The Cleveland Indians have won two World Series championships – in 1920 and 1948.
When a baseball team wins two World Series championships in over 100 years, the persons responsible for those two championships deserve special recognition.
For the 1920 Indians, a key person responsible for Cleveland’s championship was player-manager Tris Speaker.
Nicknamed “The Gray Eagle” (for his prematurely gray hair) and “Spoke”, Speaker was an outstanding hitter and center fielder.
The 1920 World Series championship is one of many accomplishments achieved by Speaker over a 22-year major league baseball career (11 years with Cleveland) that earned him an election to the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
Cy young and Tris Speaker. pic.twitter.com/kkDOdqjdJD
— BaseballHistoryNut (@nut_history) July 3, 2021
We take a look at the life of Tris Speaker – before, during, and after his major league baseball career.
The Early Years Before Major League Baseball (1888-1907)
Tristam Edgar Speaker was born in Hubbard, Texas on April 4, 1888.
Hubbard is approximately 70 miles south of Dallas.
When Speaker was growing up there, Hubbard had a population of about 1,000 to 1,600 people.
Speaker’s father, Archie, was in the dry-goods business, but died when Speaker was 10 years old.
Nancy Jane, Speaker’s mother, maintained a boarding house.
Speaker had two brothers and five sisters.
While Speaker was born right-handed, after a broker right arm from a horse accident, Speaker taught himself to throw left-handed.
Speaker attended Hubbard High School in Hubbard.
At Hubbard High School, Speaker was a pitcher and captain of the baseball team.
He also played football in high school.
After high school, in 1905, Speaker enrolled at Fort Worth Polytechnic Institute (now known as Texas Wesleyan University) in Fort Worth, Texas.
At Fort Worth Polytechnic Institute, Speaker pitched on the baseball team.
He only played college baseball for one year, as he began to play for semi-pro and professional baseball teams.
In 1905, Speaker pitched for the Nicholson and Watson semi-pro team in Corsicana, Texas.
Speaker next played for the Cleburne Railroaders of the Texas League in 1906.
With Cleburne, Speaker started the season as a pitcher.
However, based on both losing several games as a pitcher, and the need to replace an injured player, Speaker moved to the outfield during the season.
Speaker had a .268 batting average for Cleburne in 1906.
As an outfielder, Speaker had a fielding percentage of .991, making only one error.
For the rest of his baseball career, Speaker was an outfielder, and not a pitcher.
In 1907, Speaker played for the Houston Buffaloes of the Texas League.
He led the Texas League with a .314 batting average for Houston in 1907.
After Speaker’s play in the Texas League, the Boston Americans in the American League purchased Speaker’s contract from Houston.
Speaker moved on to Boston in September, 1907 to play major league baseball.
The Major League Baseball Years (1907–1928)
1907-1915
In 1907, at 19 years old, Speaker saw limited action for Boston, as, in 19 at bats, he had a .158 batting average with one run batted in.
He also made no errors in the outfield.
The Americans had a 59-90 record and finished in seventh place in the American League in 1907.
Speaker initially did not make the major league roster for Boston, now called the Red Sox, in 1908.
Instead, Boston transferred Speaker to the Little Rock Travelers of the Southern League as “rent” for the use of Little Rock’s facilities for spring training.
The transaction included the condition that Boston had the right to reacquire Speaker for $500.
Speaker led the Southern League with a .350 batting average for Little Rock in 1908.
Following Speaker’s play for Little Rock, Boston exercised the condition from its transfer of Speaker and reacquired him during the 1908 season.
Speaker, in 116 at bats for the Red Sox, had a .224 batting average with nine runs batted in.
Playing mostly in center field (where he played for most of his major league career), Speaker again made no errors.
Boston finished in fifth place in the American League, with a 75-79 record, in 1908.
In 1909, Speaker became the full-time starter in center field for the Red Sox.
He had a batting average of .309, with 77 runs batted in and seven home runs, in 544 at bats in 1909.
He hit 26 doubles and 13 triples and stole 35 bases.
Speaker excelled as a fielder in 1909, leading the American League in each of putouts by a center fielder (319), assists by a center fielder (35), double plays turned by a center fielder (11), and fielding percentage by a center fielder (.973).
In explaining his success as a center fielder, Speaker credited his teammate pitcher and future National Baseball Hall of Famer Cy Young.
“When I was a rookie, [Young] used to hit me flies to sharpen my abilities to judge in advance the direction and distance of an outfield ball.”
In center field, Speaker played shallow, almost being another infielder.
“[S]o many more balls are hit in front of an outfielder, even now, that . . . it’s a matter of percentage to be able to play in close enough to cut off those low ones or cheap ones in front of him. I still see more games lost by singles that drop just over the infield than a triple over the outfielder’s head.”
Speaker could catch balls hit anywhere in the outfield.
His teammate pitcher “Smoky” Joe Wood stated:
“At the crack of the bat [Speaker would] be off with his back to the infield, and then he’d turn and glance over his shoulder at the last minute and catch the ball so easy it looked like there was nothing to it, nothing at all.”
In 1909, the Red Sox, with an 88-63 record, finished in third place in the American League.
Speaker first showed elite batting skills in Boston when he had a .340 batting average in 538 at bats in 1910.
In addition, Speaker posted 65 runs batted in, hit seven home runs, 20 doubles, and 14 triples, stole 35 bases, and had an on-base percentage of .404.
He also led the American League in putouts by a center fielder (337) in 1910.
With an 81-72 record, Boston finished in fourth place in the American League in 1910.
1910 Boston Red Sox featuring the "Million Dollar Outfield" of Tris Speaker, Harry Hooper, and Duffy Lewis pic.twitter.com/qMrhXzDr3q
— OldTimeHardball (@OleTimeHardball) June 29, 2021
In 1911, Speaker had a .334 batting average, with 70 runs batted in and eight home runs, in 500 at bats. He hit 34 doubles and 13 triples, stole 25 bases, and had an on-base percentage of .418 and a slugging percentage of .502.
Death Benefit Game, 7-24-1911.
STANDING L-R; Wallace, Baker, Wood, Johnson, Chase, Milan, Ford, Collins.
SEATED, L-R; Germany Schaeffer (1B), Tris Speaker (CF), Sam Crawford (RF), Jimmy McAleer (Mgr.), Ty Cobb (Cleveland uniform) (OF), Gabby Street (C), Paddy Livingston (C) pic.twitter.com/AzLCgI9BOJ— Iffy The Dopester (@IffyTheDopester) June 16, 2021
The Red Sox had a 78-75 record in 1911, finishing in fifth place in the American League.
Speaker had an exceptional season in 1912.
He had a batting average of .383, with 90 runs batted in and 10 home runs (tied for first in the American League), in 580 at bats in 1912.
In addition, he hit 53 doubles (leading the American League) and 12 triples, stole 52 bases, and had an on-base percentage of .464 (leading the American League) and a slugging percentage of .567.
Speaker led the American League in assists by a center fielder (35), double plays turned by a center fielder (12), and fielding percentage by a center fielder (.957), in 1912.
For his play in 1912, Speaker won the Chalmers Award (considered the equivalent of the Most Valuable Player Award) in the American League.
Speaker’s play helped the Red Sox win the 1912 American League pennant, with a 105-47 record.
In the 1912 World Series against the New York Giants, Boston defeated New York four games to three games.
Speaker had a .300 batting average and two runs batted in.
Speaker, in 1913, had a .363 batting average, with 71 runs batted in and three home runs, in 520 at bats.
He hit 35 doubles and 22 triples, stole 46 bases, and had an on-base percentage of .441 and a slugging percentage of .533.
In 1913, Speaker led the American League in putouts by a center fielder (374) and assists by a center fielder (30).
Boston had a 79-71 record in 1913 and finished in fourth place in the American League.
In 1914, Speaker had a .338 batting average, with 90 runs batted in and four home runs, in 571 at bats.
Speaker led the American League in hits (193) and doubles (46) in 1914.
He hit 18 triples, stole 42 bases, and had an on-base percentage of .423 and a slugging percentage of .503.
In addition, Speaker led the American League in putouts by a center fielder (424), assists by a center fielder (30), and double plays turned by a centerfielder (12), in 1914.
With a 91-62 record, the Red Sox finished in second place in the American League in 1914.
A little baseball greatness to brighten your day.
Tris Speaker Ty Cobb pic.twitter.com/B7sjBykFcn
— St. Abner (@Saint_Abner) June 20, 2021
In 1915, Speaker, in 547 at bats, had a batting average of .322, with 69 runs batted in.
He hit 25 doubles and 12 triples, stole 29 bases, and had an on-base percentage of .416.
Speaker, in 1915, led the American League in putouts by a center fielder (378) and fielding percentage by a center fielder (.976) and tied for first in the American League in double plays turned by a center fielder (8).
With Speaker’s play, Boston won the American League pennant in 1915, with a 101-50 record.
In the 1915 World Series against the Philadelphia Phillies, Speaker had a .294 batting average, as Boston won its second World Series championship in four years, defeating Philadelphia four games to one game.
1916-1928
After the 1915 season, Boston president Joseph Lannin sought to have Speaker reduce his salary.
Lannin thought that a decrease was appropriate because Speaker’s batting average had declined in the last three seasons from its high in 1912.
Speaker refused to accept any reduction in his salary.
As a result, on April 8, 1916, the Red Sox traded Speaker to the Cleveland Indians in exchange for pitcher “Sad” Sam Jones, third baseman Fred Thomas, and cash.
Speaker (playing in 1916 at a height of five feet and 11 inches and a weight of 193 pounds) responded to the trade by having one of his best major league baseball seasons for Cleveland in 1916.
He led the American League in batting average in 1916, with a .386 batting average in 546 at bats.
Speaker also in 1916 led the American League in hits (211), on-base percentage (.470), and slugging percentage (.502) and tied for first in the American League in doubles (41).
He posted 79 runs batted in, hit two home runs, and stole 35 bases.
"The Grey Eagle" Tris Speaker pic.twitter.com/qiPrkYxK73
— OldTimeHardball (@OleTimeHardball) June 13, 2021
In describing himself as a hitter (Speaker was a left-handed hitter), Speaker stated:
“I don’t find any particular ball easy to hit. I have no rule for batting. I keep my eye on the ball and when it nears me make ready to swing. . . . I cut my drives between the first baseman and the line and that is my favorite alley for my doubles.”
In 1916, Speaker also led the American League in double plays turned by a center fielder (10).
The Indians had a 77-77 record and finished in sixth place in the American League in 1916.
105 years ago today (June 10, 1916) at League Park, Tris Speaker posted a perfect 5-for-5 day at the plate as the Indians defeated the Philadelphia Athletics 10-1. Cleveland extended its lead atop the American League standings to two games over Washington and New York. pic.twitter.com/5y8cksKXJn
— League Park (@LeagueParkCle) June 11, 2021
Speaker had a .352 batting average, with 60 runs batted in and two home runs, in 523 at bats in 1917.
He hit 42 doubles and 11 triples, stole 30 bases, and had an on-base percentage of .432.
Cleveland had an 88-66 record in 1917 and finished in third place in the American League.
In 1918, Speaker, in 471 at bats, had a .318 batting average, with 61 runs batted in.
Speaker led the American League in 1918 in doubles (33).
He also hit 11 triples, stole 27 bases, and had an on-base percentage of .403.
In addition, in 1918, Speaker led the American League in putouts by a center fielder (350) and double plays turned by a center fielder (6).
With a 73-54 record, the Indians finished in second place in the American League in 1918.
In 1919, Speaker had a .296 batting average, with 63 runs batted in and two home runs, in 494 at bats.
He hit 38 doubles and 12 triples and stole 19 bases.
Speaker led the American League in putouts by a center fielder (374) and fielding percentage by a center fielder (.983) in 1919.
During the 1919 season, Speaker took over as manager of the Indians.
Cleveland posted an 84-55 record (a 40-21 record after Speaker took over as manager) in 1919, finishing in second place in the American League.
1920 was a special year for Speaker and the Indians.
Speaker had a .388 batting average (the second highest in his major league career), with 107 runs batted in (the second highest in his major league career) and eight home runs, in 552 at bats.
He led the American League with 50 doubles.
He also hit 11 triples, stole 10 bases, and had an on-base percentage of .483 and a slugging percentage of .562.
While Speaker had an excellent season as a player in 1920, he also significantly contributed to Cleveland as its manager.
In particular, Speaker helped hold the team together after the death of Cleveland shortstop Ray Chapman when he was hit by a pitch on August 16, 1920.
Cleveland won the American League pennant in 1920, with a 98-56 record.
It was the first pennant for Cleveland since joining the American League in 1901.
The Indians finished two games ahead of the second place Chicago White Sox.
Cleveland then advanced to the 1920 World Series to play the Brooklyn Robins.
In the 1920 World Series, Speaker had a .320 batting average and scored six runs.
He had one run batted in; it came on a triple in the final game of the 1920 World Series – a 3-0 Indians shutout of the Robins on October 12, 1920.
Cleveland defeated Brooklyn five games to two games, giving the Indians their first (and Speaker his third) World Series championship.
In 1921, Speaker had a .362 batting average, with 75 runs batted in and three home runs, in 506 at bats.
He hit 52 doubles (again leading the American League) and 14 triples and had an on-base percentage of .439 and a slugging percentage of .538.
Speaker also led the American League in fielding percentage by a center fielder (.984) in 1921.
Cleveland had a 94-60 record in 1921 and finished in second place in the American League.
In 1922, Speaker had a .378 batting average, with 71 runs batted in and 11 home runs, in 426 at bats.
He hit 48 doubles (again leading the American League) and had an on-base percentage of .474 (leading the American League) and a slugging percentage of .606.
He also led the American League in 1922 in double plays turned by a center fielder (7) and fielding percentage by a center fielder (.983).
With a 78-76 record, the Indians finished in fourth place in the American League in 1922.
Speaker, in 1923, had a .380 batting average in 574 at bats.
He tied for first in the American League in runs batted in (130) and, for the fourth consecutive year, led the American League in doubles (59).
He also, in 1923, hit 17 home runs and 11 triples and had an on-base percentage of .469 and a slugging percentage of .610.
In addition, Speaker led the American League in 1923 in assists by a center fielder (28) and double plays turned by a center fielder (8).
Cleveland finished in third place in the American League in 1923 with an 82-71 record.
In 1924, Speaker had a .344 batting average, with 65 runs batted in and nine home runs, in 486 at bats.
He hit 36 doubles and had an on-base percentage of .432 and a slugging percentage of .510.
Speaker also led the American League in assists by a center fielder (17) in 1924.
The Indians had a 67-86 record and finished in sixth place in the American League in 1924.
Speaker, at age 37, had a .389 batting average in 1925 – the highest batting average of his major league career – in 429 at bats.
He posted 87 runs batted in, hit 12 home runs and 35 doubles, and had an on-base percentage of .479 (leading the American League) and a slugging percentage of .578.
In addition, Speaker was tied for first in the American League in double plays turned by a center fielder (9) in 1925.
With a record of 70-84, Cleveland finished in sixth place in the American League in 1925.
.@Indians center fielder Tris Speaker joined an exclusive club #OTD in 1925, becoming just the fifth player reach the 3,000-hit mark. The Hall of Famer would retire with 3,514 hits, which now ranks fifth on the all-time list. (Photo: Charles Conlon) pic.twitter.com/zqlgwtTPao
— National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum ⚾ (@baseballhall) May 17, 2021
In 1926, Speaker had a .304 batting average, with 88 runs batted in and seven home runs, in 539 at bats.
Speaker hit 52 doubles and had an on-base percentage of .408.
He also in 1926 led the American League in assists by a centerfielder (21) and double plays turned by a center fielder (8) and tied for first in fielding percentage by a center fielder (.981).
The Indians had an 88-66 record and finished in second place in the American League in 1926.
After the 1926 season, Speaker was falsely accused of fixing a baseball game.
While the charges were dropped and Speaker was exonerated of any wrongdoing, the incident caused Speaker to resign as manager of the Indians and no longer play in Cleveland.
In 1927, Speaker played for the Washington Senators.
You sure he played for them?
Tris Speaker, Washington Senators (1927) pic.twitter.com/E3faZyvMuG
— OldTimeHardball (@OleTimeHardball) May 22, 2021
With Washington, Speaker had a batting average of .327, with 73 runs batted in and two home runs, in 523 at bats in 1927.
He hit 43 doubles.
Speaker closed out his major league baseball playing career with the Philadelphia Athletics in 1928.
https://twitter.com/LouGehrig_/status/1410674915318153219
He had a .267 batting average, with 30 runs batted in and three home runs, in 191 at bats with Philadelphia in 1928.
He hit 22 doubles.
The Years After Major League Baseball (1929-1958)
Speaker married Mary Frances Cuddihy in 1925.
The couple had no children.
While Speaker’s major league playing career ended in 1928, he returned to the minor leagues, serving as the player-manager for the Newark Bears of the International League in 1929 and 1930.
With Newark, Speaker had batting averages of .355 in 1929 and .419 in 1930.
Speaker’s two seasons with Newark ended his professional baseball playing career.
However, Speaker remained active in baseball-related work.
He was a part owner and manager of the Kansas City Blues of the American Association, broadcaster for the Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox, president of the National Professional Indoor Baseball League, and advisor, scout, and coach (in various roles) for the Indians.
With the Indians, Speaker helped to coach center fielder and future National Baseball Hall of Famer Larry Doby.
Outside of baseball, Speaker was president of a wholesale wine and liquor firm, sales representative for a steel company, chairman of the Cleveland Boxing and Wrestling Commission, and vice president of Cleveland’s Society for Crippled Children.
Speaker died, at age 70, of a heart attack on December 8, 1958 in Lake Whitney, Texas.
In 1937, Speaker was among the second group of players elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
He also was inducted in the Cleveland Indians Hall of Fame in 1951 and the Red Sox Hall of Fame in 1995.
In its list of “Baseball’s 100 Greatest Players” in 1998, The Sporting News ranked Speaker as the 27th greatest player.
By multiple statistical measures, Speaker is one of the greatest players in Cleveland Indians history.
One of the greats that barely gets talked about today, Tris Speaker pic.twitter.com/aRsNUng0SD
— BaseballHistoryNut (@nut_history) May 27, 2021
Speaker ranks second (.354) in Cleveland career batting average (ninth (.345) in major league career batting average), fifth (884) in Cleveland career runs batted in (51st (1,531) in major league career runs batted in), 47th (73) in Cleveland career home runs, second (1,965) in Cleveland career hits (fifth (3.514) in major league career hits), first (486) in Cleveland career doubles (first (792) in major league career doubles), second (108) in Cleveland career triples (sixth (222) in major league career triples), 10th (151) in Cleveland career stolen bases (tied for 58th (436) in major league career stolen bases), first (.444) in Cleveland career on-base percentage (tied for 12th (.428) in major league career on-base percentage), tied for ninth (.520) in Cleveland career slugging percentage (tied for 107th (.500) in major league career slugging percentage), and second (1,078) in Cleveland career runs scored (13th (1.882) in major league career runs scored).
In addition, Speaker ranks first or second in major league career putouts by a center fielder (second place with 6,757 putouts), major league career assists by a center fielder (first place with 448 assists), and major league career double plays turned by a center fielder (first place with 146 double plays).
Yet, notwithstanding all of Speaker’s individual accomplishments, for Cleveland fans, Speaker’s greatest achievement was helping the Indians, as a player and a manager, win the 1920 World Series.
There is no doubt that Tris Speaker was a great hitter and fielder.
It also cannot be disputed that Tris Speaker was a great champion for the Indians.
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