Ty Cobb

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Tyrus Raymond Cobb

Born: December 18, 1886, Narrows, Georgia
Died: July 17, 1961, Atlanta, Georgia
Bats: Left
Throws: Right
Height: 6’1″
Weight: 175
Position: Centerfielder

Played For: 

Detroit Tigers (1905-1926), Philadelphia A’s (1927-1928)
Elected to the Hall of Fame by Baseball Writers: 1936

Biography:

Born in rural Narrows, Georgia, Ty Cobb was nicknamed “The Georgia Peach”. He was an American Major League Baseball outfielder and spent 22 seasons with the Detroit Tigers, the last six as the team’s player-manager, and finished his career with the Philadelphia Athletics. Ty Cobb may have been baseball’s greatest player, if not the game’s fiercest competitor. His batting accomplishments are legendary — a lifetime average of .367, 297 triples, 4,191 hits, 12 batting titles (including nine in a row), 23 straight seasons in which he hit over .300, three .400 seasons (topped by a .420 mark in 1911) and 2,245 runs.

Intimidating the opposition, The Georgia Peach stole 892 bases during a 24-year career, primarily with the Detroit Tigers. In 1936 Cobb received the most votes of any player on the inaugural Baseball Hall of Fame ballot, receiving 222 out of a possible 226 votes.??Cobb is widely credited with setting 90 MLB records during his career.??He still holds several records as of the end of the 2013 season, including the highest career batting average (.366 or .367, depending on source) and most career batting titles with (11 or 12, depending on source).

He still holds the career record for stealing home (54 times) and as the youngest player to compile 4,000 hits and score 2,000 runs. Cobb ranks fifth all-time in number of games played and committed 271 errors, the most by any American League (AL) outfielder.

Cobb’s legacy as an athlete has sometimes been overshadowed by his surly temperament and aggressive playing style,??which was described by theDetroit Free Press as “daring to the point of dementia.”??Cobb himself wrote shortly before his death, “In legend I am a sadistic, slashing, swashbuckling despot who waged war in the guise of sport.”??Cobb was notorious for sliding into bases feet first, with his spikes high.

More info:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ty_Cobb
http://baseballhall.org/hof/cobb-ty