John F. McMullin (April 1, 1849 – April 11, 1881) 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. During the first professional league season in , he was the only regular left-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 ...

, while in later seasons he mainly played 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 a ...

. After playing almost every game throughout the five National Association seasons (1871–1875), he did not play a single game in 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 ...

that succeeded it. He died in his native

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

five years later, only 32 years old.

Early life and amateur career

McMullin was born on April 1, 1849, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In 1867 the 19-year-old McMullin was a regular outfielder for the Keystone club of Philadelphia in the nominally amateur

National Association of Base Ball Players The National Association of Base Ball Players (NABBP) was the first organization governing American baseball. (The sport was spelled with two words in the 19th century.) The first convention of sixteen New York City area clubs in 1857 effecti ...

. Keystone fielded Philadelphia's second team by playing strength, behind the

Athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competi ...

. Half the team scored more than three runs per game, including McMullin with 47 in 13 games now on record.

Professional career

Early career

For the 1868 season, two Cincinnati clubs both acquired four or five players from the east; presumably they were compensated somehow. John McMullin joined the Buckeyes and played

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 ...

more than any other position. Evidently the second-best team in the west, they proved (fatally) to be second-best in the city behind the

Cincinnati Red Stockings The Cincinnati Red Stockings of were baseball's first all-professional team, with ten salaried players. The Cincinnati Base Ball Club formed in 1866 and fielded competitive teams in the National Association of Base Ball Players (NABBP) 1867� ...

, and did not survive to contest the first openly professional pennant race next season. McMullin returned to his native city, now to be catcher, pitcher, and shortstop for the supreme Athletics. He played 49 of 53 known games in 1869, the leading number, and held his own in the powerful lineup.

Troy Haymakers

For the 1870 season at age 21, McMullin became a regular pitcher for the Haymakers of

Troy, New York Troy is a city in the U.S. state of New York and the county seat of Rensselaer County. The city is located on the western edge of Rensselaer County and on the eastern bank of the Hudson River. Troy has close ties to the nearby cities of Albany ...

, a pro team of average strength, with a powerful lineup but not much pitching. Although there was at least one other regular lefty pitcher on the professional teams of 1870 ( Charlie Pabor of the Union of Morrisania), McMullin was the only regular left-hand pitcher in the 1871 National Association (the first pro ''league'' season). McMullin started all 29 games of the 1871 Troy Haymakers season and completed 28, including a game against the Philadelphia Athletics on June 28 which ended with a score of 49–33. In the slugfest, the Troy pitcher gave up all 49 Philadelphia runs (31 of which were earned) on 42 hits and seven walks, while striking out none. The lone game McMullin did not complete took place on September 5 against the

Rockford Forest Citys Rockford Forest Citys (officially the Forest City Club), from Rockford, Illinois was one of the first professional baseball clubs. Rockford played for one season during the National Association inaugural year of . They are not to be confused wit ...

, when he gave up 15 runs (nine earned) in the first eight innings and switched positions with shortstop Dickie Flowers for the ninth. In total, McMullin pitched 249 innings in 1871 and compiled a 12–15 won–lost record, a 5.53

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 12 strikeouts. He gave up the most hits (430), walks (75), and earned runs (153) of any pitcher in the National Association. As a batter, he produced a .279

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

with 32

runs batted in A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the ba ...

, and stole 11 bases. After this season, McMullin would be limited to occasional appearances as a pitcher.

New York Mutuals

In , McMullin played for the

New York Mutuals The Mutual Base Ball Club of New York was a leading American baseball club almost throughout its 20-year history. It was established during 1857, the year of the first baseball convention, just too late to be a founding member of the National Ass ...

, mainly as a left fielder. In 54 games, his batting average sunk to .254, although he led the Mutuals in walks with 11. McMullin made 3 appearances at pitcher during the year, the first being a start on April 24 against 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 ...

, in New York's third game of the season. He pitched a complete game, gave up eight hits and seven runs (two earned) in nine innings, and was credited with the win. His next pitching appearance came on May 18, when he pitched the last four innings of a 24-6 rout against the Brooklyn Eckfords. Although the statistic did not exist then, McMullin was retroactively credited with the save, the only one of his career. His final appearance as a pitcher in 1872 came on June 8, on the other side of a lopsided game, as he entered with a 15-run deficit and pitched the last two innings of an eventual 19-0 loss to the Philadelphia Athletics. McMullin finished the season with a 3.60 ERA in 15 innings.

Philadelphia Athletics

In , McMullin joined his hometown Philadelphia Athletics. Again playing mostly left field, he batted .273 with 28 RBIs and 9 stolen bases in 52 games. He made one appearance at pitcher, a complete game victory in which he pitched eight innings and allowed five runs (two earned) on ten hits and a walk. McMullin remained with the

in . Playing mainly in center field, he hit a team-best .346, slugged 10 doubles, two triples, and the first two

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s of his career, scored 61 runs, and drove in 32. Besides batting average, he led the Athletics in hits (90), walks (8), on-base percentage (.366), and

on-base plus slugging On-base plus slugging (OPS) is a sabermetric baseball statistic calculated as the sum of a player's on-base percentage and slugging percentage. The ability of a player both to get on base and to hit for power, two important offensive skills, are ...

(.789). McMullin finished fifth in the league in batting average, and third in on-base percentage. However, his 13 strikeouts tied him with

Johnny Ryan John F. Ryan IV (born November 30, 1970 in Boston, Massachusetts)"The Real Johnny Ryan"
, Johnny Ryan of ...

and

Billy Barnie William Harrison Barnie (January 26, 1853 – July 15, 1900), nicknamed "Bald Billy", was an American manager and catcher in Major League Baseball. Born in New York City, he played as a right fielder in the National Association in 1874–75. In ...

for the most by a batter. Also in 1874, McMullin served as the home plate umpire for a game on October 19 between the Philadelphia White Stockings and the Boston Red Stockings.

Philadelphia White Stockings

In , McMullin moved to the crosstown Philadelphia White Stockings. Although his batting average slipped to .257, he continued to hit for power, with nine doubles, four triples, and two home runs among his 57 hits. His two homers led the White Stockings, and his slugging percentage of .360 was second on the team, but he also led the team in times caught stealing, with 10, and strikeouts, with 12. After not pitching at all the prior year, McMullin made four relief appearances for the Whites, posting a 7.94 ERA in 11.1 innings.

Later career

Although McMullin did not play in the new

in , he umpired three games in Philadelphia during the season, on June 14, June 15, and July 21. McMullin played for and managed a Philadelphia-based team in the

League Alliance The League Alliance was the first semi-affiliated minor league baseball league. Proposed by Al Spalding on January 15, 1877. Independent baseball teams were to affiliate with National League teams, which would honor their respective contracts. The ...

, baseball's first semi-affiliated minor league, in .

Death

McMullin died of pneumonia on April 11, 1881, in Philadelphia, and is buried there in Old Cathedral Cemetery.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:McMullin, John Major League Baseball outfielders Major League Baseball pitchers Philadelphia Keystones (NABBP) players Cincinnati Buckeyes players Philadelphia Athletics (NABBP) players Troy Haymakers (NABBP) players Troy Haymakers players New York Mutuals players Philadelphia White Stockings players Philadelphia Athletics (NA) players Baseball players from Pennsylvania 19th-century baseball players 1848 births 1881 deaths Minor league baseball managers Philadelphia (minor league baseball) players Deaths from pneumonia in Pennsylvania