Edmund Joseph "Cotton" Minahan (December 10, 1882 – May 20, 1958) was a professional

baseball player Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

, and American

track and field athlete Track and field is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of ...

who competed at the

1900 Summer Olympics The 1900 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 1900, link=no), today officially known as the Games of the II Olympiad () and also known as Paris 1900, were an international multi-sport event that took place in Paris, France, from 1 ...

in Paris, France.

Early life and education

Minahan was born in

Springfield, Ohio Springfield is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Clark County, Ohio, Clark County. The municipality is located in southwestern Ohio and is situated on the Mad River (Ohio), Mad River, Buck Creek, and Beaver Creek, approxim ...

and was one of 10 brothers and sisters, while young his family moved to

Orange, New Jersey The City of Orange is a township in Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the township's population was 30,134, reflecting a decline of 2,734 (−8.3%) from the 32,868 counted in 2000. Orange was original ...

, and was educated at

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

and

Manhattan College Manhattan College is a private, Catholic, liberal arts university in the Bronx, New York City. Originally established in 1853 by the Brothers of the Christian Schools (De La Salle Christian Brothers) as an academy for day students, it was la ...

, he competed for the

Georgetown Hoyas The Georgetown Hoyas are the collegiate athletics teams that officially represent Georgetown University, located in Washington, D.C. Georgetown's athletics department fields 23 men's and women's varsity level teams and competes at the National C ...

Athletics

In June 1900, Minahan set sail for England with fellow club teammates William Holland and Arthur Duffey to compete in the Amateur Athletic Association of England Games, then they headed to Paris to compete in the

. Minahan competed in the 60 metres event, placing fourth overall. He placed second in his initial heat with an unknown time (though the winner ran it in 7.0 seconds) before coming in fourth of four in the final with an estimated time of 7.2 seconds. Minahan also went on to run in the

100 metres The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been conteste ...

, finishing in 12th or 13th place overall. He took second in his heat behind

Norman Pritchard Norman Gilbert Pritchard (23 June 1875 – 30 October 1929), also known by his stage name Norman Trevor, was a British-Indian athlete and actor who became the first Asian-born athlete to win an Olympic medal when he won two silver medals in ...

to advance to the semifinals, but placed fourth in his semi final so didn't advance to the final or the repechage.

Baseball

Minahan played as a right-handed

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 ...

for the season with the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

. For his career, he compiled a 0–2 record, with a 1.29

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

, and 4

strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is deno ...

s in 14 innings pitched. He was the first athlete in history to have been an Olympian in a non-baseball sport and also play in major league baseball, preceding

Jim Thorpe James Francis Thorpe ( Sac and Fox (Sauk): ''Wa-Tho-Huk'', translated as "Bright Path"; May 22 or 28, 1887March 28, 1953) was an American athlete and Olympic gold medalist. A member of the Sac and Fox Nation, Thorpe was the first Native ...

and

Eddy Alvarez Eduardo Cortes Alvarez (born January 30, 1990) is an American professional baseball infielder in the Milwaukee Brewers organization. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Miami Marlins and Los Angeles Dodgers. Prior to his ba ...

Death

Minahan died on May 20, 1958 in

East Orange, New Jersey East Orange is a City (New Jersey), city in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 69,612. The city was List of municipalities in ...

at the age of 75.

References

* De Wael, Herman. ''Herman's Full Olympians'': "Athletics 1900". Accessed 18 March 2006. Available electronically a

*

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Minahan, Cotton 1882 births 1958 deaths Sportspeople from Springfield, Ohio Cincinnati Reds players Major League Baseball pitchers Baseball players from Ohio Birmingham Barons players Toledo Mud Hens players St. Paul Saints (AA) players Rochester Bronchos players Georgetown Hoyas baseball players Manhattan Jaspers baseball players Olympic track and field athletes of the United States Athletes (track and field) at the 1900 Summer Olympics American male sprinters Track and field athletes from Ohio Georgetown Hoyas men's track and field athletes