John Dickson "Dick" McBride (June 14, 1847January 20, 1916) was an American

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

player from

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, who was the star

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

and the

player-manager A player-coach (also playing coach, captain-coach, or player-manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. A player-coach may be a head coach or an assistant coach. They may make changes to the s ...

for the Philadelphia Athletics of the National Association from 1871 through most of 1875 until

Cap Anson Adrian Constantine Anson (April 17, 1852 – April 14, 1922), nicknamed "Cap" (for "Captain") and "Pop", was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) first baseman. Including his time in the National Association (NA), he played a record 27 ...

took over as player-manager for the remaining eight games of the season. He had a pitching record of 149 wins and 74 losses during that period. In 1871, he went 18-5 and led Philadelphia to the NA championship. McBride finished his major league career in 1876 when he was signed by the Boston Red Stockings of the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team ...

after the Association failed. He had a record of 0-4 before his career came to an end. McBride died in Philadelphia at the age of 70, and is interred at Lawnview Cemetery in

Rockledge, Pennsylvania Rockledge is a borough in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,638 as of the 2020 census. Rockledge is surrounded by Abington Township, and Philadelphia, and shares a ZIP Code with Jenkintown. Geography Accordi ...

. In 1864, while serving in the Union Army during the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

, he was allowed to take a 3-day furlough to participate in a series of baseball exhibitions between clubs from

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

and the local Philadelphia clubs. It was during this time that the north's attention had turned to military defense, not baseball, so Brooklyn strategically scheduled these events hoping to take advantage of the situation to get some well sought after wins in "enemy" territory. The presence of McBride didn't do much, as all Philly teams were beaten soundly.

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{{DEFAULTSORT:McBride, Dick 1847 births 1916 deaths 19th-century baseball players Major League Baseball pitchers Baseball player-managers Philadelphia Athletics (NABBP) players Philadelphia Athletics (NA) players Philadelphia Athletics (NA) managers Boston Red Caps players Baseball players from Philadelphia People of Pennsylvania in the American Civil War Union Army soldiers Burials at Lawnview Memorial Park

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