1.
Ty Cobb
–
Tyrus Raymond Ty Cobb, nicknamed The Georgia Peach, was an American Major League Baseball outfielder. He was born in rural Narrows, Georgia, Cobb spent 22 seasons with the Detroit Tigers, the last six as the teams player-manager, and finished his career with the Philadelphia Athletics. In 1999, editors at the Sporting News ranked Ty Cobb 3rd on their list of Baseballs 100 Greatest Players, Cobb is widely credited with setting 90 MLB records during his career. He still holds records as of the end of the 2016 season, including the highest career batting average. He still holds the record for stealing home and for stealing second base, third base, and home in succession. Cobb ranks fifth all-time in number of games played and committed 271 errors, Cobbs legacy as an athlete has sometimes been overshadowed by his surly temperament and aggressive playing style, which was described by the Detroit Free Press as daring to the point of dementia. Cobb himself wrote shortly before his death, In legend I am a sadistic, Cobb was notorious for sliding into bases feet first, with his spikes high. Cobb was born in 1886 in Narrows, Georgia, a rural community of farmers that was not an official city or village at the time. He was the first of three born to William Herschel Cobb and Amanda Chitwood Cobb. Cobbs father was a state senator, when he was still an infant, his parents moved to nearby Royston, where he was raised. He played his first years in organized baseball for the Royston Rompers, the semi-pro Royston Reds, and he then tried out for the Anniston Steelers of the semipro Tennessee–Alabama League, with his fathers stern admonition ringing in his ears, Dont come home a failure. Eventually, Rice wrote a note in the Journal that a young fellow named Cobb seems to be showing an unusual lot of talent. After about three months, Cobb returned to the Tourists and finished the season hitting.237 in 35 games, in August 1905, the management of the Tourists sold Cobb to the American Leagues Detroit Tigers for US$750. On August 8,1905, Cobbs mother fatally shot his father with a pistol that his father had purchased for her, court records indicate that Mr. Cobb had suspected his wife of infidelity and was sneaking past his own bedroom window to catch her in the act. She saw the silhouette of what she presumed to be an intruder and, acting in self-defense, shot, Mrs. Cobb was charged with murder and then released on a $7,000 recognizance bond. She was acquitted on March 31,1906, Cobb later attributed his ferocious play to his late father, saying, I did it for my father. He never got to see me play, but I knew he was watching me, and I never let him down. In 1911, Cobb moved to Detroits architecturally significant and now historically protected Woodbridge neighborhood, the Victorian duplex in which Cobb lived still stands
2.
Nap Lajoie
–
Napoléon Nap Lajoie, also known as Larry Lajoie and nicknamed The Frenchman, was an American professional baseball second baseman and player-manager. He played in Major League Baseball for the Philadelphia Phillies, Philadelphia Athletics and he managed the Naps from 1905 through 1909. Lajoie was signed to the National Leaguess Phillies in 1896, National League clubs contested the legality of contracts signed by players who jumped to the other league but eventually, Lajoie was allowed to play for Connie Macks Athletics. During the season, Lajoie set the all-time American League single-season mark for the highest batting average, one year later, Lajoie went to the Cleveland Bronchos where he would play until the 1915 season when he returned to play for Mack and the Athletics. Lajoie led the AL in batting five times in his career. Lajoie in 1914 joined Cap Anson and Honus Wagner as the major league players to record 3,000 career hits. He led the NL or AL in putouts five times in his career and he has been called the best second baseman in the history of baseball and the most outstanding player to wear a Cleveland uniform. Cy Young said, Lajoie was one of the most rugged players I ever faced, hed take your leg off with a line drive, turn the third baseman around like a swinging door and powder the hand of the left fielder. He was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1937, Lajoie was born in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, to Jean Baptiste and Celina Guertin Lajoie. The elder Lajoie was French-Canadian and had emigrated to the United States, upon arrival to the U. S. he first settled in Rutland, Vermont, but then moved to Woonsocket, where Lajoie, the youngest of eight surviving children, was born. Throughout his childhood Lajoie received little formal education, the elder Lajoie, who worked as a teamster and laborer, died not long into the younger Lajoies childhood, which forced him and his siblings to work to support the family. Lajoie dropped out of school to work in a textile mill and he also began playing semi-professional baseball for the local Woonsocket team under the alias Sandy, because his parents did not approve of their son playing baseball. He earned money as a driver with a horse and buggy. When I told my father I had decided to take the job he was very angry and he shouted that ball players were bums and that nobody respected them, but I was determined to give it a try at least one season, Lajoie later said. He also received the nickname Larry from a teammate who had trouble pronouncing Lajoie, Lajoie admired baseball players such as King Kelly and Charles Radbourn. When word of Lajoies baseball ability spread, he began to play for other teams at $2 to $5 per game. Meanwhile, Lajoie worked as a teamster and he recorded 163 hits in 80 games, and led the team in batting average, doubles, triples, home runs and hits. Lajoie was widely regarded as an outstanding prospect and Indians owner Charlie Marston rejected an offer from the Pittsburgh Pirates for Lajoie in exchange for $500 and he was also scouted by the Philadelphia Phillies and Boston Beaneaters
3.
Major League Baseball
–
Major League Baseball is a professional baseball organization, the oldest of the four major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada. A total of 30 teams now play in the National League and American League, the NL and AL operated as separate legal entities from 1876 and 1901 respectively. After cooperating but remaining legally separate entities since 1903, the merged into a single organization led by the Commissioner of Baseball in 2000. The organization also oversees Minor League Baseball, which comprises about 240 teams affiliated with the Major League clubs, with the World Baseball Softball Confederation, MLB manages the international World Baseball Classic tournament. Baseballs first professional team was founded in Cincinnati in 1869,30 years after Abner Doubleday supposedly invented the game of baseball, the first few decades of professional baseball were characterized by rivalries between leagues and by players who often jumped from one team or league to another. The period before 1920 in baseball was known as the dead-ball era, Baseball survived a conspiracy to fix the 1919 World Series, which came to be known as the Black Sox Scandal. The sport rose in popularity in the 1920s, and survived potential downturns during the Great Depression, shortly after the war, baseballs color barrier was broken by Jackie Robinson. The 1950s and 1960s were a time of expansion for the AL and NL, then new stadiums, Home runs dominated the game during the 1990s, and media reports began to discuss the use of anabolic steroids among Major League players in the mid-2000s. In 2006, an investigation produced the Mitchell Report, which implicated many players in the use of performance-enhancing substances, today, MLB is composed of thirty teams, twenty-nine in the United States and one in Canada. Baseball broadcasts are aired on television, radio, and the Internet throughout North America, MLB has the highest season attendance of any sports league in the world with more than 73 million spectators in 2015. MLB is governed by the Major League Baseball Constitution and this document has undergone several incarnations since 1875, with the most recent revisions being made in 2012. Under the direction of the Commissioner of Baseball, MLB hires and maintains the sports umpiring crews, and negotiates marketing, labor, MLB maintains a unique, controlling relationship over the sport, including most aspects of Minor League Baseball. This ruling has been weakened only slightly in subsequent years, the weakened ruling granted more stability to the owners of teams and has resulted in values increasing at double-digit rates. There were several challenges to MLBs primacy in the sport between the 1870s and the Federal League in 1916, the last attempt at a new league was the aborted Continental League in 1960. The chief executive of MLB is the commissioner, Rob Manfred, the chief operating officer is Tony Petitti. There are five other executives, president, chief officer, chief legal officer, chief financial officer. The multimedia branch of MLB, which is based in Manhattan, is MLB Advanced Media and this branch oversees MLB. com and each of the 30 teams websites. Its charter states that MLB Advanced Media holds editorial independence from the league, MLB Productions is a similarly structured wing of the league, focusing on video and traditional broadcast media
4.
History of the St. Louis Browns
–
This article covers the franchises history in St. Louis, which began when the team moved from Milwaukee after the 1901 season and ended with the teams move to Baltimore after the 1953 season. As of April 6,2017, there are only 14 living former St. Louis Browns players, in the late 19th century, the team existed as the Milwaukee Brewers in the Western League. For the 1900 season, the Western League was renamed to American League, Johnson had originally intended to move the Milwaukee Brewers to St. Louis. When he couldnt find an owner, he was forced to operate the team in Milwaukee for a lame-duck season in 1901. Hedges built a new park on the site of the old Browns former home, in their first St. Louis season, the Browns finished second. Although the Browns had only four winning seasons from 1902 to 1922, in 1909, the Browns rebuilt Sportsmans Park as the third concrete-and-steel park in the majors. During this time, the Browns were best known for their role in the race for the 1910 American League batting title. Ty Cobb took the last game of the season off, believing that his lead over Nap Lajoie, of the Cleveland Naps. Browns manager Jack OConnor had ordered rookie third baseman Red Corriden to play on the outfield grass and this all but conceded a hit for any ball Lajoie bunted. Lajoie bunted five straight times down the base line and made it to first easily. On his last at-bat, Lajoie reached base on an error – officially giving him a hitless at-bat, OConnor and coach Harry Howell tried to bribe the official scorer, a woman, to change the call to a hit – even offering to buy her a new wardrobe. Cobb won the title by just a few thousandths of a point over Lajoie. After news broke of the scandal, a writer for the St. Louis Post claimed, All St. Louis is up in arms over the spectacle, conceived in stupidity. The resulting outcry triggered an investigation by American League president Ban Johnson, at his insistence, Hedges fired OConnor and Howell, both men were informally banned from baseball for life. In 1916, Hedges sold the Browns to Philip DeCatesby Ball, Balls early tenure saw the clubs first real sustained period of success on the field, they were a contender for most of the early 1920s. This was fueled by Balls free spending to put a winner of the field, however, Ball made a series of blunders that would ultimately doom the franchise. Shortly after buying the team, he fired general manager Branch Rickey, four years later, Ball allowed the Cardinals to move out of dilapidated Robison Field and share Sportsmans Park with the Browns. Rickey and Cardinals owner Sam Breadon used the proceeds from the Robison Field sale to build baseballs first modern farm system and this effort eventually produced several star players that brought the Cardinals more drawing power than the Browns
5.
Chalmers Automobile
–
Chalmers Motor Company was an American automobile company located in Detroit, Michigan. It was named after Hugh Chalmers of the National Cash Register Company, like Maxwell the brand is now owned by Chrysler. The Chalmers was formed when Hugh Chalmers bought out the interests of ER Thomas in the Thomas-Detroit company in 1908, the name was changed to Chalmers in 1911. During 1917 following Aprils declaration of war, Maxwell Motor Co took over Chalmers operations to make cars, Chalmers then faltered in the 1920s post-World War I recession. It merged with the Maxwell Automobile Company, forerunner of Chrysler, in 1922, with a 115 in wheelbase on 34 in wheels, Chalmers were expensive cars for the period. The Chalmers 30 Coupe at US2400 was nearer the US$2000 Enger 40, while 40 Touring and 40 Roadster at US2750 and 40 Torpedo at US3000 were still below Americans lowest-price model, taking part in early racing, a Chalmers won the 1910 Glidden Tour. The company also originated the Chalmers Award in professional baseball, List of automobile manufacturers List of defunct automobile manufacturers Brass era Clymer, Floyd. Treasury of Early American Automobiles, 1877-1925, new York, Bonanza Books,1950 Chalmers Automobile Registry
6.
Car
–
A car is a wheeled, self-powered motor vehicle used for transportation and a product of the automotive industry. The year 1886 is regarded as the year of the modern car. In that year, German inventor Karl Benz built the Benz Patent-Motorwagen, cars did not become widely available until the early 20th century. One of the first cars that was accessible to the masses was the 1908 Model T, an American car manufactured by the Ford Motor Company. Cars were rapidly adopted in the United States of America, where they replaced animal-drawn carriages and carts, cars are equipped with controls used for driving, parking, passenger comfort and safety, and controlling a variety of lights. Over the decades, additional features and controls have been added to vehicles, examples include rear reversing cameras, air conditioning, navigation systems, and in car entertainment. Most cars in use in the 2010s are propelled by a combustion engine. Both fuels cause air pollution and are blamed for contributing to climate change. Vehicles using alternative fuels such as ethanol flexible-fuel vehicles and natural gas vehicles are also gaining popularity in some countries, electric cars, which were invented early in the history of the car, began to become commercially available in 2008. There are costs and benefits to car use, the costs of car usage include the cost of, acquiring the vehicle, interest payments, repairs and auto maintenance, fuel, depreciation, driving time, parking fees, taxes, and insurance. The costs to society of car use include, maintaining roads, land use, road congestion, air pollution, public health, health care, road traffic accidents are the largest cause of injury-related deaths worldwide. The benefits may include transportation, mobility, independence. The ability for humans to move flexibly from place to place has far-reaching implications for the nature of societies and it was estimated in 2010 that the number of cars had risen to over 1 billion vehicles, up from the 500 million of 1986. The numbers are increasing rapidly, especially in China, India, the word car is believed to originate from the Latin word carrus or carrum, or the Middle English word carre. In turn, these originated from the Gaulish word karros, the Gaulish language was a branch of the Brythoic language which also used the word Karr, the Brythonig language evolved into Welsh where Car llusg and car rhyfel still survive. It originally referred to any wheeled vehicle, such as a cart, carriage. Motor car is attested from 1895, and is the formal name for cars in British English. Autocar is a variant that is attested from 1895
7.
Batting average
–
Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batsmen in cricket and batters in baseball. The development of the statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. In cricket, a batting average is the total number of runs they have scored divided by the number of times they have been out. The number is also simple to interpret intuitively, if all the batsmans innings were completed, this is the average number of runs they score per innings. If they did not complete all their innings, this number is an estimate of the average number of runs they score per innings. Batting average has been used to gauge cricket players relative skills since the 18th century, most players have career batting averages in the range of 20 to 40. This is also the range for wicket-keepers, though some fall short. All-rounders who are more prominent bowlers than batsmen typically average something between 20 and 30,15 and under is typical for specialist bowlers. Under this qualification, the highest Test batting average belongs to Australias Sir Donald Bradman, given that a career batting average over 50 is exceptional, and that only four other players have averages over 60, this is an outstanding statistic. The fact that Bradmans average is so far above that of any other cricketer has led several statisticians to argue that, statistically at least, he was the greatest sportsman in any sport. As at 21 October 2016, Adam Voges of Australia has recorded an average of 72.75 from 27 innings played and it should also be remembered, especially in relation to the ODI histogram above, that there were no ODI competitions when Bradman played. If their scores have a geometric distribution then total number of runs scored divided by the number of times out is the maximum likelihood estimate of their true unknown average, Batting averages can be strongly affected by the number of not outs. A different, and more developed, statistic which is also used to gauge the effectiveness of batsmen is the strike rate. It measures a different concept however – how quickly the batsman scores – so it does not supplant the role of batting average and it is used particularly in limited overs matches, where the speed at which a batsman scores is more important than it is in first-class cricket. Table shows players with at least 20 innings completed, in baseball, the batting average is defined by the number of hits divided by at bats. It is usually reported to three places and read without the decimal, A player with a batting average of.300 is batting three-hundred. A point is understood, in only, to be.001. If necessary to break ties, batting averages could be taken beyond the.001 measurement, henry Chadwick, an English statistician raised on cricket, was an influential figure in the early history of baseball
8.
American League
–
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League, is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a league based in the Great Lakes states. It is sometimes called the Junior Circuit because it claimed Major League status for the 1901 season,25 years after the formation of the National League. At the end of season, the American League champion plays in the World Series against the National League champion. Through 2016, American League teams have won 64 of the 112 World Series played since 1903, the 2016 American League champions are the Cleveland Indians. The New York Yankees have won 40 American League titles, the most in the history, followed by the Philadelphia/Kansas City/Oakland Athletics. Originally a minor league known as the Western League, the American League later developed into a major league after the American Association disbanded, in its early history, the Western League struggled until 1894, when Ban Johnson became the president of the league. Johnson led the Western League into major league status and soon became the president of the newly renamed American League, babe Ruth, noted as one of the most prolific hitters in Major League Baseball history, spent the majority of his career in the American League. The American League has one notable difference versus the National League, in 1902, the Milwaukee Brewers moved to St. Louis and were renamed the St. Louis Browns. In 1902, The Cleveland Bluebirds were also renamed the Cleveland Broncos, in 1903, the Broncos were renamed the Cleveland Naps. In 1915, the Naps were renamed the Cleveland Indians, in 1903, the Baltimore Orioles moved to New York and were renamed the New York Highlanders. In 1913, the Highlanders were renamed the New York Yankees, in 1904, the Chicago White Stockings were renamed the Chicago White Sox. In 1908, the Boston Americans were renamed the Boston Red Sox, in 1954, the St. Louis Browns moved to Baltimore and were renamed as the Baltimore Orioles. In 1955, the Philadelphia Athletics moved to Kansas City and were renamed as the Kansas City Athletics, in 1961, the league expanded and added two teams as the Los Angeles Angels and the Washington Senators, expanding the league to 10 teams. The original Senators team moved to Minneapolis/St, Paul in 1961 and were renamed as the Minnesota Twins. The Angels team name changed to the California Angels in 1966, then to the Anaheim Angels in 1997, the Kansas City Royals and the Seattle Pilots were added to the American League, expanding the league to 12 teams. In 1970, the Seattle Pilots moved to Milwaukee and were renamed the Milwaukee Brewers, in 1972, the Washington Senators relocated to the Dallas/Fort Worth area and were renamed the Texas Rangers. In 1977, the league expanded to fourteen teams, when the Seattle Mariners, in 1998, the Tampa Bay Rays was added to the American League and at the same time, the Milwaukee Brewers were switched to the National League, leaving the American League with 14 teams
9.
National League
–
Both leagues currently have 15 teams. The two league champions of 1903 arranged to compete against each other in the inaugural World Series, after the 1904 champions failed to reach a similar agreement, the two leagues formalized the World Series as an arrangement between the leagues. National League teams have won 48 of the 112 World Series contested from 1903 to 2016, the 2016 National League champions are the Chicago Cubs. By 1875, the National Association of Professional Base Ball Players was dangerously weak, additionally, Hulbert had a problem—five of his star players were threatened with expulsion from the NAPBBP because Hulbert had signed them to his club using what were considered questionable means. Hulbert had a vested interest in creating his own league. After recruiting St. Louis privately, four western clubs met in Louisville, Kentucky, Boston Red Stockings, the dominant team in the N. A. Hartford Dark Blues from the N. A. Mutual of New York from the N. A. St. Louis Brown Stockings from the N. A, the only strong club from 1875 excluded in 1876 was a second one in Philadelphia, often called the White Stockings or Phillies. The first game in National League history was played on April 22,1876, at Philadelphias Jefferson Street Grounds, 25th & Jefferson, the new leagues authority was tested after the first season. The National League operated with six clubs during 1877 and 1878, over the next several years, various teams joined and left the struggling league. By 1880, six of the eight members had folded. The two remaining original NL franchises, Boston and Chicago, remain in operation today as the Atlanta Braves, in 1883 the New York Gothams and Philadelphia Phillies began National League play. Both teams remain in the NL today, the Phillies in their original city, the NL encountered its first strong rival organization when the American Association began play in 1882. The A. A. played in cities where the NL did not have teams, offered Sunday games and alcoholic beverages in locales where permitted, the National League and the American Association participated in a version of the World Series seven times during their ten-year coexistence. These contests were less organized than the modern Series, lasting as few as three games and as many as fifteen, with two Series ending in disputed ties, the NL won four times and the A. A. only once, in 1886. Starting with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1887, the National League began to raid the American Association for franchises to replace NL teams that folded and this undercut the stability of the A. A. Other new leagues that rose to compete with the National League were the Union Association, the Union Association was established in 1884 and folded after playing only one season, its league champion St. Louis Maroons joining the NL. The NL suffered many defections of star players to the Players League, the Brooklyn, Chicago, Pittsburgh, and New York franchises of the NL absorbed their Players League counterparts. The labor strife of 1890 hastened the downfall of the American Association, after the 1891 season, the A. A. disbanded and merged with the NL, which became known legally for the next decade as the National League and American Association
