LOOKING BACK AT THE 1914 "MIRACLE" BOSTON BRAVES ...
THE GREATEST COMEBACK IN MLB HISTORY ... 110 YEARS AGO

Jim Murray was from Galveston, Texas and broke in with the Galveston Sandcrabs of the Texas League. As a left-handed thrower and a right-handed batter he presented a rare combination in baseball.

In 1900 Jim set the Virginia League on fire, while Christy Mathewson was leading the same league in wins, strikeouts, and winning percentage.

Jim first really made his mark in the Texas League, playing for San Antonio and Houston in 1899, and then in Virginia for Portsmouth and Newport News in 1900 and 1901, hitting around .300 in those three years.

By 1902 he had worked his way up to the Class C New England League. A solid season with Manchester earned him the opportunity to play briefly with the Chicago Cubs in 1902.

In 1903 Jim played in the Eastern League for Toronto and in the New England League again with Manchester. In 1905 he played for three teams, Harrisburg, Buffalo, and Toronto.

He had flashes of brilliance that piqued the interest of major-league clubs. Time after time, however, the majors decided that he was not what they were really looking for.

After his dozen games with the Cubs, nearly a decade passed before he was again called up by a big-league club. Jim joined the Browns for the 1911 season and lasted just 31 games before he was sent back to Buffalo where he spent the next three years. At the age of 33, he put it all together and had three straight seasons of batting .300 or better in 1911-13.

After 1913, his contract was purchased by the Boston Braves with an eye toward 1914, and at 36, Jim was given his third chance for a roster spot in the majors. He joined the Braves in April 1914.

George Stallings was familiar with Jim, having managed him in Buffalo in 1905-06 and 1911-12, and was initially enthusiastic about him. The Braves were particularly weak at the bat so they scurried around to make a deal with the Buffalo club for Jim.

With the Braves, his batting average would fall. After Jim would 0-for-2 in a July game, Stallings decided that enough was enough, and he would be sold to the St. Paul Apostles of the American Association. Stallings had not seen much of a future for Jim, and indeed he would spend the next four years working his way back down the ladder of pro baseball.

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Jim Murray (pic)

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