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22 unusual facts about Ty Cobb


1904 Detroit Tigers season

In the year before Ty Cobb's arrival, pitcher George Mullin had a higher batting average than any of the team's regulars at .290.

1908 Detroit Tigers season

The early part of the season was defined in part by Ty Cobb's contract dispute with the team.

1911 Detroit Tigers season

The 1911 Tigers had two of the best batters in baseball in Ty Cobb and Sam Crawford.

April 18: The Tigers beat Cleveland, 5-1, as Ty Cobb stole home on a double steal in the first inning.

1911 Major League Baseball season

July 12 - Ty Cobb of the Detroit Tigers steals second, third and home on consecutive pitches by Philadelphia Athletics pitcher Harry Krause.

1912 Detroit Tigers season

May 18, 1912: Tigers players went on strike to protest the suspension of star center fielder Ty Cobb, who had gone into the stands on May 15 to attack a disabled fan who had been abusing him.

1915 Detroit Tigers season

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

The 1915 Detroit Tigers team is remembered for its all-star outfield of Ty Cobb, Sam Crawford, and Bobby Veach—who finished #1, #2, and #3 in the American League in both runs batted in and total bases.

In 1926, Boland returned to the news for comments he made concerning a game-fixing scandal involving Ty Cobb.

1928 Philadelphia Athletics season

The team featured three starters who were later elected into the Hall of Fame: catcher Mickey Cochrane and outfielders Al Simmons and Ty Cobb.

1962 Los Angeles Dodgers season

The Los Angeles Times described the Dodgers' season as a "gamut of sublime" and "ridiculous", noting their successes—such as Maury Wills' 100 stolen bases breaking Ty Cobb's single-season record, Don Drysdale's 25 wins, and Sandy Koufax's no-hitter on June 30—together with problems such as the 18 unearned runs the defense had allowed for the season behind Drysdale, and other fielding issues.

Al Stump

Stump spent time with Detroit Tigers' Hall Of Fame baseball player Ty Cobb in 1960 and 1961 collaborating on Cobb's autobiography.

Atkinson Avenue Historic District

One of the thoroughfare's most well-known residents was the renowned baseball player Ty Cobb who resided in a brick dwelling at the intersection of Atkinson and Third (not within the boundaries of the historic district).

Bob Rosburg

He played golf as a junior at the Olympic Club, and at the age of 12, he faced the then-retired baseball Hall of Famer, Ty Cobb, in the first flight of the club championship, and beat Cobb 7 and 6.

Con Strouthers

In 1904 he was the manager of the Augusta Tourists of the South Atlantic League or "Sally League" when he invited Ty Cobb, who would go on to a Hall of Fame career with the Tigers, to join the club.

Green Hills Country Club

For many decades, the club was host of the annual Professional Baseball Player-Babe Ruth Cancer Fund golf tournament with stars such as Ty Cobb, Bing Crosby, Lefty O'Doul, Leo Durocher and many others.

Riverside Park, Dawson Springs

Hall of Famer Honus Wagner, who trained on this field for 3 years, organized a team of local young boys known as "Honus Wagners' Young Recruits." Babe Ruth, "Shoeless" Joe Jackson, Casey Stengel, and Ty Cobb also played baseball in Dawson Springs.

Sheppard Homans, Jr.

Just as Ty Cobb represents the ball game of many years ago, this man represented the football that used to be.

Spike McRoy

He got his nickname Spike from his great uncle, a Ty Cobb fan, who sent McRoy a miniature Detroit Tigers uniform when he was born.

The Kid Who Only Hit Homers

In this novel, Sylvester is taught by "Mr. Teacey" while Snooky attempts to get to the bottom of the mystery.

Tom Stanton

Most recently, Stanton wrote Ty and The Babe, about the relationship between baseball icons Ty Cobb and Babe Ruth, longtime rivals who became friends in retirement.

Twila Shively

By then, she was featured in an article signed by Carl Guldager and published in the Chicago Daily News with this headline: “She’s Hedy Lamarr of Softball, Twila Shively Looks Like Model, Runs Bases Like Ty Cobb. Has Baseball Savvy Plus Pretty Face”.


Buddy Biancalana

In 1985, during the countdown to Pete Rose breaking Ty Cobb's hits record, David Letterman instituted a Buddy Biancalana countdown calendar.

Cornelia, Georgia

Notably, it was the retirement home of baseball legend Ty Cobb who was born nearby, and was a base of operation for production of the 1956 Disney film The Great Locomotive Chase that was filmed along the Tallulah Falls Railway that ran from Cornelia northward along the rim of Tallulah Gorge to Franklin, NC.

Frank Colman

The only other Londoner to experience the World Series was the outstanding Iron Man catcher George Gibson in 1909 when Gibson's Pittsburgh Pirates defeated the Detroit Tigers starring Ty Cobb in the best-of-nine final series, five games to two.

Irene Hickson

But her ambition was to play ball as long and as well as her idol Ty Cobb and be a catcher like Mickey Owen of the Brooklyn Dodgers.

Jigger Statz

He is one of only seven players (along with Pete Rose, Ty Cobb, Julio Franco, Hank Aaron, Ichiro Suzuki, and Stan Musial) known to have amassed at least 4,000 combined hits in the major leagues and minor leagues.

Nat Fein

Albert Einstein, Ty Cobb, Queen Elizabeth and Harry S. Truman were among the many public figures that he photographed.

Pete Palmer

In 1982, Palmer gained notoriety when he recognized a scorekeeper's error as he pored over decades-old box scores, discovering that Nap Lajoie's 1910 batting average was several points higher than Ty Cobb's, causing the official Major League Baseball record books to be re-written.

Pete Rose, Jr.

As a teenager, on September 11, 1985, he made an emotional on-field appearance live on ESPN to celebrate with his father after Rose Sr. broke Ty Cobb's record for most career hits.