John Francis Coffey (January 28, 1887 – February 14, 1966) was an infielder for the

Boston Doves The Atlanta Braves, a current Major League Baseball franchise, originated in Boston, Massachusetts. This article details the history of the Boston Braves, from 1871 to 1952, after which they moved to Milwaukee, and then to Atlanta. During it ...

(1909), Detroit Tigers (1918) and

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 eigh ...

(1918). Coffey graduated from Fordham University in 1910. While still in college, he was signed by the Doves and played 73 games; it was very common in those days for college players to play in the major leagues as well. He then spent most of the next 16 years in the minors, seeing his only other major-league action in 1918. He started that season playing 22 games with the Tigers before being sold to the Red Sox in mid-August. He was listed as a possible replacement for the injured

Dave Shean David William Shean (July 9, 1883 – May 22, 1963) was an American professional baseball second baseman. He played from through for the Philadelphia Athletics (1906), Philadelphia Phillies (1908–1909), Boston Doves (1909–1910, 1912), Ch ...

, but never got a chance to play in the

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...

. Coffey is the only player to play with both

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 ...

and

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 ...

in the same season (1918 Tigers and Red Sox). In two seasons, he played in 110 games and had 368 at bats with 33 runs, 69 hits, 5 doubles, 6 triples, 1 home run, 26 RBI, 6 stolen bases, 22 walks, a .188 batting average, .241 on-base percentage and a .242 slugging percentage. While still actively playing, he became the part-time coach at his alma mater, holding that post until 1918. He returned in 1922 as the school's first full-time coach and remained there until 1958 (Fordham didn't field a team in 1944), amassing 1160 wins. The University's baseball field is named in his honor. From 1926 to 1958, he also served as athletic director. He died in

the Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

, New York at the age of 79.

External links

Baseball Almanac
{{DEFAULTSORT:Coffey, John 1887 births 1966 deaths Boston Doves players Detroit Tigers players Boston Red Sox players Fordham Rams athletic directors Fordham Rams baseball coaches Fordham Rams baseball players Minor league baseball managers Indianapolis Indians players Denver Grizzlies (baseball) players Denver Bears players San Francisco Seals (baseball) players Des Moines Boosters players Hartford Senators players Charleston Pals players Macon Peaches players Peoria Tractors players Decatur Commodores players Baseball players from New York City Burials at Calvary Cemetery (Queens)

See also

External links