Barney Dreyfuss
Encyclopedia
Bernhard "Barney" Dreyfuss (February 23, 1865 – February 5, 1932) was an executive in Major League Baseball
who owned the Pittsburgh Pirates
franchise from 1900 to 1932.
He is often credited with the creation of the modern baseball World Series
. He also built one of baseball's first modern steel and concrete baseball park, Forbes Field
, in 1909. During his period of ownership, the Pirates won six National League
pennants and World Series
titles in 1909
and 1925
; only the New York Giants
won more NL championships (10) during the same period.
. At the age of 16, he emigrated in 1881 to the US to escape conscription into the German Army
. At the time, his prospects of being drafted into the military was high, and as a young Jew, his potential for advancement there was low. Dreyfuss's father, Samuel Dreyfuss, was actually an American citizen since 1861, who had returned to Germany at the outbreak of the Civil War
. Samuel Dreyfuss had made a fortune selling spirits
to the Native Americans
.
Once in America, Barney Dreyfuss lived and worked with the Bernheim
family in Paducah, Kentucky
. The Bernheims were relatives of his grandfather, Leon Bernheim. In 1888, he moved with the Bernheim family to Louisville, Kentucky
. Dreyfuss arrived knowing little English, but he became a quick learner. In just a few years, he rose from being a clerk to an officer of Bernheim Brothers, the creator of I. W. Harper bourbon
.
of the American Association
. The team won the league pennant in 1890 against the Brooklyn Bridegrooms (today's Los Angeles Dodgers
). However the American Association fell apart in 1891, as a result Dreyfess moved the Colonels into the National League.
One of his best decisions was hiring a local city editor and educated lawyer, Harry Clay Pulliam, to serve as his club secretary; he later appointed Pulliam president. When Dreyfess immigrated to America, it was Pulliam who taught him how to speak English. However Pulliam's greatest contribution to Colonels occurred when he convinced Dreyfuss to sign future Hall of Famer
Honus Wagner
to the team.
For much of the 1890s, the Colonels were in last place in the National League. In 1899, Dreyfess paid $50,0000 to acquire full ownership of the Colonels. By this time, however, the National League contracted several teams after the 1899 season and Dreyfuss purchased a half-interest in the Pittsburgh Pirates. As part of the deal, he negotiated the transfer of the best Louisville players, namely Wagner, Fred Clarke
, Tommy Leach
, Deacon Phillippe
, and Rube Waddell
to Pittsburgh. To pull off this deal, Dreyfuss accepted an option to purchase an interest in the Pirates, then traded the best of the Colonel's players to the Pirates; he then used this leverage to buy out his partners. The Colonels' president, Harry Pulliam, also left for the Pirates with Dreyfuss and became the team's president.
. Dreyfess was victorious in attempt to keep the new league out of Pittsburgh. However he knew that the bidding war needed to end for the leagues to be properous. In 1903, Dreyfuss brokered the peace treaty that recognized two major leagues. It also instituted a single set of rules, established agreements with the minor leagues, set up cooperative scheduling, and recognized each league's rights to its own players. To cash in on the peace between the leagues, an agreement with terms was created by Dreyfuss and Boston Pilgrims' (today's Boston Red Sox
) owner Henry Killilea
to create the modern World Series. Although his Pirates would lose to the Boston Pilgrims 5 games to 3, the games proved to be a success. Dreyfuss further cemented his reputation by adding his own share of the gate receipts to the players' winnings.
, Dreyfuss decided it was time that Pittsburgh had a new, larger stadium for its growing fan base and winning team. The team's current field Exposition Park
, was made of wood and so close to the banks of the Allegheny River
that the outfield regularly flooded after heavy rains. Meanwhile across the state in Philadelphia, Philadlephia Athletics
owners Ben Shibe
and Connie Mack
had decided to build a steel and concrete venue for their team. Dreyfuss, with no intention of being one-upped, began the construction of Forbes Field.
The new stadium was built in the city's Oakland
district and was named after John Forbes, the French and Indian War
general who captured Fort Duquesne
in 1758 and renamed it Fort Pitt
. Dreyfuss purchased seven acre
s of land near the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh
, adjacent to Schenley Park
, with assistance from his friend, industrialist Andrew Carnegie
. The low-priced land was selected so Dreyfuss could spend more on the stadium itself. Dreyfuss signed a contract that he would "make the ballpark ... of a design that would harmonize with the other structures in the Schenley Park district." The site was initially labeled "Dreyfuss's Folly" due to its long distance—a 10-minute trolley
ride—from downtown Pittsburgh
; however, the land around the park developed and criticisms were dropped. Official Pirates' records show that Forbes Field cost US$
1 million for site acquisition and construction, but some estimates place the cost at twice that amount.
The new park opened on June 30, 1909, and Dreyfess personally shook hands with the fans as they entered through the gates. The crowd for the stadium's inaugural game included Pittsburgh Mayor William A. Magee
, Harry Pulliam (now the National League President), and Congressman
John K. Tener
, a former Major League player who was soon to become the Governor of Pennsylvania. While Pirates did lose the their first game at Forbes to the Chicago Cubs
, they did go on to win the 1909 World Series
later that year, over the Detroit Tigers
.
. However he was still involved in every decision made involving the Pirates. Under his leadership, the Pirates won two more National League pennants and the 1925 World Series
over the Washington Senators
. He successfully helped fight off the Federal League
in 1914 and 1915, and then helped form the commission that investigated the 1919 Black Sox Scandal
. He also worked to abolish the three-man commission that ran the National League in favor of appointing a baseball commissioner, a post to be occupied by Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis
. He also worked to outlaw "freak" pitches such as the spitball
, and he was a force in ridding the game of gambling.
, were suspected of being the secret owners to the Pittsburgh Stars
, a professional American football
team in the first National Football League
. Both men denied any connection to the Stars' finances, as well as being the team's true owners. While the team's owner on paper, David Berry
, insisted that he was the team's sole owner, it was impossible for him to afford the money to finance the team without the backing of Temple or Dreyfuss. The Stars would go on to win the 1902 NFL championship
.
. He was buried in West View Cemetery in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. At the time of his death, he was vice president of the National League. Landis, the presidents of both the National and American Leagues, club executives from competing teams, and players such as Honus Wagner and Deacon Phillippe, served as honorary pallbearer
s at his funeral.
in 1970, the monument was brought along and displayed in the stadium concourse. The monument has since been moved to the Pirates' current field, PNC Park
, located on the concourse behind home plate.
Dreyfuss was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2008
following his election by the Veterans Committee
.
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
who owned the Pittsburgh Pirates
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series Champions...
franchise from 1900 to 1932.
He is often credited with the creation of the modern baseball World Series
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball, played between the American League and National League champions since 1903. The winner of the World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff and awarded the Commissioner's Trophy...
. He also built one of baseball's first modern steel and concrete baseball park, Forbes Field
Forbes Field
Forbes Field was a baseball park in the Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from 1909 to 1971. It was the third home of the Pittsburgh Pirates Major League Baseball team, and the first home of the Pittsburgh Steelers, the city's National Football League franchise...
, in 1909. During his period of ownership, the Pirates won six National League
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...
pennants and World Series
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball, played between the American League and National League champions since 1903. The winner of the World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff and awarded the Commissioner's Trophy...
titles in 1909
1909 World Series
The 1909 World Series featured the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Detroit Tigers. The Pirates won the Series in seven games to capture their first championship of the modern Major League Baseball era and the second championship in the club's history....
and 1925
1925 World Series
In the 1925 World Series, the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the defending champion Washington Senators in seven games.In a reversal of fortune on all counts from the previous 1924 World Series, when Washington's Walter Johnson had come back from two losses to win the seventh and deciding game, Johnson...
; only the New York Giants
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....
won more NL championships (10) during the same period.
Early years
Dreyfuss was born in Freiburg, Grand Duchy of Baden in 1865. He attended school in Freiburg and later worked in a bank in nearby KarlsruheKarlsruhe
The City of Karlsruhe is a city in the southwest of Germany, in the state of Baden-Württemberg, located near the French-German border.Karlsruhe was founded in 1715 as Karlsruhe Palace, when Germany was a series of principalities and city states...
. At the age of 16, he emigrated in 1881 to the US to escape conscription into the German Army
German Army (German Empire)
The German Army was the name given the combined land forces of the German Empire, also known as the National Army , Imperial Army or Imperial German Army. The term "Deutsches Heer" is also used for the modern German Army, the land component of the German Bundeswehr...
. At the time, his prospects of being drafted into the military was high, and as a young Jew, his potential for advancement there was low. Dreyfuss's father, Samuel Dreyfuss, was actually an American citizen since 1861, who had returned to Germany at the outbreak of the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. Samuel Dreyfuss had made a fortune selling spirits
Distilled beverage
A distilled beverage, liquor, or spirit is an alcoholic beverage containing ethanol that is produced by distilling ethanol produced by means of fermenting grain, fruit, or vegetables...
to the Native Americans
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
.
Once in America, Barney Dreyfuss lived and worked with the Bernheim
Isaac Wolfe Bernheim
Isaac Wolfe Bernheim was an American businessman notable for starting the I. W. Harper brand of bourbon distilled at the Bernheim distillery in Louisville, Kentucky. The success of his distillery and distribution business helped to consolidate the Louisville area as a major centre of Kentucky...
family in Paducah, Kentucky
Paducah, Kentucky
Paducah is the largest city in Kentucky's Jackson Purchase Region and the county seat of McCracken County, Kentucky, United States. It is located at the confluence of the Tennessee River and the Ohio River, halfway between the metropolitan areas of St. Louis, Missouri, to the west and Nashville,...
. The Bernheims were relatives of his grandfather, Leon Bernheim. In 1888, he moved with the Bernheim family to Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
. Dreyfuss arrived knowing little English, but he became a quick learner. In just a few years, he rose from being a clerk to an officer of Bernheim Brothers, the creator of I. W. Harper bourbon
Bourbon whiskey
Bourbon is a type of American whiskey – a barrel-aged distilled spirit made primarily from corn. The name of the spirit derives from its historical association with an area known as Old Bourbon, around what is now Bourbon County, Kentucky . It has been produced since the 18th century...
.
Louisville Colonels
Dreyfuss enjoyed the game of baseball. He fueled his interest by organizing amateur baseball teams first for the distillery workers, then semi-pro clubs around Louisville. In 1889 the distillery expanded into larger quarters of Louisville. Dreyfuss quickly used the increased profits to buy a piece of the Louisville ColonelsLouisville Colonels
The Louisville Colonels were a Major League Baseball team that played in the American Association throughout that league's ten-year existence from 1882 until 1891, first as the Louisville Eclipse and later as the Louisville Colonels , the latter name derived from the historic Kentucky colonels...
of the American Association
American Association (19th century)
The American Association was a Major League Baseball league that existed for 10 seasons from to . During that time, it challenged the National League for dominance of professional baseball...
. The team won the league pennant in 1890 against the Brooklyn Bridegrooms (today's Los Angeles Dodgers
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are a professional baseball team based in Los Angeles, California. The Dodgers are members of Major League Baseball's National League West Division. Established in 1883, the team originated in Brooklyn, New York, where it was known by a number of nicknames before becoming...
). However the American Association fell apart in 1891, as a result Dreyfess moved the Colonels into the National League.
One of his best decisions was hiring a local city editor and educated lawyer, Harry Clay Pulliam, to serve as his club secretary; he later appointed Pulliam president. When Dreyfess immigrated to America, it was Pulliam who taught him how to speak English. However Pulliam's greatest contribution to Colonels occurred when he convinced Dreyfuss to sign future Hall of Famer
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 25 Main Street in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests serving as the central point for the study of the history of baseball in the United States and beyond, the display of...
Honus Wagner
Honus Wagner
-Louisville Colonels:Recognizing his talent, Barrow recommended Wagner to the Louisville Colonels. After some hesitation about his awkward figure, Wagner was signed by the Colonels, where he hit .338 in 61 games....
to the team.
For much of the 1890s, the Colonels were in last place in the National League. In 1899, Dreyfess paid $50,0000 to acquire full ownership of the Colonels. By this time, however, the National League contracted several teams after the 1899 season and Dreyfuss purchased a half-interest in the Pittsburgh Pirates. As part of the deal, he negotiated the transfer of the best Louisville players, namely Wagner, Fred Clarke
Fred Clarke
Fred Clifford Clarke was a Major League Baseball player from 1894 to and manager from 1897 to 1915. A Hall of Famer, Clarke played for and managed both the Louisville Colonels and Pittsburgh Pirates. He was a left fielder and left-handed batter.Of the nine pennants in Pittsburgh franchise...
, Tommy Leach
Tommy Leach
Thomas Andrew Leach was a baseball player during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Leach participated in the first modern World Series in 1903 with the Pittsburgh Pirates, hitting four triples to set a record that still stands...
, Deacon Phillippe
Deacon Phillippe
Charles Louis "Deacon" Phillippe was a turn-of-the-century pitcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates....
, and Rube Waddell
Rube Waddell
George Edward Waddell was an American southpaw pitcher in Major League Baseball. In his thirteen-year career he played for the Louisville Colonels , Pittsburgh Pirates and Chicago Orphans in the National League, and the Philadelphia Athletics and St. Louis Browns in the American League...
to Pittsburgh. To pull off this deal, Dreyfuss accepted an option to purchase an interest in the Pirates, then traded the best of the Colonel's players to the Pirates; he then used this leverage to buy out his partners. The Colonels' president, Harry Pulliam, also left for the Pirates with Dreyfuss and became the team's president.
Pittsburgh Pirates
In Pittsburgh, Honus Wagner soon emerged as the National League's biggest star. The Pirates then won NL pennants in 1901, 1902, and 1903.World Series
However a bidding war was taking place between the National League and the upstart American LeagueAmerican League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League , is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league based in the Great Lakes states, which eventually aspired to major...
. Dreyfess was victorious in attempt to keep the new league out of Pittsburgh. However he knew that the bidding war needed to end for the leagues to be properous. In 1903, Dreyfuss brokered the peace treaty that recognized two major leagues. It also instituted a single set of rules, established agreements with the minor leagues, set up cooperative scheduling, and recognized each league's rights to its own players. To cash in on the peace between the leagues, an agreement with terms was created by Dreyfuss and Boston Pilgrims' (today's Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
) owner Henry Killilea
Henry Killilea
Henry J. Killilea was one the five men who founded baseball's American League as a major league in 1899. The other members of the group were his brother Matthew Killilea, Connie Mack, Charles Comiskey, and the leader of the effort, Ban Johnson. Their first meeting was held in Killilea's Milwaukee...
to create the modern World Series. Although his Pirates would lose to the Boston Pilgrims 5 games to 3, the games proved to be a success. Dreyfuss further cemented his reputation by adding his own share of the gate receipts to the players' winnings.
Forbes Field
At the end of the 1908 season1908 Pittsburgh Pirates season
The Pittsburgh Pirates season was a season American baseball. The team finished tied for second place in the National League with the New York Giants, one game behind the Chicago Cubs. The Pirates spent 46 days in first place, and were on top on October 3...
, Dreyfuss decided it was time that Pittsburgh had a new, larger stadium for its growing fan base and winning team. The team's current field Exposition Park
Exposition Park (Pittsburgh)
Exposition Park was a baseball park in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania from 1890 to circa 1915. It was located on the north side of the Allegheny River across from Pittsburgh's downtown area. Prior to the construction of this version of Exposition Park, two previous ballparks of the same name were...
, was made of wood and so close to the banks of the Allegheny River
Allegheny River
The Allegheny River is a principal tributary of the Ohio River; it is located in the Eastern United States. The Allegheny River joins with the Monongahela River to form the Ohio River at the "Point" of Point State Park in Downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania...
that the outfield regularly flooded after heavy rains. Meanwhile across the state in Philadelphia, Philadlephia Athletics
Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics are a Major League Baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From to the present, the Athletics have played in the O.co Coliseum....
owners Ben Shibe
Ben Shibe
Benjamin Franklin Shibe was an American sporting goods and baseball executive who, along with his sons John and Tom, was half-owner of the Philadelphia Athletics of the American League from 1901 until his death. He is credited with the invention of the automated stitching machinery to make...
and Connie Mack
Connie Mack (baseball)
Cornelius McGillicuddy, Sr. , better known as Connie Mack, was an American professional baseball player, manager, and team owner. The longest-serving manager in Major League Baseball history, he holds records for wins , losses , and games managed , with his victory total being almost 1,000 more...
had decided to build a steel and concrete venue for their team. Dreyfuss, with no intention of being one-upped, began the construction of Forbes Field.
The new stadium was built in the city's Oakland
Oakland (Pittsburgh)
Oakland is the academic, cultural, and healthcare center of Pittsburgh and is Pennsylvania's third largest "Downtown". Only Center City Philadelphia and Downtown Pittsburgh can claim more economic and social activity than Oakland...
district and was named after John Forbes, the French and Indian War
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...
general who captured Fort Duquesne
Fort Duquesne
Fort Duquesne was a fort established by the French in 1754, at the junction of the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers in what is now downtown Pittsburgh in the state of Pennsylvania....
in 1758 and renamed it Fort Pitt
Fort Pitt (Pennsylvania)
Fort Pitt was a fort built at the location of Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.-French and Indian War:The fort was built from 1759 to 1761 during the French and Indian War , next to the site of former Fort Duquesne, at the confluence the Allegheny River and the Monongahela River...
. Dreyfuss purchased seven acre
Acre
The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...
s of land near the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh
Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh
The Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh is the public library system in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Its main branch is located in the Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, and it has 19 branch locations throughout the city...
, adjacent to Schenley Park
Schenley Park
Schenley Park is a large municipal park located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, between the neighborhoods of Oakland, Greenfield, and Squirrel Hill. It is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a historic district...
, with assistance from his friend, industrialist Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie was a Scottish-American industrialist, businessman, and entrepreneur who led the enormous expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century...
. The low-priced land was selected so Dreyfuss could spend more on the stadium itself. Dreyfuss signed a contract that he would "make the ballpark ... of a design that would harmonize with the other structures in the Schenley Park district." The site was initially labeled "Dreyfuss's Folly" due to its long distance—a 10-minute trolley
Tram
A tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...
ride—from downtown Pittsburgh
Downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Downtown Pittsburgh, colloquially referred to as the Golden Triangle and officially the Central Business District, is the urban Downtown center of Pittsburgh. It is located at the confluence of the Allegheny River and the Monongahela River whose joining forms the Ohio River. The "triangle" is...
; however, the land around the park developed and criticisms were dropped. Official Pirates' records show that Forbes Field cost US$
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
1 million for site acquisition and construction, but some estimates place the cost at twice that amount.
The new park opened on June 30, 1909, and Dreyfess personally shook hands with the fans as they entered through the gates. The crowd for the stadium's inaugural game included Pittsburgh Mayor William A. Magee
William A. Magee
William Anderson Magee was born in Pittsburgh's Hill District neighborhood the site of the present day Mellon Arena and the region's hub for African American culture. Before becoming mayor he gained his reputation by serving as Assistant District Attorney for Allegheny County of which Pittsburgh...
, Harry Pulliam (now the National League President), and Congressman
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
John K. Tener
John K. Tener
John Kinley Tener was a Major League baseball player and executive and, from 1911 to 1915, served as the 25th Governor of Pennsylvania.-Biography:...
, a former Major League player who was soon to become the Governor of Pennsylvania. While Pirates did lose the their first game at Forbes to the Chicago Cubs
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago . The Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the National...
, they did go on to win the 1909 World Series
1909 World Series
The 1909 World Series featured the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Detroit Tigers. The Pirates won the Series in seven games to capture their first championship of the modern Major League Baseball era and the second championship in the club's history....
later that year, over the Detroit Tigers
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are a Major League Baseball team located in Detroit, Michigan. One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Detroit in as part of the Western League. The Tigers have won four World Series championships and have won the American League pennant...
.
1910 to 1932
In 1912, Dreyfuss became one of the major stockholders of Welte & Sons IncWelte-Mignon
M. Welte & Sons, Freiburg and New York was a manufacturer of orchestrions, organs and reproducing pianos, established in Vöhrenbach by Michael Welte in 1832.-Overview:...
. However he was still involved in every decision made involving the Pirates. Under his leadership, the Pirates won two more National League pennants and the 1925 World Series
1925 World Series
In the 1925 World Series, the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the defending champion Washington Senators in seven games.In a reversal of fortune on all counts from the previous 1924 World Series, when Washington's Walter Johnson had come back from two losses to win the seventh and deciding game, Johnson...
over the Washington Senators
Minnesota Twins
The Minnesota Twins are a professional baseball team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They play in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. The team is named after the Twin Cities area of Minneapolis and St. Paul. They played in Metropolitan Stadium from 1961 to 1981 and the...
. He successfully helped fight off the Federal League
Federal League
The Federal League of Base Ball Clubs, known simply as the Federal League, was an American professional baseball league that operated as a "third major league", in competition with the established National and American Leagues, from to...
in 1914 and 1915, and then helped form the commission that investigated the 1919 Black Sox Scandal
Black Sox Scandal
The Black Sox Scandal took place around and during the play of the American baseball 1919 World Series. Eight members of the Chicago White Sox were banned for life from baseball for intentionally losing games, which allowed the Cincinnati Reds to win the World Series...
. He also worked to abolish the three-man commission that ran the National League in favor of appointing a baseball commissioner, a post to be occupied by Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis
Kenesaw Mountain Landis
Kenesaw Mountain Landis was an American jurist who served as a federal judge from 1905 to 1922 and as the first Commissioner of Baseball from 1920 until his death...
. He also worked to outlaw "freak" pitches such as the spitball
Spitball
A spitball is an illegal baseball pitch in which the ball has been altered by the application of saliva, petroleum jelly, or some other foreign substance....
, and he was a force in ridding the game of gambling.
Pittsburgh Stars
In 1902, Dreyfess and Pittsburgh Pirates minority owner, William Chase TempleWilliam Chase Temple
William Chase Temple was a coal, citrus, and lumber baron during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He was also a part owner of the Pittsburgh Pirates from baseball's National League...
, were suspected of being the secret owners to the Pittsburgh Stars
Pittsburgh Stars
The Pittsburgh Stars were a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1902. The team was member of what was referred to as the National Football League. This league has no connection with the National Football League of today. The whole "league" was a curious mixture...
, a professional American football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
team in the first National Football League
National Football League (1902)
The National Football League was the first attempt at forming a national professional football league in 1902. The league has no ties with the modern National Football League. In fact the league was only composed of teams from Pennsylvania, which was hardly "national". Two of the teams were based...
. Both men denied any connection to the Stars' finances, as well as being the team's true owners. While the team's owner on paper, David Berry
Dave Berry (American football)
David J. Berry was a major football manager during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He was the top promotor for the sport during that time period...
, insisted that he was the team's sole owner, it was impossible for him to afford the money to finance the team without the backing of Temple or Dreyfuss. The Stars would go on to win the 1902 NFL championship
1902 Pittsburgh Stars season
The 1902 Pittsburgh Stars football season was their first and only season in existence. The team played in the first National Football League and finished with a overall record of 9-2-1, including a 2-2-1 record in league play...
.
Death
Dreyfess died on February 5, 1932, at age 66 in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. He was buried in West View Cemetery in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. At the time of his death, he was vice president of the National League. Landis, the presidents of both the National and American Leagues, club executives from competing teams, and players such as Honus Wagner and Deacon Phillippe, served as honorary pallbearer
Pallbearer
A pall-bearer is one of several funeral participants who helps carry the casket of a deceased person from a religious or memorial service or viewing either directly to a cemetery or mausoleum, or to and from the hearse which carries the coffin....
s at his funeral.
Legacy
A small stone monument to Dreyfuss was eventually installed in straightaway center field at Forbes Field. When the Pirates moved to Three Rivers StadiumThree Rivers Stadium
Three Rivers Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania from 1970 to 2000. It was home to the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Pittsburgh Steelers, the city's Major League Baseball franchise and National Football League franchise respectively.Built as a replacement to...
in 1970, the monument was brought along and displayed in the stadium concourse. The monument has since been moved to the Pirates' current field, PNC Park
PNC Park
PNC Park is a baseball park located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It is the fifth home of the Pittsburgh Pirates, the city's Major League Baseball franchise. It opened during the 2001 Major League Baseball season, after the controlled implosion of the Pirates' previous home, Three Rivers Stadium...
, located on the concourse behind home plate.
Dreyfuss was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2008
Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, 2008
Elections to the Baseball Hall of Fame for 2008 proceeded according to revised rules enacted in 2001 and further revamped in 2007. The Baseball Writers Association of America held an election to select from among recent players...
following his election by the Veterans Committee
Veterans Committee
The Veterans Committee is the popular name of the National Baseball Hall of Fame Committee to Consider Managers, Umpires, Executives and Long-Retired Players, a committee of the U.S...
.