| Ossee Schreckengost | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Catcher | |
| Born:(1875-07-25)July 25, 1875 New Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, U.S. | |
| Died: July 9, 1914(1914-07-09) (aged 39) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| September 8, 1897, for the Louisville Colonels | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| October 2, 1908, for the Chicago White Sox | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .271 |
| Home runs | 9 |
| Runs batted in | 338 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
[1]Ossee Freeman Schreckengost (Oh-SEE Shrek-EN-gost; July 25, 1875 – July 9, 1914), bornF. Osee Schrecongost, baptismOsie Freeman Schreckengost[2], was an American professionalbaseballcatcher andfirst baseman. He played for sevenMajor League Baseball (MLB) teams between 1897 and 1908. Between 1902 and 1908, he caught for thePhiladelphia Athletics, where he was the roommate andbattery mate for pitcherRube Waddell. Schreckengost's first name is sometimes spelled "Ossie" and his last name is sometimes shortened to "Schreck" to suit the limited space in baseball box scores.
Schreckengost was born inNew Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, to Naaman Schrecongost and the former Sarah Caroline Protzman. He was of German descent through his father. The family lived in the nearby town ofFairmount City for a few years when Schreckengost was a child before moving the two miles back to New Bethlehem. Schreckengost worked in the mines and played local baseball in New Bethlehem before he went toWilliamsport in 1895 to play semipro baseball.[3]
He made hisMajor League Baseball debut with theLouisville Colonels on September 8, 1897.[4] He spent the 1898 season and part of the 1899 season with theCleveland Spiders before joining theSt. Louis Perfectos, where he took over at first base for the team's player-manager,Patsy Tebeau.[5] Schreckengost's name was frequently misspelled, due to which he was often referred to by nicknames. Early in his career, theWashington Post referred to him as "the Ghost", while teammates called him "Rocking Horse", after a mangled pronunciation of his surname.[3]
Playing in the minor leagues with theBuffalo Bisons in 1900 and with theBoston Red Sox in 1901, Schreckengost went to the Philadelphia Athletics in 1902. He played in the1905 World Series, but the Athletics lost the series 4–1 to theNew York Giants. Schreckengost appeared in three games, recording two hits in nine at bats and scoring two runs. It was his only career World Series appearance.[4]
He appeared in his final game on October 2, 1908, which was theperfect game pitched byAddie Joss. He was also on the wrong side ofCy Young's perfect game, pitched four years earlier. He may be best remembered for beingRube Waddell's primary catcher and roommate for the duration of Waddell's Philadelphia Athletic years. Waddell's unpredictable and bizarre nature famously led to Ossee insisting on a "no crackers in bed" clause added to Waddell's contract.[6] Schreckengost played without shin guards and was one of the last major-league catchers to do so.[7]
Though Schreckengost made his last major-league appearance in 1908, he spent the next two years in the minor leagues.[4] He died ofuremia at the age of 39 inPhiladelphia; he collapsed at a local café the day before his death.[8][9] He was buried at Kittanning Cemetery inKittanning, Pennsylvania.[10] His battery mate Waddell had died a few months before him.[9] Schreckengost was survived by his wife, the former June Reed, who was fromNew Castle, Pennsylvania.[11]