The nineteenth century in baseball had more than its fair share of very interesting characters from the flamboyant King Kelly to cantankerous Cap Anson and Charlie Radbourn. One of the most compelling characters of all though was one of who said little and of whom is known precious little. His story is inspiring and enigmatic. He was a shooting star who shined brightly for a brief moment and then disappeared without a trace, setting off a century-long mystery that baseball historians have yet to solve. This is the story of Hugh Daily.
Daily was an Irishman by birth and in fact one of a number of Irishmen who played major league ball in the late 1800’s. He was born there on July 17, 1847 though I was not able to find exactly where in Ireland he was born. Life in 19th century Ireland was a difficult one especially in the aftermath of the potato famine that killed thousands and forced thousands more to seek a better life in North America. The Daily family was no different and moved to the United States some time during Daily’s infancy. In a sign of things to come, we know little of when or even why the Daily family came to America. We can only assume that the reasons were similar to so many of their compatriots. In any case, Daily became a ballplayer of distinction in the Baltimore area, eventually playing professionally and making his major league debut in 1882.
You may remember Jim Abbott who was born without a left-hand and yet was able to carve out a successful major league career, even throwing a no-hitter in 1993. I mention this because 110 years earlier, Hugh Daily had become the first player to reach the major leagues with a missing hand. We know that he had lost it in a gun accident but not much more than this. He would use a pad covering his left wrist throughout his career. Like Abbott, his career would peak with a no-hitter in the month of September. Daily was a member of the Cleveland Blues on September 13, 1883 (110 years before my birth) when he no-hit the Philadelphia Quakers. Daily’s career would continue up to 1887, finishing with a modest 73-87 record, a 2.92 ERA and 8.9 WAR. His career was modest and he was best known for his volatile temper, his handicap and his having overcome it to play pro ball, and a taciturn nature that only accentuates the shroud of mystery that would cloud his post-baseball life, and this is what I want to focus on the most.
Initially it was thought that Daily had died soon after leaving baseball but census data has shown this to be false. We know that he made it into the 20th century as he does make an appearance in census data from 1910. It has him living in the Baltimore area with two sisters. We also know that he was employed as an office clerk. It should not be too surprising that he had had to find a “normal” job after baseball. Only the superstars had it made in those days before players were unionized and making millions. Yes, they did well relative to the average American, but given the shortness of pro careers, most men were going to have to find a way to support themselves after baseball. The fact that Daily lived with his sisters suggests that he never married and there is no record of any children either. At this point, perhaps his parents were dead and it is unclear if the sisters were employed or if he was their provider financially.
We know that Daily was alive as late as 1923 which is the last time he appears in US census data. By this point, he was listed as being 76 years of age and working as a hotel clerk. At this point, he was living with only one sister so one had likely died or moved away in between 1910 and 1920 which is when he is first noted as only living with that one sister. The fact that he continued to work into his mid 70s suggests that Daily had not had an easy life after baseball. We also do not know if he ever did get to truly retire or not as he totally disappears from the public records after this. Perhaps he lived comfortably and he liked having something to do other than be at home. Or maybe one or both of his sisters perhaps had a health issue that made it imperative for him to support them.
What makes the life of this otherwise nondescript player fascinating is mainly that which we do not know. No player would ever disappear from the public record like this in today’s age of social media and meticulous record keeping. It is highly unlikely we’d get another Hugh Daily case today. Given his combative and volatile, even violent personality during his playing days, it is unlikely he built many relationships with his peers so it should not be too surprising that his old teammates would not be a great source of knowledge vis-a-vis what he did after baseball. Lets just say, many were not on letter writing terms with the man. He was also known for being combative with umpires which actually endeared him to the fans in that rough and tumble era. It was not exactly something Daily was known to be comfortable with or otherwise relish. He was not known for fraternizing much with fans.
He did barnstorm and had a significant local reputation in the Baltimore area from before he hit the big time but it is not clear if he continued to play at all in the local amateur and semi-pro scene after his major league career. Perhaps not as there are no records, newspaper clippings or anecdotes. Maybe he had tired of the game. Maybe he had just tired of the public eye. Again, we know nothing. We know of no diary, no quips to close friends or to his sisters, nothing! And what of his co-workers in these clerking jobs? Did any of them keep in touch with him outside of work? Was his work mainly solitary? We know little as we do of anything else outside that sliver of time spanning about a decade that Daily was in baseball.
When Daily died and how remains unknown. There is no death certificate. Did that one sister survive him? Again, unknown. It’s like he just vanished into thin air. In a world where people with physical limitations such as missing limbs were subjected to nicknames such as Daily’s “one arm”, perhaps he felt it best to keep to himself. Maybe that was the fuel of the anger he was known for. In a less understanding time than today, once an only wonder if he would have enjoyed a more pleasant experience today. Or perhaps he did in his on way. Who knows. Like so much in the strange case of Hugh Daily, who knows.
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