McCarthy’s statistics are unimpressive for a Hall of Famer, but his creative innovations left an indelible mark on the game. He hit .300 only four times in 13 seasons and had a lifetime fielding percentage of .897, and was at his best from 1892 to 1895 when he and Hugh Duffy were “the Heavenly Twins” in the Boston outfield. McCarthy had played for manager Frank Selee’s Oshkosh champions in the North Western League in 1887, and after four years in the American Association was reunited with Selee in Boston. Selee encouraged innovative baseball, and McCarthy is credited with perfecting, if not inventing, the hit-and-run; runner-to-batter signals; and an outfield trap, designed to freeze forced baserunners, where if the runner stayed on base McCarthy would trap the ball and get at least a forceout and possibly a double play. After retiring as a player, McCarthy scouted, coached several colleges, and ran a bowling alley and saloon with Duffy. The Veterans Committee elected him to the Hall of Fame in 1946.
