Ross Emil "Tex" Erwin (December 22, 1885 – April 5, 1953) was a 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 from 1905 to 1921. He played six years in

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), ...

as a

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 ...

for the Detroit Tigers (1908),

Brooklyn Superbas 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, Californ ...

(1910–14), and Cincinnati Reds (1914).

Early years

Erwin was born in

Forney, Texas Forney is a city in Kaufman County, Texas, United States, and has been named by the Texas Legislature as the "Antique Capital of Texas". It is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. Its population was 14,661 at the 2010 census, up from 5,5 ...

, in 1885. He began his professional baseball career playing for the

Fort Worth Panthers A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

of the

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

during the 1905 and 1906 seasons. He also played 11 games for the St. Paul Saints in the American Association during the 1906 season. In 1907, he played for the Topeka White Sox in the Western Association. In late August 1907, Erwin made his major league debut with the Detroit Tigers. He appeared in only eight games for Detroit and did not appear in any of the Tigers' postseason games in the

1907 World Series The 1907 World Series was the championship series in Major League Baseball for the 1907 season. The fourth edition of the World Series, it featured the defending National League champion Chicago Cubs and the American League champion Detroit Tig ...

. After his brief stint with the Tigers, Erwin returned to the minor leagues, playing for the

Rochester Bronchos The Rochester Bronchos were a minor league baseball team based in Rochester, New York Rochester () is a City (New York), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, the county seat, seat of Monroe County, New York, Monroe County, and ...

of the Eastern League in 1908 and 1909.

Brooklyn

In August 1909, Erwin was purchased from Rochester by the

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 ...

. He played at the catcher position for Brooklyn from 1910 to 1914. In November 1912, the ''Sporting Life'' newspaper published a front-page photo profile of Erwin. The newspaper described him as "the rising young catcher of the Brooklyn National League." The profile indicated that Erwin was married and made his permanent home in

Rochester, New York Rochester () is a city in the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Monroe County, and the fourth-most populous in the state after New York City, Buffalo, and Yonkers, with a population of 211,328 at the 2020 United States census. Located in W ...

, though his family lived in Galveston, Texas. In June 1913, Erwin suffered two fractures in his arm when

Heinie Zimmerman Henry Zimmerman (February 9, 1887 – March 14, 1969), known as "Heinie" or "The Great Zim", was an American professional baseball third baseman. Zimmerman played in Major League Baseball for the Chicago Cubs and New York Giants from 1907 to 191 ...

of the Cubs slid into him at home plate. His playing time was limited thereafter. He appeared in only nine games for Brooklyn in 1914 before being released on waivers. ''The Sporting News'' later wrote that the collision with Zimmerman had "practically ended his career."

Cincinnati and minor leagues

In July 1914, Erwin cleared waivers and was sent to Newark. Shortly thereafter, the Cincinnati Reds expressed interest in acquiring Erwin. Accordingly, he was reactivated by Brooklyn and thereupon sold to the Reds. He lasted less than three weeks in Cincinnati, appearing in only 12 games with his last major league game being on July 29, 1914. After being released by Cincinnati, Erwin continued to play professional baseball until 1921, including stints with the

Rochester Hustlers The Rochester Red Wings are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. They are located in Rochester, New York, and play their home games at Innovative Field, located in down ...

(1915, 1918) and

Dallas Submarines The Dallas Submarines, based in Dallas, Texas, United States, were a minor league baseball team that played from 1917 to 1918 in the Texas League. They were managed by Ham Patterson Hamilton Patterson (October 13, 1877 – November 25, 1945) was a ...

(1921). Erwin also served as a minor league umpire during the 1916 and 1917 seasons.

Career statistics

Erwin appeared in 276 major league games, compiling a .236 batting average and .326 on-base percentage with 150 hits, 82 bases on balls, 70 runs scored, 70 RBIs, 37 extra base hits, and 10 stolen bases.

Later years

After retiring from baseball, Erwin lived in

, with his wife and children, Adelaide and Ross, Jr. He worked for a time as a salesman and, in 1927, went into the insurance business. He served on the Rochester City Council from 1937 to 1945. In his later years, Erwin suffered from arthritis. He was hospitalized in February 1953 after a severe attack of arthritis. He died in a Rochester hospital in April 1953 at age 67.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Erwin, Tex 1885 births 1963 deaths Major League Baseball catchers Detroit Tigers players Brooklyn Superbas players Brooklyn Dodgers players Brooklyn Robins players Cincinnati Reds players Baseball players from Texas Fort Worth Panthers players St. Paul Saints (AA) players Topeka White Sox players Rochester Bronchos players Newark Indians players Baltimore Orioles (International League) players Rochester Hustlers players Reading Aces players Dallas Submarines players People from Forney, Texas