Evening star., 1918-04-07
TIP O'NE|L HOLDS
BATTING RECORD
Ran Up Average of .492 in Old
American Association
in 1887.

Canny individuals were those persons
who used to get out the averages of
the old American Association. Not one
ever was able to ind q mistake in their
batting percentage. for the good and
sufficient reason that up to 1888 they
were careful not to give the number
Of times player batted. though they
did give the number of hits he drove
out.
James F. ("Tip") oNeill. In the last
year the associations statistician saved
the compositors and the proofreaders
labor by not including the times te
bat in the official records ran up the
highest swatting mark ever made by q
major Lacquer, that mark being .4s2.
Fast set players then (ths year was
1850 were getting four cracks at the
ball, and moreover the scorers had to
record as hit base on balls. In the
four preceding years passes had been
charged as errors against the pitchers.
In 1887 they were credited as hits to
the batsmen.
O'Neill, working under Charley Com
iskey out in st. Louis. is shown by the
official averages to have taken part in
1913 games, to have made PIT hits and
to have had a percentage OF .4S2. To
get this percentage he must have been
at bat 565 times.
That's the number of times he was at
bat, according to one of the old fles
forming part of Charles Hercules Eb-
bets, wonderful base ball library over
at Ebbets Field. Unoflcial scores give
Tip l." 273 hits, give him the same
number of long blows as the official
figures. show he had AZ doubles -
triples and 10 homers, and show the
number of passes he drew in 104 out OF
the 123 games in which he took part.
Drew Forty complimeutaries.
Jim drew forty complimentaries in
1o4 games, and he probably got eight in
the other nineteen contests. Hence MS
average was in the neighborhooq OF
;44s. five points more than @ hugh nosnty Dumy
more than Ty Cobb hit In 1911.
Tip l." certainly could hit, even u
he only was able to bat .443 instead OF
the .4s2 with which all the base ball
James 3. aid something on April 80,
1887, In the game with the Cleveland
Babies that no other major Lacquer SO
far as known has done Going to bat
three times IN Cne MIN ana SiAln III
nfngs of that combat, which st. Louis
won by a score Of 2s to IL. Zip" drove
out three long hits-two homers and
triple-for total of eleven bases. The
Cleveland curver was a chap named
Morrison and apparently the Browns
reached him for thirty-six hits for 9
total Of fifty-seven cushions.
The actual hits" on Morrison. how
ever, were twenty-six in number, for
he gave ten passes. all Of which were
recorded as base knocks Brudder Bill
Gleason, who batted ahead Of O'Neill,
apparently kicked in with seven wal
lops, but really he got only three. being
walked on four oocasionA O'Neill bat
ting seven times. was credited with SIX
hits. one of which was not an actual
hit"
His real record in this slugfest was
as follows: At bat, six: runs, four;
singles. one: doubles, one; triples, one;
home runs, two. Total bases. fourteen.
Obtained Fifteen safeties.
o'Neill must have enjoyed himself In
that first series with the Cleveland In-
|fauts-babieA was the scribes' name for
shem-since in four successive games
he obtained Afteen simon-pura safeties
OF Pechiney. Morrison and Billy
CroweM In another four-gAme series
against the ohioans later in the year