Robert Edmund Pender (1867 – July 16, 1936) held multiple roles in professional baseball. He played, managed and umpired at the minor league level for many years. His playing career began in 1886 and lasted through 1907. Records indicate that Pender, who played multiple positions including

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 ...

, first base and even

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 ...

, did not play in 1891 and 1902. His statistical record is incomplete, however it is known that in 1896, with the Richmond Bluebirds of the

Virginia League The Virginia League was a minor league baseball affiliation which operated in Virginia and North Carolina from 1906 to 1928. It was classified as a "C" league from 1906 to 1919 and as a "B" league from 1920 to 1928. The most famous alumni to c ...

, he hit .312 with 56 stolen bases and in 1901, with the Selma Christians of the

Southern Association The Southern Association was a higher-level minor league in American organized baseball from 1901 through 1961. For most of its existence, the Southern Association was two steps below the Major Leagues; it was graded Class A (1902–1935), Cla ...

, he hit .303 in 104 games. He played in the

Interstate League The Interstate League was the name of five different American minor baseball leagues that played intermittently from 1896 through 1952. Early leagues Earlier versions of the Interstate League, with years active: *1896–1901: an unclassified ...

in 1898 and 1899 and was called "the best third baseman he Interstate Leaguehas ever had," by the ''

Youngstown Vindicator ''The Vindicator'' is a daily newspaper serving Youngstown, Ohio, United States and the Mahoning County region as well as southern Trumbull County and northern Columbiana County. ''The Vindicator'' was established in 1869. As of September 1, 2 ...

''. As a manager, he led the Petersburg Farmers (1895), Selma Christians (1901), Baton Rouge Cajuns (1902),

Baton Rouge Red Sticks Baton may refer to: Stick-like objects *Baton, a type of club * Baton (law enforcement) *Baston (weapon), a type of baton used in Arnis and Filipino Martial Arts *Baton charge, a coordinated tactic for dispersing crowds of people *Baton (conducti ...

(1903-1904),

Charleston Sea Gulls Charleston most commonly refers to: * Charleston, South Carolina * Charleston, West Virginia, the state capital * Charleston (dance) Charleston may also refer to: Places Australia * Charleston, South Australia Canada * Charleston, Newfound ...

(1906) and

Norfolk Tars The Norfolk Tars were a minor league baseball team that existed on and off from 1906 to 1955. Based in Norfolk, Virginia, they played in the Virginia League from 1906 to 1918 and from 1921 to 1928, in the Eastern League from 1931 to 1932 and in the ...

(1907-1909). He led the Red Sticks to a league championship in 1903 and the Tars to a league championship in 1907. He then became an umpire in the

and

New York State League The New York State League was an independent baseball league that played six seasons between 2007 and 2012 in New York State and the New York City metro area. Over 500 NYSL players have been signed by professional teams. Players from forty-eight ...

. In April 1909, he was chased by an angry mob after it was claimed he was intentionally trying to throw a game. He took refuge in the Roanoke jail.

College coaching

He was the head baseball coach at

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 nea ...

in 1912 and 1913. He compiled a record of 15–17 in his two seasons as head coach.

Personal life

He was born in

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

and died on July 16, 1936.

References

External links

*
Early Professional Baseball in Hampton Roads: A History, 1884-1928
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pender, Robert 1936 deaths Baseball first basemen Baseball second basemen Baseball third basemen Minor league baseball managers Minor league baseball umpires Albany Senators players Baton Rouge Red Sticks players Birmingham Grays players Charleston Seagulls players Davenport Hawkeyes players Galveston Sand Crabs players Houston Buffaloes players Jacksonville Jays players Lead City Grays players LSU Tigers baseball coaches Mobile Bluebirds players Norfolk Tars players Ottumwa Giants players Petersburg Farmers players Richmond Bluebirds players Robert E. Lee's players San Antonio Missionaries players Selma Christians players Schenectady Electricians players Youngstown Little Giants players Youngstown Puddlers players 1867 births