Edward John “Goat” Anderson played just one season in the major leagues, hitting .205 for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1907. He also played 10 seasons in the Central, Eastern and Western Leagues.
Described as eccentric, he made an impression on The Fort Wayne Sentinel in 1903, his first professional season with the South Bend Greens:
“’Goat’ Anderson who made it a rule during the games here to leave his post and come into the infield to argue every point raised by the umpire’s decisions, has stamped himself as the prize rowdy of the association.”
The Pittsburgh Leader said Pirate outfielder Tommy Leach had recommended the team sign Anderson, and told a reporter in the spring of 1907 that Anderson made the team because he was willing to stand up to Manager Fred Clarke while training in Hot Springs, Arkansas:
“(Clarke) had told Anderson to bunt at the signal from a man on first…The ball was pitched five feet outside, and of course, the catcher flagged the man going to second. Anderson made no move to bunt or even to strike at the ball. Clarke started to call him. ‘Shut up,’ you don’t know all there is in the books,’ Anderson replied. The answer made Clarke gasp…’All right, son,’ grinned Clarke. ‘I guess you haven’t got stage fright when you can give it to your manager that way.’”
Edward John “Goat” Anderson
His excellent fielding, .343 on base percentage and 27 stolen bases with the Pirates impressed the local press, if not the fans. George Moreland of The Pittsburgh Press said:
“Some fans are of the opinion that “Goat” Anderson, the hustling little right fielder of the Pittsburgh team, is not much of a general use to the Pirates, and that a good move would be made to get another man for the job. These same fans are the ones who believe that a ballplayer is not worth his salt unless he is a slugger of the Wagnerian stripe…Manager Fred Clarke knows how to win games, and he also knows where to place a player in the batting order to get the most out of him. That is the reason that the ‘Goat’ has been put at the top of the list to lead off. It is not that Anderson makes a large number of hits. Even when he does hit, he has difficulty in getting the ball out of the diamond. But, somehow or other he manages to get to first base just about as often as any of them and when he does get there he is not slow about getting around the circuit.”
The Leader was even more enthusiastic about the new outfielder:
“The way little Goat Anderson has been hitting the ball and running bases insures him a permanent berth in the outfield. Anderson has proved one of the finds of the season. If there ever was another Wee Willie Keeler it is Anderson. He is a ‘drop hitter’ of the Keeler style, and can run bases and bunt with the star of the New York Highlanders. As a matter of fact, Anderson is of more value to the team than Keeler, because the latter’s star seems to be sinking.”
Despite the praise, Anderson was sold to the Rochester Bronchos of the Eastern League in January of 1908.
While with Rochester, Anderson attempted to get a patent on a sliding pad he invented; there is no record of a patent being awarded. He also suggested a novel idea for improving his batting average.
The Lexington Herald said Anderson, who trained in Kentucky with the Bronchos before the 1909 season made this recommendation:
“Cut down the size of the home plate and I’ll hit .500 as long as the season lasts. Where the front of the home plate is seventeen inches wide make it 10 or 12. Then the batter will be able to get an even break with the pitcher, who now has everything in his favor. With a home base half its present size a pitcher would need perfect control to get the ball over. All this business of cutting across the inside and outside would be a thing of the past. There wouldn’t be enough of the plate to give the pitcher the advantage of feeding outside low ones that can only be hit into someone’s hands…With a home base ten inches wide the ball would have to look pretty good right from the start, and if it didn’t a batter could easily pass it up. There would be more bases on balls at the start, and that would mean a base on balls or a hit, or a hard liner that would bring a fine fielding play. A smaller plate seems to me to be the thing.”
The small plate was the wish of a man who hit .222, .201 and .138 from 1908-1910 in Rochester.
Goat Anderson saved his greatest moment for his final season in professional baseball. As the manager and leftfielder for the Terre Haute Terriers (or Terre-iers) in the Central League, he filed one of the most unusual game protests in history.
Goat Anderson (2), with the Terre Haute Terriers.
The Terriers were leading the Fort Wayne Champs 6 to 0 in the bottom of the seventh inning during the first game of a doubleheader. Fort Wayne had a runner on first base with no outs with catcher Harry Martin at the plate. The Fort Wayne Daily News picks up the story:
“Martin poked a drive into left field. The ball rolled almost to the club house with ‘Goat’ Anderson in full cry after it. Then came the cause for the protest in the person of Don.”
“Don” was a Great Dane who belonged to a Fort Wayne man named Ed Longfield.
“Don can’t bite, and wouldn’t if he could, but Anderson didn’t for sure know that, so ‘Goat’ hesitated a second in chasing the ball and Martin got a triple, Ted Anderson scoring. “
Fort Wayne went on to score six runs in the inning to tie the game and scored a run in the 10th to win 7 to 6.
The Fort Wayne Journal Gazette said:
“Toothless Don, Ed Longfield’s dog, is supposed to be harmless. Goat Anderson, Terre Haute manager and left fielder evidently doesn’t think so and because dog Don jumped at him during the seventh inning romp in the first game yesterday Goat will file a protest with President (Louis) Heilbroner, requesting the game be played over.”
Heilbroner ruled against Anderson’s protest saying the play did not have a sufficient impact on the outcome of the game, but he did order that Don would no longer be allowed on the field during games.
Terre Haute finished fifth in the six-team league with 60-79 record. Anderson was rumored to be considering offers from Federal League teams for 1914, but never signed with a team and his career was over.
He returned to his home in South Bend, Indiana. He died of stomach cancer 10-years later at age 43.
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