It would probably be considered part of a trivia game for very many to be aware of the life and times of Ray Chapman. He began his career with the Cleveland Indians, then called the Cleveland Naps, at the age the age of twenty one. His career with this team was short but it lacked nothing in the records the man kept attaining.
It took little time for Chapman to prove what he could do on the field of play. He scored numerous walks and runs within six years of play. He led the league in sacrifices with his innate ability to bunt the ball and bring a teammate across the plate to score one for the Indians.
The Cleveland Indians were originally known as the Cleveland Naps and this is the name they held when Ray began his play with the team. His career may have been one of the shortest on record but it was filled with achievements of that time. With 84 walks and runs each, he held the American League Record in 1918.
Being counted among the few friends of Ty Cobb, Chapman enjoyed the distinction of batting . 300 in three different games. Once on base, he went on to lead the team in stolen bases no less than four times. He was not a tall of big man based on the players you see today, but his small size did nothing to leave him lacking in play he made.
It was common practice during these years of pro baseball to dirty up the ball in several ways. The worst the ball looked the better it was considered to be. Dark and dingy the baseball was difficult to see, and the ball that one could not see, one could not hit. It was this thinking that led to the death of Ray Chapman.
1920 was the infamous year. Ray stepped up to the plate to face pitcher Carl Mays crowding it as was his style. Mays threw the ball with all the force he could muster. Chapman never backed off and the ball hit him in the head with such force it sounded like the ball had been hit by Rays bat. Mays retrieved the ball, throwing it to first base, and the Yankees continued to throw the ball around the infield before realizing something was seriously wrong.
Dazed, Chapman took a few steps and then collapsed. Teammates carried him off the field and he was taken to a nearby hospital. Never regaining consciousness, Ray died twelve hours later on August 17, 1920, the only man in the history of baseball to be killed by a thrown pitch. The spitball was outlawed but it took thirty years before helmets were considered mandatory.
Many wonder what further records would have been set by Ray Chapman. Oddly enough, 1920 was to have been his last year in pro ball. He had married before that season and had decided to retire to enter his wife's family business. It was never to be and many of this great players records still stand today in the Baseball Hall of Fame
It took little time for Chapman to prove what he could do on the field of play. He scored numerous walks and runs within six years of play. He led the league in sacrifices with his innate ability to bunt the ball and bring a teammate across the plate to score one for the Indians.
The Cleveland Indians were originally known as the Cleveland Naps and this is the name they held when Ray began his play with the team. His career may have been one of the shortest on record but it was filled with achievements of that time. With 84 walks and runs each, he held the American League Record in 1918.
Being counted among the few friends of Ty Cobb, Chapman enjoyed the distinction of batting . 300 in three different games. Once on base, he went on to lead the team in stolen bases no less than four times. He was not a tall of big man based on the players you see today, but his small size did nothing to leave him lacking in play he made.
It was common practice during these years of pro baseball to dirty up the ball in several ways. The worst the ball looked the better it was considered to be. Dark and dingy the baseball was difficult to see, and the ball that one could not see, one could not hit. It was this thinking that led to the death of Ray Chapman.
1920 was the infamous year. Ray stepped up to the plate to face pitcher Carl Mays crowding it as was his style. Mays threw the ball with all the force he could muster. Chapman never backed off and the ball hit him in the head with such force it sounded like the ball had been hit by Rays bat. Mays retrieved the ball, throwing it to first base, and the Yankees continued to throw the ball around the infield before realizing something was seriously wrong.
Dazed, Chapman took a few steps and then collapsed. Teammates carried him off the field and he was taken to a nearby hospital. Never regaining consciousness, Ray died twelve hours later on August 17, 1920, the only man in the history of baseball to be killed by a thrown pitch. The spitball was outlawed but it took thirty years before helmets were considered mandatory.
Many wonder what further records would have been set by Ray Chapman. Oddly enough, 1920 was to have been his last year in pro ball. He had married before that season and had decided to retire to enter his wife's family business. It was never to be and many of this great players records still stand today in the Baseball Hall of Fame
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