Doug Allison

Doug Allison
Catcher
Born: July 12, 1846(1846-07-12) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Died: December 19, 1916(1916-12-19) (aged 70) Washington, D.C.
Batted: Right	Threw: Right
MLB debut
May 5, 1871 for the Washington Olympics
Last MLB appearance
July 13, 1883 for the Baltimore Orioles
Career statistics
AVG	.271
HR	2
RBI	140
Teams
National Association of Base Ball Players Geary of Philadelphia (1868) Cincinnati Red Stockings (1868–1870)   League player Washington Olympics (1871) Troy Haymakers (1872) Brooklyn Eckfords (1872) Elizabeth Resolutes (1873) New York Mutuals (1873–1874) Hartford Dark Blues (1875–1877) Providence Grays (1878–1879) Baltimore Orioles (1883)   League manager Elizabeth Resolutes (1873)
Career highlights and awards
Catcher for the Cincinnati Red Stockings, the first fully professional baseball team. First baseball player to use a glove.

Douglas L. Allison (July 12, 1846 – December 19, 1916) played catcher for the original Cincinnati Red Stockings, the first fully professional baseball team. He was considered a specialist, at a time when some of the better batsmen who manned the position normally rested, or substituted at other fielding positions. In Cincinnati, his job was simply to catch the ball. First, he caught for Asa Brainard plus he had to contend with pop ups and tips off the bat, a fielder could put the batter out by a catch on the first bounce at that time. He is the earliest known player to use a glove, when he donned buckskin mittens to protect his hands in 1870.^[1] His brother Art Allison also played in the Major Leagues.

Career

Cincinnati Red Stockings

Not quite 22 years old, he moved to Cincinnati for the 1868 season and played for the Cincinnati Red Stockings managed by Harry Wright. Open professionalism was one year away but the long move from Philadelphia, where he worked as a bricklayer,^[2] suggests that Allison was somehow compensated by club members, if not by the club. Cincinnati fielded a strong team that year, with five of the famous team already in place. Allison was a specialist, maybe the weakest batsman on the team.

When the National Association of Base Ball Players (NABBP) permitted professionalism, the Red Stockings hired five incumbents including Allison and five new men to complete its roster, the first team that consisted of salaried players. A few of the others had previously played some catcher (all played at the six infield positions in 1868), but Allison filled the role in almost every game. Cincinnati 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.

Later career

Harry Wright was hired to organize a new team in Boston, where he signed three teammates for 1871. The other five regulars including Allison signed with Nick Young's Washington Olympics, an established club that also joined the new, entirely professional National Association (NA). The five former Red Stockings led the Olympics to a respectable finish in the inaugural NA season.

Later, Doug Allison played in the Major Leagues with the Troy Haymakers in 1872, the Brooklyn Eckfords in 1872, the Elizabeth Resolutes in 1873, the New York Mutuals from 1873 to 1874, the Hartford Dark Blues from 1875 to 1877, the Providence Grays from 1878 to 1879, and one game with the Baltimore Orioles of the American Association in 1883.

Later life

Allison was reported playing for a post office team in 1882. Thirty-four years later he died in Washington, DC at age 70, en route to his job at the Post Office Department.^[2] He is buried in Rock Creek Cemetery, Washington.^[3]

References

1. ^ "The First Glove - Ever". BaseballGloves.com. http://baseballgloves.com/interviews/first-glove.html. Retrieved 2006-08-28. 
2. ^ ^{a b} Puff, Richard (1996). "Douglas L. Allison." Baseball's First Stars. Edited by Frederick Ivor-Campbell, Robert L. Tiemann and Mark Rucker. Cleveland, OH: SABR. ISBN 0-910137-58-7
3. ^ Retrosheet. "Doug Allison". Retrieved 2006-08-29.

• Liberman, Noah (2003). Glove Affairs: The Romance, History, and Tradition of the Baseball Glove. Triumph Books. ISBN 1-57243-420-1.
• Wright, Marshall (2000). The National Association of Base Ball Players, 1857–1870. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Co. ISBN 0-7864-0779-4.

External links

• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)

Persondata
Name	Allison, Doug
Alternative names	Allison, Douglas L.
Short description	Major League Baseball player
Date of birth	July 12, 1846
Place of birth	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Date of death	December 19, 1916
Place of death	Washington, D.C.