National League Umpires, 1884

Burns Replaced by Malone, August 12

Decker Replaced by Ferguson circa September 10

McLean Served all year long

Van Court Replaced by Gaffney, August 8 Replaced by Furlong, September 29

John Burns, Umpire

John S. Burns was a resident of New Britain, Connecticut and a brother of Tom Burns, the popular Chicago shortstop.  He was hired by the National League as a rookie umpire for the 1884 season.  He did such a poor job of officiating his first game that one reporter noted "the principal sport seemed to be provided by the umpire," and that "Secretary Young has given the league some very raw material in this young man."  As the season went on, he was criticized for everything from blown calls to allowing loose bats to clutter the foul territory.  During an important Boston-Providence series, even the Boston press charged that "Mr. Burns...persistently favored the Bostons and showed, as he had before, that he is unfit for the position."  For the first two months of the 1884 season, Burns and McLean alternated as the only two umpires for all Grays games, so he earned the special attention of the Providence press.  Even the board of directors of the Providence Base Ball Association grew hostile to young Burns, hissing and hooting at his decisions from the grandstand so loudly that he considered having them banned from their own park.  The Grays were not the only team to complain, though, and Burns was dropped from the staff in mid-August in favor of Fergy Malone.

S.M. Decker, Umpire

Decker was rumored to be a college graduate and former book-keeper at a Pennsylvania bank.  He umpired in the National League in 1883, and was assigned to Providence as umpire for the start of the 1884 year.  He earned some respect from the Cleveland Leader, who in July claimed that "Decker is everywhere admitted to be the best umpire in the league," but two months later Decker demonstrated to them "how excruciatingly weak a league umpire can be when he really sets out to do the act up brown."  Another reporter thought that "Decker's judgement on strikes and balls is faulty.  He does not get in good position to see.  It looks as though he stooped behind the catcher so as not to get hit."  He was replaced by Bob Ferguson in early September.

Decker returned for the 1885 season, and (even more than other umpires) was hated in Providence.  He was regarded as actively engaged in throwing games against them.  After one June 1885 game, the Journal wrote that "the New Yorks, in addition to their nine players, had the very efficient services of Umpire Decker, and he proved a valuable acquisition, and certainly contributed more to their success than did the Maroons themselves...  Never in the history of League base ball in Providence has there been such a wretched exhibition of unfair decisions and poor judgement."  He had to be escorted from Messer Park by several policemen.  The next week, Providence secured the promise of the league president that Decker would not umpire any of their games unless absolutely necessary.  Philadelphia was issued similar assurances.

Bob Ferguson, Umpire

Bob Ferguson was one of the great players of the 1870s, making his mark mostly as a third baseman for the Brooklyn Atlantics and the Hartford Dark Blues.  He moved to second base in the early 1880s as his playing career began to wind down.  He began the 1884 season as manager of an Eastern League team, then was hired to manage the Pittsburgh Alleghenies of the American Association in June.  However, he led the team to a 5-21 record (the worst of the five managers who held the reins for Pittsburgh that year).  He was released in mid-July without any realistic hope of finding a playing or managing job; one paper noted that "he never ought to be captain or manager.  He cannot lead men." Only one option remained for him to stay in baseball.   In early September, he was hired as a National League umpire.  He quickly gained the respect of all observers.  In his first week on the job, one Boston writer not only applauded his appointment, but proposed putting him in charge of all League umpires.  He won respect for, among other things, being the only umpire in the league to go without a mask.  He umpired in four of the Grays' games that fall.

W.E. Furlong, Umpire

Furlong, a Milwaukee resident and former National League umpire, was called out of retirement on September 28 1884 to take John Gaffney's place after Gaffney had been viciously assaulted by a player.  He did not umpire in any Grays' games.

John "King of Umpires" Gaffney, Umpire

John H. Gaffney was born in Roxbury, Massachusetts on June 29, 1855.  He moved to Worcester with his parents at age eleven.  He became a promising third baseman, signed with the minor-league Lynn Live Oaks.  He played outfield with Barney Gilligan and Tim Keefe on the Westboro and Clinton teams in 1878 and 1879, and looked to be headed for the majors along with them.  However, he injured his arm while throwing a snowball in 1880, ending his playing career.  He then worked as a printer, and began umpiring games on the side.  He quickly established himself as a capable baseball umpire, working in semi-pro games as early as September of 1882.  He opened the season as one of the Massachuasetts State Association umpiring crew, and also served in a number of local college games.  He was depicted as something of a local hero in the Worcester press.  A typical account of one of his games read, "Gaffney's umpiring was as usual satisfactory, and he was applauded several times by the crowd." On August 8, he was appointed as a new National League umpire, replacing a San Franciscan named Eugene Van Court.  Upon his departure from Worcester, he was remembered as "clear-headed, quick of eye, active of foot and ready to run as near a scene of decision as possible, and thoroughly posted regarding points and rules...  He has the congratulations of the entire base-ball circle of Worcester."

Gaffney quickly established himself as a competent major league official.  Within a week, the star pitchers from both Providence and Boston were in agreement that he was the best ball and strike umpire in the league, and those two rival teams never agreed on much.  If he had one weakness, it was "an inclination to be too quick in giving a decision, calling a ball or a strike before the ball is fairly over the plate."  The eight-team league only employed four umpires, and each one seems to have followed a single team for extended periods.  Gaffney seems to have managed most of the Providence games.  He was popular in Providence, possibly because the team went 15-1 under his oversight, and possibly also because in Worcester he had grown friendly with Bancroft and Irwin of the Grays.  One newspaper in Fall River basically accused Gaffney on several occasions of selling games to Providence, a horrible allegation to make without evidence.  Even the most partisan papers in Boston did not pass along this rumor, and Gaffney's integrity seems to have been generally accepted.

Six weeks into his term, Gaffney umpired a controversial New York - Buffalo game.  After the game, New York's star shortstop Monte Ward, who was having a tough year, punched out Gaffney in the hotel.  Ward's punch knocked Gaffney over a couch, and the ring on Ward's finger opened up a nasty cut on the unfortunate umpire's face.  Gaffney still worked the next day, although the cut re-opened when he was hit in the face with a ball.  Ward had a reputation as one of the most refined and educated ball-players, and was obviously embarrassed by this act of temper.  He offered a public apology for the incident along with reimbursement for Gaffney's medical expenses.  Gaffney declined to press charges, and after September 27 either resigned or was given the rest of the season off by the league. He had a more pleasant experience in October, when he was invited to a festive reception in East Providence in honor of the Grays' pennant.  Each of the Grays received a "very neat watch charm in the form of a gold rooster", and Umpire Gaffney was presented with one as well.

Gaffney trained in the spring of 1885 much as the players did, taking long walks and consulting with his fellow umpires on rules variations.  He was reported as being "in fine trim for quick starts and sharp running" and mentally "clear-headed, cool and well-posted regarding the game, thoroughly reliable and uniformly courteous."  He was regarded as a favorite umpire in Providence.  However, his health failed him that August, due in part to his strenuous approach to his craft.  His unusual zeal in running toward the base where a close play was to be made, his vigor in shouting out calls and his insistence on squatting close to the catcher without a chest protector all contributed to a breakdown and a leave of absence.  He even proffered his resignation, but it was declined, and he returned to work within two weeks.  However, he soon found a way to move beyond the demands of umpiring, at least for a couple of years.

In those days, the roles of baseball men were not so well defined.  Some men, such as Tommy Bond and Bob Ferguson, went back and forth between playing and umpiring.  Harry Wright and Monte Ward had sporting goods empires in addition to their on-field roles.  Gaffney took another move that would be impossible today.  He became manager of the Washington Statesmen in August of the 1886 season.  Despite a team composed largely of ex-Grays such as Start, Farrell, Hines, Gilligan, Carroll, Shaw, Houck and Crane, the Washingtons had limped to a 13-66 record before Gaffney took the helm.  Gaffney lit a fire under these underachievers, boosting their record to a merely awful 15-26.  In 1887, with a rookie catcher named Connie Mack, he brought the team up to seventh place.  Gaffney got in trouble for illegally forcing one of his players to take a heavy pay cut, which the Brotherhood of Profesional Baseball Players successfully overturned in arbitration.  He then returned to umpiring for 1888 in the American Association (and Washington was once again last in the National League).

He umpired every World Championship series game from 1887 to 1889, initiating the two-umpire system there.  He then joined the Player's League in 1890, helping to bring credibility to the new league.  He continued umpiring for many years.  Among his many innovations were: wearing spikes on the field; standing behind the pitcher with men on base; calling home runs fair or foul based on where they went over the fence, rather than where they landed; and wearing a blouse to hold extra balls.  He was released after the 1893 season for excessive drinking, and spent the next seven years bouncing back and forth between the National League and the minors.  He then returned to umping college games in Worcester, and around 1910 moved to New York City, where he served as a night watchman in a gas house.  He died in New York City on August 8, 1913, and was buried in a pauper's grave.  His old player, Connie Mack, was by then a well-respected manager.  He arranged a benefit game in Worcester between Philadelphia and Boston to build a monument over the grave of the man they called "The King of Umpires."

Ferguson G. "Fergy" Malone, Umpire

Fergy Malone was born in Ireland in 1842.  He was raised playing cricket in Philadelphia in the 1850s, but then quickly learned the fast-growing American national game.  He was a noted left-handed catcher in the golden era of amateur baseball, making his first mark with the Philadelphia Athletics in 1862, and also playing with the Washington Olympics and Philadelphia Quaker City club.  He officially turned pro with Philadelphia in 1871.  There he was one of the first catchers to wear a pair of light gloves while behind the bat.  He was plagued by arm problems, and left the major leagues after catching several games for Philadelphia in 1876.  He resurfaced as the manager of the hapless Philadelphia Keystones in the Union Association in 1884.  Things were so bad that the 42-year-old Malone actually had to fill in as catcher in one game.  His one notable achievement with the Keystones was bringing Jack Clements to the major leagues, who was a hard-hitting star catcher for sixteen more seasons.  This was not enough to save Malone's job, as he led Philadelphia to a 11-30 record before earning his dismissal in mid-season. 

Later that season, Malone was named to the four-man National League umpiring crew in mid-August of 1884, replacing the dismissed John Burns.  He struggled in his work.  A Boston columnist called him "a gentleman of preternatural stupidity" who "surpassed in this respect everything that has ever been known, or ever will be."   Another reporter perceived that "Umpire Malone had the blind staggers and umpired a very peculiar game.  It is the first instance on record of a blind man umpiring a game."  Malone only officiated in two Grays' games during his tour of the league, both games against Chicago in late August.  Both games lasted over two hours, when the large majority of Providence games were shorter.  This suggests that Malone had difficulty moving the games along, which is stressed as one of the umpire's major responsibilities in the official rules of the day.  After Malone's second and final game in Providence, the Providence Journal noted the "frequent expressions of amusement at Fergy Malone's strenuous exertions to umpire the game intelligently and impartially.  Perhaps it would be fair to say that his ignorance equally affected both teams, but as it was a sort of catch-as-catch-can operation, whatever preferences were given were unexpected, and hence all the more surprising and ludicrous."  The Chicago papers were much more concise: "Malone's umpiring was wretched."  

Malone soon left the umpiring business and was spotted managing the Williamsport team in the Eastern League in 1887.  He later became a special inspector for the United States Treasury in Philadelphia.  He remained there until 1903, when he was transferred to the customs office in Seattle.  He died in Seattle in 1905.

William "Billy" McLean, Umpire

William H. McLean was born in Scotland in 1833, and settled in Philadelphia with his parents at age 10.   He was one of the great all-around athletes of the 1860s, excelling in cricket, race walking and gymnastics.  He also won the world middleweight boxing championship in 1869, and played baseball with Philadelphia amateur clubs from 1866 onward.  As his athletic skills began to wane, he began serving as an umpire in the first professional baseball league in 1872, and quickly established himself as one of the few officials who could run a game fairly.  He was also able to maintain order without demonstrating his boxing prowess to any unruly players.  He was considered the first true professional umpire, and was on hand to officiate in the first National League game in 1876.  In the days before John Gaffney, he wore the crown of "The King of Umpires."  As he approached fifty years of age, umpiring bagan to wear him down, and he retired in 1881.  He worked intermittently through 1882 and 1883, but came back in 1884 for a full slate of games under the newly-expanded 112-game schedule.

McLean's appointment was greeted with joy in Boston, where reporters called him a decided favorite, and expected that "even ever grumbling and dissatisfied Providence cannot but bestow a forced smile at his appointment."  He opened the exhibition season in Philadelphia, where he got off to a bad start.  A group of hecklers spent their afternoon directing abuse at him, which only grew worse when McLean walked over and threatened to "clean out the grandstand."

Matters escalated, and McLean threw a bat "with vicious force" into the crowd, striking an innocent man.  A riot nearly ensued, with Harry Stovey of the Athletics helping to stop the angry mob.  McLean's behavior was unacceptable even by the rough-hewn standards of the 1880s, and after the game he was arrested and hauled off to the police station.  He was required to pay bail of $500 to gain his release, and then was pressured into writing an apology for the Philadelphia press.  His apology hardly sounds apologetic: "Goaded by uncalled-for, as well as unexpected taunts, I for a moment - and but for a moment - forgot my position as an umpire and did what any man's nature would prompt if placed in a similar situation."   He went on to urge managers to "enforce the strictest order on their grounds ... otherwise the death of an honest and manly game is in the near future." 

McLean was then quickly transferred to Providence for a fresh start, and was assigned to umpire many of the Providence games in the first two months of the season.  His status as the first great umpire was not enough to gain the trust of the Providence management and press.  In a May 19 game, Paul Radford of the Grays was attempting to score and was blatantly obstructed by Detroit shortstop Frank Meinke.  Rather than fine Meinke, McLean called Radford out for interference.  This was reported by a non-partisan Boston reporter.  In one late June game, McLean gave a Grays' batter his base on balls, and the call was so terrible that "Manager Bancroft volunteered the assertion that Carroll should have been out on strikes."  Although McLean's calls benefitted the Grays that day, Bancroft told another reporter that "the Providence Club has got no use for McLean.  I believe he is a crank."  Bancroft also criticized McLean for wearing glasses.  The response of McLean, who was umpiring professional games when Bancroft was still a New Bedford hotel-keeper, was not recorded.  However, the Boston Sunday Courier jumped to his defense, noting sarcastically that "Mr. Bancroft deems McLean a crank... It is strange that McLean has been so long engaged in discharging the office of umpire without betraying this to anyone until the sage and successful Bancroft discovered it."

Having met with hostility from Providence and Philadelphia fans, McLean then received an anonymous death threat in red ink from a Boston fan that July.  The former boxing champion responded with the following open letter: "Sir, you are a coward.  If you are not, write and inform me where you can be found, for in that case I shall certainly find you when I go to Boston again."  McLean survived this incident as well, and in fact was the only one of the four National League umpires to last the entire season.  As 1884 was the longest season to date, that gave McLean the all-time record for official games umpired in a season.  With all of the mobs, death threats and insults from managers, the long season must have seemed like an eternity.

McLean was apparently frustrated by the rougher direction that the sport had taken, and retired at the end of the season.  He umpired in a few American Association games as a fill-in through 1890, but otherwise left baseball behind.  He served as a professor of boxing at the University of Pennsylvania, gave private boxing lessons, and was a beloved story-teller in Philadelphia for many years afterward.  He died there in 1927, at the age of 95.

Eugene Van Court, Umpire

Eugene L. Van Court, a native San Franciscan, was a National League umpire in 1884.  He was described as "a dapper little gentleman, with a blonde mustache and weighs about 100 pounds."  He had an unusual flair for showmanship that was calculated to please crowds.  The Boston Herald thought he did an excellent job: "Umpire Van Court ...is an earnest worker and strives hard to do right.  His attitudes and gymnastics when giving a decision on the bases were very amusing and convulsed the audience with laughter."  Another reporter thought that it was "fully worth the price of admission to a game to see Umpire Van Court's wonderful attitudes."  The July 19 game was delayed when Van Court was knocked out by a foul ball, but the cut over his left cheek was plastered to stop the bleeding and he was successfully revived so the game could resume.  It was reported that he "won't be so handsome hereafter."  This was probably enough to dampen his enthusiasm, but he stuck with the job.  In late July, he was transferred from Philadelphia at the insistence of owner Al Reach.  On August 1, he showed up late for the Grays' game in New York.  The teams appointed Providence pitcher Cyclone Miller as emergency umpire and started the game.  When Van Court showed up in the middle of the first inning, Providence refused to allow him to take his place on the field.  The next week, he was dismissed after a total of five clubs protested against his performance.  The Herald reported generously that "the position of umpire was distasteful to him, and he contemplated at one time giving his resignation, but finally concluded to remain on the field to the end...  He was certainly the right man for the place."

copyright Rick Stattler 2002

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