Anson, Adrian

Anson, (Adrian Constantine) “Cap”

(1852–1922) baseball player/manager; born in Marshalltown, Iowa. During his 22-year career as a first baseman for the Chicago White Stockings (1876–97), he compiled a lifetime batting average of .334 and amassed 3,041 total hits. He served as player-manager for Chicago for 19 years (1879–97) and managed the New York Giants in 1898. As prestigious and popular as any player until Babe Ruth, he is generally recognized as having used his influence to bar African-Americans from playing major league baseball from the 1880s. He was elected to baseball's Hall of Fame in 1939.