MLB player to owner: There’s a history to A-Rod’s idea

Connie Mack

Connie Mack holds the record for tenure by an MLB team owner, having held a share of the team from its formation in 1901 until shortly before his death in 1956. He is so closely identified with the formation and history of the Athletics franchise in Philadelphia that it may be easy to overlook the fact that he first came to the game as a player.

Mack was 23 when the National League’s Washington team signed him to a late-season tryout. Those Nats were awful – they went 28-92 – and Mack didn’t help things much. Installed as the regular in 1887, he hit .201, on his way to an 11-season career with other stops in Buffalo and Pittsburgh that included a .244 lifetime batting average.  During the final three of those seasons, he acted as player-manager for the Pirates.

Mack retired in 1896. But five years later, when Ban Johnson created the American League, Mack bought a share of the Athletics and was installed as manager. Under his control, the team became a dynasty, winning pennants in 1902, 1905, 1910, 1911, 1913 and 1914. Mack led his Athletics to World Series wins in 1910, 1911, and 1913.

Gradually increasing his ownership stake, Mack eventually bought out his partners and ran the A’s himself. He tore the club down and rebuilt it, fashioning a second dynasty that won pennants in 1929, 1930 and 1931, twice claiming the World Series.