Jake Beckley
| Jake Beckley | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| First baseman | |
| Born: August 4, 1867 Hannibal, Missouri |
|
| Died: June 25, 1918 (aged 50) Kansas City, Missouri |
|
| Batted: Left | Threw: Left |
| MLB debut | |
| June 20, 1888 for the Pittsburg Alleghenys | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| June 15, 1907 for the St. Louis Cardinals | |
| Career statistics | |
| Batting average | .308 |
| Hits | 2930 |
| Runs batted in | 1575 |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| Member of the National | |
 Baseball Hall of Fame |
|
| Induction | 1971 |
| Election Method | Veteran's Committee |
Jacob Peter Beckley (August 4, 1867 – June 25, 1918), nicknamed "Eagle Eye", was a Major League Baseball player at the turn of the 20th century. He was born in Hannibal, Missouri.[2]
Contents |
[edit] Professional career
Jake Beckley began playing semi-pro baseball while still a teen in his native Hannibal. According to The Baseball Biography Project it was a former Hannibal teammate, Bob Hart, who ushered Beckley into professional play by suggesting the 18-year old to the Leavenworth Oilers (Leavenworth, Kansas) of the Western Association.[3]
After spliting two seasons between Leavenworth and a team in Lincoln, Nebraska, Jake Beckley's contract was sold to the St. Louis Whites in the Western Association before he was purchased (along with Harry Staley) by the Pittsburgh Alleghenys for $4,500 midway through the 1888 season.[4] After playing one and a half seasons for the Alleghenys, he jumped to the Pittsburgh Burghers,[4] a team in the newly formed Players League. The league lasted only one season, and Beckley spent the next five and a half seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates.[4] On July 25, 1896, he was traded to the New York Giants for Harry Davis and $1,000.[4] Beckley was released by the Giants the following season on May 22, and he signed as a free agent with the Cincinnati Reds five days later.[4] He played with Cincinnati for seven seasons and was later purchased by the St. Louis Cardinals on February 11, 1904.[4] Beckley retired after the 1907 season with 2930 career hits, second only to Cap Anson.
After his Major League career ended, Beckley became a player/manager for Kansas City in the American Association in 1908-1909, Bartlesville in the Western Association in 1910, and Hannibal in the Central Association in 1911. After his playing career, he served as an umpire in the Federal League in 1913 and also served as a baseball coach at William Jewell College in Liberty, Missouri.
[edit] Personal life
Jake Beckley was the son of Bernhart and Rosina (Neth) Beckley. He was twice married but had no children, his first wife Molly dying just months after their 1891 wedding.[3][5] In addition to his umpiring and coaching after retirement from professional play, Beckley operated a grain business in Kansas City. Jake Beckley died of heart disease[6] in Kansas City, Missouri at the age of 50.[2] He was interred at the Riverside Cemetery in Hannibal, Missouri.[2]
[edit] Honors
- Elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1971.
[edit] See also
- List of major league players with 2,000 hits
- List of Major League Baseball players with 400 doubles
- List of Major League Baseball players with 100 triples
- List of Major League Baseball players with 1000 runs
- List of Major League Baseball players with 1000 RBI
- List of Major League Baseball leaders in career stolen bases
- List of Major League Baseball triples champions
- List of Major League Baseball triples records
[edit] References
- ^ a b "Jake Beckley". BaseballHallOfFame.com. http://www.baseballhalloffame.org/hofers/detail.jsp?playerId=110776. Retrieved 2008-09-08.[dead link]
- ^ a b c "Jake Beckley Stats". Baseball-Almanac.com. http://www.baseball-almanac.com/players/player.php?p=becklja01. Retrieved 2006-11-21.
- ^ a b "The Baseball Biography Project - Jake Beckley". 2003. http://bioproj.sabr.org/bioproj.cfm?a=v&v=l&pid=829&bid=972. Retrieved 2011-10-06.
- ^ a b c d e f "Jake Beckley". Retrosheet.org. http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/Pbeckj103.htm. Retrieved 2006-11-21.
- ^ "Diamond Dirt: Searching for Hall of Famer Jake Beckley". 2011-10-06. http://www.kirksvilledailyexpress.com/newsnow/x2016023222/Diamond-Dirt-Searching-for-Hall-of-Famer-Jake-Beckley?img=2. Retrieved 2011-10-06.
- ^ "Jake Beckley". TheDeadballEra.com. Archived from the original on 2006-12-16. http://web.archive.org/web/20061216132155/http://www.thedeadballera.com/Necrology/Necrology.Beckley.Jake.html. Retrieved 2006-11-21.
[edit] External links
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube
- Player bio and stats at Sports Mogul
- Jake Beckley at the Baseball Hall of Fame
|
||||||||||||||
|
|||||
- 1867 births
- 1918 deaths
- National Baseball Hall of Fame inductees
- Major League Baseball first basemen
- 19th-century baseball players
- Pittsburgh Pirates players
- Pittsburgh Alleghenys players
- Pittsburgh Burghers players
- New York Giants (NL) players
- Cincinnati Reds players
- St. Louis Cardinals players
- Baseball players from Missouri
- People from Hannibal, Missouri
- Minor league baseball managers
- Kansas City Blues (baseball) players
- Bartlesville Boosters players
- Topeka Jayhawks players
- Hannibal Cannibals players
