Claim: Ty Cobb played a sport.

Tyrus Raymond Cobb -LRB- December 18 , 1886 -- July 17 , 1961 -RRB- , nicknamed The Georgia Peach , was an American Major League Baseball -LRB- MLB -RRB- outfielder . He was born in rural Narrows , Georgia . Cobb spent 22 seasons with the Detroit Tigers , the last six as the team 's player-manager , and finished his career with the Philadelphia Athletics . In 1936 Cobb received the most votes of any player on the inaugural Baseball Hall of Fame ballot , receiving 222 out of a possible 226 votes -LRB- 98.2 % -RRB- ; no other player received a higher percentage of votes until 1992 . In 1999 , editors at the Sporting News ranked Ty Cobb 3rd on their list of `` Baseball 's 100 Greatest Players '' .   Cobb is widely credited with setting 90 MLB records during his career . He still holds several records as of the end of the 2016 season , including the highest career batting average -LRB- .366 or .367 , depending on source -RRB- and most career batting titles with 11 -LRB- or 12 , depending on source -RRB- . He retained many other records for almost a half century or more , including most career hits until 1985 -LRB- 4,189 or 4,191 , depending on source -RRB- , most career runs -LRB- 2,245 or 2,246 depending on source -RRB- until 2001 , most career games played -LRB- 3,035 -RRB- and at bats -LRB- 11,429 or 11,434 depending on source -RRB- until 1974 , and the modern record for most career stolen bases -LRB- 892 -RRB- until 1977 . He still holds the career record for stealing home -LRB- 54 times -RRB- and for stealing second base , third base , and home in succession -LRB- 5 times -RRB- , and as the youngest player ever to compile 4,000 hits and score 2,000 runs . Cobb ranks fifth all-time in number of games played and committed 271 errors , the most by any American League -LRB- AL -RRB- outfielder .   Cobb 's legacy as an athlete has sometimes been overshadowed by his surly temperament and aggressive playing style , which was described by the Detroit Free Press as `` daring to the point of dementia . '' Cobb himself wrote shortly before his death , `` In legend I am a sadistic , slashing , swashbuckling despot who waged war in the guise of sport . '' Cobb was notorious for sliding into bases feet first , with his spikes high .   Cobb 's legacy , which includes a large college scholarship fund for Georgia residents financed by his early investments in Coca-Cola and General Motors , has been tarnished by allegations of racism and violence , largely stemming from a couple of biographies that were released following his death . Cobb 's reputation as an extremely violent man was fanned by his first biographer , sportswriter Al Stump , whose stories about Cobb have been discredited as sensationalized , and in some part proven to be entirely fictional , while Cobb 's views on race evolved and mellowed after his retirement from baseball .