Louis Francis Sockalexis | |||
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Louis Sockalexis
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Outfielder | |||
Born: Penobscot Indian Island Reservation, Maine |
October 24, 1871|||
Died: December 24, 1913 Burlington, Maine |
(aged 42)|||
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MLB debut | |||
April 22, 1897, for the Cleveland Spiders | |||
Last MLB appearance | |||
May 15, 1899, for the Cleveland Spiders | |||
MLB statistics | |||
Batting average | .313 | ||
Home runs | 3 | ||
Runs batted in | 55 | ||
Teams | |||
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Career highlights and awards | |||
Louis Francis Sockalexis (October 24, 1871 – December 24, 1913), nicknamed The Deerfoot of the Diamond, was an American baseball player. Sockalexis played professional baseball in the National League for three seasons, spending his entire career (1897-1899) as an outfielder for the Cleveland Spiders.
A Native American from the Penobscot tribe, Sockalexis is often identified as the first person of Native American ancestry to play in Major League Baseball, though many conflicting reports exist. In some cases, Jim Toy, a catcher in the early American Association, is identified as the first person with Native American ancestry to play major league baseball. Author Ed Rice has disputed this, having found a death certificate for Toy stating his race as Caucasian, although birth records of the time are notoriously inaccurate. Also, Chief Yellow Horse, who played in the early 1920s, is noted as the first full-blooded American Indian to have played in the major leagues.
Louis Sockalexis was born on the Penobscot Indian reservation near Old Town, Maine in 1871. His grandfather was Chief of the Bear Clan. In his youth, Sockalexis' athletic talents were very noticeable. It was reported that Sockalexis could throw a baseball across the Penobscot River from Indian Island to the shore of Old Town. Additionally, it is said that Sockalexis and his father entertained crowds at the Bangor Race Track by playing catch across the entire track. He attended High School in Van Buren's St. Mary's.