Cap Anson
Cap Anson was born on April 17, 1852. See ranking, bio blurb, and everyone else born that day.
About Cap Anson
Adrian Constantine Anson (April 17, 1852 – April 14, 1922), nicknamed "Cap", "Pop", and, early in his career, "Baby" and "The Marshalltown Infant", was an American professional baseball player who played a record 27 consecutive major league seasons. Anson was regarded as one of the greatest players of his era and one of the first superstars of the game. He spent most of his career with the National League's Chicago franchise, serving as the club's manager, first baseman and, later in his tenure, minority owner. He led the team to six pennants from 1876 to 1886. Anson was one of baseball's first great hitters, and probably the first to tally over 3,000 career hits. In addition to being a star player, he innovated managerial tactics such as signals between players and the rotation of pitchers. Anson played a role in establishing the racial segregation in professional baseball that persisted until the late 1940s. On several occasions, Anson refused to take the field when the opposing roster included black players. His demands may have been cited as representative of player attitudes by team owners of the International League when they voted on July 14, 1887 to ban the signing of new contracts with black players. After retiring as a player, Anson briefly managed the New York Giants. He ran several enterprises in Chicago, including opening a billiards and bowling hall and running a semi-professional baseball team he dubbed "Anson's Colts". Anson also toured extensively on the vaudeville circuit, performing monologues and songs. Many of his business ventures failed. As a result, Anson lost his ownership stake in the Chicago franchise and filed for bankruptcy. In 1939, Anson was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.