Cap Anson
A seminal figure in the growth of organized baseball, Cap Anson was a superstar in the 19th century. A hard-hitting slugger and an innovative first baseman, Anson led the National League in runs batted in eight times, and copped two batting titles. As a dominant force in the birth of the Senior Circuit, Anson's bigotry contributed to the exclusion of blacks from the game, but as historian Bill James has observed, his persuasive personality also helped save the league from fracture in the early going. After an amazing 27-year career as a player, player/manager, and manager, Anson retired to Chicago in 1898. He was one of the first men inducted into the Hall of Fame, in 1939.
| Career Batting Stats |
| G |
AB |
H |
R |
HR |
RBI |
SB |
AVG |
SLG |
OBP |
OPS |
OPS+ |
| 2523 |
10277 |
3418 |
1996 |
97 |
2076 |
276 |
.333 |
.445 |
.393 |
.838 |
123.7 |
|
Teams Cap Anson Managed
Philadelphia Athletics, National Association (1875)
Chicago Cubs (1879-1897)
New York Giants (1898)
Cap Anson in Minor League Baseball
Where does Cap Anson rank among baseball greats?
Cap Anson ranks #22 among the Top 50 all-time at 1B. Rankings ⇒
Anson, Racism, and the Color Barrier
The first white child born into a town his father founded, in a slave state nearly a decade before the Civil War, Adrian Constantine Anson was shaped by his environment. By the time he was a teenager, he was a bigot, and those warped attitudes led to an infamous showdown in Toledo, Ohio, in August of 1883.
Anson's White Stockings scheduled an exibition game against the minor league Toledo team for August 10. When Anson arrived, he learned that Toledo's catcher, Moses Fleetwood Walker, was black. Unaware that Walker was not scheduled to start the game, Anson refused to play the contest with Walker in uniform. When Toledo's manager heard of this, he defiantly inserted Walker into center field for the game and threatened Anson with legal action to recoup the gate receipts. Anson capitulated, but he secured an agreement the following season, that ensured that Walker and his brother, Welday, would not be on the field to play his club.
This incident is often cited as the genesis for the unofficial ban of backs from major league baseball. But the truth is far more complicated. In order for blacks to be barred, team owners, league officials, the press, and government officials had to conspire and fail to act. Anson, certainly a racist, is not solely responsible for the color barrier that existed from the mid-1880s until Jackie Robinson's debut in 1947, but he didn't help.
Where He Played
First base
Born
Adrian Constantine Anson was born on April 17, 1852, in Marshalltown, IA.
Died
April 14, 1922, Chicago, IL
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
Major League Debut
5 6,
Nine Other Players Who Debuted in 1871
Coming soon...
Nicknames
Pop, Uncle, Captain
Similar Players
Anson is a one of the most unique players and characters in the history of baseball.
Related Players
Moses Fleetwood Walker
| Hall of Fame Voting |
| Year |
Election |
Votes |
Pct |
| 1936 |
Veterans |
40 |
% |
1939 |
Old Timers |
|
% |
|
Post-Season Appearances
1885 World Series
1886 World Series
Milestones
- July 18, 1897: 3000th Hit... Hit (a single) came off George Blackburn… Several of Anson's hits were later ruled walks under a scoring change, but he is still considered by many to have garnered 3,000 hits.
Best Strength as a Player
Hitting for power.
Largest Weakness as a Player
Intolerance.
Learn More about Cap Anson
Search Amazon.com for Books about Cap Anson ⇒
Search for Cap Anson at Google ⇒
View a map of his hometown at Mapquest ⇒