Fred Merkle

Frederick Charles Merkle (December 20, 1888 – March 2, 1956) was an American first baseman in Major League Baseball.

Born in Watertown, Wisconsin, he played infield for 16 seasons in the major leagues with the New York Giants, Brooklyn Robins, and Chicago Cubs of the National League, and after playing in the International League from 1921 to 1925 he appeared in 8 games with the New York Yankees of the American League before retiring in 1926.

In 1910 he was 4th in the NL in doubles (35) and slugging percentage (.441).

In 1915 he was 6th in the NL in batting (.299).

Merkle died in Daytona Beach, Florida at age 67, and was interred there in Bellevue Cedar Hill Memory Gardens.

His nephew, Theodore Charles Merkle, was a contralador of the Project Pluto, her grandniece, Judith Merkle Riley, is a historical writer, and her grandhew , Ralph C. Merkle, is technological professor in a Computer science School.

Merkle's Boner

On Wednesday, September 23, 1908, while playing for the New York Giants in a game against the Chicago Cubs, while he was 19 years old (the youngest player in the NL), Merkle committed a base running error that later became known as the "Merkle Boner," and earned Merkle the nickname of "Bonehead."

In the bottom of the 9th inning, Merkle came to bat with two outs, and the score tied 1-1. At the time, Moose McCormick was on first base. Merkle singled and McCormick advanced to third base. Al Bridwell, the next batter, followed with a single of his own. McCormick advanced to home plate scoring the winning run for the game. The fans in attendance, under the impression that the game was over, ran onto the field to celebrate.

Meanwhile, Merkle, thinking the game was over, walked to the Giants' clubhouse without touching second base. Cubs second baseman Johnny Evers noticed this, and after retrieving a ball and touching second base he appealed to umpire Hank O'Day to call Merkle out. Since Merkle had not touched the base, the umpire called him out on a force play, and McCormick's run did not count.

The run was therefore nullified, the Giants' victory erased, and the score of the game remained tied. Unfortunately, the thousands of fans on the field (as well as the growing darkness in the days before large electric light rigs made night games possible) prevented resumption of the game and the game was declared a tie. The Giants and the Cubs would end the season tied for first place and would have a rematch at the Polo Grounds, on October 8. The Cubs won this makeup game, 4-2, and thus the National League pennant.

Accounts vary as to whether Evers actually retrieved the actual game ball or not. Some versions of the story have him running to the outfield to retrieve the correct ball. Other versions have it that he shouted for the ball, which was relayed to him from the Cubs' dugout. And still other versions have it that Giants pitcher Joe McGinnity saw what was transpiring, and threw the actual game ball into the stands; thus the ball that was picked up by or relayed to Evers was a different ball entirely. The New York Times account of the play recalls that Cubs manager and first baseman Frank Chance was the one who "grasped the situation" and directed that the ball be thrown to him covering second base.

At the time, running off the field without touching the base was actually common, as the rule allowing a force play after a potential game-winning run was not well-known. However, Evers was noted as an avid studier of the official rules of the game, and ensured that the rule was known to everyone afterward.

Giants manager John McGraw was furious at the league office for robbing him of a victory (and a pennant), but he never blamed Merkle for his mistake.

External links

Career statistics and player information from Baseball Reference
Fangraphs
Box score of the Merkle Boner game
The Deadball Era

Merkle's Boner

Further reading

External links