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Ray Chapman
1891-1920

SS 1912-20 Indians

Ray Chapman's Teammates

GamesAverageHRRBI
Career 1050.27818364

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Ray Chapman is the only modern major leaguer to have died as a direct result of being hit by a pitch. At the Polo Grounds on August 16, 1920, Chapman, crowding the plate as usual, was struck in the temple by a pitch from Yankee submariner Carl Mays that barely missed the strike zone. Chapman was taken to a hospital, never regained consciousness, and died twelve hours later. Rookie Joe Sewell replaced Chapman at short, beginning a Hall of Fame career. Cleveland players wore black arm bands, and manager Tris Speaker rallied his dejected men to win the first World Championship in club history.

The popular Chapman led the Indians in stolen bases four times, setting a team record with 52 in 1917 that stood until 1980. He led the AL in runs scored and walks in 1918. He was hitting .303 with 97 runs scored when he died. It is baseball analyst Bill James's opinion that Chapman was "probably destined for the Hall of Fame had he lived." (ME)


Contribute your recollections of Ray Chapman by clicking here.
FROM THE BASEBALL CHRONOLOGY
» May 27, 1901: 3B Jimmy Burke of Milwaukee makes four errors in the 4th inning, a major-league record tied by Cleveland’s Ray Chapman in 1914 and the Cubs Len Merullo in 1942. The A's score seven times in the frame and Eddie Plank coasts home with an 8-3 win.

» October 4, 1912: After playing an exhibition game in Ray Chapman's hometown of Herrin, Illinois, the Cleveland Naps board a train for the season finale in St. Louis. The train is in an accident in Southwick, MO and, while no players are injured, the engineer is killed.

» June 20, 1914: Cleveland SS Ray Chapman fumbles his way into the record books with four errors in the 5th inning.

» April 13, 1916: In a 4–2 loss to the Browns, Cleveland catcher Steve O'Neill completes a double play (with SS Ray Chapman), the first of 36, a ML season record for catchers that still stands.

» June 1, 1917: Guy Morton of Cleveland finally stops the Red Sox. shutting them out, 3–0, on one hit (a rifle shot over 2B by rival P Babe Ruth in the 8th). Ray Chapman and Braggo Roth both steal home in the 4th, but Ruth allows just one hit until the 9th.

» September 24, 1917: The 3rd-place Indians finish their season with a 5–4 win over the A's, the 10th win in a row for the Tribe. Ray Chapman doubles, then steals 3B and home to lead the Indians.

» August 16, 1920: Cleveland SS Ray Chapman, 29, is beaned by a Carl Mays pitch. A righthanded batter who crowds the plate, Chapman freezes and fails to get out of the way of the submarine delivery. He is carried from the field and dies the next day from a fractured skull. Mays, a surly, unpopular pitcher, is the target of fans' and players' outrage. Chapman, a Cleveland favorite since breaking in in 1912, had been married the previous year. In October his wife will receive a full World Series share, $3,986.34. The incident has no effect on Mays's pitching. One week later he will blank Detroit 10-0, and go on to win 26 and lose 11. Joe Sewell will be called up to take Chapman's place, and for 14 years he will be the hardest man in baseball to strike out.

» August 17, 1921: In Cleveland, on the anniversary of the death of Ray Chapman, YWCA members hand out rosebuds to the 6,000 fans as they enter the park. The 2nd place Indians give up four runs to the A's in the 1st, then Cleveland's Jamieson hits a sharp liner that caroms off the forehead of A's 2B Johnny Walker, knocking him out and sending him to the hospital. When play is resumed after 10 minutes, the Indians score five runs and go on to win 15–8. Cleveland also sets a record by racking up 10 assists in the first inning. Rain washes out the 2nd game of the doubleheader.

» January 26, 1930: Carl Mays, whose underhand pitch killed Ray Chapman 10 years earlier, ends his ML career with 208 victories and signs with Portland (Pacific Coast League).

» August 22, 1989: Cleveland's Felix Fermin ties the major-league record with four sacrifice bunts in a 3–2, 10-inning win over Seattle. He is the first player to accomplish the feat since Ray Chapman in 1919.