CHAPTER FIVE
As noted in the text, the information about Cobb’s experiences with Con Strouthers and the Augusta Tourists was taken largely from contemporary coverage in the Augusta Chronicle, which is available online. The Germany Schaefer quote about Cobb being the craziest runner he’d ever seen (p. 59) is from the Sporting News, Feb. 24, 1927, p. 8. Cobb’s quote about being full of “life and pepper” (p. 59) and Strouthers’s quote in reaction to his nervous energy (p. 59) are both taken from Inside Baseball with Ty Cobb, p. 47. The anecdote about Cobb encountering Oliver Hardy (p. 61) is from Grantland Rice’s The Tumult and the Shouting, pp. 20–21. The information about Strouthers being arrested for theft (p. 62) comes from the Detroit Free Press, Dec. 3, 1902, p. 10. Cobb’s quote about Strouthers not understanding “a boy’s mind” (p. 64) comes from his 1914 newspaper serial. I obtained a copy of Cobb’s first minor league contract, mentioned on p. 64, from Wesley Fricks.
CHAPTER SIX
As in Chapter Five, much of the information about the Augusta Tourists comes from the Augusta Chronicle. The information about the Jones sisters comes largely from material—newspaper accounts and court records—provided by Wesley Fricks. For information about the early Detroit Tigers I relied on the Detroit Free Press, The Detroit Tigers by Frederick G. Lieb, and Baseball: The Golden Age by Harold Seymour, as well as the letters in the Ernie Harwell Collection at the Detroit Public Library. Much of the information on Ed Barrow comes from his 1951 book My Fifty Years in Baseball. The catcher alluded to on p. 75 is Lew Drill, who later became the U.S. Attorney for Minnesota.
CHAPTER SEVEN
This chapter also relies on Cobb’s three serialized memoirs and the Augusta Chronicle’s coverage, as well as materials provided by Wesley Fricks and discussions I had with Don Rhodes, author of Ty Cobb: Safe at Home. The best account of George Leidy and his interactions with Cobb comes from Cobb’s My Twenty Years in Baseball, which is where the quotes about Leidy on pp. 80–81 come from. Cobb admitted he was not a good bunter (p. 81) in My Twenty Years. The quote about Cobb’s “always doing something” to rattle the opposition (p. 82) comes from his undated radio interview with Grantland Rice. The letters written by Bill Armour (p. 84) are in the Ernie Harwell Collection at the Detroit Public Library.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Legal documents pertaining to the prosecution of Amanda Cobb, including the coroner’s report on the shooting of William H. Cobb, were provided to me by Wesley Fricks, who also provided similar information on the Jones sisters’ case. Charles Alexander’s brief account of the death of W. H. Cobb (p. 90) can be found on pp. 20–21 of his biography Ty Cobb. Al Stump covers the same territory in Chapter Six of his book Cobb. The Fielder Jones quote about the Tigers (p. 94) is from the Chicago Daily Tribune, Apr. 19, 1905, p. 6. The information about Cobb’s negotiations to join the Tigers (pp. 95–96) is drawn from the letters in the Ernie Harwell Collection at the Detroit Public Library and from Cobb’s newspaper memoirs, especially My Twenty Years in Baseball. For more on Jack Chesbro (p. 98), see Before They Were the Bombers: The New York Yankees’ Early Years, 1903–1915 by Jim Reisler, pp. 78–79, and Greatness in Waiting: An Illustrated History of the Early New York Yankees by Ray Istorico, pp. 29–30.
CHAPTER NINE
The letters I quote from are in the Ernie Harwell Collection at the Detroit Public Library. The quote about the cause of Kid Elberfeld’s suspension (p. 102) is from Sporting Life, Aug. 20, 1905, p. 7. For more on Elberfeld, see Before They Were the Bombers: The New York Yankees’ Early Years, 1903–1915 by Jim Reisler, p. 144. Cobb’s quote about how his initial success restored his self-confidence (p. 103) is from Inside Baseball with Ty Cobb, p. 61. The information about Mrs. Cobb’s alleged lover, Joshua Chambers (p. 103), was provided by Wesley Fricks. In this chapter, information on Cobb’s performance in big league games is drawn largely from contemporary coverage in the Detroit Free Press, the Detroit Daily News, the New York Times, the Sporting News, Sporting Life, and the other major papers in American League cities, especially Boston, Washington, and Chicago. Clark Griffith’s quote about Cobb probably not surviving a second trip “around the circuit” (p. 106) comes from the Detroit Free Press, Dec. 8, 1912, p. 12.
CHAPTER TEN
The letters referenced in this chapter are in the Ernie Harwell Collection at the Detroit Public Library. Al Stump, for example, mistakenly refers to a “Bungy Davis” (p. 110) on p. 141 of Cobb’s biography. The information on the Cobb family’s finances (p. 110) came from documents provided by Wesley Fricks. Cobb’s quotes about being shocked by McIntyre’s epithets (p. 115) come from My Twenty Years in Baseball, p. 50. Cobb’s observation that ballplayers were a higher class of men than in the “olden days” (p. 115) can be found in Inside Baseball with Ty Cobb, p. 65. The quote about a “tragedy” (p. 116) is on p. 50 of My Twenty Years in Baseball. The Albert Beveridge quote about the “male animal” (p. 117) is from his 1905 book The Young Man and the World, p. 34. Charles Foster Kent’s defense of hazing (p. 117) was reported in the Boston Evening Transcript, Mar. 13, 1902, p. 23. Shoeless Joe Jackson’s quote (p. 118) about how “It don’t take school stuff to help a fella play ball” appears in many places, including Donald Gropman’s 1979 book Say It Ain’t So, Joe: The True Story of Shoeless Joe Jackson, p. 101. Cobb’s quote about crying (p. 120) comes from a special commemorative issue of the Royston Record published in 1950 in conjunction with the dedication of Cobb Memorial Hospital, no specific date or page number available. The quote “They sort of formed a gang . . .” (p. 120) comes from My Twenty Years in Baseball, p. 53. Cobb’s statement about liking opposition (p. 120) appears in Busting ’Em and Other Big League Stories, p. 81. Connie Mack advised his players not to get Cobb mad on many occasions over the years, but the remark (p. 121) is reported most authoritatively in volume 2 of Norman L. Macht’s majestic biography of Mack, published in 2012, Connie Mack: The Turbulent and Triumphant Years: 1915–1931, p. 376. Cobb’s quote about gritting his teeth (p. 121) comes from My Twenty Years in Baseball, p. 51, as does the quote from Bill Donovan (p. 121). Some of the information about Amanda Cobb’s trial comes from a document called “The State of Georgia vs. Amanda Cobb: A Timeline of Justice,” prepared by Wesley Fricks.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
The quote from Joe Cantillon (p. 126) can be found in the Washington Star, Feb. 2, 1930. The mention of umpire Tom Connor being roughly handled (p. 128) comes from the Detroit Free Press, May 15, 1906, p. 10. The quote from Louis Menand (p. 128) comes from his book Discovering Modernism: T. S. Eliot and His Context, p. 4. The quote from Nap Lajoie (p. 129) comes from the Weirton (West Virginia) Daily Times, July 18, 1961, p. 8. Cobb’s account of Schmidt falling over a barrel (p. 132) is from My Twenty Years in Baseball, p. 52. Armour’s advice to Schaefer about taking a dose of olive oil (p. 133) comes from a letter in the Ernie Harwell Collection at the Detroit Public Library.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Margaret Sangster’s article on nervous disorders (p. 136) ran in the Detroit Free Press on Dec. 9, 1906, p. C2. The quote (p. 136) about the “sanatorium” in Al Stump’s book Cobb is on p. 129. The quote from Richard Bak’s book Peach (p. 136) is on p. 41. The quote from the Charles Alexander book (p. 136) is on p. 45. Bill Armour’s statement about being practically out of major league ball (p. 140) comes from the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Sept. 21, 1906. The information about Armour’s death (p. 140) comes from the Plain Dealer, Dec. 3, 1922. The term “You threw me down” (p. 143) can be found in Busting ’Em and Other Big League Stories, p. 122. The quote from Bill Donovan (p. 143) appears on p. 53 of My Twenty Years in Baseball.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Some of the information about the old Baltimore Orioles (p. 145) comes from Where They Ain’t: The Fabled Life and Untimely Death of the Original Baltimore Orioles, the Team That Gave Birth to Modern Baseball, by Burt Solomon, and Cap Anson 3: Mugsy John McGraw and the Tricksters—Baseball’s Fun Age of Rule-Bending by Howard W. Rosenberg. Some of the information about Jennings
, including the Ban Johnson quote about “the old Oriole stamp (p. 146), can be found in Ee-Yah: The Life and Times of Hughie Jennings, Baseball Hall of Famer, by Jack Smiles. Similar information appears in Fred Lieb’s book The Detroit Tigers, p. 85. Frank Navin’s quote about dealing with players (p. 148) and his dialogue with Cobb, McIntyre, and Jennings are from a letter in the Ernie Harwell Collection at the Detroit Public Library. Information about Cobb’s dispute with Putnam (p. 149) comes from documents provided to me by Wesley Fricks. The anecdote about Cobb stealing a list of salaries from Navin’s desk (p. 151) comes from a letter in the Ernie Harwell Collection at the Detroit Public Library. Hugh Fullerton’s description of how Jennings conducted a frame-up of Cobb (p. 153) appeared in the Washington Post, Feb. 18, 1921, p. 10. The quotes about Cobb being “quiet as a lamb,” and Jennings being “plainly wrought up” (p. 153) come from the Detroit Free Press, Mar. 17, 1907, p. 17. Navin’s letters to Jennings (pp. 154–55) are in the Ernie Harwell Collection at the Detroit Public Library, as is Navin’s letter to Ban Johnson (p. 157). Cobb’s quote about his collision with Elberfeld (p. 159) is on p. 42 of My Twenty Years in Baseball. A copy of Cobb’s 1907 letter to Elberfeld (p. 159) was provided to me by William R. (Ron) Cobb.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
The quote from Hughie Jennings about stupid ballplayers (p. 166) can be found on p. 470 of Connie Mack and the Early Years of Baseball, by Norman L. Macht. Cobb’s quote about rarely taking a chance that he had not figured out in advance (p. 167) is from My Twenty Years in Baseball, p. 89. Navin’s wistful quote about baseball salaries (p. 174) is from a letter in the Ernie Harwell Collection at the Detroit Public Libary. Connie Mack’s observation about Jennings’s managing style (p. 173) can be found in Lieb’s book, The Detroit Tigers, p. 90. The quote about a fan chewing off “one side of his drooping mustache” (p. 175) appeared in the Detroit Free Press, Oct. 1, 1907, p. 5. Cobb’s statement about “bodily harm” (p. 176) is from Busting ’Em and Other Big League Stories, p. 134.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
The writer to whom Cobb expressed his disappointment (p. 179) was Paul Bruske of the Detroit Daily News. The description of the Tigers dinner (p. 179) comes from the Detroit Free Press, Oct. 17, 1907, p. 1. The description of the wrestling match Cobb refereed (p. 180) comes from the Waterloo (Iowa) Semi-Weekly Reporter, Dec. 27, 1907. The letters referred to (p. 180) are in the Ernie Harwell Collection at the Detroit Public Library. Cobb’s quote about how baseball has cut into his reading (p. 181) appears on p. 38 of Don Rhodes’s Ty Cobb: Safe at Home, and probably came originally from the Augusta Herald. Navin’s letter to Jennings (p. 182) is in the Ernie Harwell Collection at the Detroit Public Library. The report of everyone abandoning hope about Cobb’s re-signing (p. 183) is from the Detroit Free Press, Mar. 21, 1908, pp. 1–2. The quote from Mark Okkonen (p. 184) appears in his Ty Cobb Scrapbook, p. 20. The Broun quote about Cobb giving more “for their hard-earned money” (p. 184) appeared in the Telegraph in October of 1910. The quote from Hugh Fullerton that starts “He fought for every point” (p. 185) appeared in an article called “Baseball’s Best” in the North American Review, May 1930, p. 605. The quote from Cobb (p. 185) that begins, “I would think, ‘I haven’t tried to score from second base’ ” is from the undated radio interview with Grantland Rice provided by Wesley Fricks. Cobb’s quote about being thought of as a “barroom gladiator” (p. 185) ran in several newspapers including the Fort Wayne Sentinel, Dec. 2, 1914, p. 8. Walter Johnson’s quotes about Cobb (p. 185) come from a newspaper series called “My Pitching Years” that ran in the Washington Times and other outlets in early 1925. Salsinger’s comment about Cobb being Harrison’s “main defender and patron” (p. 190) appeared in his “Our Ty” series that ran in the Detroit News throughout 1924.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
The description of Cobb’s wedding (p. 193) comes from the Society page of the Augusta Chronicle, Aug. 7, 1908. The reference to Charlie Cobb’s being “heavily veiled” (p. 194) comes from the Augusta Herald, Aug. 10, 1908, via Don Rhode’s Ty Cobb: Safe at Home, p. 37. The quote about “actors, politicians and barbers” (p. 198) comes from Fred Lieb’s The Detroit Tigers, p. 118, as does the Hugh Fullerton quote (p. 198) about Louis Mann. Will Wreford (p. 199) wrote for the Detroit Free Press. Cobb expressed his hopes for the 1909 season (p. 200) in Sporting Life, Dec. 26, 1908, p. 5.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
I found the Fred Mitchell story about Cobb stealing home (p. 204) in the Winnipeg Tribune, Dec. 16, 1924, but it probably appeared first in H. G. Salsinger’s “Our Ty” series in the Detroit Daily News. Hughie Jennings made his comments about Cobb’s running and sliding (p. 204) in Baseball Magazine, Mar. 1921, p. 468. Shotton’s comments about Cobb (p. 205 and 207) appeared in the Tuscaloosa News, Apr. 6, 1950, p. 7. Paul Krichell’s quotes (p. 205) come from the Sporting News, June 12, 1957, p. 28. Cobb talks about the “swoop slide” and his small ankles (p. 205) on p. 39 of My Twenty Years in Baseball. One place Cobb talks about sliding as if you enjoy it (p. 206) is on p. 171 of Busting ’Em and Other Big League Stories. The quote from Wally Schang about Cobb being “too pretty a slider” to hurt anyone intentionally (p. 206) comes from the Washington Post, Mar. 19, 1940, p. 20. Roger Peckinpaugh’s comments about Cobb never hurting him (p. 206) ran in the Sporting News, Apr. 13, 1944, p. 17. Steve O’Neill’s assessment (p. 207 and p. 211) ran in the Sporting News, Apr. 2, 1942, as part of a “Greatest Player” survey. Ben Hunt expressed his thoughts about Cobb’s base running (p. 207) in the Los Angeles Times, Feb. 16, 1911, Sec. 3, p. 1. Red Farber’s 1961 quote about Cobb never hurting anyone (p. 207) appeared in a collection of quotes aggregated by the Cobb scholar Bill Burgess on the Baseball Fever website. Cobb’s letter to Ban Johnson about spikes (p. 209) is quoted in the Boston Daily Globe, Jan. 14, 1910, p. 5. O’Loughlin’s defense of Cobb (p. 209) ran in the Pittsburgh Press, July 24, 1911, p. 13. Ossie Bluege spoke to Donald Honig about Cobb (p. 209) for Honig’s 1977 The Man in the Dugout, p. 152. George Burns made his remarks about Cobb (p. 210) in the Los Angeles Times, May 14, 1931, p. F4. Tinker’s remarks about Cobb (p. 210) appeared in the Pittsburgh Press, Jan. 5, 1910, p. 14. O’Leary’s quote about Cobb not being a crybaby (p. 211) comes from the Sporting News, Dec. 26, 1935, p. 2. Cobb vehemently denied being a spiker (p. 211) in a United Press story that ran, among other places, in the Huron (South Dakota) Daily Plainsman, July 31, 1955, p. 10.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Connie Mack’s angry statement about Cobb (p. 214) is reported in Connie Mack and the Early Years of Baseball by Norman L. Macht, p. 453. It appeared originally in Sporting Life, Sept. 4, 1909, p. 6. Jennings’s testy response to Connie Mack (p. 214) ran in the Cincinnati Enquirer, Aug. 28, 1909, page unknown. One place Cobb’s response (p. 215) appeared was alongside Mack’s statement in Sporting Life, Sept. 4, 1909, p. 6. Collins’s statement (p. 215) about Cobb’s base running appeared in the Sporting News, Oct. 18, 1950, p. 14. Charlie Murphy defended Cobb (p. 216) in Sporting Life, Oct. 2, 1909, p. 13, and in a syndicated story that ran in the Cincinnati Enquirer and other papers on or just after Sept. 8, 1909. Frank Navin’s letter to Ban Johnson (p. 216) is in the Ernie Harwell Collection at the Detroit Public Library. Cohan’s comment about Cobb being “a Yankee Doodle boy” (p. 218) appeared in the Detroit News, Sept. 4, 1909, p. 8. Avery’s statement that Cobb was “roaring drunk” when he entered the Euclid (p. 218) appeared in the Cleveland News, Sept. 6, 1909, p. 1. (Vaughn Glaser denied Cobb was drunk when he came back to the Euclid Hotel in the Detroit Free Press, Sept. 8, 1909, p. 10.) Cobb’s version of what happened that night in Cleveland (p. 218) comes from the Sporting News, Oct. 28, 1909, p. 3. George Stanfield’s version (p. 219) appeared in the Detroit Free Press, Sept. 8, 1909, p. 9. Hughie Jennings’s brief speech and the “ragtime chorus” (p. 221) are mentioned in the Free Press of Sept. 17, 1909, p. 8. Cobb made his comment about street clothes (p. 222) on several occasions, including in Busting ’Em, p. 42. Lieb’s quote (p. 227) comes from The Detroit Tigers, p. 127. Navi
n said “If Cobb were less impetuous . . .” (p. 227), in the Detroit Free Press, Aug. 7, 1910, p. 26. Comiskey’s article praising Cobb (p. 228), which also ran in the Chicago Daily Tribune (Apr. 17, 1910, pp. C1–2), is reproduced in full in Inside Baseball with Ty Cobb, edited by Wesley Fricks. Cobb’s quote about walking with his head down and shoulders hunched (p. 228) comes from the undated radio interview provided by Wesley Fricks.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Koosma Tarasoff’s comments about Cobb (p. 230) appeared in the Ottawa Citizen, Dec. 26, 2004. Navin’s comments to Charlie Schmidt about Cobb (p. 231) are from a letter in the Ernie Harwell Collection at the Detroit Public Library. Cobb’s comment about training trips (p. 232) appeared, among other places, in the El Paso Herald, Jan. 16, 1912, p. 12. Jennings’s letter to Cobb urging him to come to spring training (p. 233) is also in the Ernie Harwell Collection at the Detroit Public Library. Cobb’s remarks about the strawberry shortcake (p. 234) appeared in the Charlotte Observer, May 27, 1910, p. 9. Cobb’s interactions with President Taft (p. 234) were reported in the same edition of the Observer, p. 3. E. A. Batchelor (p. 235) assisted and succeeded Joe Jackson as sports editor of the Detroit Free Press. He wrote about Jones’s lack of popularity in the editorial of Aug. 6, 1910, p. 8. Cobb’s “open letter” to the press and public (p. 236) was reported in and quoted from Sporting Life, Aug. 13, 1910, p. 5. Red Nelson’s account of Lajoie’s hitting performance (p. 238) appeared in the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Oct. 12, 1910, p. 8. O’Connor’s widely reported quote about “tearing your head off” with line drives (p. 238) also appeared in “The Amazing Race” by L. Jon Wertheim, Sports Illustrated, Sept. 20, 2010. O’Connor’s lame explanation for Lajoie’s hits (p. 241) was reported in the Detroit Free Press, Oct. 11, 1910, p. 9. Lajoie’s testy response to Navin’s suspicions (p. 242) appeared in the New York Times, Oct. 11, 1910. Cobb expressed surprise at Lajoie’s performance in the doubleheader (p. 243) in the Detroit Free Press, Oct. 12, 1910, p. 9. Ban Johnson’s statement (p. 243) can be found, among other places, in the Winnipeg Free Press, Oct. 17, 1910, p. 14. Batchelor made his comment about a “nasty mess” (p. 244) in the Detroit Free Press, Oct. 13, 1910, p. 9.
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