Sam Crawford - Cincinnati Reds: 1899-1902

Cincinnati Reds: 1899-1902

In September 1899, Grand Rapids sold Crawford to the Cincinnati Reds. Crawford played in 31 games for the Reds at the end of the 1899 season. At age 19, and one year removed from his days playing for Wahoo’s traveling team, Crawford was playing in the major leagues with future Hall of Famers Jake Beckley and Bid McPhee. Crawford hit .307 in 31 games with the Reds in 1899. In 1900, at age 20, Crawford played in 101 games and was among the National League leaders in triples with 15 and home runs with seven.

Crawford proved to be one of the best sluggers in baseball in 1901, batting .330 and hitting a major league leading 16 home runs. Crawford was also third in the National League in triples (16), RBIs (104) and slugging percentage (.524). Crawford had another solid year in 1902, leading the National League in total bases (256) and triples (22), and placing second in batting average (.333), slugging percentage (.461) and extra base hits (43). Crawford hit 12 inside-the-park home runs in 1901 – a major league record that has never been equaled.