Casey

Casey is the lead character in Ernest Lawrence Thayer's epic poem Casey at the Bat.

Casey was the star of the Mudville Nine. However, when he came to the plate with the game on the line, he struck out to end it. The poem seems to paint Casey as an arrogant guy sure of his abilities, the kind of subject few people would feel sympathy for. In the 1930s, Dan Casey claimed that his brother Dennis Casey was the inspiration for the figure in the poem. When that claim did not work, he argued that he himself was the figure involved.

Many commentators instead see contemporary star Mike "King" Kelly as the likely inspiration, as Thayer had witnessed him take part in exhibition games in California before publishing the poem. Kelly had the sort of outsize and boastful personality displayed by Casey in the poem. Others have also been used as claims, but it is highly probable that the character was original and not based on any player.