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All-Time Major League Countdown: 364. John McGraw

364. John McGraw

John McGraw, also known as Mugsy and later Little Napoleon, was a 5’7", 155 lb. infielder for the Baltimore Orioles in the American Association and later in the National League. He went on to manage for parts of four decades for the New York Giants.

Born on April 7th, 1873 in Truxton, NY, McGraw made his minor league debut in 1891 with the Cedar Rapids Canaries, playing shortstop and hitting .276 in 85 games. On August 26th of that year, he made his "Major League" debut with the American Association’s Baltimore Orioles. The 1,632nd Major Leaguer hit .270 with five triples and 14 RBI in 33 games. He struck out 17 times and walked 12 times, significant only because it would be the last time that he finished a season with less bases on balls than K’s. He played 162 innings defensively at shortstop, collecting 17 errors in 90 chances for an .811 fielding percentage. In 49 innings in the outfield, he made seven putouts and dropped three others. The Orioles posted a 71-64 record, placing fourth in the final year of the AA, 22 games behind the pennant winning Boston Reds.

McGraw stayed with the Orioles after they made the jump to the NL for the 1892 season, and played 79 games, split mostly between second base (.925 fielding percentage) and the outfield (.897 fielding percentage). He hit .269 with 13 doubles, 26 RBI, and 15 stolen bases, drawing 32 walks and whiffing only 21 times. His .355 OBP ranked him third on the team, behind outfielders George Van Haltren and Harry Stovey. The club went 46-101, finishing the season at 12th place in the 12 team National League, 54.5 games behind the Boston Beaneaters

In 1893, McGraw increased his batting average to .321, with 10 triples, 64 RBI, and 123 runs (NL 10th). He had 11 strikeouts in 597 plate appearances, drawing 101 walks (NL fourth) for a .454 OBP (NL fourth). He ranked third in the league with a 5.1 offensive WAR, and also drew 16 hit batters (NL fourth). Defensively, he played most of the season back at shortstop, making 67 errors for an .894 fielding percentage. The club improved to eighth, finishing with a 60-70 record, 26.5 games behind the still-champion Beaneaters.

1894 would see McGraw continue to show nearly unparalleled patience at the plate, drawing 91 walks (NL fourth) to only 12 strikeouts in 124 contests. He scored 156 times (NL sixth), with 18 doubles, 14 triples, 92 RBI and 78 stolen bases (NL second). He also hit .340 with a .451 OBP. In the field, he spent the lions share of the season at third base, making a handful of starts at second. His 247 assists from the hot corner ranked fourth in the league, despite his .892 fielding percentage. The Orioles claimed the pennant, finishing the year at 89-39, three games ahead of the New York Giants.

McGraw was limited by injury to a combined 119 games over the next two seasons, as Baltimore claimed two more pennants. He hit .361 in his time, with a .453 OBP, 15 doubles, eight triples, 62 RBI, 74 stolen bases, and 130 runs, playing mostly at third base.

In 1897, a mostly healthy McGraw saw action in 106 games, hitting .325 with a league leading .471 OBP. He walked 99 times (NL second) in 507 plate appearances, with 15 strikeouts. He also scored 90 runs, with 15 doubles, 48 RBI and 44 stolen bases, finishing with an NL ninth 4.4 oWAR rating. He played exclusively at third base through the season, posting an .886 fielding percentage. Baltimore’s 90-40 record would see them miss the first place money by two games, behind the Beaneaters.

1898 would see McGraw play in a career high 143 games as Baltimore’s regular third baseman, and lead the NL with 112 walks and 143 runs. He hit .342 (NL third) with 10 triples, 53 RBI, 43 stolen bases (NL fifth), and 13 strikeouts, along with a .475 OBP (NL second). His 7.1 WAR was also second in the circuit. The team outscored their opponents by 310 runs, going 96-53 and finishing second in the league by six games to Boston.

McGraw had what was probably his best season in 1899, when he hit .391 (NL third) over 117 games, with an NL leading .547 OBP. He also led the league with 140 runs and with 124 walks in 539 plate appearances. As in seasons past, his hits were overwhelmingly singles, as he collected 139 of them with only 17 extra base hits. He had 33 RBI, 73 stolen bases (NL second), and just 21 strikeouts. His 8.0 WAR was also first in the NL amongst position players. He was the perfect leadoff man that season. He also sported a career-best and NL second .945 fielding percentage from third base. The Orioles went 86-62, finishing fourth in the NL by 15 games to the Brooklyn Superbas. It was also his first season managing, but he wouldn’t manage in 1900.

Just before the 1900 season, the Orioles disbanded, and McGraw was sold to the NL champion Superbas. After refusing to report, the front office sent him to the St. Louis Cardinals, a move McGraw would only accept after the reserve clause was removed from the contract. His resultant $10,000 contract would be the highest in all of baseball. McGraw played 99 games with the Redbirds, hitting .344 (NL fifth) with an NL-best .505 OBP. He scored 84 times, with 33 RBI, 29 stolen bases, and just nine strikeouts to 85 walks. He totaled an NL third best 5.2 oWAR, while also ranking third in the league with a .909 FPct from third base. His season was tragically cut short when his wife, Mary, died of a ruptured appendix. The Cardinals went 65-75, finishing fifth in the reorganized eight-team NL, 19 games behind Brooklyn.

In 1901, McGraw returned to Baltimore to play for and manage the new AL Orioles. McGraw famously could not get along with AL President Ban Johnson, which eventually led to McGraw jumping back to the National League in mid-1902. His season and a half of AL ball would see him hit .335 with a .496 OBP, with 85 runs, 31 RBI, 29 stolen bases, 78 walks and 12 strikeouts in 93 games.

McGraw joined the Giants back in the NL in the middle of 1902, instantly firing nine players and bringing over replacements from the Orioles. He managed the team to a 25-38 record and a 48-88 record overall. For his time on the diamond, he hit only .234, but still got on base at a .401 clip. He would only play parts of the next four seasons with the Giants before hanging it up, getting into 24 games over that time. As a manager, however, he stood the helm with New York’s NL team until 1932, winning 2,583 of his 4,424 contests, a clip of .591. After stepping down after the 1932 season, he was selected to manage the 1933 NL all-star team. He died less than a year later, of prostate cancer and uremia. McGraw’s 2,763 total wins ranks second all-time amongst managers, only to Connie Mack.

McGraw was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1937.

All-Time Statline: 1099 games, .334/.466/.410, 1024 runs, 121 doubles, 70 triples, 13 home runs, 462 RBI, 436 stolen bases, 836 walks, 155 strikeouts, 45.6 WAR

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