John Ewing (June 1, 1863 – April 23, 1895), nicknamed "Long John", was an American professional
baseball
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 t ...
player. He was a
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 ...
over four seasons (1888–1891) with the
Louisville Colonels
The Louisville Colonels were a Major League Baseball team that also played in the American Association (AA) throughout that league's ten-year existence from 1882 until 1891. They were known as the Louisville Eclipse from 1882 to 1884, and as th ...
,
New York Giants of the
Players' League, and
New York Giants 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 ...
. Prior to that he was an
outfielder
An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to c ...
in 1883 and 1884. In six years in the major leagues, Ewing played in four different leagues (National League,
Union Association,
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 ...
, Players' League).
Ewing compiled a 53–63 career record in 129 appearances, with a 3.68
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 525
strikeouts. In 1891 he led 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 ...
in ERA (a retroactive ranking; ERA was not tabulated in that era) while playing for New York.
Ewing was used as a first base
umpire
An umpire is an official in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection.
The term derives from the Old French nonper, ''non'', "not" and ''per'', ...
in an American Association game on August 15, 1889.
Retrosheet
/ref>
He was the brother of Hall of Fame 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 ...
and infielder Buck Ewing
William "Buck" Ewing (October 17, 1859 – October 20, 1906) was an American Major League Baseball player and manager. Renowned for his offensive and defensive skills, he was the first 19th-century catcher elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.
C ...
. The brothers played on the same team for two seasons, and Buck managed the 1890 Giants team for which John pitched.
Ewing was born in Cincinnati
Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
and died in Denver, Colorado
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 ...
at the age of 31.
See also
* List of Major League Baseball annual ERA leaders
References
External links
1863 births
1895 deaths
Major League Baseball pitchers
Baseball players from Cincinnati
St. Louis Browns (AA) players
Cincinnati Outlaw Reds players
Washington Nationals (UA) players
Louisville Colonels players
New York Giants (PL) players
New York Giants (NL) players
National League ERA champions
New Orleans Pelicans (baseball) players
Memphis Grays players
Major League Baseball umpires
19th-century baseball umpires
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