Joe Tinker Bat Off

Joe Tinker (1880–1948) played shortstop on the Chicago Cubs teams that won four National League pennants between 1906 and 1910 and back-to-back World Series titles in 1907 and 1908. A right-handed hitter and thrower, he was the front man in the Tinker-to-Evers-to-Chance double-play combination that Franklin P. Adams' newspaper verse turned into the most quoted infield in baseball history. Tinker reportedly didn't speak to second baseman Johnny Evers off the field for years, which somehow never affected the rhythm with which they turned grounders into outs. The "Bat Off" variation belongs to his T206 White Border poses in the foundational 1909–1911 tobacco set. After his Cubs years Tinker jumped to the upstart Federal League in 1914 as a player-manager with the Chicago Whales, helping the new circuit's claim to major-league status during its brief two-year run. He died July 27, 1948 in Orlando, Florida. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1946 by the Old Timers Committee.