McGraw, John

McGraw, John (Joseph)

John McGraw, 1910.

(credit: The Bettmann Archive)

(born April 7, 1873, Truxton, N.Y., U.S.—died Feb. 25, 1934, New Rochelle, N.Y.) U.S. baseball player and manager. McGraw was a star infielder for the Baltimore National League team in the 1890s. His batting average of .391 in 1899 remains the highest ever for a third baseman. As manager of the New York Giants (1902–32), he led the team to 10 National League championships and 3 World Series titles (1905, 1921, 1922). For his shrewdness and veneer of harshness, he acquired the nickname “Little Napoleon.”

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McGraw, John (Joseph) (1873–1934) baseball player/manager; born in Truxton, N.Y. During a 16-year career as a third baseman (1891–1906), mostly with the famous Baltimore Orioles of the 1890s, he compiled a lifetime batting average of .334; but it is as one of baseball's greatest managers that he is best remembered. After managing Baltimore for three years, he was manager of the New York Giants for 31 years (1902–32), winning ten league pennants, three world championships, and more major league games (2,840) than any manager except Connie Mack. Nicknamed "the Little Napoleon," he was a stern taskmaster and a brilliant discoverer of baseball talent. He was elected to baseball's Hall of Fame in 1937.