Bill Gleason
Bill Gleason | ||
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Runs batted in | 298 | |
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William G. Gleason (November 12, 1858 – July 21, 1932) was a
Early life
A St. Louis native, Gleason played amateur baseball for the St. Louis Stocks as early as age 16. He earned the nickname "Brudder Bill" because he was teammates with his older sibling, Jack Gleason, on several amateur and professional baseball teams.[1]
Major league career
Gleason entered the majors in 1882 with the
During his time with the St. Louis Browns, Gleason was roommates with
After Gleason played for the Browns for six years, he joined the Philadelphia Athletics (1888) and Louisville Colonels (1889). In an eight-season career, Gleason was a .267 hitter (907-for-3395) with seven home runs and 298 RBI in 798 games, including 613 runs, 111 doubles, and 35 triples. Incomplete data shows him stealing 70 bases and getting hit by 52 pitches.
Gleason became an AA umpire in 1891, but his tenure lasted only one game.[3] In Gleason's lone appearance, a game between the St. Louis Browns and Cincinnati Reds, King Kelly was the catcher and team captain of the Reds. With a tie game in the ninth inning, and with darkness setting in, Kelly told his Reds teammates to stall time. Gleason awarded a forfeit to St. Louis; the league fired him for the decision and the game was played again.[4]
Later life
Gleason was a member of the St. Louis Fire Department during and after his baseball career. Late in his life, he was a captain with Engine Co. No. 28. In the summer of 1932, Gleason stepped on a nail at a fire, resulting in a foot infection. While recovering from that infection, Gleason tried to walk to a local drug store. He collapsed from heat exhaustion and was confined to bed for a few days before he died in his St. Louis home on July 21, 1932.[5]
References
- ^ ISBN 9780803235328.
- ISBN 9780786453047.
- ^ "Bill Gleason". www.retrosheet.org. Retrieved May 3, 2019.
- ISBN 9781476664873.
- ^ "Fire capt. Gleason, once noted ball player, dies". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. July 22, 1932.
External links
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball Reference, or Baseball Reference (Minors), or Retrosheet
- Bill Gleason at Find a Grave