Johnson, Ban

Johnson, Ban

▪ American baseball executive
byname of  Byron Bancroft Johnson  
born Jan. 5, 1864, Norwalk, Ohio, U.S.
died March 28, 1931, St. Louis, Mo.

      U.S. professional baseball administrator and first president of the American League of Professional Baseball Clubs (1900–27).

      Johnson attended Oberlin and Marietta colleges in Ohio; he also attended law school in Cincinnati but did not finish the course. He became a reporter for the Cincinnati Commercial Gazette in the mid-1890s and later became sports editor. He met many baseball players, owners, and managers, including Charles Comiskey, who in 1894 persuaded him to become president of the Western League. After a year he abandoned his newspaper work and devoted the rest of his life to baseball.

      In that period professional baseball was engaged in a “war” between the National League and Johnson's Western League (renamed the American League in 1900). The American League began to move teams into what had been exclusively National League territory, culminating in 1903 with a New York City franchise. In that year the Cincinnati Agreement between the two leagues resolved competition between them. Johnson initiated the annual World Series championship games between the two leagues in 1903 and cleaned up rowdyism at the ballparks to the point that baseball acquired an image conducive to family attendance. Though Johnson helped expose the Black Sox Scandal (q.v.) of 1920, he opposed the appointment of a single commissioner for baseball to replace the earlier three-man commission. His differences with the first commissioner, Kenesaw Mountain Landis, gradually eroded his authority, and he resigned in 1927. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1937.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Ban Johnson — et Babe Ruth faisant une pause cigare avant un match à Washington en 1922 Byron Bancroft Johnson, dit Ban Johnson (5 janvier 1864 – 28 mars 1931) est le président fondateur de la Ligue américaine de baseball de 1901 …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Ban Johnson — Byron Bancroft Ban Johnson (January 5, 1864 ndash; March 28, 1931), was an American executive in professional baseball who served as the founder and first president of the American League (AL).Johnson developed the AL, a descendant of the minor… …   Wikipedia

  • Boris Johnson — Infobox Mayor honorific prefix = name = Boris Johnson honorific suffix = imagesize = office = Mayor of London term start = 4 May 2008 term end = deputy = Richard Barnes predecessor = Ken Livingstone successor = office2 = Shadow Minister of State… …   Wikipedia

  • Daniel Lorenz Johnson — For other people of the same name, see Daniel Johnson (disambiguation). Daniel Lorenz Johnson Born May 24, 1974 (1974 05 24) (age 37) Seattle, Washington, USA Residence Ravenna, Seattle, Washington (present); North Hollywood, Los Angeles,… …   Wikipedia

  • Don L. Johnson — For other people called Don or Donald Johnson, see Don Johnson (disambiguation). Don L. Johnson (1927–2006) was among Wisconsin s best known outdoor writers. His career included widely acclaimed nature writing, groundbreaking investigative… …   Wikipedia

  • Hewlett Johnson — The Very Reverend Hewlett Johnson (25 January 1874 22 October 1966), was an English clergyman, Dean of Manchester and later Dean of Canterbury, where he acquired his nickname The Red Dean of Canterbury for his unyielding support for the Soviet… …   Wikipedia

  • Smoking ban — An internationally recognizable No Smoking sign …   Wikipedia

  • Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty — 7 October 1963 President Kennedy signs the Limited Nuclear Test Ban Treaty in the Treaty Room at the White House. L R: William Hopkins, Sen. Mike Mansfield, John J. McCloy, Adrian S. Fisher, Sen. John Pastore, W. Averell Harriman, Sen. George… …   Wikipedia

  • Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act — For the failed 1995 bill, see Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act of 1995. Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003 Full title An Act to prohibit the procedure commonly known as partial birth abortion. Colloquial name(s) PBA Ban Enacted by the …   Wikipedia

  • Samuel Curtis Johnson, Jr. — Infobox Person name = Samuel Curtis Johnson, Jr. caption = birth date = birth date|1928|3|2|mf=y birth place = death date = death date and age|2004|5|22|1928|3|2|mf=y death place = occupation = Manufacturer spouse = Imogene Powers Johnson parents …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”