Samuel James Tilden Sheckard (November 23, 1878 – January 15, 1947) was an American left fielder in Major League Baseball who played for the Brooklyn Bridegrooms/Superbas (1897–98, 1900–01, 1902–05),

Baltimore Orioles (NL) The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...

(1899),

Baltimore Orioles (AL) The history of the New York Yankees Major League Baseball (MLB) team spans more than a century. Frank J. Farrell and William Stephen Devery bought the rights to an American League (AL) club in New York City after the 1902 season. The team, ...

(1902),

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...

(1906–12), St. Louis Cardinals (1913) and

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 ...

(1913). Sheckard was the

' leadoff batter for the final game of the

1908 World Series The 1908 World Series was the championship series in Major League Baseball for the 1908 season. The fifth edition of the World Series, it matched the defending National League champion Chicago Cubs against the American League champion Detroit Ti ...

. His team played in four World Series in a five-year span from 1906-1910.

Career

Sheckard was born in Chanceford Township, York County, Pennsylvania. He enjoyed a great 1901 season with the Superbas,

hitting A strike is a directed physical attack with either a part of the human body or with an inanimate object (such as a weapon) intended to cause blunt trauma or penetrating trauma upon an opponent. There are many different varieties of strikes. A ...

.353 with 11 home runs and 104 runs batted in, and leading the league with 19

triples TripleS (stylized as tripleS; Help:IPA/English, /ˈtɹɪpəl:ɛs/; ) is a South Korean girl group formed by MODHAUS. They aim to be the world's first decentralized K-pop idol group. The members will rotate between the group, sub-unit, and solo ac ...

and a .534 slugging average. In that season Sheckard became the first and so far only player to hit

inside the park In baseball, an inside-the-park home run is a play where a batter hits a home run without hitting the ball out of the field of play. It is also known as an "inside-the-parker", "in-the-park home run", or "in-the-park homer". Discussion To score a ...

grand slams in two consecutive games. With Baltimore in 1899, Sheckard led the league with 77

stolen base In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a runner advances to a base to which they are not entitled and the official scorer rules that the advance should be credited to the action of the runner. The umpires determine whether the runner is safe or ...

s. He played in four World Series with the Cubs, winning championships in

1907 Events January * January 14 – 1907 Kingston earthquake: A 6.5 Mw earthquake in Kingston, Jamaica, kills between 800 and 1,000. February * February 11 – The French warship ''Jean Bart'' sinks off the coast of Morocco. ...

and

1908 Events January * January 1 – The British ''Nimrod'' Expedition led by Ernest Shackleton sets sail from New Zealand on the ''Nimrod'' for Antarctica. * January 3 – A total solar eclipse is visible in the Pacific Ocean, and is the 46 ...

; and he led the league in 1911 with 121 runs and 147 walks – a major league record until broken by Babe Ruth in 1920, and still a team record. He also had the dubious distinction of going hitless in 21 at-bats in the

1906 World Series The 1906 World Series was the championship series in Major League Baseball for the 1906 season. The third edition of the World Series, it featured a crosstown matchup between the American League champion Chicago White Sox and the National Leagu ...

, won by the Chicago White Sox over the Cubs. Sheckard was the first man to lead the league in homers and steals in the same season (1903). Ty Cobb (1909) and Chuck Klein (1932) are the only other players to do so in the majors. Sheckard was also a good outfielder. He holds the all-time single season major league record for double plays at two separate positions. His 12 double plays as a left fielder in 1911 for the Cubs is 2 more than any other left fielder in history. And in 1899, while playing for the Baltimore Orioles, Sheckard played right field and set the record for double plays by a right fielder with 14. See related article on all time

double play In baseball and softball, a double play (denoted as DP in baseball statistics) is the act of making two outs during the same continuous play. Double plays can occur any time there is at least one baserunner and fewer than two outs. In Major Leag ...

leaders. After the 1913 season, Sheckard retired. When the Reds traded Joe Tinker, creating a managerial vacancy, Sheckard warned that Tinker's replacement would have a tough job ahead. "No matter who gets Tinker's place, the new manager will have to get rid of the 'knockers' on that club before he can hope to succeed. There is no chance to win with players who think more of their own records than they do of the success of the club." In his 17-year career, Sheckard hit .274, with 56 home runs, 813 RBI, 1296 runs, 354 doubles, 136 triples, and 465 stolen bases in 2122 games played. In 1911, he set the single season record for walks with 147 before it was broken by Babe Ruth in 1920. He is one of only four players in the modern era (1900-present) to hold this record along with Ruth, Jack Crooks, and

Barry Bonds Barry Lamar Bonds (born July 24, 1964) is an American former professional baseball left fielder who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). Bonds was a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1986 to 1992 and the San Francisco Giants f ...

. Sheckard is also the all-time leader among left fielders in assists, with 243. Sheckard died at age 68 in

Lancaster, Pennsylvania Lancaster, ( ; pdc, Lengeschder) is a city in and the county seat of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It is one of the oldest inland cities in the United States. With a population at the 2020 census of 58,039, it ranks 11th in population amon ...

, from injuries suffered when he was hit by a car while walking to work along a highway.

Highlights

* Twice led league in stolen bases (1899, 1903) * Led league in home runs (1903) * Led league in runs (1911) * Led league in triples (1901) * Led league times on base (1911)

References

External links

SABR Biography of Sheckard
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sheckard, Jimmy 1878 births 1947 deaths 19th-century baseball players Baseball players from Pennsylvania National League home run champions National League stolen base champions Major League Baseball left fielders Brooklyn Bridegrooms players Baltimore Orioles (1901–02) players Brooklyn Superbas players Chicago Cubs players St. Louis Cardinals players Cincinnati Reds players Minor league baseball managers Lancaster Maroons players Portsmouth Browns players York White Roses players Chambersburg Maroons players Brockton Shoemakers players Cleveland Bearcats players People from York County, Pennsylvania Road incident deaths in Pennsylvania Pedestrian road incident deaths

Career

Highlights

See also

References

External links