View source for Doc Prothro

{{Short description|American baseball player and manager (1893–1971)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}}
{{Infobox baseball biography
|name=Doc Prothro
|image=Doc_Prothro_1924.jpg
|image_size=150
|caption=Prothro with the [[Memphis Chicks (Southern Association)|Memphis Chicks]] in 1924
|position=[[Third baseman]] / [[Manager (baseball)|Manager]]
|bats=Right
|throws=Right
|birth_date={{Birth date|1893|7|16}}
|birth_place=[[Memphis, Tennessee]], U.S.
|death_date={{Death date and age|1971|10|14|1893|7|16}}
|death_place=Memphis, Tennessee, U.S.
|debutleague = MLB
|debutdate=September 26
|debutyear=1920
|debutteam=Washington Senators
|finalleague = MLB
|finaldate=September 24
|finalyear=1926
|finalteam=Cincinnati Reds
|statleague = MLB
|stat1label=[[Batting average (baseball)|Batting average]]
|stat1value=.318
|stat2label=[[Home run]]s
|stat2value=0
|stat3label=[[Runs batted in]]
|stat3value=81
|stat4label=Managerial record
|stat4value=138–320
|stat5label=Winning %
|stat5value={{winning percentage|138|320}}
|teams=
'''As player'''
* [[Washington Senators (1901–60)|Washington Senators]] ({{mlby|1920}}, {{mlby|1923}}–{{mlby|1924}})
* [[Boston Red Sox]] ({{mlby|1925}})
* [[Cincinnati Reds]] ({{mlby|1926}})
'''As manager'''
* [[Philadelphia Phillies]] ({{mlby|1939}}–{{mlby|1941}})
}}
'''James Thompson''' "'''Doc'''" '''Prothro Sr.''' (July 16, 1893 – October 14, 1971) was an American [[infielder]] and [[manager (baseball)|manager]] in [[Major League Baseball]] (MLB). Prothro was so nicknamed because he was a practicing dentist before signing his first professional baseball contract at age 26.<ref name=prothrosabr>{{cite web |url=https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/doc-prothro/ |title=Doc Prothro |website=[[Society for American Baseball Research|SABR]] |first=Bill |last=Nowlin}}</ref> After playing five seasons in MLB, Prothro became a manager, compiling what remains the worst career [[winning percentage]] among major league managers.

==Career==
{{More citations needed|section|date=December 2009}}
[[File:The Volunteer 1917 Junior Dental Class.png|thumb|right|University of Tennessee Junior Dental class, 1917. Prothro is listed, but not identified, as being in the photo.]]

As a player, Prothro was discovered by baseball promoter Joe Engel, who managed the [[Chattanooga Lookouts]] at [[Engel Stadium]].<ref name=prothrosabr/> Prothro played in the major leagues as a right-handed hitting [[third baseman]] and [[shortstop]] for the [[Washington Senators (1901–60)|Washington Senators]], [[Boston Red Sox]] and [[Cincinnati Reds]] (1920; 1923–26), [[batting average (baseball)|batting]] .318 with no home runs and 81 [[Run batted in|RBI]] in 180 games.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/p/prothdo01-bat.shtml |title=Doc Prothro Stats |website=[[Baseball-Reference.com]]}}</ref>

In 1928, Prothro became a manager in the [[Southern Association]] (SA), then one of the higher-level minor leagues, leading the [[Memphis Chicks (Southern Association)|Memphis Chicks]] and [[Little Rock Travelers]] to four SA pennants through 1938.

In 1939, Prothro replaced [[Jimmie Wilson (baseball)|Jimmie Wilson]] as manager of the [[Philadelphia Phillies]]. In his three full seasons (1939–1941) at the helm of the Phillies, the club remained locked in the [[National League (baseball)|National League]] cellar — losers of 106, 103 and 111 games. Prothro's career mark of 138–320 has the lowest managerial [[winning percentage]], .301, in major league history.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/managers/index.shtml |title=MLB Managers |website=[[Baseball-Reference.com]] |accessdate=September 7, 2020}}</ref>{{efn|The rankings include persons who managed at least 315 major league games.}}

Prothro was fired after the 1941 season and replaced by [[Hans Lobert]] and thereafter returned to the Southern Association, where he piloted the Chicks from 1942 to 1947. After he retired as Memphis' manager, he remained active as a co-owner of the club.

==Personal life==
A native of [[Memphis, Tennessee]], Prothro attended the [[University of Tennessee Health Science Center]]. He died in Memphis in 1971 at the age of 78. His son, [[Tommy Prothro]], became a successful coach in [[college football]] (at [[Oregon State University]] and [[UCLA]]) and, during the 1970s, led the [[Los Angeles Rams]] and [[San Diego Chargers]] of the [[National Football League]].<ref name=prothrosabr/>

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{Baseball stats |br=p/prothdo01 |brm=prothr001jam |retro=P/Pprotd101}}
*{{find a Grave|46790744}}

{{Philadelphia Phillies managers}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Prothro, Doc}}
[[Category:1893 births]]
[[Category:1971 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century American dentists]]
[[Category:Baseball coaches from Tennessee]]
[[Category:Baseball players from Memphis, Tennessee]]
[[Category:Boston Red Sox players]]
[[Category:Cincinnati Reds players]]
[[Category:Major League Baseball infielders]]
[[Category:Memphis Chickasaws players]]
[[Category:Minor league baseball managers]]
[[Category:Philadelphia Phillies managers]]
[[Category:Portland Beavers players]]
[[Category:Washington Senators (1901–1960) players]]
[[Category:20th-century American sportsmen]]