Ed Delahanty

Edward James Delahanty hit .346 over sixteen major league seasons, won batting titles in both the National and American Leagues, hit four home runs in a single game, batted over .400 three times, and died at 35 in the Niagara River under circumstances that remain disputed more than a century later. His career was one of the most productive in 19th-century baseball. His death was one of the strangest in all of American sports.

Cleveland to Philadelphia

Delahanty was born on October 30, 1867, in Cleveland, Ohio, to James and Bridget Delahanty, Irish immigrants. He was the eldest of five brothers who would play in the major leagues, a record that still stands. The five Delahanty brothers (Ed, Tom, Jim, Joe, and Frank) remain the most siblings to reach the majors from a single family.

Ed debuted with the Philadelphia Phillies in 1888 at age 20. He showed little in his first two seasons, hitting .228 and .293, and in 1890 he jumped to the Players League, joining the Cleveland Infants for double his salary. The league folded after one season, and Delahanty returned to Philadelphia, where he stayed for the next decade and became the best hitter in the National League.

Three Times .400

In 1893, the pitching distance was moved from 50 feet to 60 feet, 6 inches. Offensive numbers surged across the league. Delahanty surged with them. In 1893 he hit .368 with 19 home runs and 146 RBI, both league-leading figures. He narrowly missed the Triple Crown because teammates Billy Hamilton (.380) and Sam Thompson (.370) finished ahead of him in batting average.

Then came three seasons that remain among the most extraordinary in baseball history. In 1894 he hit .407. In 1895 he hit .404 with a .617 slugging percentage, 49 doubles, and 46 stolen bases. In 1899 he hit .410 with 238 hits, 55 doubles, and 137 RBI, winning his first batting title. He was the first player in major league history to hit over .400 three times.

He led his league in slugging percentage five times, in RBI three times, in home runs twice, and in batting average twice. His teammate and roommate Nap Lajoie recalled that when Lajoie first arrived in Philadelphia, Delahanty told him, "Look, sonny, you tell the boss you're a first baseman and you and me are gonna get along." The two became roommates and formed the heart of one of the most potent lineups of the era.

Four Home Runs

On July 13, 1896, at West Side Park in Chicago, Delahanty became the second player in history to hit four home runs in a single game, after Bobby Lowe in 1894. Two went into the bleachers, two were inside-the-park. His third blast soared over the scoreboard and the canvas-topped right field wall, landing across the road. It was called the longest ball ever hit at the park. With center fielder Billy Lange retreating to the deepest part of the grounds in anticipation, Delahanty first bunted foul, then launched his fourth over 450 feet. He went 5-for-5 with four home runs and a single. The Phillies lost 9-8.

The American League

Before the 1902 season, Delahanty jumped to the Washington Senators of the American League for a $4,000 salary. He hit .376 and won the AL batting title, making him the only player in history to win a batting title in each league. (The 1902 title is historically disputed, as Nap Lajoie may have had a higher average but with insufficient plate appearances under modern standards.)

The 1903 season began badly. His wife Norine was ill. His finances were ruined by gambling on horses. His drinking had become unmanageable. Before departing on a road trip in June, he took out a life insurance policy naming his daughter Florence as beneficiary.

Niagara Falls

On the night of July 2, 1903, Delahanty was traveling by train from Detroit heading east. He had consumed at least five whiskies. He became erratic, brandishing a straight razor and threatening passengers. Conductor John Cole ejected him from the train at the Canadian end of the International Railway Bridge, which spanned the Niagara River between Buffalo, New York and Bridgeburg, Ontario.

Delahanty started walking across the bridge. The draw span was open. Sam Kingston, the night watchman, encountered him leaning against an iron truss. When Delahanty became belligerent, Kingston tried to restrain him. Delahanty ran, and Kingston heard a splash in the water some twenty feet below. Despite hearing cries for help, Kingston did not report the incident until the next morning.

Seven days later, Delahanty's body was found at the base of Horseshoe Falls, about twenty miles downstream. He was nude except for a tie, shoes, and socks. Whether the rest of his clothing was torn away by the falls or removed by unknown parties has never been established. His brother Frank never accepted Kingston's account, finding it implausible that an elderly watchman could have bested the powerful Delahanty in a physical confrontation.

He was 35 years old, with a .346 career average, 2,597 hits, and 101 home runs. The Old Timers Committee elected him to the Hall of Fame in 1945. His life had contained the kind of talent that would have commanded headlines in any era, and it ended in a way that has generated theories and unanswered questions for more than a century.