Honus Wagner

Johannes Peter "Honus" Wagner ( HAW-nəs WAG-nər; February 24, 1874 – December 6, 1955) was an American professional baseball shortstop who played 21 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1897 to 1917, mostly with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Nicknamed "the Flying Dutchman" due to his superb speed and German heritage, Wagner was a prototypical five-tool player, known for being a versatile defender who could combine a strong throwing arm with the ability to play almost any defensive position as well as being capable of hitting for average and for power. He is widely regarded as the greatest shortstop of all time. In 1936, the Baseball Hall of Fame inducted Wagner as one of the first five members. At the age of 15, Wagner began his baseball career in the minor leagues in 1889. After being noticed by a talent scout, he made his MLB debut in 1897 with the Louisville Colonels. Wagner excelled at playing any position both in the infield and in the outfield, eventually becoming a regular shortstop by 1903. After the Colonels folded in 1899, club president Barney Dreyfuss bought the Pittsburgh Pirates and brought along Wagner with him, where he would spend the rest of his career. He quickly established himself as the National League's premier star. Wagner won a joint-record eight NL batting titles, led the league in slugging six times, stolen bases five times and RBIs four times. Wagner played at least ten career games at every position except pitcher and catcher. With Pittsburgh, Wagner appeared in two World Series, including the inaugural 1903 World Series and 1909 World Series, the latter of which was the Pirates' first World Series title. After a brief stint as player-manager, Wagner retired in 1917 having set numerous MLB career records, extra-base hits (996), most runs scored (1,739),...