NAP LAJOIE

Widely considered the greatest second baseman in baseball history, Napoleon Larry Lajoie was a powerful right-handed pull hitter who topped .300 in 16 of his 21 seasons in the majors. Handsome, talented and popular with both fans and teammates, Lajoie was also a graceful middle infielder with a strong, accurate throwing arm. Though he broke into the big leagues with the Phillies in 1896 as a first baseman, Lajoie moved to second base two years later and led the National League with 127 RBI and 40 doubles. In 1901, Lajoie jumped to the new American League’s Philadelphia Athletics and continued his hot hitting, capturing a Triple Crown and batting .422, still a league record. When he joined Cleveland in 1902, the All Star second baseman made the team a contender and managed them from 1905 to 1909, when they were called the “Naps” in his honor.

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Text and images courtesy of Dick Perez’s The Immortals - An Art Collection of Baseball’s Best