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DeutschMorgan Murphy (baseball)
| Morgan Murphy | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Catcher | |
| Born: February 14, 1867 East Providence, Rhode Island, U.S. | |
| Died: October 3, 1938 (aged 71) Providence, Rhode Island, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| April 22, 1890, for the Boston Reds | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| May 31, 1901, for the Philadelphia Athletics | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .225 |
| Games | 566 |
| Runs scored | 247 |
| Teams | |
| |
Morgan Edward Murphy (February 14, 1867 – October 3, 1938) was an American Major League Baseball player who played 11 seasons as a catcher, most notably with the two time league champions Boston Reds.[1]
Sign stealing
[edit]Murphy is mostly known today for his complicated, but innovative sign stealing techniques. When he was playing for the Philadelphia Phillies in 1898, he is credited as the inventor of a scheme where he positioned himself, along with a pair of field glasses, behind a whiskey advertisement on the outfield wall. There was a specific letter "O" that he would open or close to signal to the batter what pitch was going to be delivered.[2] Later, in 1900, he devised another scheme where he was still placed behind the outfield wall, but instead would relay the catcher's signs by wire to a buzzer box inside the third base coach's box. The third base coach would then signal to the batter the sign.[2][3] This latest scheme was discovered, however, when Tommy Corcoran of the Cincinnati Reds, tripped over he thought to be a vine coming out from under the ground, as he was rounding third base. Upon further inspection, the vine turned out to be a telegraph wire, and he proceeded to pull up out of the ground until it reach the spot where Murphy relayed his signals.[4]
Post-career
[edit]Murphy died at the age of 71 in Providence, Rhode Island, and is interred at St. Francis Cemetery in Pawtucket, Rhode Island.[1]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Morgan Murphy's career statistics". retrosheet.org. Retrieved September 9, 2008.
- ^ a b Stout, Glenn; Richard A. Johnson (2002). Yankees Century: 100 Years of New York Yankees Baseball. Houghton Mifflin Books. p. 53. ISBN 0-618-08527-0. Retrieved September 10, 2008.
- ^ Cook, Bob (September 13, 2007). "Cheating an old story, but Pats crossed the line". nbcsports.msnbc.com. Archived from the original on May 13, 2008. Retrieved September 9, 2008.
- ^ Okrent, Daniel; Steve Wulf (1989). Baseball Anecdotes. United States: Oxford University Press. p. 33. ISBN 0-19-504396-0. Retrieved September 10, 2008.
External links
[edit]- Career statistics and player information from Baseball Reference, or Baseball Reference (Minors)