John Montgomery Ward (March 3, 1860 – March 4, 1925), known as Monte Ward, 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), ...
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 ...
,
shortstop
Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball or softball fielding position between second and third base, which is considered to be among the most demanding defensive positions. Historically the position was assigned to defensive specialists who ...
,
second baseman,
third baseman
A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the scoring system us ...
,
manager
Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business.
Management includes the activities o ...
, executive, union organizer, owner and author.
Ward, of English descent, was born in
Bellefonte, Pennsylvania
Bellefonte is a borough in, and the county seat of, Centre County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is approximately twelve miles northeast of State College and is part of the State College, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area. The boro ...
and grew up in
Renovo, Pennsylvania
Renovo is a borough in Clinton County, Pennsylvania, United States, northwest of Lock Haven. In 1900, 4,082 people lived there, and in 1910, 4,621 lived there, but in the 2010 census the borough population was 1,228.
The borough is located on t ...
.
He led the formation of the first professional sports players union and a new baseball league, the
Players' League
The Players' National League of Professional Base Ball Clubs, popularly known as the Players' League (PL), was a short-lived but star-studded professional American baseball league of the 19th century. The PL was formed by the Brotherhood of Prof ...
.
Early life
Ward attended the
Bellefonte Academy
Bellefonte Academy was a historic school building located at Bellefonte, Centre County, Pennsylvania. The original building was built in 1805, as a two-story, rectangular limestone building. It was enlarged between 1839 and 1845, with the additi ...
in the early 1870s, and at 13 years of age, he was sent to
Pennsylvania State University
The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvan ...
. In his short time there, he helped jumpstart a baseball program and is often credited for developing the first curveball. However, he was kicked out of school for pushing an upperclassman who attempted to haze him down a flight of stairs, and stealing chickens.
[
The following year, in 1874, his parents James and Ruth][http://www.ancestry.com 1860, 1870 US Federal Census Bellefonte, Centre, Pennsylvania 1860 Child Montgomery born Mar 1960.] died. He tried to make it as a travelling salesman, but when that proved unsuccessful, he returned to his hometown. There, he rediscovered baseball.[ In , the semiprofessional team for which he was playing folded, which opened the door for him to move on to a new opportunity. He was offered a contract to pitch for the ]Providence Grays
The Providence Grays were a Major League Baseball team based in Providence, Rhode Island who played in the National League from until . The Grays played at the Messer Street Grounds in the Olneyville neighborhood. The team won the National Leagu ...
of the still new 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 ...
, an all-professional major league that had begun its operations in .[
]
Providence Grays
Ward's first season with the Grays was a successful one, going 22–13 with a 1.51 ERA
An era is a span of time defined for the purposes of chronology or historiography, as in the regnal eras in the history of a given monarchy, a calendar era used for a given calendar, or the geological eras defined for the history of Earth.
Comp ...
. He played that season exclusively as a pitcher, but during the following two seasons he played increasingly in the outfield
The outfield, in cricket, baseball and softball is the area of the field of play further from the batsman or batter than the infield. In association football, the outfield players are positioned outside the goal area.
In cricket, baseball and ...
and at third base
A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the scoring system us ...
.[ Ward had his two finest seasons as a pitcher, going 47–19 with 239 ]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 and a 2.15 ERA in 1879 and 39–24 with 230 strikeouts and a 1.74 ERA in 1880. He pitched nearly 600 innings each year (587.0 in 1879 and 595.0 in 1880).[ As a 19-year-old pitcher, he won 47 games and led the ]Providence Grays
The Providence Grays were a Major League Baseball team based in Providence, Rhode Island who played in the National League from until . The Grays played at the Messer Street Grounds in the Olneyville neighborhood. The team won the National Leagu ...
to a first-place finish.
In , he began to play other positions. On June 17, 1880, Ward pitched the second perfect game
Perfect game may refer to:
Sports
* Perfect game (baseball), a complete-game win by a pitcher allowing no baserunners
* Perfect game (bowling), a 300 game, 12 consecutive strikes in the same game
* Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League, New York ...
in baseball history, defeating future Hall of Famer
A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actual halls or muse ...
Pud Galvin
James Francis "Pud" Galvin (December 25, 1856 – March 7, 1902) was an American Major League Baseball pitcher in the 19th century. He was MLB's first 300-game winner and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1965.
Baseball career
Galv ...
and the Buffalo Bisons
The Buffalo Bisons (known colloquially as the Herd) are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays. Located in Buffalo, New York, the team plays their home games at Sahlen Fiel ...
, 5–0.[ ]Lee Richmond
John Lee Richmond (May 5, 1857 – October 1, 1929) was an American pitcher in Major League Baseball. He played for the Boston Red Stockings, Worcester Worcesters, Providence Grays, and Cincinnati Red Stockings, and is best known for pitching the ...
had thrown baseball's first perfect game just five days before, on June 12. The next perfect game by a National League pitcher would not happen for 84 years, when Jim Bunning
James Paul David Bunning (October 23, 1931 – May 26, 2017) was an American professional baseball pitcher and politician who represented Kentucky in both chambers of the United States Congress. He was the sole Major League Baseball athlete to ha ...
pitched a perfect game in 1964. Ward also expanded his leadership role to include managing
Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business.
Management includes the activities o ...
when he became a 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 sq ...
for the team's final 32 games, winning 18 of them, as the Grays finished in second place.[Stein, p. 35]
The seasons of and were the first in which he played more games in the outfield than he pitched. This was due to a nagging arm injury he originally incurred sliding into a base.[ He still pitched well when he did pitch, winning 37 games over those two seasons and having ERAs of 2.13 and 2.59 respectively,][ and on August 17, 1882, he pitched the longest ]complete game
In baseball, a complete game (CG) is the act of a pitcher pitching an entire game without the benefit of a relief pitcher. A pitcher who meets this criterion will be credited with a complete game regardless of the number of innings played—pitche ...
shutout
In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which one team prevents the other from scoring any points. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball.
Shutouts are usuall ...
in history, blanking the Detroit Wolverines
The Detroit Wolverines were a 19th-century Major League Baseball team that played in the National League from 1881 to 1888 in the city of Detroit, Michigan. In total, they won 426 games and lost 437, taking their lone pennant (and winning the pre ...
1–0 in 18 innings.[ By this time, however, the Grays felt his best days were behind him and sold their former ace hurler to the ]New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...
.
New York and reserve clause
Ward moved to the new New York NL club in 1883. An injury to his right arm while running the bases during the 1884 season ended Ward's pitching career. As he could not wait for his arm to heal before he returned to the field, he taught himself to throw left-handed so he could play center field
A center fielder, abbreviated CF, is the outfielder in baseball who plays defense in center field – the baseball and softball fielding position between left field and right field. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the c ...
for the remainder of the 1884 season.[Stein, p. 36] He replaced Jim Price as the Giants' manager for the final 16 games of the 1884 season.[
With his arm fully recuperated, he became the everyday shortstop in 1885.]
Ward graduated from Columbia Law School
Columbia Law School (Columbia Law or CLS) is the law school of Columbia University, a private Ivy League university in New York City. Columbia Law is widely regarded as one of the most prestigious law schools in the world and has always ranked i ...
in 1885 and led the players in forming the Brotherhood of Professional Base Ball Players, the first sports labor union
A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...
. Ward and the players had become frustrated with the owners' reserve clause, which allowed them to sign players to one-year contracts and then not allow them to negotiate with other teams when those contracts expired. The players felt that the owners had absolute power. At first, the players had some success, gaining the freedom to negotiate with other teams when they were asked to take a pay cut by their current team.[ In October 1887, Ward married actress ]Helen Dauvray
Helen Dauvray (February 14, 1859 – December 6, 1923) was an American actress.(20 February 1892)Our Gallery of Players - XXXIV. Helen Dauvray ''The Illustrated American'', p. 16, 35 She was a star in Bronson Howard's play ''One of Our Girl ...
.[
In , after the Giants had finished first in the National League,] and had won a playoff series known today as a "World Series", they played the St. Louis Browns
The St. Louis Browns were a Major League Baseball team that originated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as the Milwaukee Brewers. A charter member of the American League (AL), the Brewers moved to St. Louis, Missouri, after the 1901 season, where they p ...
of the 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 ...
for the "Dauvray Cup
The Dauvray Cup was a championship trophy awarded in professional baseball from 1887 to 1893. Named after stage actress Helen Dauvray, who presented the cup, it was initially awarded to the winner of the World Series between the National League a ...
", which was named after Ward's wife. Ward then captained an All-Star team which, paired with 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 c ...
's Chicago club, headed off on a barnstorming world tour. The owners held their winter meetings, and created a classification system that would determine a player's salary. Under the system, the most a player could earn was $2,500. The Giants then sold Ward to the Washington Nationals
The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C.. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. From 2005 to 2007, the team played in RFK Stadiu ...
for a record price of $12,000. Ward was furious and left the tour early. He then demanded a meeting with the owners, and said he would refuse to play for Washington unless he received a large portion of his record sale price. Washington eventually refused payment on the transaction, nullifying the deal.[
The owners denied Ward's request for a meeting to discuss the new classification system, saying no talks would be held until after the upcoming season. Though Ward and the union fought hard for these issues, this did not distract him or his Giants team, as he hit .299 and helped the Giants capture their second-straight "World Series" title in .]
Amidst Ward's commitments as a ballplayer and union organizer, he still found time for a third occupation, that of author. His 1888 book, ''Base-Ball: How to Become a Player, with the Origin, History and Explanation of the Game'' was the first published effort to explore baseball's development from its early roots.
The Players' League
Ward realized that negotiations with the owners were going nowhere and threatened to create a Players' League
The Players' National League of Professional Base Ball Clubs, popularly known as the Players' League (PL), was a short-lived but star-studded professional American baseball league of the 19th century. The PL was formed by the Brotherhood of Prof ...
. The owners thought of it as nothing more than an idle threat but had failed to realize Ward's connections in the business community, and he began to launch the new league. This new Players' League included a profit sharing system for the players and had no reserve clause or classification plan.[
The season began in with over half of the National League's players from the previous year in its ranks.][ Ward acted as a player-manager for the Brooklyn club, nicknamed the Ward's Wonders, and finished seventh in the league with a .335 batting average.][ While the Players' League drew well at the box office, the teams' owners grew nervous when the money did not come in as expected because of the profit sharing system. Soon they began holding secret meetings with their National League counterparts and, one by one, sold their teams to the rival league.][
]
Later career
Due to an agreement after the dissolution of the Players' League, Ward stayed in Brooklyn as player-manager for the National League team, the Brooklyn Grooms
The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1884 as a member of the American Association before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brooklyn until 1957, after which the club moved to Los Angeles, Califo ...
. Following the season, Ward expressed his desire to return to the Giants and was sold to his former club for $6,000. Despite his declining bat, Ward led the league in stolen bases in 1893. Following the 1894 season, he retired at the age of 34. He finished his career with a .275 average, 2,104 hits, and 540 stolen bases. He is the only man in history to win over 100 games as a pitcher and collect over 2,000 hits.[
]
Post-career
Ward retired from baseball at age 34 in order to enter the legal profession. As a successful lawyer
A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...
he represented baseball players against the National League. Later he acted as president and part-owner of the Boston Braves franchise and became an official in the short-lived Federal League
The Federal League of Base Ball Clubs, known simply as the Federal League, was an American professional baseball league that played its first season as a minor league in 1913 and operated as a "third major league", in competition with the e ...
in 1914, acting as the business manager
The Oxford English Dictionary defines a business manager as "a person who manages the business affairs of an individual, institution, organization, or company".
Compare manager.
Business managers drive the work of others (if any) in order to oper ...
of the Brooklyn Tip-Tops
The Brooklyn Tip-Tops were a team in the short-lived Federal League of professional baseball from 1914 to 1915. The team's name came from Tip Top Bread, a product of Ward Baking Company, which was also owned by team owner Robert Ward. They were so ...
.[
In the last quarter century of his life, Ward's sporting passion became ]golf
Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible.
Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...
. He won several championships around New York, played all over Europe, and competed regularly in the United States Golf Association
The United States Golf Association (USGA) is the United States national association of golf courses, clubs and facilities and the governing body of golf for the U.S. and Mexico. Together with The R&A, the USGA produces and interprets the rules ...
U.S. Amateur
The United States Amateur Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Amateur, is the leading annual golf tournament in the United States for amateur golfers. It is organized by the United States Golf Association and is currently held each August ov ...
. He finished second in the prestigious North and South Amateur Championship at Pinehurst Country Club
Pinehurst Resort is a golf resort in Pinehurst, North Carolina in the United States. It has hosted a number of prestigious golf tournaments including three U.S. Open (golf), U.S. Open Championships, one U.S. Women's Open, three United States Amat ...
in North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...
in 1903. The North and South Amateur was the equal of any major golf event at the turn of the century. The first North and South event took place in 1901. Ever the organizer, he was one of the founders of the New York Golf Association and the Long Island Golf Association.
Ward died in Augusta, Georgia
Augusta ( ), officially Augusta–Richmond County, is a consolidated city-county on the central eastern border of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The city lies across the Savannah River from South Carolina at the head of its navig ...
, the day after his 65th birthday on March 4, 1925, after a bout of pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...
, and is interred in Greenfield Cemetery in Hempstead, Long Island, New York.
Named in the Honor Rolls of Baseball
The Honor Rolls of Baseball were established in 1946 by the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum's Permanent Committee to establish as a second level of induction designed to recognize non-playing contributors.James, p. 46 The committee de ...
in 1946, Ward was elected to the 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 ...
by the Veterans Committee
The Veterans Committee is the popular name of various committees of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum that elect participants other than recently retired players.
Originally, it referenced the National Baseball Hall of Fame Committee ...
in 1964. He was inducted into the Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame
The Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame is an American sports hall of fame based in Suffolk County on Long Island, New York. The non-profit was established during 1990 to honor outstanding people, living or deceased, who have gained prominence and made ...
on Long Island in the Baseball and Historic Recognition Categories with the Class of 2000.
See also
* List of Major League Baseball annual ERA leaders
In baseball, earned run average (ERA) is a statistic used to evaluate pitchers, calculated as the mean of earned runs given up by a pitcher per nine innings pitched. A pitcher is assessed an earned run for each run scored by a baserunner who reach ...
* List of Major League Baseball perfect games
Over the 140 years of Major League Baseball history, and over 235,500 games played, there have been 23 official perfect games by the current definition. No pitcher has ever thrown more than one. The perfect game thrown by Don Larsen in game 5 of ...
* List of Major League Baseball player-managers
Major League Baseball (MLB) is the highest level of play in North American professional baseball. Founded in 1869, it is composed of 30 teams. Each team in the league has a manager, who is responsible for team strategy and leadership on and off ...
* List of Major League Baseball career hits leaders
Below is the list of the 286 Major League Baseball players who have reached the 2,000 hit milestone during their career in MLB. Pete Rose holds the Major League record for most career hits, with 4,256. Rose and Ty Cobb, second most, are the only ...
* List of Major League Baseball career runs scored leaders
Listed are all Major League Baseball (MLB) players with 1,000 or more career runs scored. Players in bold face are active as of the 2022 Major League Baseball season.
Key
List
*Stats updated through the 2022 season.
Through the end of the ...
* List of Major League Baseball career stolen bases leaders
In baseball statistics, a stolen base is credited to a baserunner when he successfully advances to the next base while the pitcher is throwing the ball to home plate. Under Rule 7.01 of Major League Baseball's (MLB) Official Rules, a runner acqu ...
* List of Major League Baseball annual saves leaders
The following is a list of annual leaders in saves in Major League Baseball (MLB), with separate lists for the American League and the National League. The list includes several professional leagues and associations that were never part of MLB.
...
* List of Major League Baseball annual stolen base leaders
Major League Baseball recognizes stolen base leaders in the American League and National League each season.
American League
National League
American Association
Federal League
Players' League
National Association
See also
* L ...
* List of Major League Baseball annual strikeout leaders
In baseball, the strikeout is a Baseball statistics, statistic used to evaluate pitchers. A pitcher earns a strikeout when he putout, puts out the Batting (baseball), batter he is facing by throwing a ball through the strike zone, "defined as that ...
* List of Major League Baseball annual wins leaders
References
;Bibliography
*
;In-line citations
External links
*
*
*
Retrosheet
Box score for Ward's perfect game
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ward, John Montgomery
National Baseball Hall of Fame inductees
Providence Grays players
New York Gothams players
New York Giants (NL) players
Brooklyn Ward's Wonders players
Brooklyn Grooms players
New York Gothams managers
Brooklyn Bridegrooms managers
New York Giants (NL) managers
Providence Grays managers
Major League Baseball shortstops
Major League Baseball second basemen
Major League Baseball pitchers
Major League Baseball outfielders
Major League Baseball pitchers who have pitched a perfect game
Major League Baseball player-managers
19th-century baseball players
National League ERA champions
National League strikeout champions
National League wins champions
National League stolen base champions
Baseball players from Pennsylvania
Penn State Nittany Lions baseball players
Philadelphia Athletic players
Philadelphia (minor league baseball) players
Janesville Mutual players
Buffalo (minor league baseball) players
Binghamton Crickets (1870s) players
Baseball developers
Sports labor leaders
Columbia Law School alumni
Pennsylvania State University alumni
Burials in New York (state)
1860 births
1925 deaths
Deaths from pneumonia in Georgia (U.S. state)
American people of English descent