Francis Isaiah Foreman (May 1, 1863 – November 19, 1957) was an American

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 ...

who played

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

from 1884 to 1905. He played for eight different major league teams. Listed at , 160 lb., Foreman batted and threw right-handed. He was nicknamed "Monkey".

Professional baseball career

Foreman was born in

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

in 1863. He started his professional baseball career in 1884. That year, he played in the Eastern League and

Union Association The Union Association was a league in Major League Baseball which lasted for just the 1884 season. St. Louis won the pennant and joined the National League the following season. Seven of the twelve teams who were in the Association at some poi ...

."Frank Foreman Minor & Independent Leagues Statistics & History"
baseball-reference.com. Retrieved November 8, 2021. In 1885, Foreman played in the Eastern League and

American Association American Association may refer to: Baseball * American Association (1882–1891), a major league active from 1882 to 1891 * American Association (1902–1997), a minor league active from 1902 to 1962 and 1969 to 1997 * American Association of Profe ...

. In 1887, Foreman played in the

Ohio State League The Ohio State League was a minor league baseball league that operated in numerous seasons between 1887 and 1947, predominantly as a Class D level league. League franchises were based in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia. Histo ...

. In 1888, Foreman played for the Albany Governors of the International Association. He pitched 328 innings and had a 9–24

win–loss record In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. The statistic is commonly used in standings or rankings to compare teams or individuals. It is defined as wins divided by the total number of match ...

with a 2.96

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 ...

(ERA) and 127

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 1889, Foreman played for the American Association's

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...

. In 414 innings pitched, he had a 23–21 record, a 3.52 ERA, and 180 strikeouts. The 23 wins were his career-high in the major leagues. 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 s ...

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 ...

purchased Foreman from the Orioles in March 1890. That year, he went 13–10 with a 3.95 ERA and 57 strikeouts."Frank Foreman Stats"
baseball-reference.com. Retrieved November 8, 2021. In 1891, Foreman moved to the

Washington Statesmen Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

of the American Association. He pitched 345.1 innings and went 18–20 with a 3.73 ERA and 170 strikeouts. In 1892, Foreman played in the National League and Eastern League. In 1893, Foreman played in the

Southern Association The Southern Association was a higher-level minor league in American organized baseball from 1901 through 1961. For most of its existence, the Southern Association was two steps below the Major Leagues; it was graded Class A (1902–1935), Cl ...

Pennsylvania State League The Pennsylvania State League was an American minor league baseball sports league that operated from 1892 to 1895, then became the first Atlantic League (1896–1900), Atlantic League. The league member teams were exclusively based in Pennsylvania ...

, and National League. In 1894, Foreman played for the Toledo White Stockings of the Western League. In 374.1 innings pitched, he went 21–19 with a 3.39 ERA. He led the league with 190 strikeouts. In 1895, Foreman played for the National League's Cincinnati Reds. He went 11–14 with a 4.11 ERA and 55 strikeouts. Foreman stayed with the Reds in 1896 and went 14–7 with a 3.97 ERA and 33 strikeouts. In 1897, Foreman played for the Indianapolis Indians of the Western League. He pitched 332.1 innings and went 30–9 with a 1.87 ERA and 79 strikeouts. His 30 wins led the league and were his career-high in professional baseball."1897 Western League Pitching Leaders"
baseball-reference.com. Retrieved November 8, 2021. In 1898, Foreman played for the Western League's

Indianapolis Hoosiers Indianapolis Hoosiers was the name of three major league and at least three minor league baseball clubs based in Indianapolis. * Indianapolis Hoosiers (American Association), which played in 1884 * Indianapolis Hoosiers (National League), which pla ...

. In 328 innings pitched, he went 24–11 with 104 strikeouts. Foreman stayed with the Hoosiers in 1899. In 1900, Foreman played in the Eastern League and American League. Foreman signed with the

Boston Americans The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

of the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

in April 1901. He played briefly for the Americans before the team released him in May. In June, Foreman signed with the American League's

. With the Orioles, he went 12–6 with a 3.67 ERA and 41 strikeouts. In 1902, Foreman played in the American League, Western League, and

. In 1904, Foreman played in the

Tri-State League The Tri-State League was the name of six different circuits in American minor league baseball. History The first league of that name played for four years (1887–1890) and consisted of teams in Ohio, Michigan and West Virginia. The second leagu ...

. In 1905, his last year in professional baseball, Foreman played in the Tri-State League and

Connecticut State League The Connecticut League, also known as the Connecticut State League, was a professional baseball association of teams in the state of Connecticut. The league began as offshoot of the original Connecticut State League, which dates back as far as 1884 ...

. Foreman won over 200 games in professional baseball. In the major leagues, he had a 96–93 win–loss record, a 3.97 ERA, and 586 strikeouts. As of 2021, Foreman ranks 26th all-time among major league pitchers in career hit batsmen, with 142. In 1889, he led the American Association with 40 hit batsmen. In 1891, he ranked second in the American Association with 43 hit batsmen.

Later life

Foreman's younger brother, Brownie Foreman, was also a major league pitcher. After his playing career was over, Frank Foreman scouted for several teams. He discovered future

Baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests. It serves as the central point of the history of baseball in the United States and displays baseball-r ...

Eddie Plank Edward Stewart Plank (August 31, 1875 – February 24, 1926), nicknamed "Gettysburg Eddie", was an American professional baseball player. A pitcher, Plank played in Major League Baseball for the Philadelphia Athletics from 1901 through 1914, th ...

while Plank was pitching at

Gettysburg College Gettysburg College is a private liberal arts college in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1832, the campus is adjacent to the Gettysburg Battlefield. Gettysburg College has about 2,600 students, with roughly equal numbers of men and women. ...

. Foreman died in Baltimore in 1957, at the age of 94. He was the last living player from the 1885 Major League Season

References

External links

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Retrosheet
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SABR Biography Project
{{DEFAULTSORT:Foreman, Frank 1863 births 1957 deaths 19th-century baseball players Albany Governors players Baltimore Orioles (1901–02) players Baltimore Orioles (AA) players Baltimore Orioles (NL) players Baseball players from Baltimore Boston Americans players Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Chicago Browns/Pittsburgh Stogies players Cincinnati Reds players Colorado Springs Millionaires players Columbus Buckeyes (minor league) players Easton Dutchmen players Holyoke Paperweights players Indianapolis Hoosiers (minor league) players Indianapolis Indians players Kansas City Blues (baseball) players Kansas City Cowboys (UA) players Lancaster Ironsides players Lebanon (minor league baseball) players Major League Baseball pitchers Mansfield (minor league baseball) players Meriden Silverites players Mobile Blackbirds players New York Giants (NL) players Newark Domestics players Omaha Indians players Springfield Ponies players Springfield Maroons players Toledo White Stockings players Washington Senators (1891–1899) players Washington Statesmen players Wilmington Peaches players