View source for John McGraw

{{Short description|American baseball player and manager (1873–1934)}}
{{for|other people named John McGraw}}
{{Use American English|date=November 2021}}
{{Featured article}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2021}} 
{{Infobox baseball biography
|image=John-McGraw-1910 (retouched).jpeg
|caption=McGraw in 1910
|position=[[Third baseman]] / [[Manager (baseball)|Manager]]
|birth_date={{birth date|1873|4|7}}
|birth_place=[[Truxton, New York]], U.S.
|death_date={{death date and age|1934|2|25|1873|4|7}}
|death_place=[[New Rochelle, New York]], U.S.
|bats=Left
|throws=Right
|debutleague = MLB
|debutdate=August 26
|debutyear=1891
|debutteam=Baltimore Orioles
|finalleague = MLB
|finaldate=September 12
|finalyear=1906
|finalteam=New York Giants
|statleague = MLB
|stat1label=[[Batting average (baseball)|Batting average]]
|stat1value=.334
|stat2label=[[Home run]]s
|stat2value=13
|stat3label=[[Runs batted in]]
|stat3value=462
|stat4label=[[Stolen base]]s
|stat4value=436
|stat5label=Games managed 
|stat5value=4,769
|stat6label=Managerial record
|stat6value=2,763–1,948-58
|stat7label=Winning %
|stat7value={{winning percentage|2763|1948}}
|teams=
'''As player'''
* [[Baltimore Orioles (1882–1899)|Baltimore Orioles (AA/NL)]] ({{mlby|1891}}&ndash;{{mlby|1899}})
* [[St. Louis Cardinals]] ({{mlby|1900}})
* [[Baltimore Orioles (AL)|Baltimore Orioles]] ({{mlby|1901}}–{{mlby|1902}})
* [[New York Giants (NL)|New York Giants]] ({{mlby|1902}}–{{mlby|1906}})
'''As manager'''
* [[Baltimore Orioles (1882–1899)|Baltimore Orioles (NL)]] ({{mlby|1899}})
* [[Baltimore Orioles (AL)|Baltimore Orioles]] ({{mlby|1901}}–{{mlby|1902}})
* [[New York Giants (NL)|New York Giants]] ({{mlby|1902}}–{{mlby|1932}})
|highlights=
* 3× [[World Series champion]] ({{wsy|1905}}, {{wsy|1921}}, {{wsy|1922}})
* [[San Francisco Giants#Retired numbers|Name honored]] by the Giants
|hoflink=National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
|hoftype=National
|hofdate=[[1937 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting|1937]]
|hofmethod=Centennial Commission
}}
'''John Joseph McGraw''' (April 7, 1873 – February 25, 1934) was an American [[Major League Baseball]] (MLB) player and [[manager (baseball)|manager]] who was for almost thirty years manager of the [[New York Giants (NL)|New York Giants]]. He was also the [[third baseman]] of the [[Pennant (sports)#Pennants as trophies|pennant]]-winning 1890s [[Baltimore Orioles (1882–1899)|Baltimore Orioles]] teams, noted for their innovative, aggressive play.

McGraw was born into poverty in [[Truxton, New York]]. He found an escape from his hometown and a bad family situation through baseball, beginning a quick rise through the [[minor leagues]] that led him to the Orioles at the age of 18. Under the tutelage of manager [[Ned Hanlon (baseball)|Ned Hanlon]], the Orioles of the 1890s won three [[National League (baseball)|National League]] (NL) pennants; McGraw was one of the stalwarts of the team alongside [[Wee Willie Keeler]], [[Hughie Jennings]], and [[Wilbert Robinson]]. The Orioles perfected the [[hit and run (baseball)|hit and run play]] and popularized the [[Baltimore chop]]; they also sought to win by intimidating the opposing team and the [[umpire (baseball)|umpire]].

The instability in MLB at the turn of the 20th century led to McGraw becoming manager of the Orioles at age 26 in 1899, and he was lauded for his leadership. The National League Orioles were dissolved after 1899, and McGraw spent one season with the [[St. Louis Cardinals]] before returning to Baltimore as player/manager of the new [[History of the New York Yankees#Background: 1901–1902 Baltimore Orioles|Orioles]] of the [[American League]] (AL). He quarreled with AL president [[Ban Johnson]] and jumped to the Giants in 1902, taking several Orioles players with him.

Through his just-short of thirty years managing the Giants, McGraw exerted control on players and team, and saw great success, winning ten pennants (matched only by [[Casey Stengel]], who played for and learned from him) and three [[World Series]]. His 2,763 victories as an MLB manager ranks third overall behind only [[Connie Mack]] and [[Tony La Russa]]; he holds the NL record with 31 seasons managed. Additionally, McGraw finished his managerial career 815 games over .500, more than any other manager in MLB history. This is 23 games more than [[Joe McCarthy (baseball manager)|Joe McCarthy]], who is second with 792 games over .500.<ref>{{Cite web |title=List of all baseball managers in the major leagues |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/managers/index.shtml |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240527043716/https://www.baseball-reference.com/managers/index.shtml |archive-date=May 27, 2024 |access-date=June 28, 2024 |website=[[Baseball-Reference.com]]}}</ref> McGraw is widely held to be one of the greatest managers in baseball history. He retired, ill, in 1932 and died less than two years later after making a final appearance [[1933 Major League Baseball All-Star Game|in 1933]] as NL manager in the first [[Major League Baseball All-Star Game|All-Star Game]].

==Early life==
McGraw's father (also named John) emigrated from [[Ireland]] in 1856. He arrived before the [[American Civil War|Civil War]], and served in the [[Union Army]]. He married, but his first wife soon died, leaving him with a young daughter, and he moved to [[Truxton, New York]], in 1871, where he became a railroad worker. There, he married young Ellen Comerfort. The younger John McGraw, her first child, was born in Truxton on April 7, 1873.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=9–10}}

The family was poor, with eight children, and there was no public assistance available. Young John had a love of baseball from an early age. By doing odd jobs, he was able to save a dollar and send off for one of the [[Spalding (company)|Spalding company's]] cheaper baseballs, which he used to practice his [[pitcher|pitching]].{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=20}}

Tragedy struck the family in the winter of 1885, when there was a [[diphtheria]] epidemic in the area. The disease killed Ellen McGraw and four of the McGraw children, including John's older half-sister. John Sr. never fully recovered from the trauma of the deaths. Father and son argued over the time young John spent on baseball, especially since the father had to pay for windows the son broke while playing. Later in 1885, after young John broke another window, the father became [[child abuse|abusive]], and the son ran away to a neighbor, Mary Goddard, who ran the local hotel. She persuaded John Sr. to let his son stay in her care.{{sfn|Klein 2016|pp=110–111}}

During his time in Goddard's household, John attended school and took on several jobs that allowed him to save money to buy baseballs and the [[Baseball Guides|Spalding magazines]] that documented the [[baseball rules|rule]] changes in the rival major leagues of baseball, the [[National League (baseball)|National League]] and the [[American Association (19th century)|American Association]]. He quickly became the best player on his school team.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=23–25}}

While in Goddard's care, he took a job delivering newspapers.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=13}} As a [[paperboy]], he met and struck up a friendship with [[Herman Pitz]], who was then playing [[minor league baseball]] in [[Elmira, New York|Elmira]]. McGraw began carrying Pitz's bags and was adopted as a [[mascot]] by the Elmira team.<ref>{{cite news |title=Pitz, Old-Time Brooklyn Baseball Players Is Dead |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-standard-union-pitz-old-timer-brook/146091346/ |access-date=April 26, 2024 |work=[[The Standard Union]] |date=September 5, 1924 |pages=15}}</ref>

Shortly after his 16th birthday, he began playing for his town's team, the Truxton Grays, making a favorable impression on their manager, Albert "Bert" Kenney. While he could play any position, his ability to throw a big [[curveball]] made him the star pitcher. McGraw's relationship with Kenney precipitated his professional playing career.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=23–25}}

==Playing career==

===Minor leagues===
In 1890, Kenney bought a portion of the new professional baseball franchise in [[Olean, New York]]. The team was to play in the newly formed [[New York–Pennsylvania League (1923–1937)|New York–Pennsylvania League]]. In return for this investment, he was named Olean's player/manager, responsible for selecting and signing players. When approached by McGraw, Kenney doubted the boy's curveball would fool professional ballplayers. Persuaded by the assurance McGraw could play any position, Kenney signed him to a contract on April 1, 1890.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=25}} McGraw would never return to live in Truxton, the place of his birth.{{sfn|Deford 2005|p=284}}

Olean was {{convert|200|mi}} from Truxton, and this was the farthest the youngster had ever traveled from his hometown. He began the season on the [[Glossary of baseball (B)|bench]]. After two days, Kenney inserted him into the starting lineup at third base. McGraw later described his first professional game:

<blockquote>[F]or the life of me, I could not run to get it. It seemed like an age before I could get the ball in my hands and then, as I looked over to first, it seemed like the longest throw I ever had to make. The [[first baseman]] was the tallest in the league, but I threw the ball far over his head.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=26}}</blockquote>

[[File:McGraw Olean.jpeg|thumb|left|McGraw while playing for Olean, 1890]]
Seven more [[error (baseball)|errors]] in nine more [[total chances|chances]] followed that day. Both the team and McGraw remained ineffective, and he was fired by Kenney after six games, though the captain gave him $70, {{Inflation|US|70|1890|fmt=eq}}, and wished him luck. He signed with a team in [[Wellsville, New York]], who played in the [[Western New York League]]. The level of baseball played there was the lowest of the minor leagues, and McGraw still struggled with his fielding. But during the 24 games he appeared in for the club, he hit with a [[batting average (baseball)|batting average]] of .365, a glimpse of his later hitting prowess.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=26–27}}

After that first season, McGraw caught on with the [[offseason]] team of promoter [[Alfred Lawson]]. McGraw joined the team in [[Ocala, Florida]], and the team sailed from Tampa to [[Havana, Cuba]], where they played the local teams in what was then a Spanish colony. McGraw, who played [[shortstop]], became a favorite of local fans, who dubbed him "''el mono amarillo''" (the yellow monkey), referring to his speed, his diminutive size, and the color of his team's uniforms.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=28–29}} McGraw fell in love with Cuba and returned there many times in later years.{{sfn|Klein 2016|pp=118–119}}

Lawson took his team to [[Gainesville, Florida]], in February 1891, and persuaded the National League [[Cleveland Spiders]] to play his team. McGraw hit three [[double (baseball)|doubles]] in five times [[at bat]], playing errorless ball at shortstop, and the reports of that game led several minor league teams to seek to sign him. Lawson acted as the boy's agent, and advised him to request $125 monthly and a $75 advance. The manager of the [[Cedar Rapids, Iowa|Cedar Rapids]] club in the [[Illinois–Iowa League]] was the first to wire the money, and McGraw signed with them. Other teams claimed that McGraw had also taken advance money from them (though McGraw maintained he returned it) and one even threatened legal action. This came to nothing, allowing McGraw to play with Cedar Rapids.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=29–30}}

By August, the league had financial woes but McGraw was hitting .275 and had become known as a tough shortstop. [[Billy Barnie]], manager of the American Association's [[Baltimore Orioles (1882–1899)|Baltimore Orioles]], had heard about McGraw, and wrote to the Rockford team's [[Bill Gleason]], a former Oriole, for a recommendation, which according to McGraw biographer Charles C. Alexander must have been favorable, as Barnie then wired Hank Smith, another former Oriole who was playing for Cedar Rapids, asking if there was any chance Baltimore could acquire McGraw. Cedar Rapids agreed to give McGraw his release, and he left by rail for Baltimore. McGraw arrived at [[Camden Station]] in Baltimore on August 24, 1891, still only 18 years old, but now a major-league baseball player. McGraw described his new home upon his arrival as "a dirty, dreary, ramshackle sort of place."{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=31–32}} Barnie was unimpressed by the short stature of the player he had recruited unseen, but McGraw assured him, "I'm bigger than I look."{{sfn|Klein 2016|p=120}}

===Baltimore years ===
====1891–1894====
[[Image:Stars players of the Baltimore Orioles.jpg|thumb|Baltimore's "Big Four": McGraw (standing, to the right), with outfielder [[Joe Kelley]] (seated left), shortstop [[Hughie Jennings]] (seated right), and Wee [[Willie Keeler]] (standing left)]]
During the short part of the 1891 season McGraw was with the Orioles, he hit .245. Initially he played shortstop, but his poor fielding (18 errors in 86 chances) caused Barnie, who quit before the end of the season, to try him at other positions.{{sfn|Klein 2016|p=121}} Despite his poor [[fielding percentage]], McGraw was quickly signed to a contract for 1892 by club owner [[Harry Von der Horst]]. The American Association failed after the 1891 season, and the Orioles and other surviving franchises moved to an expanded twelve-team National League.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=39}}

Early in the 1892 season, Von der Horst hired [[outfielder]] [[Ned Hanlon (baseball)|Ned Hanlon]] of the [[Pittsburgh Pirates]] to manage the Orioles.{{sfn|Solomon 2000|pp=44–45}} The Orioles lost over 100 games, finishing last by a wide margin. Of the seventeen players Hanlon inherited, he kept only three: pitcher [[Sadie McMahon]], [[catcher]] [[Wilbert Robinson]] and McGraw.{{sfn|Solomon 2000|pp=45–48}} According to baseball author Burt Solomon, "Hanlon saw that McGraw's value to the Orioles came less from his agility than from his intensity. He never gave up and had contempt for anyone who did, John McGraw could drive his teammates to another level of play."{{sfn|Solomon 2000|p=48}} But little of that showed in the 1892 season, in which McGraw hit .267 with 14 [[stolen base]]s while playing a variety of positions.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=42–43}} During the 1892–93 offseason, McGraw attended Allegany College (soon to be renamed [[St. Bonaventure University|St. Bonaventure]]), trading his skills as a baseball coach for the right to attend without paying tuition.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=45–46}}

In 1893, Hanlon secured [[Hughie Jennings]] from the [[Louisville Colonels]], a shortstop whose acquisition caused Hanlon to displace McGraw from that position.{{sfn|Solomon 2000|pp=52–54}} The team finished eighth in 1893,{{sfn|Voigt 1998|p=182}} while McGraw hit .327, second on the club to Robinson, and led the league in [[runs scored]]. He spent a second winter at St. Bonaventure, this time with Robinson as his assistant coach and fellow student. During the offseason, McGraw narrowly avoided being dealt to the woeful [[Washington Senators (1891–1899)|Washington Senators]] when a trade for [[Duke Farrell]] fell through.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=49–51}} Deciding McGraw could handle third base, Hanlon traded two [[infielder]]s for five-time [[List of Major League Baseball batting champions|batting champion]] [[Dan Brouthers]] and diminutive outfielder [[Willie Keeler]].{{sfn|Voigt 1998|pp=182–183}}

{{quote box | align = right | width = 25em | salign = right
| quote = By 1894, McGraw was settled in at third base. Under manager Ned Hanlon, an unerring talent spotter, the Orioles won three straight pennants, making them the second-best team of the decade. Boston, which won five pennants that decade, was better, but it is the Orioles who are remembered as the team of the '90s—not just for their skill, but also for their style. Aggressive and creative, the O's either invented or perfected the hit-and-run, the Baltimore chop, the suicide squeeze, and the bunt single. They also led the league in unsportsmanlike conduct.
| source = Cait N. Murphy (2007). ''Crazy '08: How a Cast of Cranks, Rogues, Boneheads, and Magnates Created the Greatest Year in Baseball History'', p. 18
}} 
The Orioles' 1894 spring training took place in [[Macon, Georgia]], where Hanlon taught the players innovative plays that he had thought of during his playing career, and in the evening, drilled them on baseball's rules and possible ways of taking advantage of them.{{sfn|Solomon 2000|pp=58–60}} The innovations of the Orioles of the mid-1890s would include the Baltimore chop, hitting a pitched ball so it would bounce high and allow the batter to reach first base safely, and having the pitcher cover first base when the first baseman fielded a ball that took him away from the base, and though they probably did not invent the hit and run, they were the first team to employ it as a regular maneuver.{{sfn|Klein 2016|pp=108–112}} McGraw often took the lead in the discussions. When the team played in New Orleans, a local sportswriter called him "a fine ball-player, yet he adopts every low and contemptible method that his erratic brain can conceive to win a play by a dirty trick".{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=52}} This included shoving, holding, and blocking baserunners,{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=52}} at a time when there was often only a single umpire. One baserunner, anticipating that McGraw would hold him by the belt, loosened it and when he broke for home, McGraw was left holding the belt in his hand as the runner scored.{{sfn|Felber 2007|pp=xiii, 12}}{{sfn|Deford 2005|pp=117–118}}

McGraw usually batted leadoff for the 1894 Orioles,{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=53}} batting .340 and stealing 78 bases, second in the league. He would [[Glossary of baseball (F)|foul off]] pitch after pitch—a valuable talent in the pre-1901 era in which foul balls generally did not count as [[Glossary of baseball (S)|strikes]]—and, with Keeler, "elevated into an art form" the [[Hit and run (baseball)|hit and run]].{{sfn|Klein 2016|pp=128–130}} Many of the players, including McGraw, lived in the same Baltimore boarding house, and talked baseball deep into the night. From such discussions arose the discovery that a runner on third had an excellent chance of scoring if he left at the pitcher's first motion and the batter [[bunt (baseball)|bunted]], originating the [[squeeze play (baseball)|squeeze play]].{{sfn|Solomon 2000|pp=70–71}} A reputation for dirty play led to McGraw being dubbed "Muggsy", a nickname he strongly disliked, by ''[[The Washington Post]]''.{{sfn|Voigt 1998|p=61}} The Orioles won their first pennant, besting the [[History of the New York Giants (baseball)|New York Giants]] and the [[Boston Beaneaters]]. Amid disputes over money, they lost the postseason [[Temple Cup]] series to the second-place Giants.{{sfn|Voigt 1998|pp=55–57}} After a brief visit to Truxton, McGraw spent the winter at St. Bonaventure.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=55}}

====1895–1899====
The Orioles' "Big Four" (McGraw, Jennings, Keeler and [[Joe Kelley]]) [[holdout (sports)|held out]] to start 1895, but came to terms with the club in time for spring training.{{sfn|Solomon 2000|pp=88–90}} By 1895, McGraw had become controversial for his aggressive style of play. Some writers urged Hanlon to rein him in, but others argued that fans were flocking to the ballpark to see such play.{{sfn|Voigt 1998|pp=60–63}} In spite of the controversy, the Orioles won their second consecutive pennant, though they lost the Temple Cup again, this time to the Spiders.{{sfn|Solomon 2000|pp=98–99}} McGraw, suffering from [[malaria]], missed part of the season,{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=60}} but hit .369 in 96 games, with 61 stolen bases and 110 runs scored.{{sfn|Solomon 2000|p=290}} McGraw again went to St. Bonaventure, returning to Baltimore when the fall term ended in mid-December.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=63–64}}

[[Image:1896 Baltimore Orioles.jpg|thumb|left|McGraw ''(2nd from left, front row)'' with the [[Baltimore Orioles (1882–1899)|1896 Baltimore Orioles]]]]
During 1896 spring training, McGraw fell ill with [[typhoid fever]] in Atlanta. By the time he had convalesced, in late August, the Orioles had nearly secured their third straight pennant, this time winning the Temple Cup over the Spiders in four games.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=65–67}} McGraw appeared in only 23 games for Baltimore, batting .325.{{sfn|Solomon 2000|p=290}} After the season, the Orioles had planned an exhibition tour of Europe, but it was canceled over concerns poor weather would preclude too many games. The Big Four went anyway, as tourists, visiting Britain, Belgium and France. Following their return, in February 1897, McGraw married Minnie Doyle, whose father was a city official. McGraw and the Orioles both had seasons that disappointed them in 1897, McGraw hitting .325, and the team plagued by injuries as Baltimore lost the pennant to the Beaneaters, though the Orioles won the final iteration of the Temple Cup.{{sfn|Solomon 2000|pp=110–123, 290}} In 1898, McGraw hit .342, but the Orioles finished second again, six games behind the Beaneaters.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=77–80}}

The Orioles' success on the field had not translated to increased attendance, which fell substantially as the Orioles won pennants, as violence on the field spread into the stands.{{sfn|Murphy 2007|pp=19–20}} The [[Spanish–American War]] of 1898 distracted the public from baseball, causing financial problems for the teams.{{sfn|Voigt 1998|pp=81–82}} Before the 1899 season, Van der Horst and Hanlon (a co-owner) bought half the shares in the Dodgers, while Brooklyn owners, led by [[Charlie Ebbets]], bought a 50 percent interest in the Orioles. Brooklyn drew better attendance than Baltimore, and under the arrangement, known as "syndicate baseball", manager Hanlon and the better Oriole players would move to Brooklyn. McGraw and Robinson, who had financial interests in Baltimore, refused to go and before the 1899 season, McGraw was made player/manager of the Orioles.{{sfn|Solomon 2000|pp=148–149, 156}}

McGraw schooled his players in the Orioles system, and led by example, hitting .391 for the season. To Hanlon's surprise, attendance in Baltimore rebounded, and the Orioles remained close to Brooklyn in the pennant race through late August, when McGraw had to leave the team due to the illness of his wife. By the time he returned, after her death, Brooklyn had clinched the pennant; the Orioles finished fourth.{{sfn|Voigt 1998|pp=93–95}} Nevertheless, for getting the castoff Orioles to perform so well amid his personal tragedy, McGraw was hailed as a managerial genius in the newspapers.{{sfn|Voigt 1998|p=96}}

=== St. Louis and American League Orioles ===
Syndicate baseball was insufficient to revive the finances of the National League, and before the 1900 season, four NL teams (including Baltimore) were ended. McGraw and Robinson were sold to the [[St. Louis Cardinals]]. They did not report until the season had begun, having secured increases in salary and a concession that their contracts would not contain the then-standard [[reserve clause]] that bound them to the signing team for the following season. Thus, they would be [[free agent#Major League Baseball (MLB) usage|free agents]] after the 1900 season.{{sfn|Solomon 2000|pp=179–193}} Injured for part of the season, McGraw hit .337 in 98 games as the Cardinals finished tied for fifth, but when manager [[Patsy Tebeau]] resigned in August, McGraw ruled out replacing him.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=92–93}}

[[Ban Johnson]], president of the minor league [[Western League (1885–1899)|Western League]], sought to build a second major league, which would seek to attract fans wanting baseball without rowdyism or aggression towards umpires. McGraw and Robinson, centerpieces of the old Orioles where such aggression was routine, were an odd fit, but as Johnson renamed his circuit the [[American League]] (AL) and sought to put franchises in abandoned NL cities like Baltimore, they became key to his plans. He was confident he could control them, since one of the requirements was that franchises grant the league an option to buy a majority stake and thus take them over if necessary.{{sfn|Solomon 2000|pp=199–201}}

Even while under contract to the Cardinals, McGraw and Robinson were involved in meetings aimed at upgrading the Western League to major league status, and on November 12, 1900, they signed an agreement with Johnson giving them exclusive rights to form an AL franchise in Baltimore, securing financial backing from local figures. McGraw spent much of the winter seeking to sign players. Among them was Charley Grant, an African-American second baseman who McGraw alleged was a Native American, but [[Charles Comiskey]], owner of the AL [[Chicago White Sox]], was undeceived, thus ending McGraw's only attempt to break the [[baseball color line]]—McGraw, like many of the time who grew up in the rural North, had no strong views about African Americans.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=95–97}} Thereafter, McGraw kept a file on talented African-American ballplayers, seeking to be prepared if the major leagues integrated, which did not happen in his lifetime.{{sfn|Halfon 2014|p=300}}

McGraw batted leadoff and managed the Orioles as [[Major League Baseball]] made its return to Baltimore in 1901, but missed games due to injuries and because of a suspension by Johnson for abusing the umpire. The Orioles finished fifth, McGraw batting .349 in 73 games. The team lost money.{{sfn|Solomon 2000|pp=206–211, 220, 290}} On January 8, 1902, McGraw married for the second time, to Blanche Sindall, whose father was a Baltimore housing contractor.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=105–107}}

===Statistics===

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! scope=col| Year 
! scope=col| Age 
! scope=col| Team 
! scope=col| {{Abbr|Lg|League}} 
! scope=col| [[Games played|GP]] 
! scope=col| [[at bat|AB]]
! scope=col| [[Run (baseball)|R]]
! scope=col|[[Hit (baseball)|H]]
! scope=col| [[Double (baseball)|2B]]
! scope=col| [[Triple (baseball)|3B]]
! scope=col| [[Home run|HR]]
! scope=col| [[Run batted in|RBI]]
! scope=col| [[Stolen base|SB]]
! scope=col| [[strikeout|SO]] 
! scope=col| [[Batting average (baseball)|BA]]
! scope=col| [[On-base percentage|OBP]]
! scope=col| [[Slugging percentage|SLG]]
! scope=col| [[On-base plus slugging|OPS]]
|-
! scope=row| 1891 
|| 18 || Baltimore Orioles || AA || 33 || 115 || 17 || 31 || 3 || 5 || 0 || 14 || 4 || 17 || .270 || .359 || .383 || .741
|-
! scope=row| 1892 
|| 19 || Baltimore Orioles || NL || 79 || 286 || 41 || 77 || 13 || 2 || 1 || 26 || 15 || 21 || .269 || .355 || .339 || .694
|-
! scope=row| 1893 
|| 20 || Baltimore Orioles || NL || 127 || 480 || 123 || 154 || 9 || 10 || 5 || 64 || 38 || 11 || .321 || .454 || .413 || .866
|-
! scope=row| 1894 
|| 21 || Baltimore Orioles || NL || 124 || 512 || 156 || 174 || 18 || 14 || 1 || 92 || 78 || 12 || .340 || .451 || .436 || .887
|-
! scope=row| 1895 
|| 22 || Baltimore Orioles || NL || 96 || 388 || 110 || 143 || 13 || 6 || 2 || 48 || 61 || 9 || .369 || .459 || .448 || .908
|-
! scope=row| 1896 
|| 23 || Baltimore Orioles || NL || 23 || 77 || 20 || 25 || 2 || 2 || 0 || 14 || 13 || 4 || .325 || .422 || .403 || .825
|-
! scope=row| 1897 
|| 24 || Baltimore Orioles || NL || 106 || 391 || 90 || 127 || 15 || 3 || 0 || 48 || 44 || 15 || .325 || .471 || .379 || .849
|-
! scope=row| 1898 
|| 25 || Baltimore Orioles || NL || 143 || 515 || 143 || 176 || 8 || 10 || 0 || 53 || 43 || 13 || .342 || .475 || .396 || .871
|-
! scope=row| 1899 
|| 26 || Baltimore Orioles || NL || 117 || 399 || 140 || 156 || 13 || 3 || 1 || 33 || 73 || 21 || .391 || .547 || .446 || .994
|-
! scope=row| 1900 
|| 27 || St. Louis Cardinals || NL || 99 || 334 || 84 || 115 || 10 || 4 || 2 || 33 || 29 || 9 || .344 || .505 || .416 || .921
|-
! scope=row| 1901 
|| 28 || Baltimore Orioles || AL || 73 || 232 || 71 || 81 || 14 || 9 || 0 || 28 || 24 || 6 || .349 || .508 || .487 || .995
|-
! scope=row| 1902 
|| 29 || Baltimore Orioles/New York Giants || AL/NL || 55 || 170 || 27 || 43 || 3 || 2 || 1 || 8 || 12 || 17 || .253 || .420 || .312 || .732
|-
! scope=row| 1903 
|| 30 || New York Giants || NL || 12 || 11 || 2 || 3 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 1 || 0 || .273 || .467 || .273 || .739
|-
! scope=row| 1904 
|| 31 || New York Giants || NL || 5 || 12 || 0 || 4 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || .333 || .467 || .333 || .800
|-
! scope=row| 1905 
|| 32 || New York Giants || NL || 3 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 ||  ||  ||  || 
|-
! scope=row| 1906 
|| 33 || New York Giants || NL || 4 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || .000 || .333 || .000 || .333
|}

==Manager of the New York Giants (1902–1932)==
=== Hiring ===
McGraw started the 1902 season with a knee injury; recovery from that, [[Suspension (punishment)#Sport|suspensions]] and a deep cut from the sharpened spikes of a baserunner meant he played few games for the Orioles. The team drifted between fifth and seventh in the league, and there was widespread talk that at the end of the season, Johnson would shift the team to New York.{{sfn|Solomon 2000|pp=226–227}} Although being a manager and part owner of a New York AL team would be a major opportunity for him, McGraw was convinced Johnson planned to discard him in the process.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=113}} According to Solomon, "so McGraw struck first. Any true Oriole would."{{sfn|Solomon 2000|p=227}}

On June 18, 1902, with the Orioles on a western road trip with Robinson as acting manager, McGraw (who was recuperating from the spiking) traveled to New York and met with [[Andrew Freedman]], owner of the Giants. The two came up with a scheme not only for McGraw to switch leagues but to cripple the Orioles and possibly the AL. When McGraw returned to the lineup on June 28, he provoked the umpire into kicking him out of the game and, when he refused to go, [[forfeit (baseball)|forfeiting the game]] to [[Boston Red Sox|Boston]]. This resulted in his indefinite suspension by Johnson.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=114}}

McGraw went to the directors of the Baltimore franchise, and demanded that either they reimburse the $7,000 he had advanced towards player salaries or that they release him.{{sfn|Solomon 2000|p=227}} The team agreed to his release on July 8, and McGraw sold his interest in the club to [[John Mahon (baseball)|John Mahon]], a team official and Joe Kelley's father in law. McGraw immediately announced he would sign to manage the Giants, which he did the next day. His salary of $11,000, {{Inflation|US|11000|1902|fmt=eq}}, was the largest of any player or manager in baseball history to that point.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=115}}{{sfn|Solomon 2000|p=221}}

Freedman then secured a controlling interest in the Orioles from Mahon, Kelley and others. Once he had done so, he directed the release of Orioles [[Joe McGinnity]], [[Dan McGann]], [[Roger Bresnahan]] and [[Jack Cronin]], all of whom promptly signed with the Giants. [[Cincinnati Reds]] owner [[John T. Brush]],{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=116–117}} who was also a minority owner of the Giants,{{sfn|Hynd 2019|p=132}} was in on the deal; he signed Kelley as manager of the Reds and also outfielder [[Cy Seymour]], both released by the Orioles. Baltimore was left with so few players it had to forfeit its next game; the crisis might have destroyed the American League had not Johnson acted decisively to take over the Baltimore franchise, getting the other seven teams to contribute players to the Orioles, who finished last.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=116–117}} After the season, the two leagues signed a peace agreement, and the AL replaced the Baltimore franchise with one in New York City.{{sfn|Appel 2012|pp=82–83}} That team became known as the Highlanders and later as the [[New York Yankees]].<ref>{{cite news|publisher=[[NBC Sports]]|last=Calcaterra|first=Craig|title=Today in Baseball History: the Yankees become the Yankees|date=April 10, 2020|access-date=November 23, 2020|url=https://mlb.nbcsports.com/2020/04/10/today-in-baseball-history-the-yankees-become-the-yankees/| url-status=live | archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211129/https://mlb.nbcsports.com/2020/04/10/today-in-baseball-history-the-yankees-become-the-yankees/| archive-date=November 29, 2021}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

According to Alexander, given a crisis in his professional life as Johnson sought to exclude him from the Orioles' move to New York, McGraw acted in a way that was "totally ruthless and unscrupulous".{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=117}} Baseball historian [[Fred Lieb]], who knew both men well, wrote that McGraw and Johnson never spoke again.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=117}}

=== 1902–1904 ===
{{quote box | align = right | width = 22em | salign = right
| quote = There is a story McGraw fired me the first day. That is a big lie. It was the second day. I hid in the clubhouse the first day.
| source = [[Jack Hendricks]], a Giants outfielder until shortly after McGraw became manager{{sfn|Graham 2002|pp=39–40}}}}

By the time the Giants returned from a road trip to meet McGraw at their home field, the [[Polo Grounds]], they had a record of 22–50{{efn|22 wins and 50 losses}} and were in last place in the NL. Not all of them got to return. McGraw released four of them by telegraph to Cincinnati, and two more when they returned to New York. McGraw played occasionally, and spent part of the season appearing in AL cities seeking to sign players, much to the discomfiture of the local team's management. The Giants finished last, and at the end of the season, Freedman sold the team to Brush (who had sold his interest in the Reds). With his knee injury robbing him of much of his skill,{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=121–124}} McGraw batted .286 in 20 games with Baltimore and .234 in 35 games with the Giants. It would be his last season as a full-time player, though he nominally remained on the roster until 1906.{{sfn|Solomon 2000|p=290}} One stratagem used by McGraw was to have pitcher [[Dummy Taylor]], who was deaf and could not speak, teach his teammates [[American Sign Language|sign language]], which both gave the team ways of communicating on the field and improved Taylor's relationship with his teammates. The Giants used sign language until Chicago's [[Johnny Evers]] detected and learned it.{{sfn|Halfon 2014|pp=248–250}}

McGraw's knee gave way in 1903 spring training, effectively sidelining him for the season; he was also injured early in the year by a ball thrown by Taylor that broke McGraw's nose. The cartilage did not heal properly, contributing to respiratory problems that plagued McGraw for the rest of his life. During spring training, McGraw took pains to cultivate the team's star, pitcher [[Christy Mathewson]], and the two men (with their wives, Blanche McGraw and Jane Mathewson) became so close that they shared an apartment in New York City.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=127–129}} McGraw also forged a strong relationship with the new Giants owner, Brush, according to baseball author Cait N. Murphy, "the partnership clicked: Brush signed the checks and did as McGraw ordered".{{sfn|Murphy 2007|pp=26–27}}

McGraw's new-look Giants got off to a [[Glossary of baseball (H)|hot]] start in 1903, and were in first place ahead of the two-time defending NL champion Pirates at the end of May, as crowds not seen in a decade flocked to the Polo Grounds. Still coming together as a team, they thereafter faded and finished second, {{frac|6|1|2}} games behind the Pirates, but McGinnity won 31 games while Mathewson won 30 and led the league in strikeouts.{{sfn|Klein 2016|pp=241–242}} As a player, McGraw appeared in 11 games and batted .273.{{sfn|Solomon 2000|p=290}} The Giants' success, and the controversy the belligerent McGraw aroused, meant they attracted larger crowds not only at the Polo Grounds, but on the road as well.{{sfn|Klein 2016|pp=252–253}} Leading the most hated team in the league, McGraw stated, "it is the prospect of a hot feud, that brings out the crowd."{{sfn|Klein 2016|pp=263–264}}

Before the 1904 season, McGraw deemed his team the strongest he had ever led, and predicted the Giants would win the pennant. The team played accordingly, and opened up a 15-game lead on the [[Chicago Cubs]] by the start of September. With the Highlanders leading the AL for much of the year (though they ultimately were defeated by Boston), there was intense pressure on McGraw and Brush to agree to a postseason series against the AL champions, what would later come to be known as the [[World Series]], like the Pirates had the previous year. Both men refused, McGraw stating that there was nothing in the league rules requiring its champions to play a series against "a victorious club in a minor league".{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=135–136}} According to Alexander, both men disliked Ban Johnson and feared losing the series to the AL champions, as the Pirates had in 1903. The Giants won the pennant, setting a major league record for victories (to that point) with 106.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=136–137}}

===1905–1908===
[[Image:Conference on the field at the Columbia Avenue Grounds, 1905 World Series.jpg|thumb|right|McGraw discusses an issue with an umpire and two members of the [[Philadelphia Athletics]] at [[Columbia Park]] during the [[1905 World Series]]]]
McGraw continued building his team in the 1904–1905 offseason, purchasing [[Sammy Strang]] from Brooklyn. As well as playing nearly every position, Strang pioneered a McGraw innovation, the [[pinch hitter]]; part of his job was to bat for other players.{{sfn|Klein 2016|p=290}} He schooled them in the aggressive techniques of the old Orioles, stating years later, “It was a team of fighters. They thought they could beat anybody and they generally could."{{sfn|Klein 2016|pp=302–303}} The team was never really threatened in its drive to a second consecutive pennant, and McGraw always stated this was the best team he ever managed. It won 105 games; the Pirates finished second, nine games behind.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=139–140}} McGraw was [[Ejection (sports)#Baseball|ejected]] from games 13 times, a personal record,{{sfn|Murphy 2007|p=28}} and Pittsburgh owner [[Barney Dreyfuss]] sought to have McGraw disciplined after the manager shouted accusations at him after one ejection. The league Board of Directors refused to suspend McGraw, and when NL president [[Harry Pulliam]] suspended McGraw for 15 games for accusing Pulliam of being Dreyfuss's lackey, the suspension was overturned by a court.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=141–142}} This time, the Giants had no objection to playing a postseason series against the AL champions, the [[Philadelphia Athletics]], managed by [[Connie Mack]]. The [[1905 World Series]] saw a great exhibition of pitching, as every game ended in a [[shutouts in baseball|shutout]], three of them pitched by Mathewson and one by McGinnity. The Giants won, four games to one. McGraw was rewarded with a new contract at $15,000 per year.{{sfn|Klein 2016|pp=329–336}} The victory made the Giants heroes in a city that always admired winners, and McGraw one of the most prominent people in New York.{{sfn|Klein 2016|pp=338–339}}

Confident of a third-straight NL championship, McGraw put "World's Champions" on the front of his team's uniforms. But the drive for that was slowed by Mathewson getting diphtheria, and outfielder [[Mike Donlin]] broke a leg;{{sfn|Murphy 2007|p=28}} The Giants finished second, twenty games behind the Cubs.{{sfn|Murphy 2007|p=28}} McGraw played the last games of his playing career, going hitless in two plate appearances in the four games he played.{{sfn|Solomon 2000|p=290}} His .466 career [[on-base percentage]] remains third-best all-time behind [[Ted Williams]] (.482) and [[Babe Ruth]] (.474).<ref name = "sabr" />

McGraw made few changes for the 1907 Giants. But by mid-July, the Cubs pulled away and New York finished in fourth place, {{frac|25|1|2}} games behind.{{sfn|Klein 2016|pp=388–394}} McGraw later stated, "It was in 1907 that I discovered my players were growing old and beginning to slip. Always I have made it a point never to let a club grow old on me."{{sfn|Klein 2016|p=400}}
{{quote box | align = right | width = 22em | salign = right
| quote = He was a wonderful man, a real fighter&nbsp;... Anybody wanted to argue, he was ready. I got along with him fine. He only suspended me once, for two weeks. It was on account of I socked him.
| source = [[Al Bridwell]], a Giant from 1908 to 1911{{sfn|Halfon 2014|p=375}}}}

McGraw brought an unusual number of rookies to spring training in [[Marlin, Texas]], to train alongside the remaining veterans such as Mathewson. Despite low expectations, in early July only a game and a half separated the Cubs, Giants and Pirates.{{sfn|Klein 2016|pp=423–430}} The crucial game of the season was on September 23 against the Cubs: with the score tied in the ninth inning and two outs, [[Al Bridwell]] [[Glossary of baseball (L)|lined]] a ball cleanly into center field, scoring the apparent winning run. In a play immortalized as "[[Merkle's Boner]]", rookie [[Fred Merkle]], on first base, did not touch second base, but headed for the clubhouse. This was not unusual at the time, but Chicago second baseman Johnny Evers recovered the ball and stepped on second base. The umpires ruled Merkle out, and the game a tie.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=163–167}} The [[replay (sports)#Baseball|makeup game]], to break a tie for first place, was held before a crowd of as many as 40,000, plus many more outside the Polo Grounds. The Giants lost the game and the pennant, 4–2. Despite the incident, McGraw urged Merkle to put the matter behind him, and when Merkle received his 1909 contract, he found McGraw had given him a raise of $300.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=169–171}}

=== 1909–1914 ===
Although many of the Giants had played well in 1908—Mathewson had won 37 games, although defeated in the final game against Chicago—McGraw saw a need to rebuild the team. McGinnity was released late in 1908, as was Dummy Taylor, while Bresnahan was dealt to St. Louis, allowing him to become the Cardinals' manager.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=176–177}} McGraw made baseball history by hiring the first full-time coach to assist him, [[Arlie Latham]].{{sfn|Klein 2016|pp=550–561}} During the 1909 season, the young players were not yet fully developed, while the older ones continued to slip. The Giants finished third, well behind the pennant-winning Pirates.{{sfn|Klein 2016|pp=567–568}} In 1910, Mathewson had another standout season, but the pitching was otherwise erratic, as the Giants finished a distant second to the Cubs. That offseason, content with his maturing team, for the first time in several years, McGraw made no trades with other teams.{{sfn|Klein 2016|pp=594–605}}

The Giants' 1911 season started inauspiciously when the Polo Grounds burned down the night after the team's opening day loss. The team moved temporarily to [[Hilltop Park]], home of the Highlanders. The young and fast Giants would set a record for stolen bases with 347, which is the most for any team in a post-1900 season. The Giants languished in third as late as August but they soon grew hot and rallied to win the pennant. Some credited the Giants' success to the presence, as mascot and good-luck charm, of would-be pitcher [[Charles Faust]], whom McGraw, who like many of his players was superstitious, allowed to sit on the bench in uniform as mascot. The Giants lost the [[1911 World Series]] to the Athletics in six games.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=187–195}}<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Statmuse|title=The St. Louis Browns have the most stolen bases by a team in a season, with 581 steals in 1887|access-date=March 1, 2021|url=https://www.statmuse.com/mlb/ask/which-team-has-the-most-stolen-bases-in-a-season| url-status=live | archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211129/https://www.statmuse.com/mlb/ask/which-team-has-the-most-stolen-bases-in-a-season| archive-date=November 29, 2021}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

[[Image:Managers John McGraw, New York NL, and Jake Stahl, Boston AL, at World Series (baseball) (LOC).jpg|left|thumb|John McGraw greets fellow manager [[Jake Stahl]] at the [[1912 World Series]].]]
Although McGraw considered that Faust had expired as a good-luck charm, he allowed him to sit in the Giants' dugout in street clothes and the Giants won 54 of the first 66 games of their 1912 season, pitcher [[Rube Marquard]] winning 19 in a row (21 counting two wins in 1911). Both the team and Marquand slumped beginning in early July, the Cubs getting to within {{frac|3|1|2}} games, but the Giants resurged to win their second consecutive league championship. In the [[1912 World Series]], the Giants were defeated by the [[Boston Red Sox]], four games to three, with one tie. The Giants had the lead, and Mathewson on the mound, going into the bottom of the tenth inning of the decisive Game Eight, but fielding mistakes, including a notorious "[[Glossary of baseball (M)|muff]]" by [[Fred Snodgrass]], helped defeat the Giants.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=198–203}}

After the 1912 season, McGraw spent several months as a [[vaudeville]] performer; his pay of $3,000 a week was the highest in the industry at the time. Brush died after the season; control of the Giants passed to his heirs, including [[Harry Hempstead]], the new team president, who gave the manager a new five-year contract for $30,000 per year. Before the 1913 season, McGraw signed Olympic [[decathlon|decathlete]] [[Jim Thorpe]] to a contract. The signing was something of a stunt, but McGraw apparently hoped Thorpe's athleticism would help him develop into a competent major leaguer.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=204–206}} Instead, Thorpe played sporadically for three different teams over six seasons.<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Campagna|first=Jeff|title=Wishing Jim Thorpe a Happy Birthday|magazine=Smithsonian|date=May 28, 2010|url=http://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/wishing-jim-thorpe-a-happy-birthday-133250524/ | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210722193215/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/wishing-jim-thorpe-a-happy-birthday-133250524/| archive-date=July 22, 2021|access-date=July 20, 2021}}</ref>

The Giants won their third straight pennant in 1913, finishing {{frac|12|1|2}} games in front of the Phillies.{{sfn|Hynd 2019|pp=262–266}} The Giants lost their [[1913 World Series|third straight World Series]], to the Athletics in five games, becoming the more recent (after the [[Detroit Tigers]] of 1907–1909) of the two teams who lost World Series in three consecutive years.<ref name = "ws">{{cite web|title=World Series winners|publisher=[[Sports Reference, LLC]]|website=Baseball Reference|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/postseason/world-series.shtml| url-status=live | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200502001607/https://www.baseball-reference.com/postseason/world-series.shtml| archive-date=May 2, 2020|access-date=May 12, 2021}}</ref>

Contemporary commentators attributed the lack of success shown by McGraw's Giants in the World Series to his preference for players that fit his system rather than seeking the best players. Others suggested his players mentally froze at key moments out of fear of letting down McGraw, and Mathewson, in a column published under his name after the 1913 season, called the Giants a "team of puppets being manipulated from the bench on a string".<ref name = "sabr" >{{cite web|title=John McGraw|last=Jensen|first=Don|publisher=[[Society for American Baseball Research]]|url=https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/john-mcgraw-2| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211129/https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/john-mcgraw-2| archive-date=November 29, 2021|access-date=June 29, 2021}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

During the 1913–14 offseason, John McGraw and White Sox owner Comiskey led two teams of baseball players around the world. Blanche McGraw accompanied her husband on the tour.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=231–236}} Before the 1914 season, backers of a new major league, the [[Federal League]], sought to attract prominent players and managers, including McGraw, who reportedly was offered up to $100,000 to [[Glossary of baseball (J)|jump]] to the Federals. He did not, and the Giants led the league on the [[Fourth of July]], with the [[Boston Braves (baseball)|Boston Braves]] in last place. The Braves then began [[1914 Boston Braves season|a legendary turnaround]] and within six weeks were close behind the Giants. Boston defeated the Giants on [[Labor Day (United States)|Labor Day]], and finished first, ahead of the Giants by {{frac|10|1|2}} games. McGraw grew surly as his team collapsed, accusing players of overconfidence, and though the Giants played a postseason exhibition series against the Yankees, he did not manage them there, attending [[1914 World Series|the World Series]] instead.{{sfn|Hynd 2019|pp=274–275}}

=== 1915–1919 ===
[[File:(John McGraw & Buck Herzog, New York NL, and Christy Mathewson, Cincinnati NL (baseball)) LOC 14357317391.jpg|thumb|right|McGraw (left) with [[Buck Herzog]] and Mathewson, 1916]]
The Giants finished last in 1915; Mathewson won only eight games (he would win only four more after 1915), and McGraw discarded Marquand, Snodgrass and Thorpe.{{sfn|Hynd 2019|pp=283–284}}{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=245}} The 1916 Giants were a team in transition, as McGraw traded some of the last players from the 1911–1913 teams. Mathewson was sent to Cincinnati. McGraw was emotional at Mathewson's departure, and was widely praised for giving him the opportunity to start a managerial career with the Reds, but may have resented the Mathewson column following the 1913 World Series. The Giants attracted large crowds to the Polo Grounds in September by winning 26 games in a row (still an MLB record as of 2021) but finished only fourth.{{sfn|Hynd 2019|pp=287–288}}{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=251–255}}

Content with his team, McGraw made few changes before the 1917 season. Alexander described the 1917 Giants as "basically mediocre".{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=259–260}} By early June, the Giants were moving to a comfortable lead in the standings, one they held all season. McGraw was fined and suspended by the league for attacking umpire [[Lord Byron (umpire)|Bill Byron]] after a June 7 game in Cincinnati a suspension that was doubled when he made disparaging comments about league president [[John Tener]]. Nevertheless, the Giants won the pennant by 11 games over the Phillies. The Giants faced the White Sox in the [[1917 World Series]], a team with far better players than the Giants had, such as [[Eddie Collins]] and [[Shoeless Joe Jackson]], and lost in six games.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=260–265}}

The Giants were heavily favored to win the pennant again in 1918.{{sfn|Graham 2002|p=105}} They stayed close to the lead in the early part of the season, but due to players entering the military to fight in [[World War I]] (to which the patriotic McGraw did not object), did not have talent enough to catch the Cubs, who finished ahead of the Giants by {{frac|10|1|2}} games.{{sfn|Hynd 2019|p=308}} In the winter of 1918–19, after learning that Hempstead and the other Brush heirs wanted to sell, McGraw set about finding a buyer. He eventually found one in stockbroker [[Charles Stoneham]], who, as part of the deal, took McGraw as a partner, and made him the team's vice president. McGraw bought his minority stake in the Giants with money loaned to him by Stoneham.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://sabr.org/node/41118| url-status=live | archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211129/https://sabr.org/node/41118| archive-date=November 29, 2021|title=Frank McQuade|author1=Bill Lamb|publisher=[[Society for American Baseball Research]]|date=2017}}{{cbignore}}</ref>{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=275}} The new owner of the Giants voiced full confidence in McGraw, and gave him a free hand in baseball matters; he was more than willing to provide funds to make the player transactions McGraw wanted.{{sfn|Graham 2002|pp= 106–109}}

In 1919, the Giants got out to their usual hot start, winning 24 of their first 32 games. Giants players [[Hal Chase]] and [[Heinie Zimmerman]] may have helped to [[match fixing|throw key games]] against Cincinnati during the season as the Giants finished second to the Reds. After it became clear how corrupt gambling had influenced baseball during the 1919 season (the season of the infamous [[Black Sox Scandal|Chicago "Black Sox"]]), McGraw claimed to have taken action against both players, but though he suspended Zimmerman in mid-September, Chase remained with the Giants almost until the end of the season.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=270–283}}

In 1920, the Giants were again a team in transition, with several older players remaining plus youngsters such as [[Ross Youngs]] and [[Frankie Frisch]]. There were setbacks, such as Frisch's absence due to [[appendicitis]] and two short suspensions for McGraw, who got into a (possibly alcohol-fueled) brawl at the [[The Lambs|Lambs' Club]] on August 8, and secluded himself in his apartment. In his absence, Johnny Evers, the coach, ran the team, though McGraw eventually allowed himself to be questioned by local prosecutors, as well as federal agents seeking to enforce the [[Prohibition era]] [[Volstead Act]]. McGraw eventually rejoined his team, but they could not overcome their deficit in the standings, and finished second again, behind Brooklyn.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=285–294}} McGraw was acquitted of violating the Volstead Act by a federal jury.{{sfn|Hynd 2019|p=222}}

=== 1921–1924 ===
[[File:Babe Ruth & John McGraw, New York NL (baseball) LCCN2014716573.jpg|thumb|right|McGraw (right) with [[Babe Ruth]]]]
At the start of the 1921 season, McGraw felt that he had assembled his best team ever. This did not stop him from fiddling with his roster, as he in mid-season made a deal with the Phillies, acquiring, among others, [[Johnny Rawlings]], [[Irish Meusel]] and [[Casey Stengel]]. The acquisition of Meusel allowed McGraw to shift Frisch to third base, while that of Stengel allowed McGraw to [[platoon (baseball)|platoon]]{{efn|That is, playing different players depending on whether the opposing pitcher is left- or right-handed, since right-handed batters are usually better able to hit left-handed pitchers, and left-handed batters better able to hit right-handed pitchers.}} his outfielders.{{sfn|Hynd 2019|p=323}} Stengel initially did not receive much playing time, which proved a boon to his own future career as a manager: not only did he get to watch McGraw in action on the bench, but often spent the night at the McGraw house, talking baseball until dawn. He watched as the Giants fell {{frac|7|1|2}} games behind the Pirates, [[Glossary of baseball (S)|swept]] them in a five-game series in late August, passed them on September 11, and won the pennant by four games.{{sfn|Goldman 2005|pp=76–77}}

The [[1921 World Series]] was against the New York Yankees.<ref name = "sabr" /> Tenants of the Giants at the Polo Grounds, the Yankees had substantially outdrawn their landlords since acquiring [[wiktionary:Slugger|slugger]] Babe Ruth before the 1920 season. Facing serious competition for the money of the New York sports fan for the first time, Stoneham and McGraw had considered evicting the Yankees after the AL team set an MLB record by drawing more than a million fans in 1920, but had settled for a substantial rent increase.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=288}} McGraw, a practitioner of [[Inside baseball (strategy)|inside baseball]], was also offended by the Yankee game strategy, which seemed little more than to get on base and wait for Ruth to hit a [[home run]].{{sfn|Hynd 2019|p=323}} In 1921, while winning their first pennant, the Yankees again outdrew the Giants as Ruth hit 59 home runs. The Giants were shut out in the first two games of the best-of-nine series, but McGraw was confident his team would begin hitting. They did so in winning five of the next six games, with the Yankees hampered by an injury to Ruth that limited him, in the final games, to a pinch-hitting appearance in Game Eight. Manager of the World Series champion for the first time since 1905, McGraw stated, "I have the greatest baseball team in the world. And unquestionably the gamest."{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=308–309}}

Before the 1922 season, Stoneham gave McGraw a new five-year contract for $50,000 per year, a $10,000 raise, making McGraw the highest-paid figure in baseball excepting Ruth and [[Kenesaw Mountain Landis]], the [[Commissioner of Baseball]].{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=309}} McGraw made several player transactions before the season, acquiring [[Heinie Groh]] and [[Jimmy O'Connell (baseball)|Jimmy O'Connell]].{{sfn|Hynd 2019|p=333}} McGraw also persuaded [[Bill Terry]], who would succeed him as manager, to sign with the Giants as a player, although Terry, who had a well-paying job with [[Standard Oil]], was reluctant to sign.{{sfn|Graham 2002|pp=131–133}} The Giants led the standings for most of the 1922 season, winning their second straight pennant. According to Alexander, "if it wasn't a great team, it was a very good one, a talented, experienced, smart bunch of ballplayers, virtually all of whom readily accepted the common estimate that, whatever his faults as a man, John McGraw was the greatest manager who'd ever lived."{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=311–316}} In the [[1922 World Series]], restored to a best-of-seven format, the Giants beat the Yankees four games to none, with one tie, as Giant pitchers held Ruth to only two hits and a .118 batting average.{{sfn|Graham 2002|p=142}} Not only had the Giants defeated the Yankees, but they evicted them as well: Stoneham had informed the Yankees they could not remain at the Polo Grounds beyond 1922 and [[Yankee Stadium (1923)|Yankee Stadium]] was being built across the [[Harlem River]] from the Polo Grounds.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=318–319}}

Before the 1923 season, McGraw published his memoirs, ''My Thirty Years in Baseball''. The 1923 season saw the Giants in first place the whole season, though they did not run away from the field, earning their third straight pennant. In the [[1923 World Series]], though, the Yankees defeated the Giants four games to two, both won on home runs by McGraw's disciple, Stengel. McGraw had taken pride that Ruth had been held in check during the first two Yankees–Giants World Series, but in the 1923 series, he hit three home runs. The bitterness between the two teams had grown stronger after McGraw refused the Yankees permission to substitute rookie [[Lou Gehrig]] on the World Series roster for the injured [[Wally Pipp]]; although Gehrig had joined the Yankees too late in the season to be eligible, the team had obtained Landis's permission (subject to the opposing team's consent) and similar substitutions had been made in earlier years.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=319–321}} After the season, McGraw sought to rebuild the Giants, making room for young players such as Terry by trading veterans such as Stengel.{{sfn|Hynd 2019|pp=359–360}}

[[File:John McGraw 1924.jpg|thumb|left|McGraw in 1924]]
In 1924, the Giants were challenged by Brooklyn, managed by Robinson. Brooklyn got off to a league-leading start and remained close, taking the league lead for a few hours on September 6 before the Giants won the second game of a doubleheader to edge back ahead. McGraw missed part of the season due to illness, and the Giants were managed by coach Hughie Jennings, McGraw's teammate with the old Orioles. The Giants won the pennant by beating the Phillies in the third-to-last game of the season, but the pennant was marred when Landis expelled O'Connell and coach [[Cozy Dolan (1910s outfielder)|Cozy Dolan]] of the Giants from baseball for trying to bribe Phillies shortstop [[Heinie Sand]].{{sfn|Hynd 2019|pp=374–375}} Of the gambling scandals in baseball that had followed Landis's banning of the Black Sox, this was the second to involve the Giants: in 1922, pitcher [[Phil Douglas (baseball)|Phil Douglas]] had been banned for life by Landis for an attempt to bribe [[Leslie Mann (athlete)|Leslie Mann]] of the Cardinals.{{sfn|Graham 2002|p=137}} Although Dolan was a close ally of McGraw, who had once said he would be willing to kill a man for him, little suspicion fell on McGraw, who despite his violent reputation, was believed to be honest. In the [[1924 World Series]], the Giants were defeated in seven games by the [[History of the Washington Senators (1901–1960)|Washington Senators]].{{sfn|Graham 2002|pp=155–157}} Nevertheless, the four straight pennants made the Giants the first team to play in four consecutive World Series, as of 2021 a feat equaled or bettered only by the Yankees of 1936–1939, 1949–1953, 1955–1958, 1960–1964 and 1998–2001.<ref name = "ws" />

=== 1925–1931 ===
During the remainder of McGraw's career, the Giants fielded some capable teams, but none proved good enough to win the pennant.<ref name = "sabr" /> The Giants were expected to win a fifth straight NL pennant in 1925, but early injuries forced them back, allowing the Pirates to take an early lead.{{sfn|Hynd 2019|p=387}} In 1925, the Giants lost a series to the Pirates in August with both teams fighting for the league lead, could not recover, and finished {{frac|8|1|2}} games back.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=343–345}} The 1926 season saw the debut of sixteen-year-old [[Mel Ott]],{{sfn|Graham 2002|pp=160–161}} but the Giants finished with a losing record, 74–77, in fifth place, the worst finish since 1915.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=351}} It was a bad year financially for McGraw, caught up in 
the [[Florida land boom]] at the Giants' spring training site at [[Sarasota, Florida|Sarasota]]. As McGraw's name had been used to sell lots,{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=349–351}} to preserve his reputation, he repaid investors $100,000.{{sfn|Hynd 2019|p=403}}

Before the 1927 season, McGraw sent Frisch and [[Jimmy Ring]] to the Cardinals for their second-baseman player/manager, [[Rogers Hornsby]].{{sfn|Graham 2002|pp=166–167}} The trade of Hornsby, the World Series-winning manager for Frisch was, according to Alexander, likely the most sensational in baseball history to that point.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=351}} Hornsby led the Giants as acting manager, as McGraw missed several games in the second half of the season due to [[sinusitis]]. Despite being in the pennant race almost until the end, the Giants finished third, two games behind the Pirates. After the season, Hornsby, who had hit .361, second in the league, but had quarreled with Giants team officials, was traded to the Braves.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=356–359}}

Despite the loss of Hornsby, McGraw was convinced his 1928 team would win the pennant. The team was buoyed by the signing of pitcher [[Carl Hubbell]], the team stayed in the hunt most of the way, but finished second, two games behind the Cardinals. Critics of McGraw stated that Giant castoff Hornsby had led the league in hitting, while pitcher [[Burleigh Grimes]], also traded away by McGraw, had won 25 games, and if he had kept them, the Giants would have won the pennant.{{sfn|Graham 2002|pp=178–183}} In 1929, the Giants were no match for the Hornsby-led Cubs, who led the league by {{frac|10|1|2}} games and the Giants by 20 by the end of July. With little chance of a pennant, McGraw missed many games, ill at home, or scouting players, entrusting the team to [[Ray Schalk]].{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=370–371}} The Giants finished third.{{sfn|Graham 2002|p=185}} In 1930, McGraw's Giants were in the pennant race almost until the end, but finished third, five games behind the Cardinals.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=375–376}} In 1931, despite high expectations from McGraw, the Giants finished second, 13 games behind the Cardinals.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=381–384}}

== Retirement and death ==
{{quote box | align = right | width = 22em | salign = right
| quote = [McGraw] will long be remembered as the argumentative, profane, belligerent leader of the New York Giants who took no prisoners in a battle for baseball supremacy. Opposing clubs had to prepare for any eventuality when they faced him. The Reds, for example, worried that he contaminated their drinking water, forcing them to bring their own supply to the Polo Grounds. McGraw may not have tainted the water, but it was not beneath him, and, in any case, Cincinnati’s concern gave the Giants an edge.
| source =Mark S. Halfon. ''Tales from the Deadball Era'' (2014), pp. 384–385}}

McGraw believed his 1932 team capable of winning the pennant, but the Giants got off to a poor start.{{sfn|Graham 2002|pp=192–196}} McGraw missed much of a western road trip with illness, allowing Bancroft to manage during the subsequent [[series (baseball)|homestand]], or running the team from the clubhouse. By June 1, the team had fallen into last place.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=389–390}} Some players by then were hostile to McGraw, resentful that he insisted on calling every pitch and, off the field, controlling their lifestyle. Enduring an increasing number of health issues, McGraw decided he could not go on as manager.{{sfn|Hynd 2019|pp=416–417}}

Frisch was McGraw's first choice as replacement, but the Cardinals, for whom Frisch was playing, refused. Bancroft was ruled out by his past failures as a manager for the Braves. Terry was the strongest candidate, and, after McGraw sounded him out, he became manager on June 3, 1932. McGraw remained as vice president.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=390–391}}

During the remainder of the season, McGraw kept out of the way as Terry, who relaxed some of McGraw's strict rules for the players, led the team to a sixth-place finish. After spending much of the offseason in Cuba, McGraw was cheered by the crowd on opening day at the Polo Grounds.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=393}} When [[1933 Major League Baseball All-Star Game|the first All-Star Game]] was held in July 1933, McGraw was named as manager of the NL team, opposing Connie Mack, still managing the Athletics. Although he named the NL starting lineup, he took little part in managing the game itself, leaving that for Frisch and Terry as the AL beat the NL, 4–2. He stated he would not manage again, "I'm through with it. I have quit."{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=394–395}}

The Giants won the 1933 NL pennant. McGraw was present for all five games of the [[1933 World Series]], in which the Giants defeated the Senators, and spoke at the celebration at [[New York City Hall]]. By this time, he had been diagnosed with [[prostate cancer]], which had spread. McGraw spent much of late 1933 and early 1934 at home with his wife Blanche in [[Pelham Manor, New York]], going now and then to the Giants offices in Manhattan, and was even able to attend the NL meetings in New York. He was admitted to the hospital in [[New Rochelle, New York|New Rochelle]] on February 16. His wife remained with him, and he received visits from Stoneham and others. On February 24, he slipped into a coma, and was given the last rites of the Catholic Church. He died the following morning, aged 60.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=395–398}}

Commissioner Landis stated that McGraw personified "the virile competitive nature of baseball".{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=398}} Terry called him, "far and away the greatest baseball manager of all time".{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=398}} [[Ty Cobb]] called McGraw someone, "who put everything he had into baseball, both as a player and manager&nbsp;... the game needs more like him".{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=398}} The funeral mass took place at [[St. Patrick's Cathedral (Manhattan)|St. Patrick's Cathedral]] in New York on February 28, after which McGraw's body was conveyed by train to Baltimore, where it was placed in a vault at New Cathedral Cemetery, pending burial in the spring.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=399–400}}

==Managerial statistics==
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%; text-align:center;"
|-
! rowspan="2"|Team !! rowspan="2"|Year !! colspan="5"|Regular season !! colspan="4"|Postseason
|-
! scope=col| Games 
! scope=col| Won 
! scope=col| Lost 
! scope=col| [[Winning percentage|Pct.]]
! scope=col| Games
! scope=col| Won
! scope=col| Lost
! scope=col| Pct.
! scope=col| Notes
|-
![[1899 Baltimore Orioles season|BLN]]|| 1899
||148||{{WinLossPct|86|62}}|| 4th in NL || – || – || – || –
|-
! colspan="2"|BLN total ||148||{{WinLossPct|86|62}}|| || {{WinLossPct|0|0}} ||
|-
![[1901 Baltimore Orioles season|BAL]]|| 1901
||133||{{WinLossPct|68|65}}|| 5th in AL || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1902 Baltimore Orioles season|BAL]]|| 1902
||57||{{WinLossPct|26|31}}|| dismissed* || – || – || – || –
|-
! colspan="2"|BAL total ||190||{{WinLossPct|94|96}}|| || {{WinLossPct|0|0}} ||
|-
![[1902 New York Giants season|NYG]]|| 1902
||63||{{WinLossPct|25|38}}|| 8th in NL || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1903 New York Giants season|NYG]]|| 1903
||139||{{WinLossPct|84|55}}|| 2nd in NL || – || – || – || –
|-style="background:#fdd"
![[1904 New York Giants season|NYG]]|| 1904
||153||{{WinLossPct|106|47}}|| '''1st in NL''' || 0 || 0 || – || [[1904 World Series|World Series]] not played ([[1904 Boston Americans season|BOA]])
|-style="background:#fde910"
![[1905 New York Giants season|NYG]]|| 1905
||153||{{WinLossPct|105|48}}|| '''1st in NL''' || {{WinLossPct|4|1}} || '''Won [[1905 World Series|World Series]] ([[1905 Philadelphia Athletics season|PHA]])'''
|-
![[1906 New York Giants season|NYG]]|| 1906
||152||{{WinLossPct|96|56}}|| 2nd in NL || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1907 New York Giants season|NYG]]|| 1907
||153||{{WinLossPct|82|71}}|| 4th in NL || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1908 New York Giants season|NYG]]|| 1908
||154||{{WinLossPct|98|56}}|| 3rd in NL || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1909 New York Giants season|NYG]]|| 1909
||153||{{WinLossPct|92|61}}|| 3rd in NL || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1910 New York Giants season|NYG]]|| 1910
||154||{{WinLossPct|91|63}}|| 2nd in NL || – || – || – || –
|-style="background:#fdd"
![[1911 New York Giants season|NYG]]|| 1911
||153||{{WinLossPct|99|54}}|| '''1st in NL''' || {{WinLossPct|2|4}} || Lost [[1911 World Series|World Series]] ([[1911 Philadelphia Athletics season|PHA]])
|-style="background:#fdd"
![[1912 New York Giants season|NYG]]|| 1912
||151||{{WinLossPct|103|48}}|| '''1st in NL''' || {{WinLossPct|3|4}} || Lost [[1912 World Series|World Series]] ([[1912 Boston Red Sox season|BOS]])
|-style="background:#fdd"
![[1913 New York Giants season|NYG]]|| 1913
||152||{{WinLossPct|101|51}}|| '''1st in NL''' || {{WinLossPct|1|4}} || Lost [[1913 World Series|World Series]] ([[1913 Philadelphia Athletics season|PHA]])
|-
![[1914 New York Giants season|NYG]]|| 1914
||154||{{WinLossPct|84|70}}|| 2nd in NL || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1915 New York Giants season|NYG]]|| 1915
||152||{{WinLossPct|69|83}}|| 8th in NL || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1916 New York Giants season|NYG]]|| 1916
||152||{{WinLossPct|86|66}}|| 4th in NL || – || – || – || –
|-style="background:#fdd"
![[1917 New York Giants season|NYG]]|| 1917
||154||{{WinLossPct|98|56}}|| '''1st in NL''' || {{WinLossPct|2|4}} || Lost [[1917 World Series|World Series]] ([[1917 Chicago White Sox season|CWS]])
|-
![[1918 New York Giants season|NYG]]|| 1918
||124||{{WinLossPct|71|53}}|| 2nd in NL || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1919 New York Giants season|NYG]]|| 1919
||140||{{WinLossPct|87|53}}|| 2nd in NL || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1920 New York Giants season|NYG]]|| 1920
||154||{{WinLossPct|86|68}}|| 2nd in NL || – || – || – || –
|-style="background:#fde910"
![[1921 New York Giants season|NYG]]|| 1921
||153||{{WinLossPct|94|59}}|| '''1st in NL''' || {{WinLossPct|5|3}} || '''Won [[1921 World Series|World Series]] ([[1921 New York Yankees season|NYY]])'''
|-style="background:#fde910"
![[1922 New York Giants season|NYG]]|| 1922
||154||{{WinLossPct|93|61}}|| '''1st in NL''' || {{WinLossPct|4|0}} || '''Won [[1922 World Series|World Series]] ([[1922 New York Yankees season|NYY]])'''
|-style="background:#fdd"
![[1923 New York Giants season|NYG]]|| 1923
||153||{{WinLossPct|95|58}}|| '''1st in NL''' || {{WinLossPct|2|4}} || Lost [[1923 World Series|World Series]] ([[1923 New York Yankees season|NYY]])
|-style="background:#fdd"
!rowspan="3"| [[1924 New York Giants season|NYG]]|| rowspan="3"| 1924
||29||{{WinLossPct|16|13}}|| rowspan="3"| '''1st in NL''' || rowspan="3"| 3 || rowspan="3"| 4 || rowspan="3"| .429 || rowspan="3"| Lost [[1924 World Series|World Series]] ([[1924 Washington Senators season|WSH]])
|-
!colspan="4"|
|-style="background:#fdd"
||80||{{WinLossPct|45|35}}
|-
!rowspan="3"| [[1925 New York Giants (MLB) season|NYG]]|| rowspan="3"| 1925
||14||{{WinLossPct|10|4}}|| rowspan="3"| 2nd in NL || rowspan="3"| – || rowspan="3"| – || rowspan="3"| – || rowspan="3"| –
|-
!colspan="4"|
|-
||106||{{WinLossPct|55|51}}
|-
![[1926 New York Giants (MLB) season|NYG]]|| 1926
||151||{{WinLossPct|74|77}}|| 5th in NL || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1927 New York Giants (MLB) season|NYG]]|| 1927
||122||{{WinLossPct|70|52}}|| leave || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1928 New York Giants (MLB) season|NYG]]|| 1928
||154||{{WinLossPct|93|61}}|| 2nd in NL || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1929 New York Giants (MLB) season|NYG]]|| 1929
||151||{{WinLossPct|84|67}}|| 3rd in NL || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1930 New York Giants (MLB) season|NYG]]|| 1930
||154||{{WinLossPct|87|67}}|| 3rd in NL || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1931 New York Giants (MLB) season|NYG]]|| 1931
||152||{{WinLossPct|87|65}}|| 2nd in NL || – || – || – || –
|-
![[1932 New York Giants (MLB) season|NYG]]|| 1932
||40||{{WinLossPct|17|23}}|| resigned || – || – || – || –
|-
! colspan="2"|NYG total ||4373||{{WinLossPct|2583|1790}}|| || {{WinLossPct|26|28}} ||
|-
! colspan="2"|Total<ref name="Managerial record">{{cite web|title=John McGraw|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/managers/mcgrajo01.shtml| url-status=live | archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211129/https://www.baseball-reference.com/managers/mcgrajo01.shtml| archive-date=November 29, 2021|website=Baseball Reference|publisher=[[Sports Reference, LLC]]|access-date=April 20, 2017}}{{cbignore}}</ref> ||4711||{{WinLossPct|2763|1948}}|| || {{WinLossPct|26|28}} || 
|}
<nowiki>*</nowiki> Also released as a player since McGraw was a player/manager.

== Aftermath and posthumous honors ==
{{MLBBioHon
|Image  = SFGiants NY McGraw.png
|Name   = John McGraw
|Team   = San Francisco Giants
|Year   = 1986
}}
Blanche McGraw outlived her husband by nearly 30 years, dying on November 4, 1962.<ref name = "blanche">{{cite web|url= http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F50E1FF93554157B93C7A9178AD95F468685F9|title= Mrs. John J. McGraw, 81, Dies|page= 31|newspaper= [[The New York Times]]|date= November 5, 1962|access-date= July 28, 2008|archive-date= October 12, 2012|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121012205211/http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F50E1FF93554157B93C7A9178AD95F468685F9|url-status= live}}</ref> She had a lifetime pass to a box at the Polo Grounds until the Giants left for San Francisco before the 1958 season, attending many times, including when her husband was honored on opening day at the Polo Grounds on April 17, 1934, and later that year at the [[1934 Major League Baseball All-Star Game|1934 All-Star Game]] there, when a plaque to McGraw was unveiled. She was present when the [[National Baseball Hall of Fame]] in [[Cooperstown, New York]], was opened in 1939: her husband had been [[1937 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting|elected in 1937]], along with Keeler and Mathewson, and thereafter attended many of the induction ceremonies.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=402–404}} She attended every World Series game the Giants played at the Polo Grounds during her widowhood. Saddened by the Giants' move to California, she nevertheless attended their last game at the Polo Grounds as well as their first game in San Francisco, and, in 1962, returned to the Polo Grounds when National League baseball did, for the home opener of the expansion [[New York Mets]].<ref name = "blanche" />

In 1938, the Giants journeyed to McGraw's birthplace of Truxton to play a local team, the proceeds from the game to be used to erect a memorial to McGraw there. The John McGraw Monument was erected in 1942, standing in the center of Truxton village.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|pp=402–403}}

Although McGraw played before numbers were worn on jerseys, the Giants in 1986 placed him among the players and honorees whose numbers they have retired.<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Major League Baseball|access-date=May 24, 2021|url=https://www.mlb.com/news/giants-retired-numbers-c300002862| url-status=live | archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211129/https://www.mlb.com/news/giants-retired-numbers-c300002862| archive-date=November 29, 2021|date=March 11, 2019|title=Giants' all-time retired numbers|last=Haft|first=Chris}}{{cbignore}}</ref> In honor of the days he spent coaching there, St. Bonaventure University in 1958 named its [[Fred Handler Park|athletic fields]] after McGraw and his teammate, fellow coach and fellow Hall of Famer Hughie Jennings.<ref name=facil>{{cite web|title=Fred Handler Park |url=http://www.gobonnies.com/inside_athletics/facilities/Fred-Handler-Park |work=Go Bonnies |publisher=St. Bonaventure University Athletic Department |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120814214847/http://www.gobonnies.com/inside_athletics/facilities/Fred-Handler-Park |archive-date=August 14, 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
{{clear}}

==Managerial techniques ==
McGraw, along with Casey Stengel, has managed the most league pennants, with ten. He also holds the NL record for seasons managed, with 31 (thirty with the Giants and one with the original Orioles).<ref name = "records">{{cite web|title=Manager Records|publisher=Baseball Almanac|url=https://www.baseball-almanac.com/rb_mgr.shtml | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210814102521/https://baseball-almanac.com/rb_mgr.shtml| archive-date=August 14, 2021|access-date=May 24, 2021}}</ref> He is third among major league managers in wins with 2,763, behind Connie Mack and [[Tony La Russa]], though, at .586, McGraw's winning percentage as a manager is about .050 higher than La Russa's and .100 higher than Mack's.<ref>{{cite web|title=MLB Manager Wins|publisher=Baseball Almanac|url=https://www.baseball-almanac.com/managers/manager_wins_top_100.shtml | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210814000201/https://baseball-almanac.com/managers/manager_wins_top_100.shtml| archive-date=August 14, 2021|access-date=May 24, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Perry|first=Dayn|authorlink=Dayn Perry|title=White Sox's Tony La Russa passes John McGraw for second place on MLB's all-time manager wins list|url=https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/white-soxs-tony-la-russa-passes-john-mcgraw-for-second-place-on-mlbs-all-time-manager-wins-list/| url-status=live | archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211129/https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/white-soxs-tony-la-russa-passes-john-mcgraw-for-second-place-on-mlbs-all-time-manager-wins-list/| archive-date=November 29, 2021|date=June 5, 2021|access-date=June 6, 2021|work=[[CBS Sports]]}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

According to Solomon, McGraw "was hard on his players—that understated things–but he made them play their best. They ''wanted'' to play for him. For he cared about little but winning".{{sfn|Solomon 2000|p=269}} [[Frank Deford]] called McGraw "the model for the classic American coach—a male version of the whore with a heart of gold—a tough, flinty so-and-so who was field-smart, a man's man his players came to love despite themselves."{{sfn|Deford 2005|p=26}} McGraw took chances on players, signing some who had been discarded by other teams, often getting a few more good seasons out of them. Sometimes these risks paid off; other times, they did not work out. McGraw took a risk in signing famed athlete [[Jim Thorpe]] in 1913. Thorpe had an undistinguished major league career, not because he lacked athletic ability, but because "he couldn't hit a ball that curved."{{sfn|Deford 2005|p=68}} McGraw sought to control his players on the field, where he called every pitch and play. Legend has it that he once fined a player for hitting a game-winning home run, for McGraw had called a bunt.{{sfn|Solomon 2000|p=270}}

McGraw was one of the first to use a [[relief pitcher]] to [[save (baseball)|save]] games. He pitched [[Claude Elliott (baseball)|Claude Elliott]] in relief eight times in his ten appearances in 1905. Though saves were not an official statistic until 1969, Elliot was retroactively credited with six saves that season, the most of any pitcher to that point.<ref>{{cite book |last=Morris |first=Peter |authorlink=Peter Morris (writer)|title=A Game of Inches: The Game on the Field |page=318 |year=2006 |publisher=[[Ivan R. Dee]] |isbn=978-1-56663-677-3 |url=https://archive.org/details/gameofinchesstor0000morr/page/318 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=McNeil |first=William |title=The Evolution of Pitching in Major League Baseball |year=2006 |publisher=[[McFarland & Company]] |page=53 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6ODvYhwnhn0C&q=short%20reliever&pg=PA53 |ref=mcneil2006 |isbn=978-0-7864-2468-9 |access-date=October 18, 2020 |archive-date=May 23, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210523222043/https://books.google.com/books?id=6ODvYhwnhn0C&q=short%20reliever&pg=PA53 |url-status=live }}</ref> In 1906, the Giants' [[Cecil Ferguson|George Ferguson]] became the first reliever with more than 20 appearances, and [[Doc Crandall]] repeatedly set records for relief appearances between 1909 and 1913.{{sfn|Jaffe 2010|loc=1971}}

Both a detail person and an inspirational leader,{{sfn|James 1997|loc=841}} McGraw, according to [[Bill James]], "lived to teach young men how to play baseball. I mean, he loved the horses, he loved the stage, he loved his cigars, and he loved his whiskey, but teaching young men to play baseball was what he ''did''&nbsp;... Over the course of his career, he took on many, many young men with no minor league experience or very little minor league experience, and worked with them until they became outstanding players."{{sfn|James 1997|loc=868–876}} [[Chris Jaffe]], in his study of baseball managers, wrote, "the best managers, such as McGraw and [[Frank Chance|Chance]], were those who could transform raw clumps of talent into majestic creations."{{sfn|Jaffe 2010|loc=1518}} McGraw's teams were constructed to get on base more often than his opponents, for teams that do more often win. McGraw's hit differential as manager (hits by his team less hits allowed), bases on balls differential, and hit by pitch differentials are the best in baseball history: McGraw's Giants took more hits by pitch than they inflicted every year from 1903 to 1929, a streak unequalled by any major league team.{{sfn|Jaffe 2010|loc=2006–2022}} Although McGraw, an exponent of inside baseball, disliked the home run era, which he considered less interesting, he was flexible enough to find himself sluggers in his drive to win.{{sfn|Solomon 2000|p=271}} Nevertheless, McGraw never appreciated the [[farm team#baseball|farm system]] built by [[Branch Rickey]] of the Cardinals to develop young talent in the minor leagues that resulted in the Cardinals winning nine pennants in 21 seasons between 1926 and 1946, and the Giants fell behind not only the Cardinals but other teams in that department.{{sfn|Alexander 1995|p=410}}

McGraw believed that he had to eliminate any potential distractions that could cause his teams to lose. For example, Stengel recalled that McGraw would go over the meal tickets at the team hotel, and was not shy about telling his players that they were not eating right. For most of his tenure, he set a curfew of 11:30 pm for road trips; he and his coaches would knock on the players' hotel room doors at 11:30 pm sharp. He fined players for fraternizing with members of other teams and would not tolerate smiling in the dugout. As James put it, with McGraw, "the rules were well understood".{{sfn|James 1997|loc=841–850}} Anyone who breached these standards would answer to McGraw himself, generally not a pleasant experience. As Arlie Latham, McGraw's longtime coach, put it, "McGraw eats gunpowder for breakfast and washes it down with warm blood."{{sfn|Jaffe 2010|loc=1947}}

Jaffe felt the nearest modern parallel to McGraw was [[Bobby Knight]], the temperamental—but highly successful—basketball coach.{{sfn|Jaffe 2010|loc=1958}} In his almost thirty years with the Giants, McGraw produced many fine players but few true superstars—another parallel with Bobby Knight, whose only true [[NBA]] star was [[Isiah Thomas]]; both McGraw and Knight sought players who would fit their system. According to Jaffe, "McGraw won ten pennants in 30 years based on his ability to work with players like Fred Merkle and Fred Snodgrass. McGraw coaxed four consecutive pennants out of a team led by Ross Youngs, [[George Kelly (baseball)|George Kelly]], Dave Bancroft, and a foundling Frisch&nbsp;... McGraw had a plan, found the guys who fit into it, and pushed them relentlessly."{{sfn|Jaffe 2010|loc=1964–1968}}

== Notes ==
{{notes}}

==Works==

* [https://archive.org/details/110405-mcgraw-teamwork/mode/1up "The Value of Team Work,"] ''Chicago Daily Socialist,'' vol. 5, no. 137 (April 5, 1911), p.&nbsp;4.
* ''My Thirty Years in Baseball.'' New York: Boni and Liveright, 1923.

==See also==
{{Portal|Biography|Baseball}}
* [[List of Major League Baseball career runs scored leaders]]
* [[List of Major League Baseball annual runs scored leaders]]
* [[List of Major League Baseball career stolen bases leaders]]
* [[List of Major League Baseball managers with most career ejections]]
* [[List of Major League Baseball managers with most career wins]]
* [[List of Major League Baseball player-managers]]
* [[List of St. Louis Cardinals team records]]

==References==
Numbers for Jaffe and James books are Kindle locations.
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
* {{cite book |title= John McGraw |last= Alexander|first= Charles C.|year= 1995|publisher= [[University of Nebraska Press]]|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=HBuuVAG6NxIC|isbn= 978-0-8032-5925-6|ref={{sfnRef|Alexander 1995}}}}
* {{cite book
 | last = Appel
 | first = Marty
 | author-link = Marty Appel
 | year = 2012
 | title = Pinstripe Empire: The New York Yankees From Before the Babe to After the Boss
 | publisher = [[Bloomsbury Publishing|Bloomsbury USA]]
 | location = New York
 | isbn = 978-1-60819-492-6
 | edition =ebook
 | ref = {{sfnRef|Appel 2012}}
}}
* {{cite book|last=Deford|first=Frank|author-link=Frank Deford|title=The Old Ball Game: How John McGraw, Christy Mathewson, and the New York Giants Created Modern Baseball|edition=ebook|isbn=978-1-5558-4627-5|publisher=[[Grove Press]]|year=2005|ref={{sfnRef|Deford 2005}}}}
* {{cite book|last=Felber|first=Bill|title=A Game of Brawl: The Orioles, the Beaneaters, and the Battle for the 1897 Pennant|publisher=[[University of Nebraska Press]]|year=2007|isbn=978-0-8032-1136-0|ref={{sfnRef|Felber 2007}}}}
*{{cite book|last=Goldman|first=Steven|title=Forging Genius: the Making of Casey Stengel|publisher=Potomac Books, Inc.|isbn=978-1-57488-873-7|year=2005|ref={{sfnRef|Goldman 2005}}}}
* {{cite book|last=Graham|first=Frank|title=The New York Giants: An Informal History of a Great Baseball Club|publisher=[[Southern Illinois University Press]]|year=2002|orig-date=1952|isbn=978-0-8093-2415-6|ref={{sfnRef|Graham 2002}}}}
* {{cite book|last=Halfon|first=Mark S.|title=Tales from the Deadball Era: Ty Cobb, Home Run Baker, Shoeless Joe Jackson, and the Wildest Times in Baseball History|isbn=978-1-61234-649-6|publisher=[[University of Nebraska Press]]|year=2014|ref={{sfnRef|Halfon 2014}}}}
*{{cite book|last=Hynd|first=Noel|title=The Giants of the Polo Grounds: The Glorious Times of Baseball's New York Giants|date=2019|orig-date=1995|publisher=Red Cat Tales Publishing LLC|isbn=978-1-7270-4097-5|ref={{sfnRef|Hynd 2019}}}}
* {{cite book|last=Jaffe|first=Chris|title=Evaluating Baseball's Managers|publisher=[[McFarland & Company]]|year=2010|edition=eBook|isbn=978-0-7864-3920-1|ref={{sfnRef|Jaffe 2010}}}}
* {{cite book|last=James|first=Bill|author-link=Bill James|title=The Bill James Guide to Baseball Managers from 1870 to Today|year=1997|publisher=Diversion Books|edition=eBook|isbn=978-1-62681-263-5|ref={{sfnRef|James 1997}}}}
* {{cite book |title=Stealing Games: How John McGraw Transformed Baseball with the 1911 New York Giants|publisher=[[Bloomsbury Press]]|year=2016|last=Klein|first=Maury|author-link=Maury Klein|edition=eBook|isbn=978-1-63286-026-2|ref={{sfnRef|Klein 2016}}}}
* {{cite book|title=Crazy '08: How a Cast of Cranks, Rogues, Boneheads, and Magnates Created the Greatest Year in Baseball History|first=Cait N.|last=Murphy|year=2007|edition=eBook|isbn=978-0-06-088938-8|publisher=[[HarperCollins]] e-books|ref={{sfnRef|Murphy 2007}}}}
* {{cite book|last=Solomon|first=Burt|title=Where They Ain't: The Fabled Life and Untimely Death of the Original Baltimore Orioles, the Team that Gave Birth to Modern Baseball|year=2000|orig-year=1999|edition=paperback|publisher=[[Doubleday (publisher)|Doubleday]]|isbn=978-0-684-85451-9|ref={{sfnRef|Solomon 2000}}}}
* {{cite book|title=The League That Failed|last=Voigt|first=David Quentin|year=1998|publisher=[[Scarecrow Press]]|isbn=978-0-8108-3309-8|ref={{sfnRef|Voigt 1998}}}}

== External links ==
{{commons category}}
{{wikiquote}}
*{{bbhof|mcgraw-john}}
*{{baseballstats|br=m/mcgrajo01|brm=mcgraw003joh|retro=M/Pmcgrj101}}
*{{baseball-reference manager|mcgrajo01}}
*{{find a Grave|697}}
* {{Librivox author |id=17007}}

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