Ripper Collins (baseball)
| Ripper Collins | ||
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Runs batted in | 659 | |
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James Anthony "Ripper" Collins (March 30, 1904 – April 15, 1970) was an American professional
The nickname "Ripper" developed during an on-field incident that occurred when Jimmy was a young player. A ball rocketed off his bat and struck a nail protruding from the outfield fence; it caused the cover to partially tear. When asked who hit the ball, the retrieving outfielder saw the ball hanging and said, "It was the ripper."[1]
Baseball career
Born in
For that performance, Collins was called up to the big league St. Louis Cardinals, in 1931. As a member of the Gashouse Gang Cardinals teams, Collins had a breakout season in 1934 with 35 homers (sharing the league's long-ball championship with future Baseball Hall of Famer Mel Ott), 128 RBI, and a .333 batting average (BA). That year, he also hit .367 in the World Series, which the Cardinals won in seven games.
Collins is the only first baseman to have twice recorded no putouts in a nine-inning game – once for the 1935 Cardinals and again for the 1937 Chicago Cubs.[3] Between his time with the Cubs and the Pirates, Collins spent two years with the Los Angeles Angels, playing in 346 games, during that time.
In 1,084
Collins played in the
Collins returned to the major leagues as a member of the Cubs' College of Coaches from 1961–63, and was a scout for the Cardinals at the time of his death (in 1970, at age 66).
See also
References
- ^ "Ripper Collins – Society for American Baseball Research".
- ^ "Collins is Promoted to Major Leaguers". nantyglo.com. Nanty Glo "Journal". November 20, 1930. Archived from the original on November 29, 2006. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
- ISBN 1-85348-108-4.
External links
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors), or Retrosheet
- Ripper Collins at the SABR Baseball Biography Project
- Ripper Collins at The Deadball Era[dead link]
- Ripper Collins at Find a Grave
