Hugh Ambrose Jennings (April 2, 1869 – February 1, 1928) was an American professional baseball player, coach and manager from 1891 to 1925. Jennings was a leader, both as a batter and as a shortstop, with the Baltimore Orioles teams that won National League championships in , , and . During those three seasons, Jennings had 355 runs batted in and hit .335, .386, and .401.
Jennings was a fiery, hard-nosed player who was not afraid to be hit by a pitch to get on base. In 1896, he was hit by pitches 51 times – a major league record that has never been broken. Jennings also holds the career record for being hit by pitches with 287, with Craig Biggio (who retired in 2007) holding the modern-day career record of 285. Jennings also played on the Brooklyn Superbas teams that won National League pennants in 1899 and 1900. From 1907 to 1920, Jennings was the manager of the Detroit Tigers, where he was known for his colorful antics, hoots, whistles, and his famous shouts of "Ee-Yah!" from the third base coaching box. Jennings suffered a nervous breakdown in 1925 that forced him to leave Major League Baseball. He was signed by the Louisville Colonels of the American Association in . He stayed with the Colonels when they joined the National League in and was traded on June 7, to the Baltimore Orioles.
Baltimore Orioles: 1893–1899
Jennings played with the Orioles for parts of seven seasons and became a star during his years in Baltimore. The Baltimore Orioles teams of 1894, 1895, and 1896 are regarded as one of the greatest teams of all time. The teams featured Hall of Fame manager Ned Hanlon and a lineup with six future Hall of Famers: first baseman Dan Brouthers, second baseman John McGraw, shortstop Jennings, catcher Wilbert Robinson, right fielder "Wee Willie" Keeler, and left fielder Joe Kelley. Amidst all those great players, Jennings was appointed captain in 1894, his first full season with the team.
left|thumb|190px|Baltimore Orioles' [[National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum|Hall of Fame players "Wee Willie" Keeler, Joe Kelley, John McGraw, and Hughie Jennings, circa 1894]]
During the Orioles' championship years, Jennings had some of the best seasons ever by a major league shortstop. In 1895, he hit .386, scored 159 runs, collected 204 hits, knocked in 125 runs, and stole 53 bases. In 1896, his performance was even better, as he hit .401 (2nd best in the National League) with 209 hits, 121 RBI, and 70 stolen bases.
The fiery Jennings was also known as one of the most fearless players of his time, allowing himself to be hit by pitches more than any other player. In one game, he was hit by a pitch three times. In 1896, he was hit by pitches 51 times—a Major League record that still stands. In just five seasons with the Orioles from 1894 to 1898, Jennings was hit by pitches an unprecedented 202 times. During one game, Jennings was hit in the head by a pitch from Amos Rusie in the 3rd inning, but managed to finish the game. As soon as the game ended, Jennings collapsed and was unconscious for three days.
Jennings was also one of the best fielding shortstops of the era. He led the National League in fielding percentage and putouts three times each. He had as many as 537 assists and 425 putouts in single seasons during his prime. His 425 putouts ties him with Donie Bush for the single season record for a shortstop. In 1895, he had a career-high range factor of 6.73–1.19 points higher than the league average (5.54) for shortstops that year. He once handled 20 chances in a game, and on another occasion had 10 assists in a game. In 1898, he threw his arm out, and his career as a shortstop came to an end. After that, Jennings was forced to move to first base. While at Cornell, he joined the Phi Delta Theta fraternity chapter there. Jennings continued as a scholar-athlete until the spring of 1904, when he left campus early to manage the Orioles. Though he never finished his law degree at Cornell, Jennings passed the Maryland bar exam in 1905 and started a law practice. Jennings practiced law in Baltimore and in Scranton, Pennsylvania.
While Jennings was fiery, hard-nosed, colorful, and even eccentric, he insisted he had always played the game honestly. When a scandal arose in concerning whether Ty Cobb and Tris Speaker had fixed a game between the Detroit and the Cleveland Indians while Jennings was the manager, Jennings initially spoke of how easy it would be to fix a game and issued a "no comment" on the specific game. After his "no comment" drew negative publicity, Jennings issued a statement to the press in December 1926 denying knowledge of the matter and adding, "My slate has been clean base ball for 35 years... Whatever I have done in base ball has been of such a nature that I would be ready any time to go before anyone and place my case before them." After the 1920 season, Jennings stepped down as the Tigers' manager. His 1,131 wins was the most in Tigers history until Sparky Anderson passed him in 1992.
New York Giants: 1921–1925
Jennings signed on as a coach with his old friend, John McGraw, who was managing the New York Giants. Jennings and McGraw, who met while working as coaches at St. Bonaventure University (which later named their baseball field after the two), became close friends. Jennings was the best man at McGraw's wedding and a pallbearer following the death of McGraw's 23-year-old wife in 1899. McGraw and Jennings staged a reunion year after year on their birthdays.
Managerial record
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%; text-align:center;"
|-
! rowspan="2"|Team !! rowspan="2"|Year !! colspan="5"|Regular season !! colspan="4"|Postseason
|-
!Games!!Won!!Lost!!Win %!!Finish!! Won !! Lost !! Win % !! Result
|-
|-style="background:#fdd"
!DET||
||150|||| 1st in AL || || Lost World Series (CHC)
|-style="background:#fdd"
!DET||
||153|||| 1st in AL || || Lost World Series (CHC)
|-style="background:#fdd"
!DET||
||152|||| 1st in AL || || Lost World Series (PIT)
|-
!DET||
||154|||| 3rd in AL || – || – || – ||
|-
!DET||
||154|||| 2nd in AL || – || – || – ||
|-
!DET||
||153|||| 6th in AL || – || – || – ||
|-
!DET||
||153|||| 6th in AL || – || – || – ||
|-
!DET||
||153|||| 4th in AL || – || – || – ||
|-
!DET||
||154|||| 2nd in AL || – || – || – ||
|-
!DET||
||154|||| 3rd in AL || – || – || – ||
|-
!DET||
||153|||| 4th in AL || – || – || – ||
|-
!DET||
||126|||| 7th in AL || – || – || – ||
|-
!DET||
||140|||| 4th in AL || – || – || – ||
|-
!DET||
||154|||| 7th in AL || – || – || – ||
|-
! colspan="2"|DET total ||2103|||| || ||
|-
!NYG||
||44|||| Interim || – || – || – ||
|-
!colspan=11|
|-
!NYG||
||32|||| Interim || – || – || – ||
|-
! colspan="2"|NYG total ||76|||| || ||
|-
! colspan="2"|Total
Jennings was posthumously elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1945 as a player.
See also
- List of Major League Baseball career stolen bases leaders
- List of Major League Baseball managerial wins and winning percentage leaders
- List of Major League Baseball player-managers
- 1909 Detroit Tigers season
Notes
Further reading
- Kashatus, William C. Diamonds in the Coal Fields: 21 Remarkable Baseball Players, Managers and Umpires from Northeast Pennsylvania (McFarland, 2002).
- Smiles, Jack. Ee-yah: The Life and Times of Hughie Jennings, Baseball Hall of Famer (McFarland, 2005).