James Erigena Barrett (March 28, 1875 – October 24, 1921) was a

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB)

center fielder A center fielder, abbreviated CF, is the outfielder in baseball who plays defense in center field – the baseball and softball fielding position between left field and right field. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the c ...

. A native of

Athol, Massachusetts Athol is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 11,945 at the 2020 census. History Originally called Pequoiag when settled by Native Americans, the area was subsequently settled by five families in Septe ...

, he batted left-handed and threw right-handed. Barrett played 10 seasons in the major leagues with the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

(1899–1900, 1906),

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 ...

(1901–05), 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 eight ...

(1907–08). Barrett was the first star for the Tigers, playing for the Tigers in the first five years of their existence. He left the Tigers with the arrival of a new center fielder

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 ...

. Barrett had a career

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

of .291 (21 points higher than the league average during the deadball years in which he played). He also had a career

on-base percentage In baseball statistics, on-base percentage (OBP) measures how frequently a batter reaches base. An official Major League Baseball (MLB) statistic since 1984, it is sometimes referred to as on-base average (OBA), as it is rarely presented as a ...

of .379. In 1903 and 1904, he led 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 ...

times on base In baseball statistics, the term times on base (TOB), is the cumulative total number of times a batter has reached base as a result of a hit, base on balls, or hit by pitch. This statistic does not include times reaching base by way of an error, ...

and walks. Despite Barrett's having played in only 866 major league games, baseball historian, Bill James, ranks Barrett as the 72nd best center fielder of all time.

Early years

Born in

, Barrett served in the U.S. Army from 1894 to 1896. Barrett joined the company baseball team, playing shortstop for three years. In 1899, Barrett played for the Detroit team in the

Western Association The Western Association was the name of five different leagues formed in American minor league baseball during the 19th and 20th centuries. The oldest league, originally established as the Northwestern League in 1883, was refounded as the Western ...

before being sold to the

in August 1899. In one month with the Reds in 1899, Barrett hit for a .370 batting average, .477 on-base percentage, and .478 slugging percentage. Barrett never matched those numbers again, but continued to be one of the better hitters of his time. In 1900, he hit .316, with a .400 on-base percentage and had career highs with 172 hits, 114 runs and 44 stolen bases (both 3rd best in the National League).

Detroit Tigers (1901–1905)

In 1901, Barrett jumped to the new

, signing with the

. Barrett was the star of the Tigers team in the first five years of the franchise's history from 1901 to 1905. In 1901, Barrett was among the league leaders in the American League's inaugural season in runs scored with 110 (fifth), bases on balls with 76 (third), on-base percentage at .385 (ninth), times on base with 240 (fourth), and plate appearances with 630 (fourth). Barrett continued to rank among the best batters in the American League each year from 1901 to 1904. His .397 on-base percentage in 1902 was fourth highest in the league. In 1903, arguably his best season, Barrett led the league with a .407 on-base percentage, 74 bases on balls, and 243 times on base. In the 1904 season, despite a 154-game schedule, Barrett became the first major league player to appear in 162 games after Detroit set a season record with 10 tie games. His record for

games played Games played (GP) is a statistic used in team sports to indicate the total number of games in which a player has participated (in any capacity); the statistic is generally applied irrespective of whatever portion of the game is contested. Basebal ...

was unmatched until the schedules increased to 162 games in 1961. In 1904, Barrett also led the American League with 79 bases on balls and 249 times on base. Barrett was also an excellent fielder. He had a strong arm and led all

outfielders in assists in three of the first four American League seasons. From 1900 to 1904, Barrett racked up an impressive total of 126 assists, including 31 in 1901 and 29 in 1904. He also led American League outfielders in

putouts In baseball statistics, a putout (denoted by ''PO'' or ''fly out'' when appropriate) is awarded to a defensive player who (generally while in secure possession of the ball) records an out by one of the following methods: * Tagging a runner wit ...

in 1902 (326) and 1904 (339). His range factor score was markedly above the league average from 1900 to 1904, including 1902 when his 2.56 range factor score was 0.52 points above the league average. During the 1903 and 1904 seasons, Barrett clashed with Detroit manager,

Ed Barrow Edward Grant Barrow (May 10, 1868 – December 15, 1953) was an American manager and front office executive in Major League Baseball. He served as the field manager of the Detroit Tigers and Boston Red Sox. He served as business manager (de facto ...

. In his autobiography, "''My Fifty Years in Baseball''", Barrow wrote that he never got along with Barrett. When Detroit owner,

Frank Navin Francis Joseph Navin (April 18, 1871 – November 13, 1935) was the president of the Detroit Tigers in Major League Baseball for 27 years, from 1908 to 1935. He was part-owner from 1908 to 1919, and principal owner from 1919 to 1935. He also ser ...

, blocked Barrow's efforts to trade the star center fielder, Barrow quit. Barrow wrote that, on one occasion, Barrett complained to Barrow that "your methods take all the individuality away from a ballplayer." Barrow responded, "Young man, if you ever speak to me that way again I will take more than your individuality away from you. I will knock your block off." In 1905, Barrow was gone as the Tigers' manager, but a leg injury slowed Barrett and resulted in his appearing in only 20 games. When

joined the Tigers in August, Barrett faced a new threat. Detroit's new manager Bill Armour introduced Cobb to Barrett. He told Cobb that Barrett's "knee was on the bum, and I'm using you in his place in center field. Barrett was given the task of teaching Cobb the team's signs, which included a system Barrett had developed in 1905 for stealing the opponents' signs. Cobb wrote in his autobiography that the injured Barrett would sit in the center field stands with a pair of spyglasses "strong enough to pick out the fillings in the opposition catcher's teeth." Barrett would then relay the signs to the batter using markings on a fence sign advertising ''

The Detroit News ''The Detroit News'' is one of the two major newspapers in the U.S. city of Detroit, Michigan. The paper began in 1873, when it rented space in the rival ''Detroit Free Press'' building. ''The News'' absorbed the '' Detroit Tribune'' on Februa ...

''. As Cobb proved his potential in 1905, Barrett became expendable. Barrett began to resent the young Cobb, who was a clear threat to his job. In early 1906, the Tigers sold Barrett back to the

, where he played in only five games.

Later years

Barrett spent his final two seasons in the major leagues playing for the

in 1907 and 1908. However, he was never the same either as a batter or a fielder. He hit .244 in 1907 and dropped to .125 in 1908. He played his final major league game on May 13, 1908. A knee injury ended his career prematurely. He became a senior partner in the real estate firm of Barrett & Walsh in Detroit. Barrett died from "a stroke of

apoplexy Apoplexy () is rupture of an internal organ and the accompanying symptoms. The term formerly referred to what is now called a stroke. Nowadays, health care professionals do not use the term, but instead specify the anatomic location of the bleedi ...

" (for the avoidance of doubt, apoplexy is an outdated medical term) at his office in October 1921 at age 46. He was buried in Detroit's Mount Olivet Cemetery.

Notes

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Barrett, Jimmy 1875 births 1921 deaths 19th-century baseball players Boston Americans players Boston Red Sox players Cincinnati Reds players Detroit Tigers players Major League Baseball center fielders Baseball players from Massachusetts Oswego Grays players Detroit Tigers (Western League) players Rochester Bronchos players Providence Grays (minor league) players Milwaukee Brewers (minor league) managers Milwaukee Brewers (minor league) players People from Athol, Massachusetts Sportspeople from Worcester County, Massachusetts