Here are the 1901-1919 leaders in games played by position, compiled by STATS, Inc. The highest-ranked players achieved the right combination of regular play for many years in good health, mainly at the one position, mainly within the time period. Many ballplayers enjoy long careers in good health and many play mainly or even wholly at one position, but few of those play mainly within one of the traditionally recognized time periods.
Timing is probably the most important explanation of any "surprises" in these rankings. For example, the first three pitchers by 1901-19 games are Christy Mathewson, Eddie Plank, and Walter Johnson, who rank 23d, 27th, and 10th in games started, all time; 4th, 5th, and 2d in games started, among pitchers commonly associated with the Deadball Era. Johnson ranks behind the other two here, because he pitched for several years in the 1920s. Cy Young is 1st in games started, all time, but he ranks only 13th here because he pitched half-time in the 1890s.
Notes continue below the tables.
Summary data
Fielding Position: P C 1B 2B SS 3B OF (outfield detail)
Leaders, listed here 20 20 20 20 20 20 20
Players, Games > 1000 0 4 13 11 11 10 41
Games played, leader 629 1195 1818 1733 1886 1405 2172
Games played, 20th rank 366 668 695 588 785 769 1188
+ Deadball Honor Roll, first ballot ("Top 24")
- Deadball Honor Roll, second ballot (26 more)
Pitcher
Christy Mathewson 629 +
Eddie Plank 624 +
Walter Johnson 545 +
Red Ames 533
George Mullin 488
Mordecai Brown 481 +
Eddie Cicotte 465 -
Chief Bender 460 +
Ed Walsh 431 +
Doc White 427 -
Jack Powell 423
Slim Sallee 413
Cy Young 401 +
Ed Reulbach 399 -
Vic Willis 399
Long Tom Hughes 396
Earl Moore 387
Joe McGinnity 373 +
Bob Groom 367
Rube Waddell 366 +
others in the "Top 24": Pete Alexander 362, Addie Joss 286
others on the Honor Roll: Joe Wood, Jack Chesbro, Babe Ruth, Hippo Vaughn, Sam Leever
Catcher
Red Dooin 1195
George Gibson 1194
Johnny Kling 1153 -
Billy Sullivan 1032
Oscar Stanage 993
Roger Bresnahan 973 +
Bill Bergen 941
Bill Rariden 911
Chief Meyers 911 -
Ray Schalk 905
Bill Killefer 902
Steve O'Neill 843
Ivy Wingo 771
Larry McLean 761
Jimmy Archer 736
Art Wilson 734
Lou Criger 714
Pat Moran 697
Ossee Schreckengost 677
Eddie Ainsmith 668
First Base
Ed Konetchy 1818
Hal Chase 1815 -
Fred Merkle 1456
Harry Davis 1393
Jake Daubert 1347 -
Fred Luderus 1319
Fred Tenney 1303
Kitty Bransfield 1290
Doc Hoblitzell 1284
George Stovall 1216
Stuffy McInnis 1168 -
Chick Gandil 1138
Tom Jones 1033
Frank Chance 992 +
Dan McGann 973
Jake Stahl 839
Vic Saier 838
Jake Beckley 781
Jiggs Donahue 745
Doc Johnston 695
Second Base
Johnny Evers 1733 -
Nap Lajoie 1720 +
Eddie Collins 1640 +
Larry Doyle 1595 -
Miller Huggins 1530
Otto Knabe 1239
Jimmy Williams 1176
Claude Ritchey 1139
Del Pratt 1120
George Cutshaw 1098
Hobe Ferris 1017
Kid Gleason 825
Danny Murphy 816
Frank LaPorte 731
Billy Gilbert 703
Dick Egan 686
Ray Morgan 670
Ralph Young 618
Dots Miller 616
Germany Schaefer 588
Shortstop
Honus Wagner 1886 +
Joe Tinker 1743 -
Mickey Doolan 1625
Donie Bush 1624
George McBride 1613
Bobby Wallace 1600 +
Art Fletcher 1199
Bill Dahlen 1177
Freddy Parent 1129
Al Bridwell 1094
Roger Peckinpaugh 1010
Kid Elberfeld 920
Rabbit Maranville 913
Jack Barry 877
Monte Cross 850
Ray Chapman 846
George Davis 833 -
Heinie Wagner 824
Buck Weaver 797
Everett Scott 785
Third Base
Home Run Baker 1405 +
Jimmy Austin 1342
Bill Bradley 1253
Harry Steinfeldt 1238
Mike Mowrey 1196
Larry Gardner 1194
Art Devlin 1192
Bobby Byrne 1147
Red Smith 1050
Hans Lobert 1000
Bill Coughlin 978
Heinie Zimmerman 957
Jimmy Collins 948 -
Doc Casey 937
Harry Lord 907
Eddie Foster 906
Lave Cross 846
Tommy Leach 841 -
George Moriarty 795
Eddie Grant 769
others on the Honor Roll: Heinie Groh
Outfield (outfield detail) seasons named regular CF by TB6
within-Era full-Career
Sam Crawford 2172 + 3
Ty Cobb 1899 + 11 17
Sherry Magee 1861 + 1
Jimmy Sheckard 1740
Wildfire Schulte 1736
Clyde Milan 1669 12
Tris Speaker 1607 + 11 19
Harry Hooper 1498 -
Dode Paskert 1472 9 10
John Titus 1356
Zack Wheat 1350 -
Fred Clarke 1327 +
Duffy Lewis 1306
Cy Seymour 1280 - 6
Chief Wilson 1269 3
Topsy Hartsel 1250
Max Carey 1217 - 4 12
Burt Shotton 1215 4
Jack Graney 1190
Bob Bescher 1188 1
others in the "Top 24": Joe Jackson 1143
others on the Honor Roll: Gavy Cravath, Elmer Flick
Player statistics by time-period or "Era". The nineteen-year period
1901-1919, which constitutes the Deadball Era for the purposes of the SABR
Research Committee, is reasonably well established in baseball
historiography. Among important references for player statistics, the STATS
All-Time Major League Baseball Sourcebook and the Neft & Cohen
Sports Encyclopedia: Baseball use 1901-1919 as one of several
non-overlapping periods for classifying players; Total Baseball uses
1893-1919. Leaders by Era are a special feature that TB and STATS provide for
some categories of player statistics. [how many does STATS provide?] TB
then allocates each player's entire career to the one period in which he
played most. In the rankings presented here, on the other hand, STATS
counts within-period achievements only; it restricts each player's career to
the one period.
Acknowledgments. Leaders transcribed by David Jones from STATS, Inc., The All-Time Major League Baseball Sourcebook (1998). Introduction, summary table, notations, and discussion by Paul Wendt.