Elmer White

Who was Elmer White?

Willard Elmer White was a Major League Baseball player in 1871 with the Cleveland Forest Citys. He was Forest City's regular right fielder and back-up catcher until he broke his arm running into a fence on June 22. White was the cousin of Deacon White and Will White. He batted .257 in 1871 and finished 5th in the National Association with 6 strikeouts, a high number for that era.

White had the misfortune of becoming the first recorded professional baseball player to die when he died in his hometown of Caton, New York at the age of 21, shortly before the beginning of the 1872 season.