Jay Pike
From BR Bullpen
Jacob Emanuel Pike
- Bats Left, Throws Left
[edit] Biographical Information
Jay Pike is an enigma. SABR wrote a biography of him indicating that much about his life is uncertain. It is generally thought that the individual called Jay Pike who played for the 1877 Hartford Dark Blues (who were based in Brooklyn, NY) was the brother of star Lip Pike, but the historical references are not clear.
Some sources list Jay Pike's full name as "Jacob Emanuel Pike", but there is no reliable source for that information. It is known from census records that Lip Pike had a number of brothers: Boaz (born circa 1842), Israel (1854), Solomon (1855) and Charly (1859); Lipman, was born in 1845. Both Lipman and Boaz were amateur players starting as early as 1865. Boaz, while apparently a prodigious hitter, was old enough that he retired instead of playing in the new National Association in 1871, while Lip went on to become a big star. For his part, Israel, who was younger, played for various clubs that were not part of the National Association. Brooklyn city directories from the late 1880s list the following persons living at the same address: Jane Pike (the brothers' mother), Boaz, Israel, and J. Pike, while J. Pike is again listed by newspapers among the attendees at Lip Pike's funeral in 1893. That would make it seem as though the enigmatic "Jay" is one of the family's two youngest brothers (and not Israel, as had previously been surmised), but the evidence is not conclusive.
When Jay appeared for Hartford in 1877, his brother Lip was playing for Cincinnati.
[edit] Further Reading
- "Lip's Brother", in Bill Carle, ed.: Biographical Research Committee Report, SABR, November/December 2008, p. 2.
