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Tom Loftus
From BR Bullpen
Thomas Joseph Loftus
- Bats Right, Throws Unknown
- Weight 168 lb.
- Debut August 17, 1877
- Final Game May 13, 1883
- Born November 15, 1856 in St. Louis, MO USA
- Died April 16, 1910 in Dubuque, IA USA
[edit] Biographical Information
" . . . one of the great builders-up of the national game." - Al Spink
Tom Loftus was a veteran minor league ball player of the 1870s and 1880s who played briefly in the majors before becoming a manager, owner and league president.
Loftus earned his first taste of the majors in 1877, playing briefly for the St. Louis Brown Stockings. At the age of twenty-two, he became the player-manager of a minor league franchise, the Peoria Reds the following year. He later played in the minors with Charlie Comiskey. They were also briefly teammates on the 1883 St. Louis Browns, and the pair formed a lifelong friendship.
Loftus later managed the Dubuque entry in the Northwestern League in 1895. He also managed several teams in four different major leagues (the Union Association, American Association, National League, and American League) and was, for a time, a part owner of the Washington Senators from their founding in 1901 until 1904. He was also President of the Illinois-Indiana-Iowa League in 1908.
His time as a manager in Dubuque allowed Loftus to develop business interests in that city. He made it his home and died there of throat cancer in April 1910.
| Preceded by Gus Schmelz |
Cincinnati Reds Manager 1890-1891 |
Succeeded by Charlie Comiskey |
| Preceded by Tom Burns |
Chicago Orphans Manager 1900-1901 |
Succeeded by Frank Selee |
| Preceded by Jim Manning |
Washington Senators Manager 1902-1903 |
Succeeded by Patsy Donovan |
