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Former MLB Star Fred Tenney’s Career Almost Ended After 5 Innings
One of the most respected players in baseball history suffered a bad injury just five innings into his big-league debut and feared his career had come to an abrupt end
The position of first base has often been where a baseball team has its best hitter and team leader. This was especially true of Fred Tenney, who truly helped pioneer and define the modern position during a remarkable 17-year playing career (1894–1909; 1911).
The left-handed Tenney was one of baseball’s earliest stars to arrive in the big leagues with a college degree (from Brown University). Later in life, he wrote for the New York Times, Boston Post and other publications, along with being an accomplished paint and sketch artist and businessman. Collegiately, he was a catcher despite his handedness and began at that position as a pro before ultimately settling at first base where he wowed with a slick glove that made some believe he was the best ever at his time. He spent all but two of his 17 big-league seasons with Boston in the National League and became known as one of the finest players in the game.
In addition to his superior defense, Tenney was no slouch at the plate. While he didn’t hit for much…
