| Sam Crane | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Second baseman | |
| Born:(1854-01-02)January 2, 1854 Springfield, Massachusetts, U.S. | |
| Died: June 26, 1925(1925-06-26) (aged 71) New York City, New York, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| May 1, 1880, for the Buffalo Bisons | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| June 28, 1890, for the New York Giants | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .203 |
| Home runs | 0 |
| Runs batted in | 35 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
As Player
As Manager | |
Samuel Newhall Crane (January 2, 1854 – June 26, 1925) was an Americansecond baseman andmanager inMajor League Baseball born inSpringfield, Massachusetts. Crane played for eight different major league teams during his seven-year career that spanned from1880 to1890.[1] During two of those seasons, he acted as aplayer-manager, once for the 1880Buffalo Bisons of theNational League and the1884Cincinnati Outlaw Reds of the short-livedUnion Association.[2]
His career ended when he was arrested after having an affair with the wife of a fruit dealer and stealing $1,500 from the husband.[3] After his playing days, Sam had a long and distinguished career as asportswriter. In1895, when he was writing for theNew York Advertiser, he had become the center of a controversy when he wrote an article that harshly criticized the owner of theNew York Giants,Andrew Freedman. Freedman, upon learning of existence of the article, barred Sam from entering thePolo Grounds. When Crane showed up for the August 16 game, he learned that his season pass was taken and his efforts to purchase a ticket were foiled.[4]
It was his connection to baseball as a player, manager, and sportswriter that lent credibility to his assertion thatCooperstown, New York be the location for a "memorial" to the great players from the past. Cooperstown was, at the time, the place that many people believed whereAbner Doubleday had invented the game of baseball. It was this idea of a memorial that eventually led to the creation of theNational Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in1939.[5]
Crane died at the age of 71 ofpneumonia[6] in New York City, and is interred at the Lutheran All Faith Cemetery inMiddle Village, New York.[7]
· Baseball Almanac