James Leon "Jimmy" Wood (December 1 1842 – November 30 1927) was an
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
second basemanSecond base, or 2B, is the second of four stations on a baseball diamond which must be touched in succession by a base runner in order to score a run for that player's team. A second baseman is the baseball player guarding second base...
and
managerIn baseball, the head coach of a team is called the manager ; this individual controls matters of team strategy on the field and team leadership. Managers are typically assisted by between one and six assistant coaches, whose responsibilities are specialized...
in
Major League BaseballMajor League Baseball is the highest level of play in North American professional baseball. Specifically, Major League Baseball refers to the organization that operates the National League and the American League, by means of a joint organizational structure that has developed gradually between...
who hailed from
BrooklynBrooklyn is one of the five boroughs of New York City, located southwest of Queens on the western tip of Long Island. An independent city until its consolidation with New York in 1898, Brooklyn is New York City's most populous borough, with 2.5 million residents, and second largest in area...
,
New YorkNew York is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous. The state is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. He was the
player-managerPlayer/manager is a sports term used to described a manager of a team who is also registered to play for the team. In football , this situation usually arises when a manager leaves a team suddenly, and the chairman has to make a quick decision to appoint someone new as a caretaker manager...
for four different teams in the
National AssociationThe National Association of Professional Base Ball Players , or simply the National Association , was founded in 1871 and continued through the 1875 season...
, where he spent his entire career.
Wood's career in organized baseball began as early as 1860 when he began play for the
Eckford of BrooklynEckford of Brooklyn, or simply Eckford, was an American baseball club from 1855 to 1872. When the pioneering Union Grounds opened for baseball in 1862, the Eckfords must have been the most important tenant, for they played more games than any other club that year and won the "national"...
team, with whom he played for nine seasons during the following decade.
James Leon "Jimmy" Wood (December 1 1842 – November 30 1927) was an
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
second basemanSecond base, or 2B, is the second of four stations on a baseball diamond which must be touched in succession by a base runner in order to score a run for that player's team. A second baseman is the baseball player guarding second base...
and
managerIn baseball, the head coach of a team is called the manager ; this individual controls matters of team strategy on the field and team leadership. Managers are typically assisted by between one and six assistant coaches, whose responsibilities are specialized...
in
Major League BaseballMajor League Baseball is the highest level of play in North American professional baseball. Specifically, Major League Baseball refers to the organization that operates the National League and the American League, by means of a joint organizational structure that has developed gradually between...
who hailed from
BrooklynBrooklyn is one of the five boroughs of New York City, located southwest of Queens on the western tip of Long Island. An independent city until its consolidation with New York in 1898, Brooklyn is New York City's most populous borough, with 2.5 million residents, and second largest in area...
,
New YorkNew York is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous. The state is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. He was the
player-managerPlayer/manager is a sports term used to described a manager of a team who is also registered to play for the team. In football , this situation usually arises when a manager leaves a team suddenly, and the chairman has to make a quick decision to appoint someone new as a caretaker manager...
for four different teams in the
National AssociationThe National Association of Professional Base Ball Players , or simply the National Association , was founded in 1871 and continued through the 1875 season...
, where he spent his entire career.
Wood's career in organized baseball began as early as 1860 when he began play for the
Eckford of BrooklynEckford of Brooklyn, or simply Eckford, was an American baseball club from 1855 to 1872. When the pioneering Union Grounds opened for baseball in 1862, the Eckfords must have been the most important tenant, for they played more games than any other club that year and won the "national"...
team, with whom he played for nine seasons during the following decade. In 1870, he took the position of player-manager for the
Chicago White StockingsWhite Stockings or "Chicago White Stockings" was an original name of two professional baseball clubs in Chicago, Illinois, namely the two Major League Baseball clubs that operate today* Chicago Cubs...
. It was here that he is credited for inventing
Spring trainingIn Major League Baseball, spring training is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to audition for roster and position spots, and gives existing team players practice time prior to competitive play...
when he moved his team down to
New Orleans, LouisianaNew Orleans is a major U.S. port and the largest city in the state of Louisiana. New Orleans is the center of the New Orleans Metropolitan Area, the largest metro area in the state....
prior to season to train in warmer weather. For the season, the team became a charter member of the National Association, but folded the following season, and Wood moved on to manage two other ill-fated teams; the
Troy HaymakersThe Troy Haymakers were a member of the National Association, the first professional baseball league, in 1871 and 1872. Their home games were played at Haymakers' Grounds in Troy, New York. They were managed by Lip Pike, Bill Craver, and Jimmy Wood....
and his old Eckford team. The next season, , he managed the
Philadelphia White StockingsThe Philadelphia White Stockings were an early professional baseball team. They were a member of the National Association from 1873 to 1875. Their home games were played at the Jefferson Street Grounds...
for a year until he was able to reorganize a new Chicago team.
In , he tried to lance an abscess on his leg with a pocketknife. This caused an infection which led to an eventual
amputationAmputation is the removal of a body extremity by trauma or surgery. As a surgical measure, it is used to control pain or a disease process in the affected limb, such as malignancy or gangrene. In some cases, it is carried out on individuals as a preventative surgery for such problems...
of the leg. This did not end his managerial career, though; he returned to the
Chicago White StockingsThe Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago , the Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the...
, and managed them for two seasons before the National Association folded in . He then retired from professional baseball and moved to
FloridaFlorida is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States, bordering Alabama to the northwest and Georgia to the north. It was the 27th state admitted to the United States...
and began investing in
citrusCitrus is a common term and genus of flowering plants in the family Rutaceae, originating in tropical and subtropical southeast regions of the world. The most well known examples are the orange, the lemon, the grapefruit, and the lime. The Latin word citrus was borrowed from ancient Greek kedros...
interests. His daughter, Carrie, married
William Chase TempleWilliam Chase Temple was a coal, citrus, and lumber baron during the late 1800s and early 1900s. He was also a part owner of the Pittsburgh Pirates from baseball's National League...
, who was at one time, the owner of the
Pittsburgh PiratesThe Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series Champions, in addition to the distinction of playing in the first modern World Series. The Pirates are also often...
. It was he who the
Temple CupFor the Henley Royal Regatta event, see Temple Challenge CupThe Temple Cup was a trophy awarded to the winner of a best-of-seven, post-season Major League Baseball championship series that was conducted for four seasons in the National League, from 1894–1897. The Temple Cup was also known as the...
was named after. Wood's granddaughter, Dorothy Temple, married pitcher Del Mason. Wood's whereabouts had been debated for years until recently. In 1885, he operated a sporting goods store in
ChicagoChicago is the largest city in the U.S. state of Illinois, and with more than 2.8 million people, the 3rd largest city in the United States...
. He was traced all over the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and
CanadaCanada is a country occupying most of northern North America, extending from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and eventually wound up in
San Francisco, CaliforniaSan Francisco is the fourth most populous city in California and the 12th most populous city in the United States, with a 2008 estimated population of 808,976. It is the eighth most densely populated city in the U.S. and is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the larger San...
, where he died and is interred at
Greenwood CemeteryGreenwood Cemetery is a cemetery in New Orleans, Louisiana.The cemetery was opened in 1852, and is located on City Park Avenue in the Navarre neighborhood.The cemetery has a number of impressive monuments and sculptures...
in New Orleans.
External links