Jim Thorpe

:This article refers to the football & baseball player. To see the city in Pennsylvania see Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania.

Baseball and football

He signed with the New York Giants in 1913 and played sporadically there as an outfielder for three seasons. After missing the 1916 season completely, he came back to play again for the Giants in 1917, but was sold to the Cincinnati Reds early in the season. Late in the season, he was sold back to the Giants. Again, he played sporadically for the Giants in 1918 and was traded to the Boston Braves on May 21, 1919 for Pat Ragan. In his lackluster career, he amassed but 91 runs scored, 82 runs batted in and a .252 batting average over 289 games. He continued to play baseball with teams in minor leagues until 1922.

Related Topics:
New York Giants - 1916 - 1917 - Cincinnati Reds - 1918 - Boston Braves - May 21 - 1919 - Pat Ragan - Runs scored - Runs batted in - Batting average - Minor league - 1922

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But Thorpe had not abandoned football either. Back in 1915, Thorpe had signed with the Canton Bulldogs. They paid him $250 a game, a tremendous wage at the time. The independent team was successful, and won titles in 1916, 1917 and 1919. In 1920, the Bulldogs were one of the four teams to form the American Professional Football Association, which would become the National Football League two years later. Thorpe was named the APFA's first president, but continued to play for Canton, coaching the team as well. Between 1921 and 1923, Thorpe played for the La Rue, Ohio (Marion County, Ohio) Oorang Indians, an all native American team.

Related Topics:
1915 - Canton Bulldogs - 1920 - American Professional Football Association - National Football League - La Rue, Ohio - Marion County, Ohio - Oorang Indians

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Thorpe never played on a championship team, although he played for six different teams between 1920 and 1928. He retired from pro football aged 41, having played 52 NFL games.

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Thorpe continued to be active in sports. Recently, evidence has come to light that he began a career in basketball. "Jim Thorpe and His World-Famous Indians" barnstormed for two years (1927-1928) in parts of New York, Pennsylvania, and Marion, Ohio. This period of his life is not well-documented, and until 2005 even Thorpe's biographers were unaware of Thorpe's basketball career.

Related Topics:
Basketball - Marion, Ohio - 2005

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