Dowd was born in Springfield, Massachusetts, in 1897.[1] He attended Lehigh University where he played football, basketball, and baseball.[2] He was credited with a 200-yard touchdown run after recovering a fumble and running nearly 100 yards in the wrong direction before correcting his course and running 100 yards back in the correct direction.[3] He left the school in January 1919 prior to taking examinations he had been ordered to take by the faculty.[2]
Professional baseball
Dowd began playing professional baseball in 1918 for the Syracuse Stars in the International League. He compiled a .290 batting average and stole 11 bases during the 1918 season. He made his major league debut on April 27, 1919, with the Detroit Tigers, but appeared in only one game with the Tigers. He also appeared in 12 major league games for the Philadelphia Athletics during the 1919 season, but he spent the bulk of the 1919 season with the Newark Bears, compiling a .329 batting average.[1]
He briefly returned to the major leagues in April 1926, appearing in two games for the Brooklyn Robins. He continued playing in the minor leagues for two years with the Newark Bears (1926), Springfield Ponies (1926), Bridgeport Bears (1927), Hartford Senators (1927), and Providence Grays (1927).[1] He was described as "one of the most traveled men in professional baseball."[4]
During his major league career, Snooks appeared in 16 Major League Baseball games and had a career batting average of .115 with four runs, three hits, and six RBIs.[1]