| George Bradley | |
|---|---|
 Bradley in an 1887 baseball card | |
| Pitcher /Third baseman | |
| Born:(1852-07-13)July 13, 1852 Reading, Pennsylvania, U.S. | |
| Died: October 2, 1931(1931-10-02) (aged 79) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| May 4, 1875, for the St. Louis Brown Stockings | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| August 8, 1888, for the Baltimore Orioles | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Win–loss record | 171–151 |
| Earned run average | 2.43 |
| Strikeouts | 671 |
| Batting average | .229 |
| Home runs | 3 |
| Runs batted in | 172 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
George Washington Bradley (July 13, 1852 – October 2, 1931), nicknamed "Grin", was an American professionalbaseball player who was apitcher andinfielder. He played for multiple teams in the early years of theNational League, the oldest league still active inMajor League Baseball (MLB) and theAmerican Association. Bradley is noted for pitching the firstno-hitter officially recognized by MLB, on July 15, 1876 for theSt. Louis Brown Stockings. As a player, he was listed at 5 feet 10 inches (1.78 m) and 175 pounds (79 kg); he threw and batted right-handed.[1]
Bradley is credited as throwing the first officialno-hit, no-run game in major league history. He pitched for theSt. Louis Brown Stockings in the clubs victory over theHartford Dark Blues on July 15, 1876. The score ended 2–0 without a hit being allowed by Bradley.[2][3] That year, he completed 63 of the 64 games for St. Louis, winning 45 and leading the league with a 1.23earned run average. Additionally, he also threw 16shutouts, setting a record which has not been broken to date, although was tied in 1916, 40 years later, byHall of Fame pitcherGrover Cleveland Alexander.[4] Modern statistics, includingWins Above Replacement, rate him as one of the best pitchers in 1876.[5]
After 1876, Bradley was not as effective as a pitcher and played mostly other positions after 1879. He was involved in professional baseball for 30 years, 19 of them with thePhiladelphia Athletics. In 1883, he was the team's regularthird baseman and also went 16–7 on the mound to help the A's win theAmerican Association championship.[6]
In 1887, he served as aplayer-manager for theNashville Blues of theSouthern League.[7] He returned briefly to a major league, going hitless in one game for theBaltimore Orioles of theAmerican Association in 1888.[8] He continued to play in the minor leagues until 1890.[4]
Bradley became aPhiladelphiapolice officer following his baseball career. He retired in 1930. He was married and had four children.[4]
He died at his home in Philadelphia,on October 2, 1931.[1] At the time of his death at age 79, he was retired on a pension from the police department, which he had only begun receiving in September 1931.
Bradley was interred at theNorthwood Cemetery in Philadelphia.[1]
· Baseball Almanac| Achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Joe Borden (not recognized by MLB) | No-hitter pitcher July 15, 1876 | Succeeded by |