Dan Brouthers was Baseball’s first great slugger. Brouthers played professionally from 1879 to 1904, making him the first player to play in four different decades. In his baseball career, that distinguished him as one of the greatest hitters to ever play the game, he compiled a batting average of .342 and hit 107 homeruns, which was fourth of all time among 19th century players. However, his baseball story did not begin with glory right away. He was released from the Troy Trojans in 1880 and contemplated whether or not he would retire from the game of baseball for good. Dan was lucky enough to be able to make the acquaintance of “Honest John” Kelly, who was a catcher for the Trojans, in 1979 during his first tryout for Troy. Kelly, a New York City native, was starting a ball club in New York and wanted Brouthers. Although he only played a few weeks on the New York team before it moved to Hoboken, Dan pitched a game against the Atlantics and would then transfer to them. When he played for the New York team he was introduced by The Clipper, which “introduced a new spelling of Dennis’ surname when it announced that ‘Brothers, the big batsman, will play for the New York Club’” (Kerr). Kelly gave Brouthers the opportunity again to play baseball and he took it and ran with it garnering an opportunity with a new team.
Big Dan played for the Troy Trojans, Buffalo Bison, Detroit Wolverines, Boston Beaneaters, Boston Reds, Brooklyn Grooms, Baltimore Orioles, Louisville Colonels, Philadelphia Phillies, and the New York Giants in his career during his four decade career. Dan rose to fame in Buffalo, as he was part of the “Big Four” of Buffalo. During his long illustrious career he was able to accomplish many historical feats. “He won five batting and on-base percentage titles, seven slugging titles, and was the first player to win the batting and slugging crowns in successive years” (Kerr). His .342 batting average has him tied with Babe Ruth for ninth all time and his 205 triples leaves him in eighth all time. Even though Big Dan had an advantage being a lefty, Dan was elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee in 1945, cementing his legacy as one of the best power hitters of all time!
Works Cited
Kerr, Roy. Big Dan Brouthers: Baseball’s First Great Slugger. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland &, 2003. Print.
Dan Bothers: Baseball Profile 