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Red Murray
Given Name: John Joseph
1884-1958

OF 1906-15, 17 Cardinals, Giants , Cubs

Red Murray's Teammates

  • Led League in hr 09

GamesAverageHRRBI
Career 1264.27037579
World Series 19.20606

Books and articles about Red Murray

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RELATED LINKS
» 1914: The Miracle in Boston

Book Excerpts
» Land of the Giants by Stew Thornley

Murray's seven home runs with New York in 1909 won him the NL crown, and he finished second each year in stolen bases from 1908 to 1910. Playing in right, he led NL outfielders in assists in 1909 (30) and 1910 (26). In 1912 Murray made a game-saving catch for Christy Mathewson that has been called the greatest catch in Forbes Field history. Mathewson later recalled that heavy thunderclouds threatened throughout the game. At the moment of the leaping, fingertip catch, blinding lightning lit up the sky, and "the accompanying crash of thunder fairly jarred the earth." (CG)
FROM THE BASEBALL CHRONOLOGY
» December 12, 1908: The Cardinals are busy. First they get C Admiral Schlei from the Reds for pitchers Ed Karger and Art Fromme. Then they pack off Schlei, along with P Bugs Raymond and OF Red Murray, to the Giants for veteran catcher Roger Bresnahan. Bresnahan, a future Hall of Famer, will be the player/manager of the Cardinals for the next four years. Raymond lost 25 games in 1908, but a record 11 of them were by shutouts.

» August 16, 1909: New York and Pittsburgh play to a 2-2 tie, stopped after eight innings because of a drenching downpour. Off Christy Mathewson, Ham Hyatt hits his 3rd pinch triple of the year, a record that won't be matched till 1970. Outfielder Red Murray prevents a loss for Matty with one of the greatest catches ever seen at Forbes Field. With two outs and two on, Dots Miller belts a long line drive off Matty into the growing darkness. With everyone straining to follow the ball, a bolt of lightening flashes and Murray is seen making a bare-handed grab on the dead run to end the inning. Bill Klem then calls the game.

» July 30, 1912: Led by Red Murray's homer, the Giants pound Chicago rookie Jimmy Lavender for five runs in the first two innings on their way to a 10–4 win. Each team makes four errors, but Christy Mathewson scatters nine hits to win. The Giants lead the NL by 10 games.

» October 16, 1912: In the Series finale, Christy Mathewson squares off against Hugh Bedient in quest of his first win of the Series. He takes a 1–0 lead into the 7th, but with one out, Boston manager Jake Stahl hits a pop-up to short LF. The ball drops among Art Fletcher, Josh Devore, and Fred Snodgrass. Heinie Wagner walks, and with two outs, pinch hitter Olaf Henriksen doubles home the tying run. Smoky Joe Wood relieves Bedient, and the two aces match zeroes until Red Murray doubles and Fred Merkle singles in the 10th to give New York a 2–1 lead. In the last of the 10th, pinch hitter Clyde Engle lifts a can of corn to CF Snodgrass, who drops the ball. Snodgrass then makes a great catch of a long drive by Harry Hooper. Steve Yerkes walks, bringing up Tris Speaker, who pops a high foul along the 1B line. C Chief Meyers chases it, but it drops a few feet from 1B Merkle, who could have taken it easily. Reprieved, Speaker then singles in the tying run and sends Yerkes to 3B. After Duffy Lewis is walked intentionally, 3B Larry Gardner hits a long sac fly to a retreating Devore that scores Yerkes with the winning run. This World Series was the most butterfingered in history, with thirty-one errors recorded, seventeen for The Giants. The Red Sox earn $4,024.68 each; the Giants' share is $2,566.47 each.

» May 26, 1914: At Chicago, the Giants come from behind to defeat the Cubs, 10–7. New York is lead by a crew of pinchhitters: Jim Thorpe with a 2-run double, Red Murray with a sac fly, and in the 8th inning, Mike Donlin belts a 3-run homer.

» July 17, 1914: At Forbes Field, Rube Marquard and Babe Adams each go a marathon 21 innings before Larry Doyle's 2-run home run gives the Giants a 3–1 win over the Pirates. Adams yields no walks and 12 hits, the longest non-walk game in ML history. Marquard walks two (one intentional) and yields 15 hits. In the 6th, Honus Wagner goes from first to 3B on a hit by Jim Viox. When New York CF Bob Bescher throws to 3B Milt Stock, the ball bounces out of his hands and disappears. Wagner scores before it's discovered that the ball bounced up under his arm and stayed there as he ran home. Wagner is called out for interference, and the Bucs protest. Manager Clarke is then ejected by umpire Bill "Lord" Byron. In a fitting ending to this unusual game, Giants OF Red Murray is knocked unconscious by a bolt of lightning after catching a fly ball for the final out. Murray is uninjured. Marquard's win is his last in 1914. He will lose 10 straight on his way to a 12–22 record.