Lee Fohl

Leo Alexander Fohl (November 28, 1876 – October 30, 1965) was an American manager in Major League Baseball for the Cleveland Indians, St. Louis Browns, and Boston Red Sox.

Born in Lowell, Ohio, Fohl's involvement in professional baseball began in the early 1900s, when he served as a catcher for minor-league clubs in Ohio.^[1] His subsequent major-league playing career consisted of just five games as a catcher and 17 at-bats over two seasons. In 1915, he took over as manager of the Indians, with his best finish coming in 1918 when the Tribe finished in second place behind the Red Sox. He never made an important move, however, without consulting Tris Speaker, who arrived via a trade with Boston in the same year Fohl took over. In 1919, Fohl resigned as the Indians' manager after 78 games, and Speaker stepped in as manager for the remainder of the season.^[2]

Fohl resurfaced in 1921 with the Browns, where in 1922 the team was only eliminated from the pennant race on the penultimate game of the season, finishing just one game behind the New York Yankees. When the 1923 Browns fell back closer (but still above) .500, he was fired in midseason. In 1924, he joined the Red Sox, where he finished his managerial career on a dismal note; his Red Sox teams never finished higher than seventh place. (In fact, he was the only man to manage in the American League between 1924 and 1926 and not be enshrined in the Hall of Fame.) He finished with a 713-792 (.474 winning percentage) as manager. He managed the Toronto Maple Leafs of the International League in 1927, but was fired mid-way through the season.

He died in Cleveland, Ohio at age 88.

External links

• Baseball-Reference.com - career managing record
• Lee Fohl at Find a Grave