William Frazer Baker (1866 – December 4, 1930) was the owner of the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

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 ...

from through and New York City Police Commissioner from 1909-1910.

Early life

Baker was born in

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

in 1866. After leaving school he went to work for the Cleveland and Pittsburgh Railroad as a messenger boy. In 1885 he moved to

Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn Bedford–Stuyvesant (), colloquially known as Bed–Stuy, is a neighborhood in the northern section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. Bedford–Stuyvesant is bordered by Flushing Avenue to the north (bordering Williamsburg), Classon Av ...

, where he worked as a secretary to industrialist William P. Shinn, worked in the railroad and oil businesses, and was in the contracting business with his brother, and was a clerk for the W. N. Coler & Co. banking house.

Government service

In 1898, Baker was hired as a secretary to

New York City Comptroller The Office of Comptroller of New York City, a position established in 1801, is the chief financial officer and chief auditor of the city agencies and their performance and spending. The comptroller also reviews all city contracts, handles the s ...

Bird Sim Coler Bird Sim Coler (October 9, 1867 Urbana, Illinois – June 12, 1941 Brooklyn, New York) was an American stockbroker and politician from Brooklyn, New York (state), New York. He served as the first New York City Comptroller after the city's City of ...

. Baker was active in Coler's 1902 gubernatorial campaign. Following Coler's loss, Baker went to work on

Wall Street Wall Street is an eight-block-long street in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It runs between Broadway in the west to South Street and the East River in the east. The term "Wall Street" has become a metonym for t ...

. In 1905, Baker returned to government service as a member of the

New York City Civil Service Commission The New York City Civil Service Commission (CSC) is the local civil service commission of the NY State Civil Service Commission within the New York City government that hears appeals by city employees and applicants that have been disciplined or d ...

. He was made president of the board the following year. In 1908, Baker switched jobs with first deputy police commissioner Arthur J. O'Keeffe. He was in charge of

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

and

Queens Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...

until 1909 when he was transferred to police headquarters and placed in charge of the bureau of repairs and supplies. On July 1, 1909, Mayor

George B. McClellan, Jr. George Brinton McClellan Jr. (November 23, 1865November 30, 1940), was an American statesman, author, historian, and educator. The son of the American Civil War general and presidential candidate George B. McClellan, he was the 93rd Mayor of N ...

fired police commissioner

Theodore A. Bingham Brigadier General Theodore Alfred Bingham (May 14, 1858 – September 6, 1934) was the New York City police commissioner from 1906 to 1909. Early life Bingham was born at Andover, Connecticut on May 14, 1858, to Joel Foote Bingham (1827–1914), ...

and promoted Baker to succeed him. During his brief tenure, he was accused of interfering in gambling investigations. Baker was one of two department heads retained by McClellan's successor

William Jay Gaynor William Jay Gaynor (February 2, 1849 – September 10, 1913) was an American politician from New York City, associated with the Tammany Hall political machine. He served as the 94th mayor of the City of New York from 1910 to 1913, and previously ...

. He resigned from his position on October 20, 1910.

Philadelphia Phillies owner

In 1911, Baker joined Warren M. Lincoln & Co., a

hatmaking Hat-making or millinery is the design, manufacture and sale of hats and other headwear. A person engaged in this trade is called a milliner or hatter. Historically, milliners, typically women shopkeepers, produced or imported an inventory of g ...

business. In January 1913, Baker was part of a group led by his cousin, William H. Locke, that purchased the Philadelphia Phillies. Baker was elected Team President in October 1913, following the death of Locke earlier in the year. He was at the helm two years later when the Phillies played in the

1915 World Series The 1915 World Series was the championship series in Major League Baseball for the 1915 season. The 12th edition of the World Series, it matched the American League champion Boston Red Sox against the National League champion Philadelphia Philli ...

. Baker was known for being extremely short sighted and tight-fisted. For most of his tenure as the Phillies' owner, the team had only one scout, and used a flock of sheep to trim the grass at their ballpark, mockingly nicknamed "

Baker Bowl National League Park, commonly referred to as the Baker Bowl after 1923, was a baseball stadium and home to the Philadelphia Phillies from 1887 until 1938, and first home field of the Philadelphia Eagles from 1933 to 1935. It opened in 1887 with a ...

" by the press in 1923. Baker was so cheap that he sold star pitcher

Grover Cleveland Alexander Grover Cleveland Alexander (February 26, 1887 – November 4, 1950), nicknamed "Old Pete", was an American Major League Baseball pitcher. He played from 1911 through 1930 for the Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago Cubs, and St. Louis Cardinals. He ...

and catcher

Bill Killefer William Lavier Killefer (October 10, 1887 – July 3, 1960), nicknamed "Reindeer Bill" was an American professional baseball player, coach and manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher for the St. Louis Browns, Philadelphia Phillies ...

to the Chicago Cubs in rather than increase their salary. Within a year, the Phillies had crumbled to sixth place—the first of 14 straight seasons (and 30 of the next 31) without a winning record and Alexander and Killefer led the Cubs to the pennant. Baker died of a heart attack on December 4, 1930 while attending a league meeting in Montreal and was succeeded as Phillies owner by

Gerald Nugent Gerald Paul Nugent, Sr. (October 25, 1892 – November 25, 1970) was the owner of the Philadelphia Phillies baseball team of the National League from 1932 through 1942. A Philadelphia native, Nugent graduated from Northeast High School, where ...

References

Philadelphia Phillies owners

External links

* 1866 births 1930 deaths Burials at Green-Wood Cemetery Major League Baseball executives Major League Baseball owners New York City Police Commissioners People from Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn People from Pittsburgh Philadelphia Phillies executives Philadelphia Phillies owners {{US-baseball-business-bio-stub