Honus Wagner
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| Honus Wagner | ||
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.JPG/200px-Honus_Wagner_(crop).JPG) |
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| Shortstop | ||
| Born: February 24, 1874 Chartiers, Pennsylvania |
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| Died: December 6, 1955 (aged 81) Carnegie, Pennsylvania |
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| Batted: Right | Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | ||
| July 19, 1897 for the Louisville Colonels |
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| Final game | ||
| September 17, 1917 for the Pittsburgh Pirates |
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| Career statistics | ||
| Batting average | .327 | |
| Hits | 3415 | |
| Runs batted in | 1732 | |
| Teams | ||
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| Career highlights and awards | ||
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| Member of the National | ||
 Baseball Hall of Fame |
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| Elected | 1936 | |
| Vote | 95.13% (first ballot) | |
Johannes Peter "Honus" Wagner (February 24, 1874 - December 6, 1955), nicknamed "The Flying Dutchman" due to his superb speed and German heritage, was an American Major League Baseball shortstop who played in the NL from 1897 to 1917, almost entirely for the Pittsburgh Pirates. In 1936, the Baseball Hall of Fame inducted Wagner as one of the first five members, receiving the second-highest vote total behind Ty Cobb and ahead of Babe Ruth. Although Cobb is frequently cited as the greatest player of the dead-ball era, some contemporaries regarded Wagner as the better all-around player, and most baseball historians consider Wagner to be the greatest shortstop ever. Cobb himself called Wagner "maybe the greatest star ever to take the diamond."[1]
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[edit] Early life and Family
Honus Wagner was born on February 24, 1874 to German immigrants Peter and Katheryn Wagner, in the Pittsburgh neighborhood of Chartiers.[1], which is now a part of the borough of Carnegie, Pennsylvania. He was one of nine children, although only five lived past childhood. As a child, he was called Hans by his mother, which would later evolve into Honus. "Hans" was also an alternate nickname during his major league career. Wagner dropped out of school at age 12 to help his father and brothers in the coal mines. In their free time, he and his brothers played sandlot baseball and developed their skills to such an extent that three of his brothers would go on to be professionals as well. Wagner's older brother Albert "Butts" Wagner, who had a brief major league career himself, is often credited for getting Honus his first tryout. Following after his brother, Honus trained to be a barber before becoming successful in baseball. In 1916, Wagner married Bessie Baine Smith and the couple went on to have three daughters, Elva Katrina (born 1918), Betty Baine (born 1919), and Virginia Mae (born 1922).
[edit] Playing career
Honus Wagner began his career with the Louisville Colonels in 1897. Legend has it that he was discovered by Ed Barrow who had watched him throw rocks across a creek. Soon afterwards, Barrow signed and sent him to play for the Paterson, New Jersey minor league team. He also played a short stint for the Steubenville, Ohio team before making it to Louisville. Honus was a solid hitter from the very beginning of his major league career, hitting .338 in 61 games in his rookie year, 1897. By his second season, Wagner was already one of the best hitters in the National League although he would come up short a percentage point from finishing the season at .300. After the 1899 season, the NL contracted from twelve to eight teams, with the Colonels one of four teams eliminated. Along with Wagner, owner Barney Dreyfuss took many of his other top players with him to Pittsburgh. Accompanying Wagner were stalwart stars; pitchers Deacon Phillippe and Rube Waddell, catcher Chief Zimmer, infielder Tommy Leach, and outfielders Fred Clarke and Dummy Hoy. Wagner would play the remainder of his career for his hometown Pittsburgh Pirates, 21 seasons in all.
In 1900, Wagner won his first batting championship with a .381 mark and also led the league in doubles (45), triples (22), and slugging (.573), all of which were career highs. In the early stage of his career, Wagner played several different positions, just to keep his potent bat and speed in the lineup. It was in 1901 that he finally got a chance fielding at shortstop. His first day at the position, replacing incumbent Bones Ely, Wagner committed 3 errors in one inning. "The Dutchman" would eventually be hailed as the best-fielding shortstop of his era, although he played in the outfield for over 300 games and played over 200 games at both first base and third base. He would eventually play every position except catcher, even making two appearances as a pitcher.
Wagner would lead the National League in batting average eight times. Only Ty Cobb, with eleven, and Tony Gwynn, with eight, have ever led a league in batting average that often. He also led the league in slugging percentage six times, on-base percentage four times, total bases six times, doubles seven times, triples three times, runs batted in five times and stolen bases five times. He was an outstanding runner despite being bow-legged to the point where a contemporary sportswriter described his running as "resembling the gambols of a caracoling elephant." His career totals include a .327 lifetime batting average, 640 doubles, 722 stolen bases, and a career total of 3,415 hits, a major league record until it was surpassed by Cobb in 1923 and a National League record until it was surpassed by Stan Musial in 1962. He was the second player (since Major League Baseball officially began in 1876) to reach 3,000 hits, joining Cap Anson as the only members of this exclusive offensive club. His career home run total of 101 is considered a good total for a player whose entire career was played in the "dead ball era" when home runs were relatively few.
Honus Wagner has been considered one of the very best all-around players to ever play baseball since the day he retired in 1917. Famed "sabermatician" Bill James rates him as the second best player of all-time, right behind Babe Ruth.[2] Statisticians John Thorn and Pete Palmer rate Wagner as ninth all-time in their "Total Player Ranking".[3] Many of the greats who played or managed against Wagner, including Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb, Rogers Hornsby, and Walter Johnson, list him at shortstop on their All-Time teams.[4]
[edit] World Series Play
In 1903 the Pirates played the Boston Americans (an unofficial nickname for the club later named the Red Sox) in Major League Baseball's inaugural World Series. The Pirates were considered heavy favorites, as the American League had only completed its third season as a "major" league and was considered to have slightly lesser talent. Wagner, by this point, was an established star and much was expected of him, especially since the Pirates' starting rotation was decimated by injury. Wagner himself was not at full strength and hit only .222 for the series. The Americans, meanwhile, had some particularily rowdy fans, called the "Royal Rooters" who, whenever Wagner came to bat, would sing "Honus, Honus, why do you hit so badly?" to the tune of "Tessie", a popular song of the day. The Rooters, led by Boston bartender Michael "Nuf Ced" McGreevy, even travelled to Pittsburgh to continue their heckling. Pittsburgh lost in the best-of-nine series, five games to three, to a team led by pitchers Cy Young and Bill Dinneen and third baseman-manager Jimmy Collins. Christy Mathewson, in his book "Pitching in a Pinch" wrote, "For some time after "Hans" Wagner's poor showing in the world's series of 1903... it was reported that he was "yellow" (poor in the clutch). This grieved the Dutchman deeply, for I don't know a ball player in either league who would assay less quit to the ton than Wagner... This was the real tragedy in Wagner's career. Notwithstanding his stolid appearance, he is a sensitive player, and this has hurt him more than anything else in his life ever has."."[5]
Wagner and the Pirates were given a chance to prove that they were not "yellow" in 1909. The Pirates faced off against Ty Cobb's Detroit Tigers, which would be the only meeting of the two superior batsmen of the day. Wagner was by this time 35 years old, while Cobb a mere 22. This time Wagner would not be stifled as he would outhit Cobb, .333 to .231, and steal 6 bases, which established a new Series record. The speed demon Cobb only managed two steals, one of which Cobb himself admitted was a botched call. Wagner recounted, "We had him out at second. We put up a squawk, but Silk O'Loughlin, the umpire, overruled it. We kept the squawk going for a minute or so, making no headway of course, and then Cobb spoke up. He turned to O'Loughlin, an American League umpire, by the way, and said, 'Of course I was out. They had me by a foot. You just booted the play, so come on, let's play ball.' ."[6]There was also a story that was widely circulated over the years, that at one point Cobb was on first; he bragged to Wagner that he was going to steal second; Wagner placed an especially rough tag to Cobb's mouth; and the two exchanged choice words. Cobb denied it in his autobiography, and the play-by-play of the 1909 World Series confirms that the event could not have happened as stated: Cobb was never tagged out by Wagner in a caught-stealing. The Pirates won the series 4 games to 3 behind the pitching of Babe Adams, thereby vindicating Wagner and the Pittsburgh team.
[edit] Later life
Wagner served as the Pirates' manager briefly in 1917, but resigned the position after only 5 games. He returned to the Pirates as a coach, most notably as a hitting instructor from 1933 to 1952. Arky Vaughan, Kiki Cuyler, Ralph Kiner and player/manager from 1934-1939, Pie Traynor, all future Hall of Famers were notable "pupils" of Wagner. During this time, he wore uniform number 14, but later changed it to his more famous 33, which was later retired for him. (His entire playing career was in the days before uniform numbers were worn.) His appearances at National League stadiums during his coaching years were always well received and Hans remained a beloved ambassador of baseball.
In 1928, Wagner ran for sheriff of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania but lost. He was made deputy county sheriff in 1942. He also ran a well-known sporting goods company. In fact, a sporting goods store bearing the name "Honus Wagner" still operates in downtown Pittsburgh.
Wagner lived out the remainder of his life in Pittsburgh, where he was well-known as a friendly figure around town. He died on December 6, 1955 at the age of 81, and is buried at Jefferson Memorial Cemetery in the South Hills area of Pittsburgh.
[edit] Honors
- When the Baseball Hall of Fame held its first election in 1936, Wagner tied for second in the voting with Babe Ruth, trailing Cobb. In 1969, on the 100th anniversary of professional baseball, a vote was taken to honor the greatest players ever, and Wagner was selected as the all-time shortstop. In 1999, despite 82 years having passed since his last game and 44 years since his death, Wagner was voted Number 13 on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Players, making him still the highest-ranking shortstop. That same year, he was selected to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team by the oversight committee, after losing out in the popular vote to Cal Ripken, Jr. and Ernie Banks.
- "A stirring march and two step," titled "Husky Hans", and "respectfully dedicated to Hans Wagner, Three time Champion Batsman of The National League" was written by William J. Hartz in 1904.
- Famed baseball historian and author Bill James lists Wagner as the second greatest player of all time behind Babe Ruth. He also goes on to say that he is easily the greatest shortstop of all time noting that the difference between Wagner and the second greatest shortstop (in his estimation Hughie Jennings) is roughly the same as the gulf between Jennings and the 20th greatest shortstop.
- A life-size statue of Wagner swinging a bat, atop a marble pedestal featuring admiring children, was forged by a local sculptor named Frank Vittor, and placed outside the left field corner gate at Forbes Field. It was dedicated on April 30, 1955, and the then-frail Wagner was well enough to attend and wave to his many fans. The Pirates have relocated twice since then, and the statue has come along with them. It now stands outside the main gate of PNC Park. As that park is near the site of the Pirates' original home, Exposition Park, in a sense Wagner has come full circle.
- Wagner is also honored in the form of a small stadium residing behind Carnegie Elementary School on Washington Avenue in Carnegie, Pennsylvania. The stadium serves as the home field for Carlynton High School varsity sports.
- In 2000, Honus Wagner was honored with a U.S. postage stamp. The stamp was issued as part of a "Legends of Baseball" series that honored twenty all-time greats in conjunction with MLB's All Century team.
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Wagner is mentioned in the poem "Lineup for Yesterday" by Ogden Nash:
| Lineup for Yesterday | |
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| W is for Wagner, The bowlegged beauty; Short was closed to all traffic With Honus on duty. |
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| — Ogden Nash, Sport magazine (January 1949)[7] | |
[edit] Popular Culture
- Dan Gutman's 1997 novel Honus & Me tells the story of a baseball card-collecting kid who magically meets Honus Wagner through the power of one of the famous T-206 Wagner cards. A made-for-TV movie based on this book, called "The Winning Season" and starring Matthew Modine, was produced in 2004 and aired on the TNT cable network.
- In 1919, Wagner appeared in a movie titled "Spring Fever" with two members of the Three Stooges, Moe and Shemp Howard, and Harold Lloyd. [2][3]
- In Fox's Prison Break, David "Tweener" Apolskis reveals to Michael Scofield that he is in prison for five years because he stole a Honus Wagner baseball card.
[edit] T206 Baseball card
The T206 Honus Wagner card has long been the most famous baseball card in existence. Known as the "Holy Grail" and the "Mona Lisa of baseball cards", an example of this card was the first baseball card to be sold for over a million dollars.[8] Only 50 to 60 of these cards are believed to exist.[9] One theory for the card's scarcity is that Wagner, a non-smoker, requested the production of this card be halted since it was being sold as a marketing vehicle for tobacco products.[10] The problem with this theory is that Wagner appears on a tobacco piece produced by Recius in the late 1800s. Another theory postulates that Wagner was not offered any compensation for the use of his likeness. Consequently, he supposedly withdrew his permission to print any more copies.[11] At the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY, it is stated that while Wagner was a smoker, he did not want children to have to buy tobacco products to get his card. Therefore, he requested it to be pulled from production.
Of these handful of existing cards, the single most famous, a nm-mt PSA graded 8 (which also was the first card graded by PSA serially numbered 00000001) card which initially broke the US $1 million barrier, sold again on February 26, 2007 at auction for US $2.35 million to an anonymous buyer in Orange County, California.[12][9] SCP Auctions, which had purchased minority ownership of the card, sold it again in September of 2007, this time to a private collector for $2.8 million, establishing yet another new record price for the card.[13]
This particular card is in the best condition compared to the rest of the existing cards, having been encased in a protective Lucite sheeting for decades. Considered the ultimate pinnacle of baseball card collecting, the card has changed hands four times in the last 10 years, doubling in value on three of those occasions while having such ownership as hockey great Wayne Gretzky, Los Angeles Kings owner Bruce McNall and later Wal-Mart.[9] Wal-Mart had purchased the card in the mid-1990s to give away as part of a marketing campaign for a line of baseball cards. The winner of the give-away could not afford the taxes associated with it, and it ended up being sold at auction in the mid-1990s to a Chicago businessman and collector for $640,000.[9] In mid-2000 it was sold again for $1,265,000 to a Las Vegas-based businessman who regularly had it placed on public display at baseball games and the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library before selling the card for double his purchase price in February 2007.[9] In 2007 NY Daily News writer Michael O'Keefe authored a book relating to the card. In the work he makes a case that the card had been deceptively trimmed by a well known mid west dealer. Currently there are 4 Wagner cards that have been professionally graded between Very Good and Excellent. Sportscard Guaranty of NJ has graded two examples VG 40 and PSA of California has graded one example VG-EX 4 and one Example Excellent 5. Scott D Ireland of Vermont has the highest graded copy that has not been rumored to be altered.
[edit] Quotes About Honus Wagner
- In discussing his all-time team Babe Ruth said, "At shortstop there is only one candidate, the immortal Honus Wagner. He was just head and shoulders above anyone else in that position. Fellows like Marion, Bancroft, Peck and Billy Jurges were all great fielders. But Honus could more than out-field all of them. He was perhaps the greatest right-handed hitter of all time. He had remarkably long arms, hams for hands, and just drew the ball to him. Ed Barrow once told me he could have been as good in any position but he made his greatest name as shortstop. He led the National League seven times at bat and he was always up with the leaders when he was in his forties." .[14]
- "When I was a boy growing up in Kansas, a friend of mine and I went fishing and as we sat there on the warmth of a summer afternoon we talked about what we wanted to do when we grew up. I told him I wanted to be a major league baseball player, a genuine professional like Honus Wagner. My friend said that he'd like to be president of the United States. Neither of us got our wish."- Dwight D. Eisenhower.[15]
[edit] See also
- List of major league players with 2,000 hits
- List of Major League Baseball doubles records
- List of Major League Baseball players with 400 doubles
- List of Major League Baseball players with 100 triples
- List of Major League Baseball players with 1000 runs
- List of Major League Baseball players with 1000 RBI
- List of Major League Baseball players with 500 stolen bases
- 3000 hit club
- Hitting for the cycle
- List of Major League Baseball RBI champions
- List of Major League Baseball batting champions
- List of Major League Baseball leaders in career stolen bases
- List of Major League Baseball runs scored champions
- List of Major League Baseball stolen base champions
- List of Major League Baseball doubles champions
- List of Major League Baseball triples champions
- List of Major League Baseball players with 400 stolen bases
- Major League Baseball titles leaders
[edit] References
Hall of Fame Network: "Honus Wagner as Mona Lisa" http://www.hofmag.com/content/view/1038/30/
- ^ (1961) My Life in Baseball: The True Record. Doubleday, 123.
- ^ Bill James (1988). The Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract. Villard, 448.
- ^ (1999) Total Baseball: Sixth Edition. Total Sports, 2403.
- ^ Bill James (1988). The Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract. Villard, 157.
- ^ Christy Mathewson (1912). Pitching In a Pinch. Putnam, 36.
- ^ Joe Williams (1989).
- The Joe Williams Baseball Reader. Algonquin Books, 5.
- ^ Baseball Almanac. Retrieved on 2008-01-23.
- ^ [? PSA 8 T206 Wagner Sale]. Retrieved on 2006-09-20.
- ^ a b c d e Bob Pool, Honus Wagner card sells for $2.35 million, Los Angeles Times, February 28, 2007.
- ^ Honus Wagner baseball card nets $2.35M. Retrieved on 2007-02-27.
- ^ Compensation Theory. Retrieved on 2006-09-20.
- ^ PSA 8 T206 Wagner New Sale Price. Retrieved on 2007-02-27.
- ^ Sports Collector Daily, "T206 Honus Wagner Card Sold Again", 6 September 2007, retrieved 12 Sept 2007.
- ^ (1948) The Babe Ruth Story. Scholastic, 224.
- ^ (1994) Baseball: An Illustrated History. Alfred A. Knopf, 49.
[edit] Further reading
- Honus Wagner: A Biography, by Dennis DeValeria and Jeanne Burke DeValeria, Henry Holt and Company, New York, 1995.
- Hittner, Arthur D. Honus Wagner: The Life of Baseball's "Flying Dutchman." Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 1996 and 2003 (softcover). Winner of the 1996 Seymour Medal, awarded by the Society for American Baseball Research.
- Honus and Me by Dan Gutman
[edit] External links
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference
- baseballhalloffame.org – Hall of Fame biography page
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