John Scott (scottji02)

John William Scott

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 9½", Weight 165 lb.

• Debut April 22, 1914
• Final Game May 1, 1914
• Born September 3, 1887 in Cincinnati, OH USA
• Died December 2, 1962 in Phoenix, AZ USA

BR page

Biographical Information

There are some as yet unresolved questions regarding the identity of John Scott, who was briefly an infielder with the Pittsburgh Rebels of the Federal League in 1914. He has been listed since the first edition of the Macmillan Baseball Encyclopedia as James Walter Scott, born in Pennsylvania in 1888, but was in fact John William Scott, a contemporary infielder who played in the minor leagues from 1909 to 1915. John Scott played for Indianapolis in 1913, which was part of the Federal League before it became a major league. He played for Erie of the Central League in 1912, and once again in 1913 between stints with Indianapolis and the Chicago team in the Federal League. He was on the preseason roster of the Brooklyn Tip-Tops in 1914.

Jim Scott, whose vital statistics had wrongly been attached to John's playing record, had also played in the Federal League in 1913, according to the Sporting Life, increasing the confusion. John Scott was acquired by Pittsburgh from Brooklyn in early April, and is referred to in various Pittsburgh papers as "John" in early stories, and then as "Jimmy Scott" later on. Evidence of the mistaken identity was found in John Scott's obituary, published in the Arizona Republic in 1962: it states that the man who had just died in Phoenix, AZ had played major league baseball and that his body was being sent back to Erie, PA for burial.

Further Reading

• "Great Scott! Do we have the wrong man?", in Bill Carle, ed.: Biographical Research Committee Report, SABR, May/June 2011, pp. 1-2.
• "John Scott", in Bill Carle, ed.: Biographical Research Committee Report, SABR, March/April 2012, p. 2.