Bill Barnie

Barnie was working in a brokerage office when he broke into baseball in 1871 as a catcher/outfielder. While managing Baltimore’s American Association team in the 1880’s, he occasionally caught for his team, but his .180 BA hardly indicated “leading by example.” His third-place finish in 1887 was his best season, but “Bald Billy” managed for 14 ML seasons. In 1900, while managing Hartford of the Eastern League, he died in midseason from asthmatic bronchitis.