Bill Watkins (baseball)

For other people, see William Watkins.

Bill Watkins
Third baseman / Manager
Born: (1858-05-05)May 5, 1858
Brantford, Canada West
Died: June 9, 1937(1937-06-09) (aged 79)
Port Huron, Michigan, U.S.
Batted: Right
Threw: Unknown
MLB debut
August 1, 1884, for the Indianapolis Hoosiers
Last MLB appearance
October 13, 1884, for the Indianapolis Hoosiers
MLB statistics
Batting average.205
Home runs0
Runs scored16
Managerial record452–444
Teams
As player

As manager

Career highlights and awards

William Henry Watkins (May 5, 1858 – June 9, 1937), sometimes known as "Wattie,"[1] or "Watty,"[2] was a Canadian-born baseball player, manager, executive and team owner whose career in organized baseball spanned 47 years from 1876 to 1922.

He began playing organized baseball in Canada and Michigan and played one season of Major League Baseball as an infielder for the Indianapolis Hoosiers in 1884. He was a manager of five major league clubs and several minor league clubs, including stints with the Indianapolis Hoosiers (1884–85), Detroit Wolverines (1885–1888), Kansas City Cowboys (1888–89), St. Louis Browns (1893) and Pittsburgh Pirates (1898–99). He led the 1887 Detroit Wolverines to the first professional sports championship for Detroit with a National League pennant and a victory over the St. Louis Browns in the 1887 World Series. He was also the business manager of the 1914 Indianapolis Hoosiers team that won the Federal League pennant, the first and only major league baseball championship for Indianapolis.

  1. ^ "William H. (Wattie) Watkins obituary". The Sporting News. June 17, 1937. p. 2.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Hair was invoked but never defined (see the help page).