Phillippe and Marshall Reunite - Picture Series Part I

Over the next few weeks, I will periodically post pictures of interest relating to the 1897 Red River Valley League. These are pictures that did not fit into the context of my upcoming book: Divorcees, Barmaids, and Cranks: The 1897 Red River Valley Baseball League.

Fargo's Deacon Phillippe and Grand Forks' Joe Marshall, rivals in the 1897 Red River Valley League, became teammates just six years later in the major leagues. This photo was taken during Marshall's only year with the Pittsburgh Pirates of the National League, in 1903. Marshall was a reserve utility player who appeared in only ten games for the Pirates. Phillippe won a career high 25 games in his fourth year with the club, and he would play the rest of his career in Pittsburgh before retiring from baseball in 1911. The 1903 Pirates fell to the Boston Americans, five games to three, in the inaugural World Series. Deacon Phillippe won all three games for the Pirates, while Marshall did not appear in the series. 

As noted in the caption below the photo, Phillippe is standing in the back row, third from the left. Marshall is seated on the floor, furthest to the left.

The Pittsburgh Dispatch, September 20, 1903

Team information from http://www.baseball-reference.com/.

Another Fargo Major Leaguer? - Some Detective Work

Though not directly relevant to the 1897 Red River Valley League season, the July 14^th Forum gave readers an update on a player named Sexton, who had played in Fargo as Wilson the summer before. Sexton was now playing left field for the New Bedford, Massachusetts team of the New England League and was reported to be “batting like a fiend.” After a short trip over to the indispensable www.baseball-reference.com, I discovered that the 1897 New Bedford, MA team did feature a player named Frank Sexton, who had played in 1895 in the National League for the Boston Beaneaters. To confirm that Sexton and Wilson were indeed the same person, I had to determine when and where Sexton played during the summer of 1896. Sporting News articles show Sexton playing in late June 1896 for a team in Springfield, Massachusetts. Sexton disappears from the Springfield box scores after that, which corresponds to the appearance of a Wilson playing for Fargo, who first appeared in late July 1896. The story seems to check out that another major leaguer likely played in Fargo in 1896. 

- “Baseball,” Fargo Forum and Daily Republican, July 14, 1897.

- http://www.baseball-reference.com/register/team.cgi?id=089fa5df

- http://www.baseball-reference.com/register/team.cgi?id=093512be

- The Sporting News, June 27, 1896.

Rookie Pitcher Deacon Phillippe Tosses No-Hitter

Less than two years after appearing with Fargo in the Red River Valley League, Charles "Deacon" Phillippe found himself in the major leagues pitching for the Louisville Colonels of the National League. On May 25, 1899, Phillippe shut down the New York Giants, surrendering no hits and issuing three walks in a 7-0 Colonel victory. It would be the only no-hitter of his career. Below, Phillippe received accolades from The Sporting Life, appearing on the front page of the June 10 edition of the sporting weekly. The paper spelled his last name as Phillippi, a customary error made for several years by most newspapers. 

The Sporting Life, June 10, 1899.

Josh Reilly with Ty Cobb, Johnny Evers

The Morning Herald, Gloversville and Johnstown, NY, August 28, 1931.