Введение
Росс Миддлбрук "Пеп" Янгс (англ. Ross Middlebrook "Pep" Youngs; 10 апреля 1897 – 22 октября 1927) – американский профессиональный бейсболист. Он провёл десять сезонов в Главной лиге бейсбола за «Нью-Йорк Джайентс» с 1917 по 1926 год, практически исключительно играя на позиции правого филдера. Янгс был частью команды «Джайентс», выигравшей четыре подряд чемпионата Национальной лиги и Мировую серию 1921 и 1922 годов. Родом из Шайнера, штат Техас, Янгс преуспел в бейсболе и американском футболе в Военном институте Западного Техаса. Начав профессиональную карьеру в низших лигах, Янгс был подписан «Джайентс» в 1916 году. За свою карьеру в «Джайентс» Янгс имел средний процент отбивания .322 и девять раз в карьере, включая восемь сезонов подряд, отбивал с процентом выше .300. Однако его карьера была прервана болезнью, и он умер в возрасте 30 лет от болезни Брайта. В 1972 году Янгс был избран в Зал славы бейсбола Комитетом ветеранов. Однако его избрание вызвало споры, поскольку Комитет ветеранов состоял из его бывших товарищей по команде, и комитет обвиняли в кумовстве. Вскоре после этого началось продвижение Янгса на должность преемника МакГроу в качестве менеджера «Джайентс», и после весеннего сбора он получил эту должность на постоянной основе. Янгс, отбивавший исключительно левой рукой, ответил, показав результат .302 в 121 игре и заняв шестое место в лиге. Это был первый из семи сезонов подряд, в которых он отбивал с процентом .300 и выше, и второй из восьми в целом, включая его короткий период в 1917 году. Он также занял шестое место в Национальной лиге по показателю выхода на базу (OBP) – .368. В 1919 году Янгс занял третье место в Национальной лиге с процентом отбивания .311. Его процент отбивания .351 в 1920 году был вторым в Национальной лиге после Роджерса Хорнсби. В 1921 году Янгс отбивал с процентом .327, что позволило ему занять девятое место в Национальной лиге. В третьей игре Мировой серии 1921 года Янгс стал первым игроком, сделавшим два хита в одной подаче Мировой серии. «Джайентс» победили «Нью-Йорк Янкиз». 29 апреля 1922 года Янгс сделал гранд-слэм. Он завершил регулярный сезон на девятом месте в Национальной лиге по показателю выхода на базу (.398) и разделил девятое место по количеству украденных баз (17), после чего отбил с процентом .375 в Мировой серии 1922 года, когда «Джайентс» снова победили «Янки». В Мировой серии 1923 года Янгс отбил с процентом .356, но «Джайентс» проиграли «Янки». В последней серии этого сезона «Джайентс» играли против «Филадельфии Филлис» на «Поло Граундс» и боролись за первенство с «Бруклин Доджерс». Аутфилдер «Джайентс» Джимми О’Коннелл предложил шортстопу «Филлис» Хайни Сэнду 500 долларов за преднамеренное проигрывание матчей (что эквивалентно сегодняшним деньгам). Сэнд отклонил взятку и сообщил об этом менеджеру «Филлис» Арту Флетчеру. В конечном итоге это привело к пожизненной дисквалификации О’Коннелла и тренера «Джайентс» Крейзи Долана комиссаром Кенесо Маунтин Лэндисом. О’Коннелл обвинил своих товарищей по команде Янгса, Джорджа Келли и Фрэнки Фриша в соучастии; однако Лэндис оправдал эту троицу. В Мировой серии 1924 года Янгс показал низкий процент отбивания – .185, и «Джайентс» проиграли «Вашингтон Сенаторс». Продолжая испытывать трудности в 1925 году, Янгс отбил с процентом .264, что стало его единственным сезоном с процентом отбивания ниже .300. Слишком больной, чтобы играть после 10 августа 1926 года, Янгс вернулся домой по настоянию МакГроу.
Ross Middlebrook "Pep" Youngs (April 10, 1897 – October 22, 1927) was an American professional baseball player. Nicknamed "Pep", he played ten seasons in Major League Baseball for the New York Giants from 1917 through 1926, playing right field almost exclusively. Youngs was a part of the Giants teams that won four consecutive National League pennants and the 1921 and 1922 World Series. From Shiner, Texas, Youngs excelled at baseball and American football at the West Texas Military Institute. After beginning his professional career in minor league baseball, Youngs was signed by the Giants in 1916. Youngs had a lifetime .322 batting average with the Giants and batted over .300 nine times in his career, including eight consecutive seasons. His career was cut short by illness, however, as he died at the age of 30 of Bright's disease. Youngs was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972 by the Veterans Committee. His election was not without controversy, however, as the Veterans Committee consisted of his former teammates, and charges of cronyism were leveled against the committee. and soon began to groom Youngs to become his successor as Giants' manager. and Youngs was given the full time job out of spring training. Batting exclusively left handed, Youngs responded by batting .302 in 121 games, finishing sixth in the league. It would be the first of seven straight seasons in which he hit .300 as a regular, and the second of eight overall counting his brief stint in 1917. He also finished sixth in the NL with a .368 on base percentage (OBP). Youngs finished third in the NL in 1919 with a .311 batting average. His .351 batting average in 1920 was second in the NL to Rogers Hornsby. Youngs batted .327 in 1921, good for ninth in the NL. In Game 3 of the 1921 World Series Youngs became the first player to record two hits in the same inning of a World Series game. The Giants defeated the New York Yankees Youngs hit for the cycle on April 29, 1922. He finished the regular season ninth in the NL in OBP (.398) and tied for ninth in stolen bases (17), proceeding to hit .375 in the 1922 World Series as the Giants again defeated the Yankees. Youngs batted .356 in the 1923 World Series, which the Giants lost to the Yankees. In the final series of this season, the Giants were playing the Philadelphia Phillies at the Polo Grounds and battling for the pennant with the Brooklyn Dodgers. Jimmy O'Connell, an outfielder for the Giants, offered Phillies shortstop Heinie Sand $500 to intentionally lose the games ($ in current dollar terms). Sand rejected the bribe and reported it to Phillies manager Art Fletcher. It eventually led to the lifetime suspension of O'Connell and Giants coach Crazy Dolan by Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis. O'Connell implicated teammates Youngs, George Kelly, and Frankie Frisch as co conspirators; Landis, however, cleared the trio of any wrongdoing. Youngs slumped to a .185 batting average during the 1924 World Series, which the Giants lost to the Washington Senators. Continuing to struggle in 1925, Youngs batted .264, his only season with a batting average below .300, Too ill to play after August 10, 1926, Youngs returned home on McGraw's insistence
Youngs died of Bright's disease on October 22, 1927, at the age of 30. He went from weighing during his playing career to by the time of his death. In Youngs' obituary in The New York Times, Giants manager John McGraw called Youngs "the greatest outfielder I ever saw on a ball field." although the Giants intended to pay for it, fans expressed their desire to contribute and, even though contributions were limited to $1 per person, donations paid for the plaque entirely. Youngs was a favorite of McGraw, who kept only two pictures in his office: one of Christy Mathewson and one of Youngs. Youngs was included in the inaugural balloting for the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1936, but received less than 5% of the vote from the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA). Youngs remained on the ballot every year through 1956, receiving his highest vote total in 1947 with 22%. Ford C. Frick, Commissioner of Baseball, and former teammate Bill Terry both championed Youngs' candidacy. In addition to Youngs, Terry and Frisch shepherded the selections of Giants teammates Jesse Haines in 1970, Dave Bancroft and Chick Hafey in 1971, George Kelly in 1973, Jim Bottomley in 1974, and Freddie Lindstrom in 1976. Youngs died at the earliest age of any current Hall of Famer. Youngs is the only member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame from San Antonio and was inducted into the San Antonio Sports Hall of Fame in 1998. Shiner, the town in which Youngs was born, hosted a baseball tournament in his honor at Clipper Field from 2001 through 2003. Youngs' selection, along with some of the other selections made by Terry and Frisch, has been considered one of the weakest in some circles. and charges of cronyism were later leveled against the committee. This led to the Veterans Committee having its powers reduced in subsequent years. Baseball statistician Bill James recognized this and wrote that Youngs does not belong in the Hall of Fame. In 1981, however, Lawrence Ritter and Donald Honig included Youngs in their book The 100 Greatest Baseball Players of All Time. They explained what they called "the Smoky Joe Wood Syndrome", where a player of truly exceptional talent but a career curtailed by injury or illness should still – in spite of not owning career statistics that would quantitatively rank him with the all time greats – be included on their list of the 100 greatest players.
Янгс умер от болезни Брайта 22 октября 1927 года в возрасте 30 лет. Во время своей игровой карьеры он весил , а ко времени смерти – . В некрологе Янгса в The New York Times менеджер «Джайентс» Джон МакГроу назвал Янгса «величайшим игроком в поле, которого я когда-либо видел». Хотя «Джайентс» и намеревались оплатить памятную доску, болельщики выразили желание внести свой вклад, и, несмотря на ограничение в 1 доллар на человека, пожертвования полностью покрыли расходы на изготовление доски. Янгс был любимцем МакГроу, который хранил только две фотографии в своем кабинете: одну Кристи Мэтьюсона и одну Янгса. Янгс был включен в первый тур голосования за Национальный бейсбольный Зал славы в 1936 году, но получил менее 5% голосов от Ассоциации бейсбольных писателей Америки (BBWAA). Янгс оставался в бюллетене каждый год до 1956 года, получив наибольшее количество голосов в 1947 году – 22%. Форд Си Фрик, комиссар по бейсболу, и бывший товарищ по команде Билл Терри оба поддерживали кандидатуру Янгса. Помимо Янгса, Терри и Фриш способствовали избранию товарищей по команде Джесси Хейнса в 1970 году, Дэйва Бэнкрофта и Чика Хафи в 1971 году, Джорджа Келли в 1973 году, Джима Боттмли в 1974 году и Фредди Линдстрома в 1976 году. Янгс умер в самом молодом возрасте среди всех нынешних членов Зала славы. Янгс – единственный член Национального бейсбольного Зала славы из Сан-Антонио и был введен в Зал славы спорта Сан-Антонио в 1998 году. Шайнер, город, где родился Янгс, принимал бейсбольный турнир в его честь на поле Клиппер с 2001 по 2003 год. Выбор Янгса, наряду с некоторыми другими решениями, принятыми Терри и Фришем, считается одним из самых слабых в некоторых кругах, и комитет обвиняли в кумовстве. Это привело к сокращению полномочий Комитета ветеранов в последующие годы. Статистик по бейсболу Билл Джеймс признал это и написал, что Янгс не должен быть в Зале славы. Однако в 1981 году Лоуренс Риттер и Дональд Хониг включили Янгса в свою книгу «100 величайших игроков в бейсбол всех времен». Они объяснили то, что назвали «синдромом Смоки Джо Вуда», когда игрок с выдающимися способностями, но карьера которого была прервана травмой или болезнью, все же должен быть включен в их список 100 величайших игроков, несмотря на то, что его карьерная статистика количественно не позволяет ему конкурировать с величайшими игроками всех времен.
Ross Middlebrook "Pep" Youngs (April 10, 1897 – October 22, 1927) was an American professional baseball player. Nicknamed "Pep", he played ten seasons in Major League Baseball for the New York Giants from 1917 through 1926, playing right field almost exclusively. Youngs was a part of the Giants teams that won four consecutive National League pennants and the 1921 and 1922 World Series. From Shiner, Texas, Youngs excelled at baseball and American football at the West Texas Military Institute. After beginning his professional career in minor league baseball, Youngs was signed by the Giants in 1916. Youngs had a lifetime .322 batting average with the Giants and batted over .300 nine times in his career, including eight consecutive seasons. His career was cut short by illness, however, as he died at the age of 30 of Bright's disease. Youngs was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972 by the Veterans Committee. His election was not without controversy, however, as the Veterans Committee consisted of his former teammates, and charges of cronyism were leveled against the committee. and soon began to groom Youngs to become his successor as Giants' manager. and Youngs was given the full time job out of spring training. Batting exclusively left handed, Youngs responded by batting .302 in 121 games, finishing sixth in the league. It would be the first of seven straight seasons in which he hit .300 as a regular, and the second of eight overall counting his brief stint in 1917. He also finished sixth in the NL with a .368 on base percentage (OBP). Youngs finished third in the NL in 1919 with a .311 batting average. His .351 batting average in 1920 was second in the NL to Rogers Hornsby. Youngs batted .327 in 1921, good for ninth in the NL. In Game 3 of the 1921 World Series Youngs became the first player to record two hits in the same inning of a World Series game. The Giants defeated the New York Yankees Youngs hit for the cycle on April 29, 1922. He finished the regular season ninth in the NL in OBP (.398) and tied for ninth in stolen bases (17), proceeding to hit .375 in the 1922 World Series as the Giants again defeated the Yankees. Youngs batted .356 in the 1923 World Series, which the Giants lost to the Yankees. In the final series of this season, the Giants were playing the Philadelphia Phillies at the Polo Grounds and battling for the pennant with the Brooklyn Dodgers. Jimmy O'Connell, an outfielder for the Giants, offered Phillies shortstop Heinie Sand $500 to intentionally lose the games ($ in current dollar terms). Sand rejected the bribe and reported it to Phillies manager Art Fletcher. It eventually led to the lifetime suspension of O'Connell and Giants coach Crazy Dolan by Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis. O'Connell implicated teammates Youngs, George Kelly, and Frankie Frisch as co conspirators; Landis, however, cleared the trio of any wrongdoing. Youngs slumped to a .185 batting average during the 1924 World Series, which the Giants lost to the Washington Senators. Continuing to struggle in 1925, Youngs batted .264, his only season with a batting average below .300, Too ill to play after August 10, 1926, Youngs returned home on McGraw's insistence
Youngs died of Bright's disease on October 22, 1927, at the age of 30. He went from weighing during his playing career to by the time of his death. In Youngs' obituary in The New York Times, Giants manager John McGraw called Youngs "the greatest outfielder I ever saw on a ball field." although the Giants intended to pay for it, fans expressed their desire to contribute and, even though contributions were limited to $1 per person, donations paid for the plaque entirely. Youngs was a favorite of McGraw, who kept only two pictures in his office: one of Christy Mathewson and one of Youngs. Youngs was included in the inaugural balloting for the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1936, but received less than 5% of the vote from the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA). Youngs remained on the ballot every year through 1956, receiving his highest vote total in 1947 with 22%. Ford C. Frick, Commissioner of Baseball, and former teammate Bill Terry both championed Youngs' candidacy. In addition to Youngs, Terry and Frisch shepherded the selections of Giants teammates Jesse Haines in 1970, Dave Bancroft and Chick Hafey in 1971, George Kelly in 1973, Jim Bottomley in 1974, and Freddie Lindstrom in 1976. Youngs died at the earliest age of any current Hall of Famer. Youngs is the only member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame from San Antonio and was inducted into the San Antonio Sports Hall of Fame in 1998. Shiner, the town in which Youngs was born, hosted a baseball tournament in his honor at Clipper Field from 2001 through 2003. Youngs' selection, along with some of the other selections made by Terry and Frisch, has been considered one of the weakest in some circles. and charges of cronyism were later leveled against the committee. This led to the Veterans Committee having its powers reduced in subsequent years. Baseball statistician Bill James recognized this and wrote that Youngs does not belong in the Hall of Fame. In 1981, however, Lawrence Ritter and Donald Honig included Youngs in their book The 100 Greatest Baseball Players of All Time. They explained what they called "the Smoky Joe Wood Syndrome", where a player of truly exceptional talent but a career curtailed by injury or illness should still – in spite of not owning career statistics that would quantitatively rank him with the all time greats – be included on their list of the 100 greatest players.
Личная жизнь
В октябре 1924 года Янгс женился на Дороти Пиннеке, уроженке Бруклина, с которой познакомился во время отдыха в Беркширах. Их дочь Кэролайн родилась в декабре 1925 года. Однако Дороти была в ссоре с матерью Янгса, и пара рассталась до рождения Кэролайн, которую он так и не увидел. Янгс считался общительным и щедрым человеком, постоянно давал деньги в долг, и, по сообщениям, ему были должны 16 000 долларов на момент смерти (в пересчете на современные деньги). Янгс любил играть в гольф и считался лучшим игроком в гольф среди игроков высшей лиги.