This panoramic is a team photograph of the 1914 St. Louis Browns baseball team. Among those pictured are two Kansans--Wiley Taylor, a right-handed pitcher from Louisville, Kansas (sixteenth from the right, wearing a jacket) and Earl Hamilton, a left-handed pitcher from Oswego, Kansas (fifth from the left). Wiley Taylor started his professional baseball career in 1910 with the minor league Ellsworth team of the Central Kansas League. He had trial outings with the Detroit Tigers and the Chicago White Sox, but most of his major league games (21 of 27) were with the St. Louis Browns, where he played in 1913-14. Taylor's major league record was 2-10, with an ERA of 4.10. After his baseball career, he remained in Pottawatomie County, where he farmed and served four terms as the county sheriff (1925-28 and 1945-48). Late in life, he also ran a service station and a recreation parlor in Westmoreland. Wiley Taylor died at the age of 65 in 1954. Earl Hamilton was born in Illinois in 1891, but moved with his family to Kansas as a youth and lived in Oswego during much of his major league career. He pitched in the majors for 14 seasons, from 1911 to 1924, mostly with the St. Louis Browns and the Pittsburgh Pirates. Hamilton's major league record was 115-147, with an ERA of 3.16. His achievements included a no-hitter against the Detroit Tigers in 1912. After his pitching career, Hamilton was active as a minor league team owner; he owned the Topeka Owls in 1942. Earl Hamilton died in California in 1968. The photograph was likely made prior to the start of the 1914 season, since a few of the players pictured did not appear on the regular season roster. Individuals in the photo include (l to r): Bill Rumler, Sam Agnew, Burt Shotton, Jimmy Austin, Earl Hamilton, Fred Witte, Ernie Manning, Jack Enzenroth, Frank Crossin, Del Pratt, Harry Hoch, Bobby Wallace, John Leary, C. (Tillie?) Walker, Branch Rickey (manager), Bob Clemens, George Baumgardner, Ed Miller, Carl Weilman, Bill James, Gus Williams, Wiley Taylor, Charlie Bold, Bill McAllester, Ivan Howard, Roy Mitchell, Joe Sugden, Walt Leverenz, Ernie Walker, Dee Walsh, Joe Jenkins, Bobby Messenger, Rivington Bisland, Buzzy Wares, C. Roche, Charley Barrett (scout), and Dr. Lawler (trainer).
Kansas Memory
Kansas Historical Society
Wiley Taylor and Earl Hamilton with the St. Louis Browns baseball team