager to feature an unseasoned pitcher in a contest between the Red Sox and the New York Giants—a move designed to ensure that the 1912 World Series would be held at Boston's new Fenway Park. McAleer, who was noted for his shrewdness, may have outwitted himself on this occasion. Although the Red Sox's loss to the Giants (at 5-2) did indeed guarantee that the Series would be held in Boston, it also left Boston's players disgruntled and demoralized.

The situation grew worse when the Red Sox, who were scheduled to host three Series games, sold their tickets as a three-game set, while neglecting to inform their most ardent fans that an earlier tied game would be counted as one of those games. During the seventh game of the World Series, the "Royal Rooters", a passionate contingent of Red Sox fans led by Boston Mayor John "Honey Fitz" Fitzgerald, found themselves without seats. A riot ensued, and an incensed Fitzgerald led a boycott of the Series' final game. While the Red Sox won the World Series, McAleer's reputation was damaged.

In the wake of the Series victory over the Giants, McAleer returned to his hometown in style. A brass band met him at Youngstown's train depot, and a parade and fireworks display were held in his honor. The Youngstown Daily Vindicator reported: "As the auto bearing Mr. McAleer turned into West Federal Street, hundreds of sticks of red fire were burning at Central Square, while the quiet atmosphere was occasionally punctured by the explosion of a bomb". This was the last time he would publicly greet residents of his hometown as a figure in professional baseball.

Downfall

McAleer's tenure as part-owner of the Red Sox came to a swift end. On July 15, 1913, McAleer's deteriorating relationship with the American League's president, Johnson, took a turn for the worse when McAleer forced the resignation of Red Sox manager Jake Stahl, one of Johnson's closest friends. While McAleer claimed that he released Stahl because of a foot injury, which prevented Stahl from serving as a player-manager, rumors suggested that the two men had strong personal differences. Following a bitter quarrel with Johnson, McAleer sold his holdings in the Red Sox. His feud with Johnson turned out to be a lifelong affair, despite efforts taken by their mutual friend, Comiskey, to smooth over the rift. While McAleer never publicly discussed the disagreement that spurred his retirement, he supposedly relayed his version of events to Frank B. Ward, a sports reporter with The Youngstown Daily Vindicator, with the understanding that the details remain confidential until McAleer's death.

According to Ward's published account of this conversation, which appeared within hours of McAleer's death, the former Red Sox owner claimed that his "break" with Johnson resulted from a "betrayal" of trust. McAleer indicated that his controlling interest in the Red Sox entitled him to make all major decisions regarding the organization, Ward wrote. This view of McAleer's powers, however, was not shared by the club's manager, Stahl, the article added. To make matters more complicated, Stahl's father-in-law, a Chicago-based banker, was reportedly a shareholder in the Red Sox. After one particularly heated exchange between Stahl and McAleer at the close of the 1912 season, Stahl went to Chicago to confer with Johnson. The article indicated that, after this meeting, Johnson sent McAleer a "sternly worded" letter, which may have been designed to preserve his relationship with Stahl and Stahl's father-in-law. According to the article, Johnson confided to McAleer that he owed Stahl's father-in-law money and therefore felt obliged to take Stahl's part in the conflict. McAleer interpreted the admonition from Johnson as a betrayal of their friendship, refused to accept explanations, and quickly retired, Ward wrote. This version of events has not been corroborated by other sources.

Final years

McAleer eventually returned to Youngstown, where he spent his final years as an incongruously cosmopolitan figure. Newspaper accounts indicate that, in retirement, the former baseball manager maintained friendships with celebrities including George M. Cohan and King Alfonso XIII of Spain, whom he met during a European tour with the Red Sox in the winter of 1913. McAleer was active in the life of the community, and during World War I, he served on the city's original draft board, which was authorized under Ohio Governor James M. Cox.

Less is known about his personal life. As a younger man, McAleer married Anna Durbin, though the couple had no children. When his wife died in 1930, McAleer married a second time, this time to a local woman, Georgianna Rudge. At this point in his life, McAleer's health had grown frail, and within months of the marriage ceremony, his condition worsened. Several weeks before his death, McAleer was confined to a local hospital, where his health appeared to rally. He died unexpectedly on April 29, 1931, shortly after returning home from the hospital. He was 66 years old.

Private funeral services were held for McAleer at Orr's funeral home in Youngstown. His remains were then interred at Oak Hill Cemetery, on the city's near south side.

Legacy

In response to McAleer's passing, The Youngstown Daily Vindicator eulogized the ex-major leaguer in the following terms: "Forceful and resourceful, but always retiring when there was talk of his share in the development of baseball, James R. McAleer died within a matter of weeks after the passing of Byron Bancroft Johnson, his chief partner in the forming of the American League, and the man with whom he 'broke', which break brought about his retirement". The article also praised McAleer for cultivating players and officials who became significant figures in major league baseball. In 1905, during his tenure as manager of the St. Louis Browns, McAleer helped future Hall of Fame umpire Billy Evans secure a position with the American League, writing a personal letter to Johnson on Evans' behalf.

McAleer's contributions to the game failed to win him a place in the Baseball Hall of Fame, however. In 1936, during the first elections to the Baseball Hall of Fame, he received just one vote in the balloting for 19th-century figures. Nevertheless, McAleer received an unofficial endorsement from one of the most accomplished players of his era, Hall of Fame second baseman Nap Lajoie, who described McAleer as "one of the best ever".

External links

• Sports Illustrated Player Page