Alfred Bergman

Alfred Henry "Big Dutch" Bergman (September 27, 1889 – June 20, 1961) was a multi-sport college athlete and a professional baseball player. "Big Dutch" Bergman was born in Peru, Indiana, and went on to attend the University of Notre Dame. His brother Arthur, known as "Little Dutch" would also attend Notre Dame, and went on to become head coach of the Washington Redskins.[1]

Bergman is the only athlete in the history of athletics at the University of Notre Dame to earn a total of eleven varsity letters, and he was also the only athlete to earn four letters twice in a single year. He played football, baseball, basketball and was a team captain on the track team. As the kickoff returner for the football team in 1911, Bergman set a presently unbreakable record with a 105-yard return against Loyola; at the time the fields were 110 yards long. Three years later, Bergman became the starting quarterback for Jesse Harper's 1914 team, which finished the season with six wins and two losses.[2]

After graduation, Bergman would play professional baseball for one season with the Cleveland Indians. He signed with the Indians in late August, and made his Major League Baseball debut on August 29, 1916, and played second base for the team for eight games. A month later, he returned to his home in Indiana, two weeks after playing his final game on September 12.[3] In eight games, Bergman had three hits in 14 at-bats, as well as a triple. On August 3, 1917, he received a contract offer to finish out the season with the reigning World Series champion Brooklyn Dodgers. However, according to the Peru Journal, it'd be a "waste of time" to accept the offer as he was waiting to be called into World War I.[4] He died in Fort Wayne, Indiana, on June 20, 1961.[5]