Editing Ty Cobb (section)

==Professional career==

===Early years===
Three weeks after his mother killed his father, Cobb debuted in [[Center fielder|center field]] for the Detroit Tigers. On August 30, 1905, in his first major league at bat, he doubled off [[Jack Chesbro]] of the [[New York Highlanders]]. Chesbro had won 41 games the previous season. Cobb was 18 years old at the time, the youngest player in the league by almost a year.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/AL/1905-other-leaders.shtml |title=1905 American League Awards, All-Stars, & More Leaders|work= Baseball-Reference.com |access-date=October 8, 2010 }}</ref> Although he hit only .240 in 41 games, he signed a $1,500 contract to play for the Tigers in 1905.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://blogs.lib.msu.edu/red-tape/2017/aug/august-30-1905-ty-cobb-plays-his-first-game-detroit-tiger|title=August 30, 1905 : Ty Cobb Plays His First Game As Detroit Tiger {{!}} MSU Libraries|website=blogs.lib.msu.edu|access-date=January 28, 2020}}</ref>

As a rookie, Cobb was subject to severe hazing by his veteran teammates, who were jealous of the young prospect. The players smashed his homemade bats, nailed his cleats in the clubhouse, doused his clothes before tying knots in them, and verbally abused him.<ref>Russo, p. 17</ref> Cobb later attributed his hostile temperament to this experience: "These old-timers turned me into a snarling wildcat."<ref name=NGECobb>{{cite encyclopedia |url=http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-733 |title=Ty Cobb (1886–1961) |access-date=January 30, 2007 |last=Hill |first=John Paul |date=November 18, 2002 |encyclopedia=[[New Georgia Encyclopedia]] |archive-date=August 5, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130805214326/http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-733 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Tigers manager [[Hughie Jennings]] later acknowledged that Cobb was targeted for abuse by veteran players, some of whom sought to force him off the team. "I let this go for a while because I wanted to satisfy myself that Cobb has as much guts as I thought in the very beginning," Jennings recalled. "Well, he proved it to me, and I told the other players to let him alone. He is going to be a great baseball player and I won't allow him to be driven off this club."<ref name="kashatus72-73">Kashatus (2002), pp. 72–73.</ref>

[[File:Cobbsign.jpg|thumb|Cobb signs a $5,000 contract in 1908 (equivalent to ${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|5,000|1908|r=-1}}}} today) after a holdout]]
The following year, 1906, Cobb became the Tigers' full-time center fielder and hit .316 in 98 games, setting a record for the highest batting average (minimum 310 plate appearances) for a 19-year-old (later bested by [[Mel Ott]]'s .322 average in 124 games for the 1928 [[New York Giants (NL)|New York Giants]]).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/leaders/leaders_19_bat.shtml |title=Batting Leaders Before, During and After Age 19 |work=Baseball-Reference.com |access-date=October 8, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110930031332/http://www.baseball-reference.com/leaders/leaders_19_bat.shtml |archive-date=September 30, 2011 |url-status=dead  }}</ref> He never hit below that mark again. After being moved to right field, he led the Tigers to three consecutive [[List of American League pennant winners|American League pennants]] in 1907, 1908 and 1909. Detroit would lose each [[World Series]] (to the Cubs twice and then the Pirates); however, Cobb's [[World Series|postseason]] numbers were far below his career standard. Cobb did not get another opportunity to play on a pennant-winning team.

In 1907, Cobb reached first and then stole second, third and home. He accomplished the feat four times during his career, still an MLB record as of 2022.<ref name=GeorgiaEncyc>{{cite encyclopedia|title=Ty Cobb|encyclopedia=The New Georgia Encyclopedia|url=http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-733|access-date=January 25, 2009|archive-date=August 5, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130805214326/http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-733|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Ty Cobb – Baseball Legend|publisher=BBC|date=July 22, 2003|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A1118648|access-date=January 25, 2009}}</ref> He finished the 1907 season with a league-leading .350 batting average, 212 hits, 49 steals and 119 [[run batted in|runs batted in]] (RBI).<ref name="BaseballRefCobbCareerStats"/> At age 20, he was the youngest player to win a [[list of Major League Baseball batting champions|batting championship]] and held this record until 1955, when fellow Detroit Tiger [[Al Kaline]] won the batting title while twelve days younger than Cobb had been.<ref name=GeorgiaEncyc/><ref name=BaseballDigest>{{cite web|url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FCI/is_11_59/ai_66010628 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080803081922/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FCI/is_11_59/ai_66010628 |url-status=dead |archive-date=August 3, 2008 |title=Facts and Figures – Baseball batting champions |access-date=January 25, 2009 |publisher=Baseball Digest |date=November 2000 }}</ref> Reflecting on his career in 1930, two years after retiring, he told [[Grantland Rice]], "The biggest thrill I ever got came in a game against the Athletics in 1907 [on September 30]... The Athletics had us beaten, with [[Rube Waddell]] pitching.  They were two runs ahead in the 9th inning, when I happened to hit a home run that tied the score. This game went 17 innings to a tie, and a few days later, we clinched our first pennant. You can understand what it meant for a 20-year-old country boy to hit a home run off the great Rube, in a pennant-winning game with two outs in the ninth."<ref name="baseballspast.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.baseballspast.com/film/cobb.html |title=Film from Baseball's Past |publisher=Baseballspast.com |date=March 19, 1930 |access-date=November 8, 2013}}</ref>

[[File:1909 Ty Cobb Honus Wagner.jpg|thumb|left|170px|Cobb (left) and [[Honus Wagner]] during a World Series game between Detroit and Pittsburgh, 1909]]

Despite great success on the field, Cobb was no stranger to controversy off it. As described in ''[[Smithsonian (magazine)|Smithsonian]]'', "In 1907 during spring training in Augusta, Georgia, a black groundskeeper named Bungy Cummings, whom Cobb had known for years, attempted to shake Cobb's hand or pat him on the shoulder."<ref name="Gilbert"/> The "overly familiar greeting infuriated" Cobb, who attacked Cummings. When Cummings' wife tried to defend him, Cobb allegedly choked her. The assault was only stopped when catcher [[Boss Schmidt|Charles "Boss" Schmidt]] knocked Cobb out.<ref>''When Cobb Met Wagner: The Seven-Game World Series of 1909'' by David Finoli, McFarland, 2010, page 230.</ref> However, aside from Schmidt's statement to the press, no other corroborating witnesses to the assault on Cummings ever came forward and Cummings himself never made a public comment about it. Author Charles Leerhsen speculates that the assault on Cummings and his wife never occurred and that it was a total fabrication by Schmidt. Cobb had spent the previous year defending himself on several occasions from assaults by Schmidt, with Schmidt often coming out of nowhere to blindside Cobb. On that day, several reporters did see Cummings, who appeared to be "partially under the influence of liquor," approach Cobb and shout "Hello, Carrie!" (the meaning of which is unknown) and go in for a hug. Cobb then pushed him away, which was the last interaction that anyone saw between Cobb and Cummings. Shortly thereafter, hearing a fight, several reporters came running and found Cobb and Schmidt wrestling on the ground. When the fight was broken up and Cobb had walked away, Schmidt remained behind and told the reporters that he saw Cobb assaulting Cummings and his wife and had intervened. Leerhsen speculates that this was just another one of Schmidt's assaults on Cobb and that once discovered, Schmidt made up a story that made him sound like he had assaulted Cobb for a noble purpose.<ref>[[#Leerhsen|Leerhsen (2015)]], pp. 151–152.</ref> In 1908, Cobb attacked a black laborer in Detroit who complained when Cobb stepped into freshly poured asphalt; Cobb was found guilty of battery, but the sentence was suspended.<ref name="Gilbert"/>

In September 1907, Cobb began a relationship with [[The Coca-Cola Company]] that lasted the remainder of his life. By the time he died, he held over 20,000 shares of stock and owned [[Bottling company|bottling plants]] in [[Santa Maria, California]], [[Twin Falls, Idaho]], and [[Bend, Oregon]]. He was also a celebrity spokesman for the product.<ref name=HallofFameCoke>{{cite web|url=http://www.baseballhalloffame.org/history/2002/021218_cobb_ty.htm |title=Ty Cobb Sold Me a Soda Pop: Hall of Fame Outfielder Ty Cobb and Coca-Cola |access-date=January 30, 2007 |last=Holmes |first=Dan |publisher=National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, Inc |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061206111050/http://www.baseballhalloffame.org/history/2002/021218_cobb_ty.htm |archive-date=December 6, 2006 |url-status=dead  }}</ref> In the offseason between 1907 and 1908, Cobb negotiated with [[Clemson Agricultural College of South Carolina]], offering to coach baseball there "for $250 a month, provided that he did not sign with Detroit that season." This did not come to pass, however.<ref>Bryan, Wright, "Clemson: An Informal History of the University 1889–1979," The R. L. Bryan Company, Columbia, South Carolina, 1979, Library of Congress card number 79-56231, {{ISBN|0-934870-01-2}}, page 214.</ref>

The following season, the Tigers finished ahead of the [[Chicago White Sox]] for the pennant. Cobb again won the batting title with a .324 average, but Detroit suffered another loss in the World Series. In August 1908, Cobb married Charlotte ("Charlie") Marion Lombard, the daughter of prominent [[Augusta, Georgia|Augustan]] Roswell Lombard. In the offseason, the couple lived on her father's Augusta estate, ''The Oaks'', until they moved into their own house on Williams Street in November 1913.<ref name=Price1996>{{cite news|url=http://chronicle.augusta.com/history/cobb.html |title=Aggressive play defined Ty Cobb |access-date=February 7, 2007 |last=Price |first=Ed |date=June 21, 1996 |newspaper=[[The Augusta Chronicle]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070209235657/http://chronicle.augusta.com/history/cobb.html |archive-date=February 9, 2007 |url-status=dead  }}</ref>

[[File:Cobb_slide_into_third.jpg|thumb|[[Charles M. Conlon]]'s famous picture of Cobb stealing third base during the 1909 season]]
The Tigers won the AL pennant again in 1909. During that World Series, Cobb's last, he stole home in the second game, igniting a three-run rally, but that was the high point for him, finishing with a lowly .231, as the Tigers lost to Honus Wagner and the powerful Pirates in seven games. Although he performed poorly in the postseason, he won the [[Major League Baseball Triple Crown|Triple Crown]] by hitting .377 with 107 RBI and nine home runs, all [[inside-the-park home run|inside the park]], thus becoming the only player of the modern era to lead his league in home runs in a season without hitting a ball over the fence.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.baseball-almanac.com/yearly/yr1909a.shtml|title=Year in Review: 1909 American League|access-date=May 28, 2007|publisher=Baseball Almanac}}</ref>

In the same season, [[Charles M. Conlon]] snapped the famous photograph of a grimacing Cobb sliding into third base amid a cloud of dirt, which visually captured the grit and ferocity of his playing style.<ref name=conlon>{{cite web |url=http://www.sportingnews.com/archives/conlon/cobb/photo2.html |title=Ty Cobb |publisher=Times Mirror Co. |year=1998 |access-date=February 25, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070129000518/http://www.sportingnews.com/archives/conlon/cobb/photo2.html |archive-date=January 29, 2007  }}</ref>

===1910: Chalmers Award controversy===
{{Main|1910 Chalmers Award}}
Going into the final days of the 1910 season, Cobb had a .004 lead on [[Nap Lajoie]] for the American League batting title. The prize for the winner of the title was a [[Chalmers automobile]]. Cobb sat out the final two games to preserve his average. Lajoie hit safely eight times in a [[doubleheader (baseball)|doubleheader]] but six of those hits were [[bunt (baseball)|bunt]] singles. Later it was rumored that the opposing manager had instructed his third baseman to play extra deep to allow Lajoie to win the batting race over the generally disliked Cobb. Although Cobb was credited with a higher batting average, it was later discovered in the 1970s that one game had been counted twice so that Cobb actually lost to Lajoie. As a result of the incident, AL president [[Ban Johnson]] was forced to [[arbitrate]] the situation. He declared Cobb the rightful owner of the title, but car company president Hugh Chalmers chose to award one to both Cobb and Lajoie.<ref name="LoC">{{cite web |last1=Queen |first1=Mike |title=Embarrassing Baseball Scandals Fans Want to Forget |url=https://blogs.loc.gov/headlinesandheroes/2023/07/embarrassing-baseball-scandals-fans-want-to-forget/ |website=Headlines and Heroes: Newspapers, Comics and More Fine Print [Blog] |publisher=Library of Congress |access-date=August 17, 2023 |date=July 11, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Gillette|first=Gary|author2=Palmer, Pete|title=The ESPN Baseball Encyclopedia|publisher=Sterling Publishing Co|location=New York|year=2007|edition=Fourth|pages=1764–1765|isbn=978-1-4027-4771-7}}</ref>

===1911–1914===
[[File:Cobb jackson.jpg|upright|thumb|right|Cobb and [[Joe Jackson (baseball player)|"Shoeless" Joe Jackson]] in Cleveland]]
{{further|1912 suspension of Ty Cobb}}
Cobb regarded baseball as "something like a war," future Tiger second baseman [[Charlie Gehringer]] said. "Every time at bat for him was a crusade."<ref>{{cite book|last=Honig|first=Donald|title=Baseball When the Grass Was Real|publisher=[[University of Nebraska Press]]|year=1975|page=42|isbn=0-8032-7267-7}}</ref> Baseball historian [[John Thorn]] said in the book ''Legends of the Fall'', "He is testament to how far you can get simply through will. ... Cobb was pursued by demons."

Cobb was having a tremendous year in 1911, which included a 40-game [[hitting streak]]. Still, [[Shoeless Joe Jackson|"Shoeless" Joe Jackson]] led him by .009 points in the batting race late in the season. Near the end of the season, Cobb's Tigers had a long series against Jackson's [[Cleveland Naps]]. Fellow Southerners Cobb and Jackson were personally friendly both on and off the field.<ref name="Russo 20">[[#Russo|Russo (2014)]], p. 20.</ref> Cobb used that friendship to his advantage. Cobb ignored Jackson when Jackson tried to say anything to him. When Jackson persisted, Cobb snapped angrily back at him, making him wonder what he could have done to enrage Cobb. Cobb felt that it was these mind games that caused Jackson to "fall off" to a final average of .408, twelve points lower than Cobb's .420, a 20th-century record which stood until [[George Sisler]] tied it and [[Rogers Hornsby]] surpassed it with .424, the record since then (until 2024) except for Hugh Duffy's .438 in the 19th century.<ref name=BaseballLibraryTyCobb />

{{quote box|width=30%|align=left|quote=I often tried plays that looked recklessly daring, maybe even silly. But I never tried anything foolish when a game was at stake, only when we were far ahead or far behind. I did it to study how the other team reacted, filing away in my mind any observations for future use.|source=—Ty Cobb in ''[[The New York Times]]''<ref name=NYTDaleyTribute>{{cite news |first=Arthur |last=Daley |author-link=Arthur Daley (sportswriter) |title=Sports of The Times: In Belated Tribute |page=32 (food fashions family furnishings section)|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=August 15, 1961 }}</ref>}}

Cobb led the AL that year in numerous other categories, including 248 hits, 147 runs scored, 127 RBI, 83 stolen bases, 47 doubles, 24 triples and a .621 [[slugging percentage]]. Cobb hit eight home runs but finished second in that category to [[Home Run Baker|Frank Baker]], who hit eleven. He was awarded another Chalmers car, this time for being voted the AL MVP by the [[Baseball Writers' Association of America]].

[[File:Outing (1885) (14753422496).jpg|thumb|left|upright|Cobb in 1911]]
On May 12, 1911, playing against the [[New York Highlanders]], he scored from first base on a single to right field, then scored another run from second base on a wild pitch. In the seventh inning, he tied the game with a two-run double. The Highlanders catcher vehemently argued the safe call at second base with the [[umpire (baseball)|umpire]] in question, going on at such length that the other Highlanders infielders gathered nearby to watch. Realizing that no one on the Highlanders had called time, Cobb strolled unobserved to third base and then casually walked towards home plate as if to get a better view of the argument. He then suddenly broke into a run and slid into home plate for the eventual winning run.<ref name=BaseballLibraryTyCobb /> It was performances like this that led [[Branch Rickey]] to say later that Cobb "had brains in his feet."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.baseballhalloffame.org/history/first5/default.htm |title=First Five: The Original Members of the Hall of Fame |last=Holmes |first=Dan |access-date=June 15, 2007 |publisher=[[National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070608145751/http://www.baseballhalloffame.org/history/first5/default.htm |archive-date=June 8, 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Describing his gameplay strategy in 1930, he said, "My system was all offense. I believed in putting up a mental hazard for the other fellow. If we were five or six runs ahead, I'd try some wild play, such as going from first to home on a single. This helped to make the other side hurry the play in a close game later on. I worked out all the angles I could think of, to keep them guessing and hurrying."<ref name="baseballspast.com" /> In the same interview, Cobb talked about having noticed a throwing tendency of first baseman [[Hal Chase]] but having to wait two full years until the opportunity came to exploit it. By unexpectedly altering his own [[baserunning]] tendencies, he was able to surprise Chase and score the winning run of the game in question.

On May 15, 1912, Cobb assaulted a heckler, Claude Lucker (often misspelled as Lueker), in the stands in New York's [[Hilltop Park]] where the Tigers were playing the Highlanders. Lucker, described by baseball historian Frank Russo as "a [[Tammany Hall]] lackey and two-bit punk," often berated Cobb when Detroit visited New York.<ref name="Russo 19">[[#Russo|Russo (2014)]], p. 19.</ref> In this game, the two traded insults through the first couple of innings. Cobb at one point went to the Highlander dugout to look for the Highlanders' owner to try to have Lucker ejected from the game, but his search was in vain.<ref>[[#Leerhsen|Leerhsen (2015)]], p. 259.</ref> He also asked for the police to intervene, but they refused.<ref name="Russo 19"/> The situation climaxed when Lucker allegedly called Cobb a "half-nigger."<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8Dm3hqzbyYkC|first=Dan |last=Holmes|title=Ty Cobb: A Biography |year=2004 |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |location=Westport, Connecticut |page=58|isbn=978-0-313-32869-5}}</ref> Cobb, in his discussion of the incident in the Holmes biography,<ref>[[#Cobb|Cobb & Stump (1993)]], pp. 131–135.</ref> avoided such explicit words but alluded to Lucker's epithet by saying he was "reflecting on my mother's color and morals." He went on to state that he warned Highlander manager [[Harry Wolverton]] that if something was not done about that man, there would be trouble. No action was taken. At the end of the sixth inning, after being challenged by teammates [[Sam Crawford]] and [[Jim Delahanty]] to do something about it, Cobb climbed into the stands and attacked Lucker, who it turned out was handicapped (he had lost all of one hand and three fingers on his other hand in an industrial accident). Some onlookers shouted at him to stop because the man had no hands, to which Cobb reportedly retorted, "I don't care if he got no feet!"<ref>{{cite web |title=ESPN.com's 10 infamous moments |url=https://www.espn.com/endofcentury/s/other/infamous.html |access-date=August 26, 2007}}</ref> According to Russo, the crowd cheered Cobb on in the fight.<ref name="Russo 19"/> Though extremely rare in the 21st century, attacking fans was not so unusual an activity in the early years of baseball. Other notable baseball stars who assaulted heckling fans include [[Babe Ruth]], [[Cy Young]], [[Rube Waddell]], [[Kid Gleason]], [[Sherry Magee]], and [[Fred Clarke]].<ref>[[#Leerhsen|Leerhsen (2015)]], p. 258.</ref>

[[File:Ty Cobb 1916-restore.jpeg|thumb|150px|Cobb in 1916]]
The league [[1912 suspension of Ty Cobb|suspended him]]. His teammates, though not fond of Cobb, went on strike to protest the suspension, and the lack of protection of players from abusive fans, before the May 18 game in Philadelphia. For that one game, Detroit fielded a [[List of Major League Baseball replacement players#1912 Detroit Tigers strike|replacement team]] made up of hastily recruited college and sandlot players plus two Tiger coaches and lost 24–2, thereby setting some of Major League Baseball's modern-era (post-1900) negative records, notably the 26 hits in a nine-inning game allowed by [[Allan Travers]], who pitched one of the sport's most unlikely [[complete game]]s.<ref name=BaseballLibraryTravers>{{cite web|url=http://www.baseballlibrary.com/ballplayers/player.php?name=Al_Travers_1892&page=chronology|title=Al Travers from the Chronology|last=Charlton|first=James|access-date=June 15, 2007|publisher=BaseballLibrary.com|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923182449/http://www.baseballlibrary.com/ballplayers/player.php?name=Al_Travers_1892&page=chronology|archive-date=September 23, 2015}}</ref> The pre-1901 record for the most hits and runs given up in a game is held by the [[Cleveland Blues (NL)|Cleveland Blues]]' [[Dave Rowe (baseball)|Dave Rowe]]. Primarily an outfielder, Rowe pitched a complete game on July 24, 1882, giving up 35 runs on 29 hits.<ref>{{cite web|title=1882 Year in Review|url=http://www.baseball-almanac.com/yearly/yr1882n.shtml|website=Baseball Reference}}</ref> The current post-1900 record for most hits in a nine-inning game is 31, set in 1992 by the Milwaukee Brewers against Toronto; however, the Blue Jays used six pitchers.<ref>{{cite web|title=Milwaukee gets 31 hits|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/TOR/TOR199208280.shtml|website=Baseball Reference}}</ref>

The strike ended when Cobb urged his teammates to return to the field. According to him, this incident led to the formation of a players' union, the "Ballplayers' Fraternity" (formally, the Fraternity of Professional Baseball Players of America), an early version of what is now called the [[Major League Baseball Players Association]], which garnered some concessions from the owners.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|title=Baseball Players' Fraternity|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica|url=http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/54781/Baseball-Players-Fraternity|access-date=January 25, 2009}}</ref>

During his career, Cobb was involved in numerous other fights, both on and off the field, and several profanity-laced shouting matches. For example, Cobb and umpire [[Billy Evans]] arranged to settle their in-game differences through fisticuffs under the grandstand after the game. Members of both teams were spectators, and broke up the scuffle after Cobb had knocked Evans down, pinned him and began choking him. In 1909, Cobb was arrested for assault for an incident that occurred in a Cleveland hotel. Cobb got into an argument with the elevator operator around 2:15&nbsp;a.m. when the man refused to take him to the floor where some of his teammates were having a card game. The elevator operator stated that he could only take Cobb to the floor where his room was. As the argument escalated, a night watchman approached and he and Cobb eventually got into a physical confrontation. During the fight, Cobb produced a penknife and slashed the watchman across the hand. Cobb later claimed that the watchman, who had the upper hand in the fight, had his finger in Cobb's left eye and that Cobb was worried he was going to have his sight ruined. The fight finally ended when the watchman produced a gun and struck Cobb several times in the head, knocking him out.<ref>[[#Leerhsen|Leerhsen (2015)]], p. 218.</ref> Cobb would later plead guilty to simple assault and pay a $100 fine. This incident has often been retold with the elevator operator and the watchman both being black. However, recent scholarship has shown that all parties involved were white.<ref>[[#Leerhsen|Leerhsen (2015)]], pp. 219–220.</ref>

On August 13, 1912, the same day the Tigers were to play the [[New York Highlanders]] at [[Hilltop Park]], Cobb and his wife were driving to a train station in [[Syracuse, New York|Syracuse]] that was to transport him to the game when three intoxicated men had stopped him on the way. When Cobb had gotten out of the car to confront the men, they had asked for money and instigated a physical fight, with Cobb defending himself from one of the men by punching him in the chin as another had fled the scene. After being grabbed by the neck by another man, the man had pulled a knife and stabbed him in the back before he forced him away and returned to his car to continue driving to the station for the game. Cobb refused to speak any further of the issue. He would go on to hit 2–3 with two singles and a run scored, as well as batting .418. The Tigers lost 2–3.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Press Democrat 13 August 1912 — California Digital Newspaper Collection |url=https://cdnc.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/cdnc?a=d&d=SRPD19120813.2.9&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN-%22Ty+Cobb%22------- |access-date=May 1, 2023 |website=cdnc.ucr.edu}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Detroit Tigers vs New York Highlanders Box Score: August 13, 1912 |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NYA/NYA191208130.shtml |access-date=May 1, 2023 |website=Baseball-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref>

In 1913, Cobb signed a contract worth $12,000 for the six-month season ({{Inflation|US|12000|1913|fmt=eq}}), making him likely the first baseball player in history to be paid a five-figure salary.<ref name="salary milestones">{{cite news |last1=Haupert |first1=Michael |title=Baseball's Major Salary Milestones |url=https://sabr.org/research/baseball-s-major-salary-milestones |access-date=October 21, 2019 |work=The Baseball Research Journal |publisher=[[Society for American Baseball Research]] |date=Fall 2011}}</ref> This occurred in the same year where Cobb had allegedly grown pessimistic and was quoted as saying: "It seems I am a burden to the Detroit club, as a trespasser of its rules. If that be the case, let [[Frank Navin|Mr. Navin]] put a price on me and I'll take a chance on being able to negotiate my own release. I don't think I shall ever play ball again. This is positively my last statement in this matter." This attributed statement was first published on an April 19, 1913, edition of the [[Los Angeles Herald]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Los Angeles Herald 19 April 1913 — California Digital Newspaper Collection |url=https://cdnc.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/cdnc?a=d&d=LAH19130419.2.101&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN-%22Ty+Cobb%22------- |access-date=May 1, 2023 |website=cdnc.ucr.edu}}</ref> Cobb did not play that day as the Tigers won 4–0 against the [[St. Louis Browns]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=St. Louis Browns vs Detroit Tigers Box Score: April 19, 1913 |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/DET/DET191304190.shtml |access-date=May 1, 2023 |website=Baseball-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref>

In June 1914, Cobb pleaded guilty to disturbing the peace after pulling a revolver during an argument at a Detroit butcher shop. He was fined $50 ({{Inflation|US|50|1914|fmt=eq}}).<ref>{{cite news |title=Ty Cobb Fined $50 |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/94500942/ty-cobb-fined-50/ |access-date=February 9, 2022 |work=[[The York Dispatch]] |date=June 25, 1914 |pages=1}}</ref>

===1915–1921===
In 1915, Cobb set the single-season record for stolen bases with 96, which stood until Dodger [[Maury Wills]] broke it in 1962.<ref name=BaseballRefSeasonSB>{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/leaders/SB_season.shtml |title=Single-Season Leaders for Stolen Bases |access-date=February 7, 2007 |publisher=Sports Reference, Inc }}</ref> That year, he also won his ninth consecutive batting title, hitting .369.

During 1917 spring training, Cobb showed up late for a [[Dallas]] spring training doubleheader against the New York Giants because of a golf outing. Several of the Giants, including [[Buck Herzog]], called him names from the bench. Cobb retaliated by [[glossary of baseball (S)#Spike|spiking]] Herzog during the second game, prompting a [[bench-clearing brawl#Baseball|bench-clearing brawl]] in which Cobb ground Herzog's face in the dirt. The Dallas Police Department had to help stop the brawl, and Cobb was thrown out of the game.<ref name="Herzog SABR">{{cite web|last=Schechter|first=Gabriel|url=https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/buck-herzog/|title=Buck Herzog|work=SABR|access-date=April 26, 2021}}</ref><ref>[[#Russo|Russo (2014)]], pp. 124-125.</ref> Both teams were staying at the Oriental Hotel, and at dinner that evening, Herzog walked up to Cobb and challenged him to a fight. The two met an hour later in Cobb's room, where the Tiger outfielder had prepared for the fight by moving furniture out of the way and pouring water on the floor. Cobb's leather-soled shoes enabled him to get better footing than Herzog, who wore tennis shoes. The fight lasted for thirty minutes, over the course of which Cobb knocked down Herzog about six times while Herzog only knocked Cobb down once. The scuffle left Herzog's face bloodied and his eyes nearly shut.<ref name="Herzog SABR"/><ref name="Russo 125">[[#Russo|Russo (2014)]], p. 125.</ref> With Herzog vowing revenge, Cobb skipped the rest of the exhibition series against the Giants, heading to Cincinnati to train with the Reds, who were managed by Cobb's friend [[Christy Mathewson]]. However, Cobb later expressed the deepest respect for Herzog because of the way the infielder had conducted himself in the fight.<ref name="Russo 125"/>

In 1917, Cobb hit in 35 consecutive games, still the only player with two 35-game hitting streaks (including his 40-game streak in 1911).<ref name=BaseballAlmanacLongHitStreaks>{{cite web |url=http://www.baseball-almanac.com/feats/feats-streak.shtml|title=Consecutive Games Hitting Streaks |access-date=June 6, 2007|publisher=Baseball Almanac}}</ref>  He had six hitting streaks of at least 20 games in his career, second only to [[Pete Rose]]'s eight.<ref name=BaseballPageRose>{{cite web |url=http://www.thebaseballpage.com/players/rosepe01.php |title=Player Pages: Pete Rose |access-date=February 7, 2007}}</ref>

Also in 1917, Cobb starred in the motion picture ''[[Somewhere in Georgia]]'' for a sum of $25,000 plus expenses (equivalent to approximately ${{formatnum:{{Inflation|US|25000|1917|r=-3}}}} today{{inflation-fn|US}}). Based on a story by sports columnist [[Grantland Rice]], the film casts Cobb as "himself," a small-town Georgia bank clerk with a talent for baseball.<ref name=IMDB>{{cite web |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0158971/ |title=Somewhere in Georgia |publisher=[[Internet Movie Database]] |access-date=February 7, 2007 }}</ref> [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] critic [[Ward Morehouse]] called the movie "absolutely the worst flicker I ever saw, pure hokum."

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In October 1918, Cobb enlisted in the [[Chemical Corps]] branch of the [[United States Army]] and was sent to the [[American Expeditionary Force|Allied Expeditionary Forces]] headquarters in [[Chaumont, Haute-Marne|Chaumont, France]].<ref name=ChemicalCorps>{{cite journal|last=Gurtowski |first=Richard |date=July 2005 |title=Remembering baseball hall of famers who served in the Chemical Corps |journal=CML Army Chemical Review |url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0IUN/is_2005_July/ai_n15730920 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060222165016/http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0IUN/is_2005_July/ai_n15730920 |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 22, 2006 |access-date=March 10, 2007 }}</ref> He served approximately 67 days overseas before being [[honorable discharge|honorably discharged]] and returning to the United States.<ref name=ChemicalCorps/> He was given the rank of captain underneath the command of Major [[Branch Rickey]], the president of the [[St. Louis Cardinals]]. Other baseball players serving in this unit included Captain Christy Mathewson and Lieutenant [[George Sisler]].<ref name=ChemicalCorps/> All of these men were assigned to the Gas and Flame Division, where they trained soldiers in preparation for [[Chemical warfare|chemical attacks]] by exposing them to gas chambers in a controlled environment,<ref name=ChemicalCorps/> which eventually caused Mathewson to contract the tuberculosis that killed him on the eve of the 1925 World Series.

On August 19, 1921, in the second game of a doubleheader against [[Elmer Myers]] of the [[Boston Red Sox]], Cobb collected his 3,000th hit. Aged 34 at the time, he is still the youngest ballplayer to reach that milestone, and in the fewest at-bats (8,093).<ref name=SportingNews08061999>{{cite web|url=http://www.baseballhalloffame.org/exhibits/online_exhibits/3000_hit_club/cobb_ty.htm |title=The 3000 Hit Club: Ty Cobb |access-date=February 10, 2007 |publisher=National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, Inc |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070209031106/http://www.baseballhalloffame.org/exhibits/online_exhibits/3000_hit_club/cobb_ty.htm |archive-date=February 9, 2007 |url-status=dead  }}</ref><ref name=HallofFameCobb3000>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.sportingnews.com/archives/sports2000/numbers/172730.html |date=August 6, 1999 |title=Inside the numbers: 3,000 hits |access-date=February 10, 2007 |magazine=[[Sporting News]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050211195538/http://www.sportingnews.com/archives/sports2000/numbers/172730.html |archive-date=February 11, 2005  }}</ref>

By 1920, [[Babe Ruth]], sold to the renamed [[New York Yankees]] from the [[Boston Red Sox]], had established himself as a power hitter, something Cobb was not considered to be. When his Tigers showed up in New York to play the Yankees for the first time that season, writers billed it as a showdown between two stars of competing styles of play. Ruth hit two homers, a triple, and two singles during the series, compared to Cobb's two hits of a double and a single.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Detroit Tigers vs New York Yankees Box Score: May 24, 1920 |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NYA/NYA192005240.shtml |access-date=March 29, 2023 |website=Baseball-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Detroit Tigers vs New York Yankees Box Score: May 25, 1920 |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NYA/NYA192005250.shtml |access-date=March 29, 2023 |website=Baseball-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Detroit Tigers vs New York Yankees Box Score: May 26, 1920 |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NYA/NYA192005260.shtml |access-date=March 29, 2023 |website=Baseball-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref>

As Ruth's popularity grew, Cobb became increasingly hostile toward him. He saw the Babe not only as a threat to his style of play, but also to his style of life.<ref name=Nation05082006>{{cite web |url=http://www.thenation.com/doc/20060522/zirin |last=Zirin |first=Dave |title=Bonding With the Babe |work=[[The Nation]] |date=May 8, 2006 |access-date=March 1, 2007 }}</ref><ref name=MF112006>{{cite web|url=http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1608/is_9_20/ai_n6244977 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050120092744/http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1608/is_9_20/ai_n6244977 |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 20, 2005 |last=Kalish |first=Jacob |title=Fat phenoms: are hot dogs and beer part of your training regimen? Maybe they should be |publisher=[[Men's Fitness]] |date=October 2004 |access-date=March 1, 2007 }}</ref><ref name=SPTimes>{{cite news |url=http://www.sptimes.com/2004/03/21/Floridian/Thanks__Babe.shtml |last=Klinkenberg |first=Jeff |title=Thanks, Babe |newspaper=[[St. Petersburg Times]] |date= March 24, 2004 |access-date=March 1, 2007 }}</ref>  Perhaps what angered him the most about Ruth was that despite Babe's total disregard for his physical condition and traditional baseball, he was still an overwhelming success and brought fans to the ballparks in record numbers to see him challenge his own slugging records.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Bisher|first1=Furman|title=A Visit with Ty Cobb|journal=Saturday Evening Post|date=1958|volume=230|issue=50|page=42|url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=19509173&site=eds-live&scope=site|access-date=February 27, 2018}}</ref>

On May 5, 1925, Cobb told a reporter that, for the first time in his career, he was going to try to hit home runs, saying he wanted to show that he could hit home runs but simply chose not to. That day, he went 6 for 6, with two singles, a double and three homers.<ref name=BaseballLibMay1925>{{cite web |url=http://www.baseballlibrary.com/baseballlibrary/chronology/1925MAY.stm |title=May 1925 |access-date=February 8, 2007 |publisher=Baseballlibrary.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923224657/http://www.baseballlibrary.com/baseballlibrary/chronology/1925MAY.stm |archive-date=September 23, 2015  }}</ref> The 16 total bases set a new AL record, which stood until May 8, 2012, when [[Josh Hamilton]] of the [[Texas Rangers (baseball)|Texas Rangers]] hit four home runs and a double for a total of 18 bases.<ref>{{cite web|work=Baseball Almanac|url=http://www.baseball-almanac.com/recbooks/total_bases_records.shtml|title= Total Bases Records|access-date=May 9, 2012}}</ref> The next day Cobb had three more hits, two of which were home runs. The single his first time up gave him nine consecutive hits over three games, while his five homers in two games tied the record set by [[Cap Anson]] of the old Chicago NL team in 1884.<ref name=BaseballLibMay1925/> By the end of the series Cobb had gone 12 for 19 with 29 total bases, and afterwards reverted to his old playing style. Even so, when asked in 1930 by [[Grantland Rice]] to name the best hitter he'd ever seen, Cobb answered, "You can't beat the Babe. Ruth is one of the few who can take a terrific swing and still meet the ball solidly. His timing is perfect. [No one has] the combined power and eye of Ruth."<ref name="baseballspast.com"/>

===Cobb as player/manager===
[[File:Ty Cobb sliding2-edit1.jpg|thumb|Cobb slides into third base for a triple against the [[History of the Washington Senators (1901–60)|Washington Senators]] at [[Griffith Stadium]], August 16, 1924]]
Tigers owner [[Frank Navin]] tapped Cobb to take over for Hughie Jennings as manager for the 1921 season, a deal he signed on his 34th birthday for $32,500 (equivalent to approximately ${{formatnum:{{Inflation|US|32500|1921|r=0}}}} in today's terms{{inflation-fn|US}}). The signing surprised the baseball world. Although Cobb was a legendary player, he was disliked throughout the baseball community, even by his own teammates.<ref name=ngeorgiacobb>{{cite web |url=http://ngeorgia.com/people/cobbt.html |title=Tyrus Raymond "Ty" Cobb: a North Georgia Notable |publisher=About North Georgia |access-date=February 27, 2007 |archive-date=January 26, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070126120456/http://ngeorgia.com/people/cobbt.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

The closest Cobb came to winning another pennant was in 1924, when the Tigers finished in third place, six games behind the pennant-winning [[Washington Senators (1901–60)|Washington Senators]]. The Tigers had also finished third in 1922, but 16 games behind the Yankees. Cobb blamed his lackluster managerial record (479 wins against 444 losses) on Navin, who was arguably even more frugal than he was, passing up several quality players Cobb wanted to add to the team. In fact, he had saved money by hiring Cobb to both play and manage.

In 1922, Cobb tied a batting record set by [[Willie Keeler|Wee Willie Keeler]], with four five-hit games in a season. This has since been matched by [[Stan Musial]], [[Tony Gwynn]] and [[Ichiro Suzuki]]. On May 10, 1924, Cobb was honored at ceremonies before a game in Washington, D.C., by more than 100 dignitaries and legislators. He received 21 books, one for each year in professional baseball.<ref>{{cite book|last=Salsinger|first=H.G.|title=Ty Cobb|year=2012|publisher=McFarland|location=US|isbn=978-0-7864-6546-0|page=162|url=http://www.mcfarlandpub.com/book-2.php?id=978-0-7864-6546-0|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130128090001/http://www.mcfarlandpub.com/book-2.php?id=978-0-7864-6546-0|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 28, 2013}}</ref>

At the end of 1925, Cobb was again embroiled in a batting title race, this time with one of his teammates and players, [[Harry Heilmann]]. In a doubleheader against the [[St. Louis Browns]] on October 4, 1925, Heilmann got six hits to lead the Tigers to a sweep of the doubleheader and beat Cobb for the batting crown, .393 to .389. Cobb and Browns player-manager [[George Sisler]] each pitched in the final game, Cobb pitching a perfect inning.
====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
|-
|-
![[1921 Detroit Tigers season|DET]]|| {{mlby|1921}}
||153||{{WinLossPct|71|82}}|| 6th in AL || – || – || – || 
|-
![[1922 Detroit Tigers season|DET]]|| {{mlby|1922}}
||154||{{WinLossPct|79|75}}|| 3rd in AL || – || – || – || 
|-
![[1923 Detroit Tigers season|DET]]|| {{mlby|1923}}
||154||{{WinLossPct|83|71}}|| 2nd in AL || – || – || – || 
|-
![[1924 Detroit Tigers season|DET]]|| {{mlby|1924}}
||154||{{WinLossPct|86|68}}|| 3rd in AL || – || – || – || 
|-
![[1925 Detroit Tigers season|DET]]|| {{mlby|1925}}
||154||{{WinLossPct|81|73}}|| 4th in AL || – || – || – || 
|-
![[1926 Detroit Tigers season|DET]]|| {{mlby|1926}}
||154||{{WinLossPct|79|75}}|| 6th in AL || – || – || – || 
|-
! colspan="2"|Total ||923||{{WinLossPct|479|444}}|| || {{WinLossPct|0|0}} || 
|}

===Move to Philadelphia===
Cobb announced his retirement after a 22-year career as a Tiger in November 1926, and headed home to [[Augusta, Georgia]].<ref name=BaseballLibraryTyCobb/> Shortly thereafter, Tris Speaker also retired as player-manager of the [[Cleveland Indians]]. The retirement of two great players at the same time sparked some interest, and it turned out that the two were coerced into retirement because of allegations of game-fixing brought about by [[Dutch Leonard (left-handed pitcher)|Dutch Leonard]], a former pitcher managed by Cobb.<ref name=autogenerated1>{{cite web|url=https://baseballbiography.com/ty-cobb-1886|title=Ty Cobb|access-date=November 24, 2007|publisher=baseballbiography.com}}</ref>

[[File:1928 Gehrig Speaker Cobb Ruth.jpg|thumb|left|250px|[[Lou Gehrig]], [[Tris Speaker]], Cobb, and [[Babe Ruth]], 1928]]
Leonard accused former pitcher and outfielder [[Smoky Joe Wood]] and Cobb of betting on a Tigers–Indians game played in Detroit on September 25, 1919, in which they allegedly orchestrated a Tigers victory to win the bet. Leonard claimed proof existed in letters written to him by Cobb and Wood.<ref name=BaseballLibraryTyCobb/> Commissioner [[Kenesaw Mountain Landis]] held a secret hearing with Cobb, Speaker and Wood.<ref name=BaseballLibraryTyCobb/> A second secret meeting among the AL directors led to the unpublicized resignations of Cobb and Speaker; however, rumors of the scandal led Judge Landis to hold additional hearings<ref name=BaseballLibraryTyCobb/> in which Leonard refused to participate. Cobb and Wood admitted to writing the letters, but claimed that a horse-racing bet was involved and that Leonard's accusations were in retaliation for Cobb's having released him from the Tigers, thereby demoting him to the [[Minor League Baseball|minor leagues]].<ref name=BaseballLibraryTyCobb/> Speaker denied any wrongdoing.<ref name=BaseballLibraryTyCobb/>

On January 27, 1927, Judge Landis cleared Cobb and Speaker of any wrongdoing because of Leonard's refusal to appear at the hearings.<ref name=BaseballLibraryTyCobb/> Landis allowed both Cobb and Speaker to return to their original teams, but each team let them know that they were [[free agent]]s and could sign with any club they wanted.<ref name=BaseballLibraryTyCobb/> Speaker signed with the [[Washington Senators (1901–60)|Washington Senators]] for 1927, and Cobb with the [[Philadelphia Athletics]]. Speaker then joined Cobb in Philadelphia for the 1928 season. Cobb said he had come back only to seek vindication and say he left baseball on his own terms.

Cobb played regularly in 1927 for a young and talented team that finished second to one of the greatest teams of all time, the 110–44 1927 Yankees, returning to Detroit to a tumultuous welcome on May 10 and doubling his first time up to the cheers of Tigers fans. On July 18, Cobb became the first member of the [[4,000 hit club]] when he doubled off former teammate [[Sam Gibson (baseball)|Sam Gibson]], still pitching for the Tigers, at [[Navin Field]].<ref name=BaseballLibraryTyCobb/>

Cobb returned for the 1928 season but played less frequently due to his age and the blossoming abilities of the young A's, who were again in a pennant race with the Yankees. On September 3, Ty Cobb [[pinch hitter|pinch-hit]] in the ninth inning of the first game of a doubleheader against the Senators and doubled off [[Bump Hadley]] for his last career hit, although his final at-bats were not until September 11 against the Yankees, when he [[types of batted balls in baseball|popped]] [[out (baseball)|out]] off [[Hank Johnson (baseball)|Hank Johnson]] and grounded out to [[shortstop]] [[Mark Koenig]].<ref name=BaseballLibraryTyCobb/> He then announced his retirement, effective the end of the season,<ref name=BaseballLibraryTyCobb/> after batting .300 or higher in 23 consecutive seasons (the only season under .300 being his rookie season), a major league record that is unlikely to be broken. Despite not being known as a slugger, he led the AL in [[slugging percentage]] eight times in his 11 seasons from 1907 to 1917.<ref name=BaseballRefCobbCareerStats/>

He also ended his career with a rather dubious record. When Cobb retired, he led AL outfielders for most errors all-time with 271, which still stands today.<ref>{{cite book|title=Curveballs and Screwballs|first1=Jeffrey|first2=Douglas|last1=Lyons|last2=Lyons|isbn=978-0812933154|publisher=Random House Puzzles & Games|year=2001|url=https://archive.org/details/curveballsscrewb00lyon}}</ref> Nineteenth-century player [[Tom Brown (center fielder)|Tom Brown]] holds the major league record with 490 errors committed as an outfielder, while the National League record is held by 19th-century player [[George Gore]] with 346 errors.<ref>{{cite web|title=Fielding Errors: Errors Committed as an OF|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/leaders/E_of_career.shtml|publisher=BaseballReference.com|access-date=July 25, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=George Gore|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/g/gorege01-field.shtml|website=Baseball-Reference.com}}</ref> Cobb ranks 14th on the all-time list for errors committed by an outfielder.