Patrick O'Loughlin

Patrick Henry O'Loughlin

• Bats Unknown, Throws Unknown

• Debut May 9, 1883
• Final Game May 9, 1883
• Born May, 1860 in Ireland
• Died May 18, 1927 in Lowell, MA USA

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Biographical Information

A man who was for over a hundred years known simply as Loughlin hit .400 in his one game in the majors for the Baltimore Orioles in 1883. In 2011, SABR researcher Bob Richardson was able to identify him as Patrick O'Loughlin.

Since nothing was known about Loughlin, it was speculated that he could be Ben Laughlin, who appeared in 1873. There was also a Thomas Loughran who played in 1884, who could have been him.

The SABR minor league database lists, instead of Loughlin, a Bill Loughran on the 1883 Orioles, a player who the database also says played for Binghamton in 1888. However, the birth and death dates and places for this Bill Loughran match the birth and death dates and places of Thomas Loughran. The SABR biogaphy of Jim Price quotes an newspaper article referring to "William Loughran" rather than Thomas in 1884.

Bob Richardson was able to clear all this confusion through an item in the Lowell Morning Times' newspaper that referred to the catcher on the 1883 Orioles as a native of Lowell, MA, one "P.H. Laughlin." He is also mentioned in other issues of the paper as "Loughlin" or "O'Loughlin", with no consistent spelling. The Lowell city directories however include a Patrick H. O'Loughlin, who can be traced until his death in 1927 and is almost certainly the mystery ballplayer.

Further Reading

• "Patrick O'Loughlin Found", in Bill Carle, ed.: Biographical Research Committee Report, SABR, July/August 2011, p. 1.