George Stovall

George Thomas Stovall (November 23, 1877 – November 5, 1951), nicknamed "Firebrand", was an American first baseman in Major League Baseball. He played for the Cleveland Naps and the St. Louis Browns in the American League, and he also played two seasons with the Kansas City Packers of the short-lived Federal League. He was the manager of the Naps for one season in 1911, and in 1912, he went to the Browns, serving as player-manager for two seasons. In 1914, he jumped to the Packers as a first baseman-manager. In 1916, he signed with the Toledo Mud Hens and played a season there before retiring from baseball at age 39.

George Stovall
George T. Stovall baseball card
First baseman
Born: (1877-11-23)November 23, 1877 Leeds, Missouri, U.S.
Died: November 15, 1951(1951-11-15) (aged 73) Burlington, Iowa, U.S.
Batted: Right Threw: Right
MLB debut
July 4, 1904, for the Cleveland Naps
Last MLB appearance
October 3, 1915, for the Kansas City Packers
MLB statistics
Batting average	.265
Home runs	15
Runs batted in	564
Teams
As player Cleveland Naps (1904–1911) St. Louis Browns (1912–1913) Kansas City Packers (1914–1915) As manager Cleveland Naps (1911) St. Louis Browns (1912–1913) Kansas City Packers (1914–1915)

In 5596 career at bats, Stovall had 1382 hits. He recorded 231 doubles and 142 career stolen bases. While for the most part a first baseman, he did play some second base and even third base, especially early in his career. In 1905, he played 46 of his 112 games at second. Every year from 1905 until 1910, Stovall recorded at least 13 stolen bases.

In late 1913, Stovall was suspended by the American League for spitting tobacco juice at an umpire. However, league president Ban Johnson did not think this went far enough, and ordered Stovall fired. He was succeeded by the relatively little-known (at the time) Branch Rickey.

His elder brother, Jesse Stovall, pitched two seasons in the major leagues.