Dick McBride

Who was Dick McBride?

John Dickson "Dick" McBride was an American Major League Baseball player from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, who was the star pitcher and the player-manager for the Philadelphia Athletics of the National Association from 1871 through most of 1875 until Cap Anson took over as player-manager for the remaining eight games of the season. He had a pitching record of 149 wins and 74 losses during that period. In 1871, he went 18-5 and led Philadelphia to the NA championship. McBride finished his major league career in 1876 when he was signed by the Boston Red Stockings of the National League after the Association failed. He had a record of 0-4 before his career came to an end. McBride died in Philadelphia at the age of 70, and is interred at Lawnview Cemetery in Rockledge, Pennsylvania.

In 1864, while serving in the Union Army during the Civil War, he was allowed to take a 3 day furlough to participate in a series of baseball exhibitions between clubs from Brooklyn and the local Philadelphia clubs. It was during this time that the north's attention had turned to military defense, not baseball, so Brooklyn strategically scheduled these events hoping to take advantage of the situation to get some well sought after wins in "enemy" territory. The presence of McBride didn't do much, as all Philly teams were beaten soundly.