John Eugene Sullivan (February 16, 1873 – June 5, 1924), was an American baseball

catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the ( home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the ca ...

. He played professional baseball from 1900 to 1910, including two seasons in

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), ...

for the Detroit Tigers in 1905 and the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1908. He collected 59 putouts and 24 assists, and committed 3 errors, in 13 games as a major league catcher. He batted and threw right-handed.

Early years

Sullivan in

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in 1873. He began playing baseball on the Chicago sandlots.

Professional baseball

Minor leagues

Sullivan began playing professional baseball in 1899 with a club in St. Thomas, Ontario. In 1900, he played for the Kansas City Blues 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 ...

(one year before the league was recognized as a major league). He played catcher and first base for the Blues, compiling a .227 batting average in seven games. He joined the

Denver Grizzlies Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

of the Western League in the middle of the 1900 season and remained with the club through the 1901 season. He appeared in 58 games for the Grizzlies in 1900 and compiled a .329 batting average with five triples and six stolen bases. He spent the 1902 season with the Helena Senators of the Pacific Northwest League.

St. Paul Saints

In 1903, he joined the St. Paul Saints of the American Association. He spent three years with the Saints and helped lead the club to three consecutive American Association championships from 1903 to 1905.

Detroit Tigers

Sullivan was acquired by the Detroit Tigers after the 1904 season. The Tiger sent him a contract with a salary of $1,800 for the 1905 season. Sullivan tore the contract into pieces on seeing the proposed salary. He eventually reached terms with the Tigers and made his major league debut on April 19, 1905. However, he appeared in only 13 games for the club, compiling a .156 batting average and a .250 on-base percentage in 32 at bats. He also gave up four passed balls in a game against Chicago on April 23. In late May 1905, the Tigers released Sullivan back to St. Paul.

Kansas City Blues

In 1906, Sullivan joined for the Kansas City Blues, then playing in the American Association. He remained with Kansas City for four seasons, batting .162 in 1906, .223 in 1907, .228 in 1908, and .219 in 1909.

Pittsburgh Pirates

Late in the 1908 season, Sullivan was sold to the Pittsburgh Pirates. He appeared in his only game for Pittsburgh on September 5, 1908, and had only a single plate appearance. He refused to sign a contract at the proposed rate of $350 per month and was sent back to Kansas City. Sullivan told the ''Kansas City Star'' that Pittsburgh's owner "offered me the same salary I was making in Kansas City, and that didn't go with me. . . . I'd rather play ball right here in this league where all my friends are and the only thing that would've kept me in Pittsburgh was more money."

New England League

Sullivan concluded his playing career playing in the New England League at the end of the 1910 season.

Later years

Sullivan moved to

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

in approximately 1919. In June 1924, he collapsed and died within three minutes while playing in a practice game of baseball at Shaw Field,

Macalester College Macalester College () is a private liberal arts college in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Founded in 1874, Macalester is exclusively an undergraduate four-year institution and enrolled 2,174 students in the fall of 2018 from 50 U.S. states, four U.S te ...

Saint Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (abbreviated St. Paul) is the capital of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County. Situated on high bluffs overlooking a bend in the Mississippi River, Saint Paul is a regional business hub and the center ...

. Heart disease, aggravated by strenuous exercise, was the cause of death. He was buried at Calvary Catholic Cemetery in

Evanston, Illinois Evanston ( ) is a city, suburb of Chicago. Located in Cook County, Illinois, United States, it is situated on the North Shore along Lake Michigan. Evanston is north of Downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, ...

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sullivan, John Major League Baseball catchers Detroit Tigers players Pittsburgh Pirates players Baseball players from Illinois 1873 births 1924 deaths Kansas City Blues (baseball) players Denver Grizzlies (baseball) players Helena Senators players St. Paul Saints (AA) players Fall River Indians players Lowell Tigers players