COBB, TY

born Dec. 18, 1886, Narrows, Ga., U.S. died July 17, 1961, Atlanta, Ga. in full Tyrus Raymond Cobb, byname The Georgia Peach professional baseball player, frequently considered the greatest offensive player in baseball history and generally regarded as the fiercest competitor in the game. During his 24-season playing career in the American League, Cobb set a batting record for runs scored of 2,245 and of runs batted in of 1,937, not surpassed until the mid-1970s. Cobb's mark of 892 stolen bases was surpassed only in 1979, and his lifetime batting average of .366 was still unequaled in the 20th century. (It should be noted that there is some disagreement among sports statisticians as to the exact figure for Cobb's lifetime batting average and runs-batted-in total.) Cobb led the American League in batting 12 times, gaining nine titles in a row (190715). Three times he hit over .400 (1911, .420; 1912, .410; and 1922, .401), and for 23 straight years he batted at least .300. His record of 96 stolen bases in 1915 was unbroken until 1962. Cobb became a major league player with the Detroit Tigers of the American League in 1905, when he was 18. He spent 22 seasons as an outfielder with the Tigers and managed them from 1921 through 1926. A member of the Philadelphia Athletics when he retired in 1928, Cobb hit .323 in his last season. He was a left-handed batter and right-handed thrower, stood about six feet one inch, and weighed 175 pounds. In the first election to the Baseball Hall of Fame, in 1936, Cobb received the most votes. He invested his baseball earnings shrewdly and was affluent in private life. His autobiography My Life in Baseball was published in 1961.