Class of 1909

Class of 1909

Tip O'Neill is the newest member of the BBC Hall of Fame. O'Neill was a star for the 1880s St. Louis Browns of the American Association. He set a single-season record for batting average in 1887, at .435. It was counted as .492 at the time, as walks were counted as hits that year in the AA. By any measure, it was an amazing season. O'Neill began his major league career as a pitcher for New York in the National League, but moved to St. Louis the next season. His hitting soon overshadowed his pitching and caused a permanent move to left field. O'Neill was a solid hitter, combining a fine average with plenty of walks and good doubles power. With St. Louis, he also played in four postseason "World Series" tournaments. O'Neill posted a .326 career batting average and 142 OPS+ in 10 seasons.

Voting Results

10 ballots cast:
(enough votes for election)
8 Tip O'Neill (Not enough votes for election)
7 Ross Barnes, Charlie Bennett, Ezra Sutton and George Van Haltren.
5 Jim McCormick
4 Tommy Bond, Cupid Childs, Fred Dunlap, Silver King
3 Charlie Jones, Levi Meyerle, Hardy Richardson, Mike Tiernan
2 Fred Carroll, Bill Lange, Joe Start, Curt Welch
1 Gene DeMontreville, Dummy Hoy, Matt Kilroy, Herman Long, Bobby Mathews, Ed McKean, Wilbert Robinson, Elmer Smith, Jake Stenzel, Jim Whitney, Ned Williamson, Chief Zimmer.