Honus Wagner
The Flying Dutchman: baseball's greatest shortstop and a pioneer of the game.
via Wikipedia: Honus Wagner · see source
Johannes Peter "Honus" Wagner (February 24, 1874 – December 6, 1955) was an American professional baseball shortstop who played 21 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1897 to 1917, mostly with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Nicknamed "the Flying Dutchman" due to his superb speed and German heritage, Wagner was a prototypical five-tool player. He is widely regarded as the greatest shortstop of all time. The Baseball Hall of Fame inducted Wagner as one of the first five members.
Quick Facts
- Position
- Shortstop
- Bats
- Right
- Born
- 24 February 1874
- Birthplace
- Chartiers Borough, Pennsylvania, U.S.
- Died
- 6 December 1955
- Place of death
- Carnegie, Pennsylvania, U.S.
- Debut league
- MLB
- Debut date
- July 19
Lore & Background
Wagner won a joint-record eight NL batting titles. He led the league in slugging six times, stolen bases five times, and RBIs four times. He set numerous MLB career records, including extra-base hits (996), runs scored (1,739), games played (2,794), hits (3,420), total bases (4,870), and at-bats (10,439), all later broken by Ty Cobb. He still holds the NL record for most triples (252) and ranks in the top 10 for hits, doubles, triples, stolen bases, and WAR among all major league players. Wagner's official MLB career stolen base total is 722, not 723.
Reader's Guide
Wagner debuted in MLB in 1897 with the Louisville Colonels. After the Colonels folded in 1899, club president Barney Dreyfuss bought the Pittsburgh Pirates and brought Wagner with him. Wagner played at least ten career games at every position except pitcher and catcher. He appeared in two World Series: the inaugural 1903 World Series and the 1909 World Series, the latter being the Pirates' first World Series title. After retiring in 1917, he served as a coach for the Pirates, tutoring future Hall of Famers Arky Vaughan and Ralph Kiner.
Did You Know?
- Wagner was one of nine children and dropped out of school at age 12 to work in coal mines.
- He is the subject of the T206 Honus Wagner baseball card, one of the rarest in existence, with about 50 known copies. In 2021, one sold for $6.6 million.
- Wagner was the first sportsperson to endorse a commercial product, signing a contract in 1905 to produce the first bat with a player's signature, the Louisville Slugger.
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