Frederick Ehlen

Frederick Ehlen

• Bats Unknown, Throws Unknown

• Debut April 14, 1873
• Final Game April 14, 1873

• Born September 12, 1851 in Baltimore, MD USA
• Died November 15, 1934 in Baltimore, MD USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Fred Ehlen played one game in right field for the Baltimore Marylands in 1873, going 0 for 3.

At the time, the man was listed simply as Eland. Little was known of this player except that he played in the Marylands' first game of the season - one they lost, but then they lost all six games they played.

The inability to find any other information about this player made researchers suspect that there had been a mistake in the transcription of his name: the word usually refers to a type of African antelope and is quite unusual as a surname, being absent from Census records of the time. There was however a man named "Ehlen" (also spelled "Ehlan", who was a ballplayer in the 1870s. Two brothers, William and Frederick Ehlen, were ballplayers around the appropriate time, and Fred later appeared in an old-timers' game played by local players. The evidence is that Fred is the man who played the game with Baltimore in 1873.

Further Reading

• "Antelope Hunting", in Bill Carle, ed.: Biographical Research Committee Report, November/December 2014, p. 1.