Ross Barnes

Positions: Second Baseman and Shortstop
Bats: Right  •  Throws: Right
5-8, 145lb (173cm, 65kg)
Born: May 8, 1850 in Mount Morris, NY
Died: February 5, 1915  in Chicago, IL
Buried: Greenwood Cemetery, Rockford, IL
Debut: May 5, 1871 (19th in major league history)
Last Game: September 21, 1881
Full Name: Charles Roscoe Barnes
View Player Info from the B-R Bullpen
View Player Bio from the SABR BioProject

Nine Players Who Debuted in 1871

Cap Anson
Al Spalding
Bobby Mathews
Deacon White
Ezra Sutton
Ross Barnes
George Wright
Harry Wright
Levi Meyerle

All-Time Teammate Team

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Notable Events and Chronology for Ross Barnes Career

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July 12, 1871

The Boston Reds play the Kekiongas at Fort Wayne with the temperature reading 100 in the shade. Losing 8-6 after 5 innings‚ the Reds win the match 30-9. Al Spalding‚ Ross Barnes‚ and Fred Cone get 5 hits each.

June 30, 1872

The Boston Reds complete June with a 18-1 record. Ross Barnes leads the team in batting with a mark of .380‚ with George Wright at .368.

June 3, 1873

The Boston Reds visit the Union Grounds in Brooklyn to play the Mutuals in a game that goes to 12 innings before Boston wins 6-5. George Wright scores for the Reds on a hit by Ross Barnes.

October 13, 1873

In a slugging contest between Boston and Baltimore‚ the Reds score 32 runs on 32 hits‚ while the Lords tally 13 runs on 17 hits. Ross Barnes has 6 hits while the Reds Jim O’Rourke has 5 hits and 6 runs.

July 4, 1874

Chicago celebrates its return home after a 4-week eastern trip by defeating the league-leading Boston Red Stockings 17-16 before 10‚000 spectators. Pitcher George Zettlein bats in John Peters with the inning run in the 10th. Ross Barnes has 6 hits for the losers. And the end of today the Reds are (26-7); the A’s (20-9)‚ and the Mutes (15-13).

June 12, 1875

Philadelphia Athletics and Boston Red Stockings at the South End Grounds

July 20, 1875

The Chicago Tribune states that the Bostons will disband at the end of the season‚ with the Wrights going to Cincinnati

March 19, 1876

The Boston Herald reports the first practice of the Red Caps under the direction of George Wright. Manager Harry Wright is still in Florida‚ recuperating from a severe cold. The team has been weakened considerably by the loss to the Chicago White Stockings of Al Spalding‚ Cal McVey‚ and Ross Barnes.

May 2, 1876

At Cincinnati’s Avenue Grounds, Chicago’s Ross Barnes hits the first home run in the history of National League. In addition to his inside-the-park homer, the former National Association superstar also hits a single and a triple, steals two bases, and scores four runs in the White Stocking’s 19-5 victory over the Reds.   

May 2, 1876

Chicago’s Ross Barnes‚ the great batting star of the National Association‚ hits the first NL HR‚ an inside-the-park drive off William “Cherokee” Fisher against the Cincinnati Red Stockings in Cincinnati. Barnes also hits a triple‚ single‚ steals 2 bases‚ and scores 4 runs.

July 8, 1876

The Boston Herald carries the mid season averages showing hits and errors per game (not per at bat or chance). Chicago’s Ross Barnes is the top batter with 2.1 hits per game‚ and Dave Eggler of the Athletics is the leading fielder with .19 errors per game.

July 27, 1876

It must be contagious. For the third time in three games a Chicago player tallies six hits in a game. This time it is Ross Barnes who goes 6-for-6 as his teammates add another 17 hits to crush the Reds, 17–3. Cal McVeyhas 2 hits and will have 4 in Chicago’s next game, to again have a record 18 hits in 4 games. Chicago has scored 88 runs in its last 4 games, a major league record.

October 23, 1876

The Chicago Tribune publishes season-ending batting percentages based on the new method of dividing number of at bats into number of hits. Ross Barnes leads with a .429 average‚ thanks in part to the fair-foul rule. The following season‚ the rule is changed so that a ball hit in fair territory and rolls foul before passing first/third base is a foul ball.

May 8, 1877

The Chicago White Stockings‚ the defending NL Champs‚ edge Hartford 6-5 in their home opener

September 8, 1877

Chicago snaps Boston’s 12-game winning streak-6 of which came against Cincinnati-with an exciting 1-0 win behind George Bradley’s 3-hitter. Ross Barnes plays but shows “none of his old vim.”

September 14, 1877

A 2-out error by Ross Barnes opens the gates for a 4-run Hartford rally‚ giving the Dark Blues a 5-2 win over Chicago.

December 15, 1877

The signing of Ross Barnes by the IA champion Tecumseh club is announced. Word out of Barnes’ hometown of Rockford is that he agreed to terms back in February.

May 2, 1879

Cincinnati 2B Ross Barnes suffers a sprained neck when Troy’s Mike Mansell deliberately runs into him as he attempts a double play. Collisions on the basepaths and “breaking up the double play” are not yet accepted parts of the game. Mansell is severely censured for his actions.

December 21, 1911

In the New York Evening Journal‚ 80s player-manager Sam Crane picks his all-time list

January 10, 1918

Cap Anson picks his all-time team

November 17, 2021

The Best Offensive and Pitching Season of Each Decade

Biography

The clever second baseman was the NL’s first batting leader (.429) with Chicago in 1876. Having already won two National Association titles (1873, ’75), he was also the first player to lead two different leagues in batting. He specialized in “fair-foul” hits, squibbed bunts that landed fair, rolled foul, but remained in play under the rules of the time. When the rules were changed before the 1877 season his BA plummeted.

Factoids, Quotes, Milestones and Odd Facts

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