Detroit Tigers All Decade Team: 1901-1909
July 12, 2011 - Don Keko - Detroit Baseball History Examiner
Detroit Tigers players have enjoyed many great individual seasons. During the franchise’s first decade, several players enjoyed amazing performances. This is to be expected from a team boasting Hall of Famers Sam Crawford and Ty Cobb. The following is a compilation of the best seasons by position for the Detroit Tigers in the first decade of the twentieth century.
Shortstop Kid Elberfeld (1901)
Teammates dubbed Elberfeld “The Tabasco Kid” for his fiery temper and his physical and verbal assaults on umpires. In the minors, he threw mud into an umpire’s mouth. Late in his career, he had to be restrained from attacking an ump by police. Despite the temper, Elberfeld was one of the best shortstops of the era. In 1901, he hit a career best .308 with 35 extra base hits, and 76 RBI. He stole 23 bases and enjoyed a .397 OBP. In 1903, the shortstop was suspended for umpire abuse and developed a poor attitude. Manager Ed Barrow accused Elberfeld of throwing games to get traded. He fell out of favor and was quickly shipped to New York.
Detroit Tigers players have enjoyed many great individual seasons. During the franchise’s first decade, several players enjoyed amazing performances. This is to be expected from a team boasting Hall of Famers Sam Crawford and Ty Cobb. The following is a compilation of the best seasons by position for the Detroit Tigers in the first decade of the twentieth century.
Shortstop Kid Elberfeld (1901)
Teammates dubbed Elberfeld “The Tabasco Kid” for his fiery temper and his physical and verbal assaults on umpires. In the minors, he threw mud into an umpire’s mouth. Late in his career, he had to be restrained from attacking an ump by police. Despite the temper, Elberfeld was one of the best shortstops of the era. In 1901, he hit a career best .308 with 35 extra base hits, and 76 RBI. He stole 23 bases and enjoyed a .397 OBP. In 1903, the shortstop was suspended for umpire abuse and developed a poor attitude. Manager Ed Barrow accused Elberfeld of throwing games to get traded. He fell out of favor and was quickly shipped to New York.
