Deadball Era Heroes: “A Mighty Batsman”

[Dead-Ball-Hitter]

His nickname was “The Cyclone,” given him for his ability to hurl a baseball at precariously high speeds. As a young player, he was characterized by the New York Times as a “youngster with a $10,000 arm and a $0.00 head.” Later in his career, admirers like teammate Christy Mathewson praised his unparalleled hitting ability calling him “a mighty batsman, one of the best ever.”

Who is this major leaguer who was one of only two players in major league history to have pitched more than 125 games, accumulated over 1,700 hits, and realized a lifetime batting average over .300? Hint: one is Babe Ruth, and the other is… Cy Seymour! As of this writing in February, 2022, Shohei Ohtani, the closest modern day antitype, has some real work to do to join this elite group, having pitched in just 35 games, collected only 370 hits and batting .264 lifetime.

Cy Seymour was a great pitcher during the so-called “transition era” of the 1890’s, a time when the pitching mound was moved back and the foul ball strike hadn’t yet been implemented. Hitters feasted and the aggregate batting average of the period 1893 to 1900 was a scorching .307 across all baseball! Yet, as a pitcher, Seymour held hitters to a meager .240 average during that span. He was an ace pitcher who recorded 25 wins in 1898 and led the league in strikeouts twice, this accomplished during a renown hitters era. After an arm injury or two, Cy Seymour became a fierce and clutch hitter during a renown pitcher’s era, the deadball era beginning in 1900.

As reported in his SABR biography, “his pitching career effectively came to an end in 1900” as the deadball era began. Despite this disadvantage, his hitting prowess became widely publicized over the next decade. Noted SABR: “In 1905 his .377 batting average led the National League in hitting. In addition to his hitting crown that year, he led the league in hits (219), doubles (40), triples (21), RBI (121) and slugging average (.559).” Cy Seymour was a superstar!

Despite a brief yet spectacular pitching career, and a lengthy career as a hard hitting centerfielder with a .303 lifetime batting average, Cy Seymour died from the effects of the Great Flu in 1919 with little fanfare. His name appeared on just one Hall of Fame ballot in 1945, and his exploits have largely been forgotten. This early superstar, one of only two players ever to reach so high a level of success both as a pitcher and a hitter, has been lost to time, his greatness not yet properly acknowledged by baseball.

Below is his sublime T206 portrait with a Polar Bear back. Feel free to honor Cy with a post of your favorite card…

[mrreality68]

Excellent job and well written

Thanks. Love these threads and I learn so much

Appreciated

[brianp-beme]

Great to know a little more about his pitching prowess...I was fairly unfamiliar with it. Here are a trio of Cy's cards: E91A American Caramel, M116 Sporting Life, and E254 Colgan's Chips.

As always when posting an E91, I like to point out that the facial artwork is quite often based upon a photo of a player, in this case it is also seen in the M116 and E254 cards shown.

Brian

[GeoPoto]

If J. Bentley Seymour was "Babe Ruth" before Ruth's career started, another J. Bentley was "Babe Ruth" during the Babe's career.

John "Needles" Bentley. Pitcher with the Washington Senators in 1913-1916. 46 wins and 8 saves in 9 MLB seasons. His most productive season was 1924 with the New York Giants as he posted a 16-5 record with a 3.78 ERA in 188 innings pitched. Was a good hitter with a career OBP of .316 in 616 plate appearances. Gave up World Series winning-ground ball single to McNeely in the 1924 "pebble" game.

Bentley's SABR biography explains how he became known as "Babe Ruth": Beginning in 1919, the Orioles won seven consecutive International League pennants, and for three of those years Bentley, who by then considered himself a hitter who occasionally pitched, put on one of the most dazzling offensive demonstrations the league had ever seen.

In his first two seasons, 1917 and 1919 (he was in the US Army in 1918), with the exception of a lone pitching appearance in his first year, Bentley played exclusively at first base and in the outfield: In 185 games, he posted averages of .333 batting and .510 slugging. Then he really caught fire. From 1920 to 1922, Bentley’s numbers were staggering, as he batted .378 in 439 games, scored 340 runs, drove in 399, and had a slugging average of an astounding .590. In both 1920 (161) and 1921 (120), Bentley led the league in RBIs; in 1921, he won the league Triple Crown, batting .412 (the league’s highest season average in the 20th century), with 24 home runs and 120 RBIs. His 246 hits that season remain the league’s single-season record.

Yet Bentley continued to pitch when needed, and those results, too, were staggering. From 1920 through 1922, Bentley pitched in 56 games and produced a 41-6 record, a winning percentage of .872: in both 1921 (.923) and 1922 (.867), he led the league in that category. In 1920 (2.10) and 1922 (1.73), Bentley also led the league in ERA, and over three seasons his ERA was an astounding 2.07. During those years, by virtue of his performance both at the plate and on the mound, the press bestowed on Bentley the moniker "Babe Ruth of the Minors".

https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1644059930

[Jason]

He was a interesting player. Good post.

[cgjackson222]

Fantastic write-up. Thanks for sharing!!!

One more fun fact is that Seymour's talents, though somewhat forgotten now, were certainly recognized in his day.

"Even with his skills declining, the Reds sold Seymour to the Giants in 1906 for an eye-popping $10,000, the biggest price paid for a player at that point."

https://www.timesunion.com/albanyrur...al-4983734.php

Of course, this $10,000 would be far eclipsed in the coming years, with Ruth ultimately being sold for $100,000 (some say even more).

[jakebeckleyoldeagleeye]

Originally Posted by Dead-Ball-Hitter

His nickname was “The Cyclone,” given him for his ability to hurl a baseball at precariously high speeds. As a young player, he was characterized by the New York Times as a “youngster with a $10,000 arm and a $0.00 head.” Later in his career, admirers like teammate Christy Mathewson praised his unparalleled hitting ability calling him “a mighty batsman, one of the best ever.”

Who is this major leaguer who was one of only two players in major league history to have pitched more than 125 games, accumulated over 1,700 hits, and realized a lifetime batting average over .300? Hint: one is Babe Ruth, and the other is… Cy Seymour! As of this writing in February, 2022, Shohei Ohtani, the closest modern day antitype, has some real work to do to join this elite group, having pitched in just 35 games, collected only 370 hits and batting .264 lifetime.

Cy Seymour was a great pitcher during the so-called “transition era” of the 1890’s, a time when the pitching mound was moved back and the foul ball strike hadn’t yet been implemented. Hitters feasted and the aggregate batting average of the period 1893 to 1900 was a scorching .307 across all baseball! Yet, as a pitcher, Seymour held hitters to a meager .240 average during that span. He was an ace pitcher who recorded 25 wins in 1898 and led the league in strikeouts twice, this accomplished during a renown hitters era. After an arm injury or two, Cy Seymour became a fierce and clutch hitter during a renown pitcher’s era, the deadball era beginning in 1900.

As reported in his SABR biography, “his pitching career effectively came to an end in 1900” as the deadball era began. Despite this disadvantage, his hitting prowess became widely publicized over the next decade. Noted SABR: “In 1905 his .377 batting average led the National League in hitting. In addition to his hitting crown that year, he led the league in hits (219), doubles (40), triples (21), RBI (121) and slugging average (.559).” Cy Seymour was a superstar!

Despite a brief yet spectacular pitching career, and a lengthy career as a hard hitting centerfielder with a .303 lifetime batting average, Cy Seymour died from the effects of the Great Flu in 1919 with little fanfare. His name appeared on just one Hall of Fame ballot in 1945, and his exploits have largely been forgotten. This early superstar, one of only two players ever to reach so high a level of success both as a pitcher and a hitter, has been lost to time, his greatness not yet properly acknowledged by baseball.

Below is his sublime T206 portrait with a Polar Bear back. Feel free to honor Cy with a post of your favorite card…

One record of his will never be broken and he is the only player to do it. As a pitcher he lead the league in strikeouts and then as a hitter lead the league in batting average.
I've always though he deserved to be in the HOF but they already have a spot reserved for Whiffs Ohtani because of the ooh's and aah's he gets from the pencil neek geeks on the long juiced base ball homers.

[molenick]

I agree E91s are underrated (at least for sets A and B) regarding their likeness to the actual players.

[BobbyStrawberry]

Originally Posted by cgjackson222

Fantastic write-up. Thanks for sharing!!!

One more fun fact is that Seymour's talents, though somewhat forgotten now, were certainly recognized in his day.

"Even with his skills declining, the Reds sold Seymour to the Giants in 1906 for an eye-popping $10,000, the biggest price paid for a player at that point."

https://www.timesunion.com/albanyrur...al-4983734.php

Of course, this $10,000 would be far eclipsed in the coming years, with Ruth ultimately being sold for $100,000 (some say even more).

Didn't King Kelly command that sum twenty years earlier?

I love the pose on this card:

[cgjackson222]

Originally Posted by BobbyStrawberry

Didn't King Kelly command that sum twenty years earlier?

I think you are right. Per SABR "The Boston Beaneaters believed Kelly would attract the numerous Irish population of the city, and were willing to pay the amazing sum of $10,000 to purchase his contract. They paid Kelly $5,000 in salary, which was listed as the $2,000 National League maximum plus $3,000 for the use of his picture for advertising purposes." and later in the same article it says that "Boston sent another $10,000 to Chicago in the offseason to purchase pitcher John Clarkson, and could boast in 1888 of its $20,000 battery, Kelly and Clarkson."
https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/king-kelly/

[Dead-Ball-Hitter]

Originally Posted by jakebeckleyoldeagleeye

One record of his will never be broken and he is the only player to do it. As a pitcher he lead the league in strikeouts and then as a hitter lead the league in batting average.
I've always though he deserved to be in the HOF but they already have a spot reserved for Whiffs Ohtani because of the ooh's and aah's he gets from the pencil neek geeks on the long juiced base ball homers.

Interesting points, thanks for sharing, love the discussion on Cy.

[KCRfan1]

Thank you Joe for another fascinating post!

You having given me terrific players to add to my collection.

[Dead-Ball-Hitter]

Originally Posted by KCRfan1

Thank you Joe for another fascinating post!

You having given me terrific players to add to my collection.

Thanks so much for your interest Lou. I think several of us enjoy finding something out about the lesser known players who occupy an important part of our collections. Every 2-3 weeks I try to spotlight someone we've heard of, but may not know so well. Hope folks are enjoying these... I enjoy the research and subsequent discussion/perspectives of the very knowledgeable forum members!

[Leon]

Originally Posted by brianp-beme

Great to know a little more about his pitching prowess...I was fairly unfamiliar with it. Here are a trio of Cy's cards: E91A American Caramel, M116 Sporting Life, and E254 Colgan's Chips.

As always when posting an E91, I like to point out that the facial artwork is quite often based upon a photo of a player, in this case it is also seen in the M116 and E254 cards shown.

Brian

Cy being Baker on D359....not my card..