Oliver Hazard Perry "O. P." Caylor (December 14, 1849 – October 19, 1897) was an American newspaper columnist,

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 ...

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 ...

, and catalyst in the formation of the franchise that is now the

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 ...

Biography

Caylor was born in

Dayton, Ohio Dayton () is the sixth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County. A small part of the city extends into Greene County. The 2020 U.S. census estimate put the city population at 137,644, while Greater Day ...

, in 1849; he was named after

Oliver Hazard Perry Oliver Hazard Perry (August 23, 1785 – August 23, 1819) was an American naval commander, born in South Kingstown, Rhode Island. The best-known and most prominent member of the Perry family naval dynasty, he was the son of Sarah Wallace A ...

, an American naval commander. After earning a law degree in Dayton, he worked as a baseball newspaper columnist for ''

The Cincinnati Enquirer ''The Cincinnati Enquirer'' is a morning daily newspaper published by Gannett in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. First published in 1841, the ''Enquirer'' is the last remaining daily newspaper in Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky, alth ...

'' and the ''Cincinnati Commercial''. He also joined the front office of an early

franchise 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 s ...

, and worked as an

official scorer In the game of baseball, the official scorer is a person appointed by the league to record the events on the field, and to send the official scoring record of the game back to the league offices. In addition to recording the events on the field ...

. After that Cincinnati franchise was expelled from the National League, Caylor became one of the principal figures in the founding 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 ...

during the 1881–82 offseason. The 1882 Cincinnati Red Stockings, competing in the inaugural year of the American Association, was the first season of the modern day

franchise. Caylor's first stint as a

in the major leagues was for the Red Stockings, succeeding the original manager,

Pop Snyder Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' (G ...

. In his debut season, the team finished in second place with a record of 63–49. The following year, the team finished with a 65–73 losing record and in fifth place. Caylor resigned after that season, due in large part to his combative nature that put him at odds with the press and new club ownership. Caylor moved to

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

where he began writing for the ''Sporting Life''. The

New York Metropolitans The Metropolitan Club (New York Metropolitans or the Mets) was a 19th-century professional baseball team that played in New York City from 1880 to 1887. (The ''New York Metropolitan Baseball Club'' was the name chosen in 1961 for the New York ...

, also of the American Association, then hired him as their manager on June 11, 1887, with Caylor inheriting a team with a 9–28 record. The team was 35–60 under Caylor, with a season record of 44–89 resulting in a seventh-place finish. He was fired in the off-season by new owner Charlie Byrne. Caylor's overall record as a manager was 163–182 for a .472

winning percentage 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 ...

. Caylor moved to

Carthage, Missouri Carthage is a city in Jasper County, Missouri, United States. The population was 15,522 as of the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Jasper County and is nicknamed "America's Maple Leaf City." History Jasper County was formed in 1841. ...

, where he proceeded to start ''The Daily Democrat'' newspaper. In 1890, he returned to New York City after being hired by

Albert Spalding Albert Goodwill Spalding (September 2, 1849 – September 9, 1915) was an American pitcher, manager, and executive in the early years of professional baseball, and the co-founder of A.G. Spalding sporting goods company. He was born and raised ...

to be the editor for the ''New York Sporting Times''. Caylor died in

Winona, Minnesota Winona is a city in and the county seat of Winona County, in the state of Minnesota. Located in bluff country on the Mississippi River, its most noticeable physical landmark is Sugar Loaf. The city is named after legendary figure Winona, who ...

, at age 47 from the effects of

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...

. He was buried in Woodlawn Cemetery in

The Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

. He was survived by his wife and a daughter.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Caylor, O. P. 1849 births 1897 deaths Baseball developers Baseball writers Cincinnati Red Stockings managers New York Metropolitans managers Sportspeople from Dayton, Ohio The Cincinnati Enquirer people Baseball coaches from Ohio Tuberculosis deaths in Minnesota Burials at Woodlawn Cemetery (Bronx, New York) 19th-century deaths from tuberculosis

Biography

References

Further reading

External links