The 1915

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

won a then club-record 100 games and narrowly lost the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

pennant to the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

, who won 101 games. Though four other Tigers teams have won 100 games (

1934 Events January–February * January 1 – The International Telecommunication Union, a specialist agency of the League of Nations, is established. * January 15 – The 8.0 1934 Nepal–Bihar earthquake, Nepal–Bihar earthquake strik ...

1961 Events January * January 3 ** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and consular relations with Cuba ( Cuba–United States relations are restored in 2015). ** Aero Flight 311 ...

1968 The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide. Events January–February * January 5 – "Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. * Januar ...

, and

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeast A ...

), only the 1934 Tigers had a better winning percentage. The 1915 Detroit Tigers team is remembered for its all-star outfield of

Ty Cobb Tyrus Raymond Cobb (December 18, 1886 – July 17, 1961), nicknamed "the Georgia Peach", was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) center fielder. He was born in rural Narrows, Georgia. Cobb spent 22 seasons with the Detroit Tigers, the las ...

Sam Crawford Samuel Earl Crawford (April 18, 1880 – June 15, 1968), nicknamed "Wahoo Sam", was an American outfielder in Major League Baseball (MLB). Crawford batted and threw left-handed, stood tall and weighed . Born in Wahoo, Nebraska, he had a sh ...

, and

Bobby Veach Robert Hayes Veach (June 29, 1888 – August 7, 1945) was an American baseball player from 1910 to 1930 including 14 seasons in the major leagues. He was the starting left fielder for the Detroit Tigers from 1912 to 1923 and also played for the B ...

—who finished #1, #2, and #3 in the American League in both runs batted in and total bases. Baseball historian

Bill James George William James (born October 5, 1949) is an American baseball writer, historian, and statistician whose work has been widely influential. Since 1977, James has written more than two dozen books devoted to baseball history and statistics. ...

ranks the Tigers' 1915 outfield as the best in major league history.

Offseason

* January 7, 1915: The Tigers sold

Wally Pipp Walter Clement Pipp (February 17, 1893 – January 11, 1965) was an American professional baseball player. A first baseman, Pipp played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Detroit Tigers, New York Yankees, and Cincinnati Reds between 1913 ...

and Hugh High to the Yankees for a reported $5,000 each.

Regular season

The 1915 Tigers' winning percentage of .649 ranks as the 2nd best in team history, as follows:

The Players

Catcher: Oscar Stanage

Catcher

Oscar Stanage Oscar Harland Stanage (March 17, 1883 – November 11, 1964) was an American baseball catcher. He played professional baseball for 24 years from 1903 to 1926, including 13 seasons in Major League Baseball with the Detroit Tigers. A native of T ...

was a weak hitter but one of the best defensive catchers of the deadball era. In thirteen seasons with the Tigers, Stanage caught 1,074 games – second only to

Bill Freehan William Ashley Freehan (November 29, 1941 – August 19, 2021) was an American catcher in Major League Baseball who played his entire 15-year career with the Detroit Tigers. The premier catcher in the American League for several years from the 19 ...

in team history. Known for his strong throwing arm, Stanage threw out more baserunners than any other catcher in the 1910s. Stanage still holds the American League record for most assists by a catcher, with 212 in 1911, and his career average of 1.29 assists per game is the fifth best in major league history. Stanage was not as skilled with the glove; his 41 errors in 1911 was the most by a catcher for the 20th Century.

Infield: Burns, Young, Bush and Vitt

First baseman "Tioga George" Burns played for the Tigers from 1914 to 1917. In 1915, Burns hit only .243 with 18 doubles. Burns went on to become a star after leaving the Tigers. In 1926, he was named the American League's MVP with a .358 batting average and an all-time MLB record 64 doubles. Second baseman Ralph Young played for the Tigers from 1915 to 1921. In 1915, Young had a .243 batting average, but a much more respectable .339 on-base percentage. At 5'5", Young was one of the shortest players ever to play in a Tigers uniform. His small stature, and correspondingly small

strike zone In baseball, the strike zone is the volume of space through which a pitch must pass in order to be called a strike even if the batter does not swing. The strike zone is defined as the volume of space above home plate and between the batter's kn ...

, assisted him in both collecting walks and avoiding strikeouts. In nine seasons, Young collected 495 bases on balls and struck out only 254 times (in 3,643 at bats). Young led all American League second basemen with 32 errors in 1915. Shortstop

Donie Bush Owen Joseph "Donie" Bush (; October 8, 1887Sources differ as to Bush's date of birth. Sources listing the date as October 8, 1887, include (i) baseball-reference.com, and (ii) findagrave.com. Sources listing the date as October 3, 1887, include ( ...

was Detroit's starting shortstop for thirteen seasons from 1909 to 1921. In 1914, Bush had 425 putouts (still the major league record for shortstops) and 969 chances (still the American League record). He led the American League in assists by a shortstop in 1915 with 504. In 1915, he also collected 118 walks. During the decade from 1910 to 1919, no one had more bases on balls than Bush. Bush also ranked among the league leaders in stolen bases nine times, including 1915 when he stole 35 bases. With his ability to get on base, and having Cobb and Crawford batting behind him, Bush was also among the league leaders in runs scored ten times, including his 1915 total of 99 runs. Third baseman Ossie Vitt played seven seasons with the Tigers and was a poor hitter but a good fielder. In 1915, he hit .250 with 48 RBIs. He led all American League third basemen in 1915 and 1916 in putouts, assists and fielding percentage. His 208 assists in 1916 has not been exceeded by a Detroit third baseman since that time. While not a good hitter for average, Vitt was a good contact hitter and one of the best bunters of the era. He led the American League with 42 sacrifice hits in 1915, and his career total of 259 sacrifice hits (in a relatively short career) ranks 32nd best in major league history. Vitt was also one of the toughest players to strike out in MLB history. For his career, he struck out an average of once every 26.6 at bats, 35th best in MLB history.

Outfield: Veach, Cobb, and Crawford

The Tigers' 1915 outfield, with

in left,

in center, and

in right, has been ranked by baseball historian

as the greatest outfield of all time.Bill James, "''

The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract ''The Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract'' is a reference book written by Bill James featuring an overview of professional baseball decade by decade, along with rankings of the top 100 players at each position. The original edition was publi ...

''" (2001), pp. 673–674 Though the league batting average in 1915 was .248, Cobb hit .369 with 99 RBIs and 144 runs scored, Crawford hit .313 and drove in 112 runs, and Veach hit .299 with 112 RBIs. The three Detroit outfielders ranked #1, #2, and #3 in total bases and RBIs. Cobb also set a major league record with 96 stolen bases in 1915, a record which would not be broken for nearly 50 years until

Maury Wills Maurice Morning Wills (October 2, 1932 – September 19, 2022) was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) primarily for the Los Angeles Dodgers from 1959 through 1966 and the latter part of ...

stole 104 bases in 1962.

Pitching: Coveleski, Dauss, Dubuc and Boland

Pitcher

Hooks Dauss George August "Hooks" Dauss (September 22, 1889 – July 27, 1963), born George August Daus, was an American professional baseball player from 1909 to 1926. He played 15 seasons of Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher for the Detroit ...

played his entire fifteen-year career with the Tigers and is the team's all-time wins leader. In 1915, Dauss won 24 games (2nd most in the American League) and lost 13, while ending up with a 2.50 ERA in 309⅔ innings. Dauss was also an excellent fielding pitcher. His career range factor of 2.28 is 65 points higher than the average pitcher of his era. He had 1128 assists in his career, including an American League leading 137 in 1915. His career fielding percentage of .968 was also 20 points higher than the average pitcher of his era. Pitcher Harry Coveleski joined the Tigers in 1914. He was a 20-game winner in his first three seasons in Detroit (1914–1916). In 1915, he had a record of 22–13 with an ERA of 2.45, and followed in 1916 with a 1.97 ERA. In four of his five seasons with the Tigers, Coveleski's ERA was under three, and his 2.34 ERA with the Tigers is still the franchise's all-time career record. Pitcher

Jean Dubuc Jean Joseph Octave Dubuc (September 15, 1888 – August 28, 1958), sometimes known by the nickname "Chauncey", was a right-handed American baseball pitcher, manager, and scout, and a coach of both baseball and ice hockey. A native of Vermont, Du ...

was a pitching phenom at Notre Dame before entering professional baseball. In 1915, he went 17–12 for the Tigers with a 3.21 ERA. He is most remembered for his role in the 1918 Chicago Black Sox scandal. Pitcher

Rube Benton John Cleave "Rube" Benton (June 27, 1890 – December 12, 1937) was a pitcher for Major League Baseball's Cincinnati Reds (1910–15, 1923–25) and New York Giants (1915–21). He pitched in the minor leagues for the Minneapolis Millers of the Am ...

testified that he had seen a telegram addressed to Dubuc, from

Sleepy Bill Burns William Thomas Burns (January 27, 1880 – June 6, 1953), nicknamed "Sleepy Bill", was an American baseball player who played as a pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) for five different teams from 1908 to 1912. He earned his nickname for his ...

advising Dubuc: "Bet on the Cincinnati team today." After being linked to the scandal, Dubuc went to Canada and continued to play minor league ball. Dubuc is also credited with having signed

Hank Greenberg Henry Benjamin Greenberg (born Hyman Greenberg; January 1, 1911 – September 4, 1986), nicknamed "Hammerin' Hank", "Hankus Pankus", or "The Hebrew Hammer", was an American professional baseball player and team executive. He played in Major Leagu ...

while serving as a major league scout for the Tigers. Bernie Boland was an early relief specialist who made his major league debut in 1915. Boland was 13–7 with a 3.11 ERA in his rookie season and came within one batter of throwing a

perfect game Perfect game may refer to: Sports * Perfect game (baseball), a complete-game win by a pitcher allowing no baserunners * Perfect game (bowling), a 300 game, 12 consecutive strikes in the same game * Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League, New York ...

. On August 16, 1915, Boland retired the first 26 Cleveland Indians batters he faced, only to give up a hit to Ben Paschal. Ironically, Paschal's hit off Boland was his only hit of the 1915 season. Boland and the Tigers went on to win the game 3–1. In 1926, Boland returned to the news for comments he made concerning a game-fixing scandal involving

. Boland, then a paving contractor in Detroit, was the Tigers pitcher in a 1919 game against Cleveland that Cobb had reportedly agreed to fix. Boland told the Detroit News in 1926 that he figured "about one in every 300 games is crooked," and he was glad that "some of them are getting justice at last."

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Roster

Season highlights

* April 14: The Tigers lost their season opener at Navin Field to the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...

, 5–1. * April 28: The Tigers beat the

St. Louis Browns The St. Louis Browns were a Major League Baseball team that originated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as the Milwaukee Brewers. A charter member of the American League (AL), the Brewers moved to St. Louis, Missouri, after the 1901 season, where they p ...

, 12–3, as

stole home in the 3rd inning. Cobb stole home six times in 1915. * April 30: The Tigers won their 12th game and were in first place with a record of 12–5. The Red Sox were in 5th place with a record of 5–6. * May 14: The Tigers won their 18th game and were in first place with a record of 18–9. The Red Sox were in 4th place with a record of 11–9. * June 4: The Tigers beat the

Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...

, 3–0. Ty Cobb stole home in the 9th inning, the only steal of home that late in a game in his career. Yankee pitcher

Ray Caldwell Raymond Benjamin Caldwell (April 26, 1888 – August 17, 1967) was an American professional baseball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball for the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, and Cleveland Indians from 1910 to 1921. He was known f ...

was so angry at the safe call he threw his mitt in the air and was ejected by umpire

Silk O'Loughlin Francis H. "Silk" O'Loughlin (August 15, 1872 – December 20, 1918) was an American umpire in Major League Baseball who worked in the American League from 1902 to 1918. He umpired in the World Series in 1906, 1909, 1912, 1915 and 1917, serving a ...

. It was Cobb's second steal of home while Caldwell was on the mound (the first was on May 12, 1911). * June 9: The 2nd place Tigers defeated the 1st place Boston Red Sox, 15–0. With Ray Collins on the mound in the 3rd inning,

stole home. * June 18: Ty Cobb stole home twice in a game against

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

, on the front end of double and triple steals. Both steals came with Joe Boehling on the mound. Washington's catcher, Bull Henry, left in the first inning with a spike wound from Cobb. The steals made the difference in the 5–3 Detroit win. * June 23: For the fifth time in June, Ty Cobb stole home, doing it in a 4–2 Tiger win over the St. Louis Browns. Cobb scored another run when

hit the ball to pitcher

Grover Lowdermilk Grover Cleveland "Slim" Lowdermilk (January 15, 1885 – March 31, 1968) was an American Major League Baseball pitcher with the St. Louis Cardinals, Chicago Cubs, St. Louis Browns, Detroit Tigers, Cleveland Indians and Chicago White Sox between 1 ...

, who somersaulted after fielding the grounder and sat on the mound holding the ball. Cobb scored from second base on the play. * July 9: In Detroit,

Babe Ruth George Herman "Babe" Ruth Jr. (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948) was an American professional baseball player whose career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanned 22 seasons, from 1914 through 1935. Nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Su ...

lasted only a third of an inning and allowed four runs as the Tigers beat the Red Sox, 15–4. * August 10: Detroit third baseman Ossie Vitt was hit by a

Walter Johnson Walter Perry Johnson (November 6, 1887 – December 10, 1946), nicknamed "Barney" and "The Big Train", was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played his entire 21-year baseball career in Major League Baseball as a right-ha ...

fastball and, after being knocked out for five minutes, left the game with a concussion. A rattled Johnson then allowed four runs in the first inning, two runs on a home run by the Tigers' first baseman, "Tioga George" Burns. Ty Cobb, observing Johnson's fear of hitting a batter, began to crowd the plate from that day forward and averaged .435 for the rest of his career against Johnson. Meanwhile, Babe Ruth won his 10th game by a score of 10–3 over the Browns. * August 16: Detroit's rookie pitcher, Bernie Boland held Cleveland hitless through 26 batters. With two out in the 9th inning, Ben Paschal singled, his only hit in nine at bats during the 1915 season. Boland won, 3–1. * August 18: The Tigers traded first baseman

Baby Doll Jacobson William Chester "Baby Doll" Jacobson (August 16, 1890 – January 16, 1977) was an American baseball outfielder. He played 11 seasons of Major League Baseball, principally with the St. Louis Browns, between 1915 and 1927. He also played for the ...

to the Browns for pitchers Big Bill James and

. * August 19: The Tigers beat the A's, 6–1, while the White Sox beat the Red Sox, 2–1. Boston and Detroit were tied for 1st. * August 21: Having played 112 games, the Tigers (73–39) had won nine straight games and were tied for 1st place with the Red Sox (71–37). * August 22: In the second inning of the first game a doubleheader, the Senators scored a run on the Tigers with no times at bat—the only time that has ever happened. Chick Gandil and

Merito Acosta Baldomero Pedro "Merito" Acosta Fernández (May 19, 1896 – November 17, 1963) was an outfielder in Major League Baseball who played five seasons for the Philadelphia Athletics and Washington Senators. Acosta played winter baseball in the Cuba ...

walked; Buff Williams sacrificed, and

George McBride George Florian "Pinch" McBride (November 20, 1880 – July 2, 1973) was an American professional baseball shortstop for the Milwaukee Brewers, Pittsburgh Pirates, St. Louis Cardinals, and Washington Senators from 1901 to 1920. He started off wit ...

hit a sacrifice fly, scoring Gandil. The Tigers then caught Acosta off second base when

threw to Ossie Vitt.

was the winning pitcher as the Senators beat the Tigers, 8–1, and broke the Tigers' 9-game win streak. With the Tigers loss, the Red Sox move into sole possession of first place, where they remained for the rest of the season. * August 25: The Red Sox beat the Tigers, 2–1, in 13 innings to solidify their hold on 1st place. Boston had won seven straight and 19 of 21. * August 27: Detroit snapped the Red Sox win streak, beating Boston, 7–6 in 12 innings. Boston still led the American League by 4½ games. * September 5: In the first game of a doubleheader, the Tigers defeated the Browns, 6–5. The Browns' starting pitcher was rookie (and former University of Michigan star)

George Sisler George Harold Sisler (March 24, 1893 – March 26, 1973), nicknamed "Gorgeous George", was an American professional baseball first baseman and player-manager. From 1915 through 1930, he played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis B ...

, who pitched a complete game and hit a home run in the loss. * September 16: In the first of four games series at Fenway Park, the Tigers (90–48) and Red Sox (90–44) squared off. Detroit knocked out starter

Rube Foster Andrew "Rube" Foster (September 17, 1879 – December 9, 1930) was an American baseball player, manager, and executive in the Negro leagues. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1981. Foster, considered by historians to have been per ...

, then rookie reliever

Carl Mays Carl William Mays (November 12, 1891 – April 4, 1971) was an American baseball pitcher who played 15 seasons in Major League Baseball from 1915 to 1929. During his career, he won over 200 games, 27 in 1921 alone, and was a member of four Wor ...

kept throwing at Ty Cobb until he hit him on the wrist. Cobb threw his bat at Mays in retaliation, and the crowd reacted by throwing bottles at Cobb. The next inning, Cobb caught a fly ball for the final out and needed a police escort to leave the field. The Tigers won 6–1 to move within one game of the first place Red Sox. * September 17: Dutch Leonard allowed three hits as the Red Sox beat Detroit, 7–2. * September 18: The Tigers and Red Sox met in a pitching duel, as the game went into extra innings with the score tied 0–0. The Red Sox won, 1–0, in the 12th inning. * September 20: In front of a full house at Fenway Park, including Vice-President

Thomas R. Marshall Thomas Riley Marshall (March 14, 1854 – June 1, 1925) was an American politician who served as the 28th vice president of the United States from 1913 to 1921 under President Woodrow Wilson. A prominent lawyer in Indiana, he became an acti ...

, Babe Ruth led Boston to a 3–2 win over Detroit. Rube Foster relieved Ruth with two outs in the 8th inning. Ruth was 1-for-3 at bat. Having lost three straight to the Red Sox, the Tigers were four games out of first place. * September 23: In Philadelphia, Ty Cobb stole his 90th base of the year. Only 300 fans were on hand. The Tigers won, 6–5. * September 25: The Tigers swept both games of a double header against the Senators, 5–1 in the opener, and 9–3 in the second game. The Tigers were still in contention as they headed into the final week of the season. * September 29: The Tigers beat the Browns, 3–2, at Navin Field. * September 30: The Red Sox clinched the American League pennant as the St. Louis Browns beat Detroit, giving Boston a two 1/2-game margin. * October 3: The Tigers won their 100th game of the year, and Ty Cobb stole his 96th base against Cleveland's catcher

Steve O'Neill Stephen Francis O'Neill (July 6, 1891 – January 26, 1962) was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher, most notably with the Cleveland Indians. As a manager, he led the Detroit Tig ...

. Cobb's total of 96 steals was a major league record that stood until 1962 when

stole 104 bases. The 1915 season was the first time a team had won 100 games without winning the pennant.

Player stats

Batting

Starters by position

''Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in''

Other batters

''Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in'' ''Note: pitchers' batting statistics not included''

Pitching

Starting pitchers

''Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''

Other pitchers

''Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''

Relief pitchers

''Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''

Awards and honors

League leaders

– American League plate appearances leader (703) *

– American League leader in assists at shortstop (504) *

– American League batting champion (.369) *

– American League on-base percentage leader (.486) *

– American League stolen bases leader (96) *

– American League total bases leader (274) *

– American League hits leader (208) *

– American League runs leader (144) * Harry Coveleski – American League leader in games (50) * Harry Coveleski – American League leader in hit batsmen (20) * Harry Coveleski – American League leader in hits allowed (271) * Harry Coveleski – American League leader in errors at pitcher (11) *

– American League leader in RBIs (112) *

– American League extra base hits leader (54) *

– American League triples leader (19) *

– American League leader in assists at pitcher (137) *

– American League leader in RBIs (112) *

– American League doubles leader (40) * Ossie Vitt – American League sacrifice hits leader (42) * Ossie Vitt – American League leader in putouts at third base (191) * Ossie Vitt – American League leader in assists at third base (324) * Ossie Vitt – American League leader in fielding percentage at third base (.964) * Ralph Young – American League leader in errors at second base (32)

Players Ranking Among Top 100 of All Time At Position

The following members of the 1915 Detroit Tigers are among the Top 100 players of all time at their position, as ranked in

in 2001: *

George Burns George Burns (born Nathan Birnbaum; January 20, 1896March 9, 1996) was an American comedian, actor, writer, and singer, and one of the few entertainers whose career successfully spanned vaudeville, radio, film and television. His arched eyebr ...

: 79th best first baseman of all time *

: 51st best shortstop of all time *

: 33rd best left fielder of all time *

: 2nd best center fielder of all time *

: 10th best right fielder of all time

Notes

References

Baseball-Reference.com 1915 Detroit Tigers

BaseballLibrary.com 1915 Detroit Tigers season summary

Charlton's Baseball Chronology for 1915
{{DEFAULTSORT:1915 Detroit Tigers Season Detroit Tigers seasons Detroit Tigers season

1915 in Detroit