Tris Speaker (1937)


Date of Birth: 4/4/1888
Date of Death: 12/8/1958
Birthplace: Hubbard, Texas
College: Texas Wesleyan University

Tris Speaker played collegiate level baseball in 1905 at Fort Worth Polytechnic Institute. The following year, he started his professional career in the minors for a team in the Texas League. He started as a pitcher but was moved to the outfield that year. His contract was sold to the Boston Americans/Red Sox in 1907.

Boston Americans/Red Sox

Speaker played in seven games with Boston in 1907. The Americans sold his contract to the minor leagues (Southern League team) in 1908, but they bought back his contract after a short time and he played in 31 games with Boston in 1908. The following year, he became the regular center fielder for the Americans. In 1909, he batted .309 with 168 hits, 26 doubles, 13 triples, 77 RBIs, and 35 stolen bases in 143 games. Defensively, he led all AL center fielders in putouts with 319.

Speaker finished the 1910 season with 183 hits, 20 doubles, 14 triples, 35 stolen bases, and a .340 batting average in 141 games. He again led all AL center fielders in putouts with 337. He had another strong season in 1911, batting .334 with 167 hits, 34 doubles, 13 triples, and 25 stolen bases in 141 games.

In 1912, Speaker won the American League MVP award and he led the league in home runs, doubles, and on-base percentage. That season he batted .383 with a career high 222 hits, 53 doubles, 12 triples, 10 home runs, 90 RBIs, and a career high 52 stolen bases in 153 games. He had an on-base percentage of .464.

Speaker continued to play well in 1913, finishing the season with a .363 batting average in 141 games. He had 189 hits, 35 doubles, a career high 22 triples, and 46 stolen bases. He once more led AL center fielders in putouts with 374.

In 1914, Speaker led the AL in hits with 193 and doubles with 46, and he led AL center fielders in putouts with 424. He played in a career high 158 games and he had 18 triples, 42 stolen bases, and a .338 batting average. The next year, he batted .322 in 150 games. He finished the 1915 season with 176 hits, 25 doubles, 12 triples, and 29 stolen bases. He walked 81 times and struck out just 14 times. As a center fielder, he again led the AL in putouts with 378.

Cleveland Indians

Before the 1916 season, Speaker was traded to the Cleveland Indians. The value of his contract at that time was a record $40,000. In his first season with the Indians, Speaker won the AL batting title and he led the league in hits, doubles, on-base percentage, and OPS. He batted .386 with 211 hits, 41 doubles, 79 RBIs, and 35 stolen bases in 151 games. He had an on-base percentage of .470 and an OPS of .972.

In 1917, Speaker batted .352 with 184 hits, 42 doubles, 11 triples, and 30 stolen bases in 142 games. He walked 67 times and struck out only 14 times. The next year, he led the AL in doubles with 33. He finished the 1918 season with 150 hits, 11 triples, 27 stolen bases, and a .318 batting average in 127 games. He struck out just 9 times and he walked 64 times. Once more, he played well defensively, leading AL center fielders in putouts with 355.

As a player in 1919, Speaker's batting average dropped to .296. He had 146 hits and 38 doubles in 134 games. He played much better in 1920, batting .388 and leading the AL in doubles with 50. He finished the season with 214 hits and 107 RBIs in 150 games. He walked a career high 97 times while striking out just 13 times.

Speaker again led the AL in doubles in 1921 with 52. He had 183 hits, 75 RBIs, 12 strikeouts to 68 walks, and a .362 batting average in 132 games. The next year, he led the league in doubles again and in on-base percentage. He finished the 1922 season with 161 hits, 48 doubles, 71 RBIs, 11 strikeouts to 77 walks, a .378 batting average, and an on-base percentage of .474.

Speaker again played well in 1923, leading the AL once more in doubles and in RBIs. He batted .380 with career highs in doubles (59), home runs (17), and RBIs (130).

Although Speaker didn't lead the AL in any categories in 1924, he still played very well, batting .344 in 135 games. He had 167 hits, 36 doubles, and 65 RBIs. He walked 72 times and struck out only 13 times.

Speaker batted a career high .389 in 1925, and he led the AL in on-base percentage with .479. He had 167 hits, 35 doubles, 87 RBIs, and 12 strikeouts to 70 walks in 117 games. The next year, he batted .304 with 164 hits, 52 doubles, and 86 RBIs in 150 games.

Speaker was made player-manager of the Indians in 1919. He stayed in that dual position until he left the team after the 1926 season. Speaker's record as a manager was 617 wins to 520 losses. The Indians won the World Series in 1920 under his leadership.

Final Years as a Player

In 1926, Speaker, along with Ty Cobb, was involved in a gambling scandal and he was forced to resign. However, both he and Cobb were cleared and Speaker returned as a player to the Washington Senators in 1927. That year, he batted .327 with 171 hits, 43 doubles, and 73 RBIs in 141 games.

Speaker played in only 64 games with the Philadelphia Athletics in 1928. He batted .267 with 51 hits and 22 doubles.

Awards and MLB Records

  • AL MVP
  • Led AL in hits (2 times)
  • Led AL in doubles (8 times)
  • Led AL in on-base percentage (4 times)

Career Statistics

Statistics for Speaker in 19 full seasons (1909-1927) in the major leagues include:

  • 18 seasons with 150 or more hits, with a high of 222 in 1912
  • 16 seasons with over 30 doubles, with a high of 59 in 1923
  • 13 seasons with over 10 triples, with a high of 22 in 1913
  • 10 seasons with 20 or more stolen bases, with a high of 52 in 1912
  • 18 seasons with a batting average over .300, with a high of .389 in 1925

Career batting statistics for Speaker include:

  • 2,789 games played
  • 792 doubles
  • 222 triples
  • 3,514 hits
  • 1,529 RBIs
  • 432 stolen bases
  • .345 batting average
  • .428 on-base percentage
  • .928 OPS

Career fielding statistics for Speaker as a center fielder include:

  • 2,691 games played
  • 6,781 putouts
  • 226 errors
  • .970 fielding percentage

Postseason statistics for Speaker include:

  • 3 postseasons
  • 20 games played
  • 72 at-bats
  • 22 hits
  • 3 doubles
  • 4 triples
  • 1 RBI
  • 4 strikeouts to 11 walks
  • .306 batting average

Post Playing Career

After leaving major league baseball, Speaker became a minor league manager for two years (1929-1930). In 1933, he was the part owner of a minor league team. Speaker stayed out of professional baseball from 1934 until 1947, when he returned to the Indians. From 1947 through 1958, Speaker served as an adviser, coach and scout for the Indians.

Speaker was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1937 on the second ballot with 82.1% of the vote.

Sources for Information
Wikipedia - Tris Speaker
ESPN - Tris Speaker
Baseball Reference - Tris Speaker

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