The Philadelphia Athletics won the pennant, and their third World Series in four years. Despite a mediocre pitching staff, the Athletics were able to win with relative ease, led by an awesome offense that scored over 150 runs more than any other team.

         Eddie Collins, Frank Baker and Jack Barry all played for the Athletics, comprising the famous "$100 000 Infield" (along with first baseman Stuffy McInnis). Collins had one of his greatest seasons, and is my choice for the MVP. Baker also had a great year, leading the AL in RBI and runs produced for the second straight year.
        The greatest second basemen of all time are an odd mix of players; when trying to pick one of them as the greatest ever, I'm often drawn to Eddie Collins, simply because of his consistency, durability and balance of skills. He was a great hitter, had a career .333 batting average with 3312 hits. He also drew 1499 walks, giving him a super .424 OBA for his career. He also stole 744 bases, one of the highest totals ever (though he didn't have a great success rate). He was a good, perhaps great, defensive player, was durable, and played for many great teams. Collins' only flaw was his lack of any power.
        So where does he stand among the greatest ever? Compared to Rogers Hornsby, he wasn't as good a hitter, but had better defense and was more of a leader. Compared to Joe Morgan, Collins had fewer offensive weapons, but was more durable and had more good seasons. Compared to Nap Lajoie, he had as many big seasons against better competition. Collins was a better hitter than Charlie Gehringer or Ryne Sandberg, though perhaps not as good defensively as either of them.
        I think he ranks among the top three second sackers of all time, and perhaps should be considered the greatest. I've given him two MVP awards, which is remarkable considering he played with Ty Cobb, Tris Speaker, and Joe Jackson, when all three were in their prime.
        The great outfield trio of Jackson, Speaker and Cobb were all at their peak as players. Cobb missed a lot of games, and didn't produce many runs. Jackson and Speaker had almost identical numbers; Speaker was a better defensive player, but Jackson's team had a better year, so I'll give him the edge. Jackson also received the most votes of any player in the Chalmers Award, which was won by pitcher Walter Johnson.