Nap Lajoie

When Nap Lajoie was eleven years old, his father's untimely death compelled him to work at a textile mill, ending his official schooling. As a young adult, he played semiprofessional baseball on the weekends and worked as a livery driver. Major league scouts took notice of his abilities on the diamond, and in 1896 he earned a contract with the National League's Philadelphia Phillies.

After five seasons with the Phillies, Lajoie moved over to the Athletics, Philadelphia's team in the new American League. A lawsuit was filed to keep Lajoie from leaving the NL and in 1902 the Pennsylvania Supreme Court barred him from playing with any team other than the Phillies. A compromise was reached, and Lajoie was allowed to play for another American League team, the Cleveland Bronchos, but he was required to stay out of the lineup when Cleveland played in Philadelphia. He played more than half of his 21-year career with Cleveland before returning to the Athletics for his final two seasons (the injunction against him playing in Philadelphia was lifted in 1903.

Lajoie and Ty Cobb competed for the batting championship in 1910. For a large portion of the season, Lajoie and Cobb were tied, and the process of calculating batting averages was unclear. Cobb skipped the final two games of the season, presumably having already won the championship and the new car that came with it. When the opposing team's third baseman was told to play deep, Lajoie did play and managed eight singles in nine at-bats, although seven of them were bunts. In an effort to reduce dispute, both players received automobiles even though Cobb technically won the title by.001. In 1937, Lajoie was admitted to Cooperstown, New York's Baseball Hall of Fame.