Jake Beckley

His durability was so impressive that almost 90 years after his death, Jake Beckley’s name appeared on the computer screens of baseball writers across the world. But Beckley’s ability to play every day is only part of the story of the powerful first baseman whose standards still top the record books. Beckley played 19 National League seasons with the Pirates, Giants, Reds and Cardinals and one season with Pittsburgh in the Players League from 1888-1907. He played 2,380 of his 2,389 games at first base, setting a big league standard that was not eclipsed until 1994.

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Almost a century after Jake Beckley died, folks are still are trying to figure out who the Hall of Famer from Hannibal, Mo. is and what his true career batting average was.

Jake Beckley was nicknamed 'Eagle Eye' for his hitting skill. Read bio and statistics for this Hall of Fame first baseman.

Jake Beckley baseball stats with batting stats, pitching stats and fielding stats, along with uniform numbers, salaries, quotes, career stats and biographical data presented by Baseball Almanac.

Learn about Jake Beckley: his birthday, what he did before fame, his family life, fun trivia facts, popularity rankings, and more.

When Jake Beckley gained election to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1971, 53 years after his death, most baseball fans had no idea who he was or why he should be honored with a plaque in Cooperstown. Beckley's reputation suffered because he never played on a pennant winner, and only one team he played for (the 1893 Pirates) finished as high as second place. Still, the colorful "Eagle Eye" compiled a .308 lifetime average, hit .300 or better in 13 of his 20 seasons (including the first four seasons of the Deadball Era), and retired in 1907 as baseball's all-time leader in triples.

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Jacob Peter Beckley (August 4, 1867 – June 25, 1918), nicknamed "Eagle Eye", was a Major League Baseball player at the turn of the 20th century. He played for several major league teams between 1888 and 1907. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee in 1971.

Career: 87 HR, .308 BA, 1578 RBI (42nd), 1B, HOF in 1971, Reds/Pirates/... 1888-1907, b:L/t:L, born in Unite. 1867, died 1918, Eagle Eye