On this Day in History

Ed "Dummy" Dundon, who was born on July 10, 1859, went on to become the first deaf player to play baseball professionally.

After attending the Ohio State School for the Deaf, Dundon went on to play several years of professional baseball. He had two seasons with the Columbus Buckeyes before retiring and becoming an umpire. During his hitch with the Buckeyes in 1883 and 1884, Dundon had a record of 9-20 and a 4.25 ERA. Like many deaf ball players at the time, he got a common (albeit offensive) nickname "dummy."And like William Hoy, another baseball player, he was better known by that nickname than his given name.