Joe Dorsey

Joseph Wilbur Dorsey

• Bats Unknown, Throws Unknown

• Debut July 9, 1884
• Final Game July 9, 1884
• Born 1864 in Baltimore, MD USA
• Died January 31, 1913 in New York, NY USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Joe Dorsey pitched one game for the Baltimore Monumentals of the Union Association in 1884. He was originally identified as Michael Jeremiah Dorsey, or Jerry Dorsey, who was a minor league player at the time. However, this man played for clubs in Terre Haute, IN and Portsmouth, OH in 1884, while one of the few things known about the one-game pitcher was that he had played for Trenton, NJ before joining Baltimore. So that did not fit.

SABR researchers identified the correct man in 2018. Joseph Wilbur Dorsey did play for Trenton early in 1884, and the Richmond Dispatch, where the game was played on July 9th refers to the pitcher as J.W. Dorsey, a match for his initials. He was also originally from Baltimore, MD which helps to explain how he came to be recruited by the Monumentals.

After his baseball career, he worked in New York, NY as an auctioneer and died there of suicide in 1913.

Further Reading

• "Joseph Wilbur Dorsey", in Bill Carle, ed.: Biographical Research Committee Report, SABR, January/February 2018, p. 1.

Related Sites

• Joseph Dorsey at the SABR Bio Project