Fred Snodgrass

Snodgrass was originally a catcher when he joined the New York Giants in 1908 at twenty years old. He made his major league debut on June 4, and collected his first major league hit and run batted in off the St. Louis Cardinals' Slim Sallee.[1]

With Hall of Famer Roger Bresnahan manning catching duties for manager John McGraw, Snodgrass saw very little action. On December 12, 1908, the Giants traded Bresnahan to the St. Louis Cardinals for Red Murray, Bugs Raymond and Admiral Schlei. Snodgrass appeared in his first two games of 1909 behind the plate (hitting his first career home run off Jake Boultes in his second game[2]), but Schlei and rookie Chief Meyers would share catching duties in 1909, with Snodgrass shifting to the outfield.

Snodgrass began to emerged as a star in 1910, finishing fourth in the National League with a career high .321 batting average his first full season with the Giants. In 1911, his average dipped to .294, however, he drove in a career best 77 runs. He also stole 51 of the 347 bases McGraw's Giants stole that season. Along with Fred Merkle and Larry Doyle, Snodgrass formed a core of sluggers behind aces Christy Mathewson and Rube Marquard that led the Giants to three straight pennants from 1911 to 1913.

Snodgrass before a game of the 1911 World Series

Snodgrass' regular season success did not translate to success on the World Series, however. Philadelphia Athletics catcher Ira Thomas caught the usually speedy runner stealing twice in the first game.[3] Jack Coombs, who led the American League with 28 wins, along with Hall of Famers Eddie Plank & Chief Bender, held Snodgrass to just two hits and seven strikeouts in nineteen at bats over the course of the Giants' six game loss to the A's in the 1911 World Series.[4]

In 1912, Snodgrass scored a career high 91 runs for a Giants team that won 103 games on its way to a second consecutive pennant. The Boston Red Sox held a three games to two lead in the 1912 World Series, as it headed into its seventh game (game 2 ended in a tie[5]). Facing elimination, the Giants faced Smoky Joe Wood, who went 34-5 with a 1.91 earned run average and ten shutouts for the AL champions, and won games one[6] and four[7] of the World Series. Toeing the rubber for the Giants was rookie Jeff Tesreau, the losing pitcher in both of those games.

To the surprise of the Fenway crowd, the Giants lit up Wood for six runs in the first inning. Snodgrass drove in the first two Giants runs with a double to right that scored Josh Devore and Larry Doyle. He then came around to score the third run of the inning on Fred Merkle's single. Wood lasted just the one inning, while Tesreau pitched a complete game to even the series for the Giants.[8]

Game eight featured a rematch between game five starters Christy Mathewson and Hugh Bedient. In game five, the Bosox rookie outdueled Mathewson, 2-1,[9] and game eight was following a similar pitchers' duel storyline. Bedient exited after seven innings trailing 1-0, but in the bottom of the seventh, Olaf Henriksen's RBI double tied the game. Wood returned to the mound for the Red Sox in the eighth, and held the Giants scoreless heading into the tenth inning. Snodgrass led off the tenth by grounding back to the pitcher, but Red Murray followed with a double, and was driven in by the next batter, Fred Merkle.

The Giants headed into the bottom of the tenth with a 2-1 lead on the verge of winning their first World Series since 1905. Pinch hitter Clyde Engle led off the bottom of the tenth with a fly ball toward right-center. The ball was hit more toward Murray in right field, but Snodgrass, coming from center field, called Murray off. He then dropped it for a two base error. He proceeded to make a spectacular game-saving catch on the next play, a deep fly ball to center by Harry Hooper, but Tris Speaker then followed with a single to tie the game. A Larry Gardner sacrifice fly drove in the World Series winning run for the Red Sox.[10]

Giants manager John McGraw was not among those who blamed Snodgrass for the loss. In his book My Thirty Years in Baseball, McGraw remarked, "Often I have been asked what I did to Fred Snodgrass after he dropped that fly ball in the World Series of 1912...I will tell you exactly what I did: I raised his salary $1,000."[11] Just the same, the error became known as "Snodgrass's Muff" and also, the "$30,000 Muff."[12]

While Snodgrass batted a solid .291 with 49 RBIs and 65 runs scored in 1913, McGraw decided to use Tillie Shafer, who could play multiple positions, in center field in place of Snodgrass in the 1913 World Series. The strategy didn't work, as the Giants were beaten in five games by the A's. Snodgrass had one hit in three at bats.[13] In 1914, the Giants' record dipped to 84-70, as they missed their first World Series in four years.

Snodgrass' final at bat as a Giant came on August 17, 1915 as a pinch hitter.[14] After the game, he was released with a .194 batting average, with first baseman Fred Merkle assuming center field duties over the rest of the season.