Tommy Corcoran

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Thomas William Corcoran (January 4, 1869 - June 25, 1960) was an American shortstop in Major League Baseball who played for the Pittsburgh Burghers (1890), Philadelphia Athletics (1891), Brooklyn Grooms/Brooklyn Bridegrooms (1892-1896), Cincinnati Reds (1897-1906), and New York Giants (1907). The 5'9" native of Connecticut also played second base sometimes, later in his career. He batted and threw right-handed.

Born in New Haven, Connecticut and thought of as a very simple solid hard-working shortstop, Corcoran gained the obvious nickname of Corky and also Tommy the Cork. He finished in the top 10 in the league in at bats six times, never liking to miss a game.

Although he was never known as a great hitter, he did bat over .300 six times in ten years in the 1890s, highlighted by a .318 batting average in 1893.

Corcoran was noted for being a barehanded fielder early in his career, who made the transition to a glove. His fielding was always very solid, as well. He set a still-standing ML record with 14 assists in a nine-inning game for a SS. Lave Cross did have 15 assists in a 12-inning game in 1897.

In an 18-season career, Corcoran batted .256 with 34 home runs and 1135 RBIs. He had a total of 387 stolen bases and 1184 runs scored in his career. He had 2252 hits in 8804 career at bats. He ended with 2953 total bases.

He later umpired around baseball, including in the Federal League. He died at the age of 91 in Plainfield, Connecticut. He had 4 sons and a daughter.

[edit] External link

• Baseball-Reference.com - career statistics and analysis