One of the greatest players of the 1890's, and still very good at the time of his death. While it's an impossible hypothetical statement, I get the feeling that Ed Delahanty was just one of those guys who would probably have been a bona fide star in any era- while it's true that the quality of play has improved greatly since his time there are some guys who would be a star in any time period, I would guess. Delahanty was one of the most well rounded players of his time. Note to irishgit and any other Hibernians on this site, I get the feeling that Delahanty and King Kelly have been duking it out in heaven for who is the greatest Irish player that embodies all of our negative stereotypes- boozing, fighting, envy of each other, foolishness, wasting $, etc. Detractors can say what they want about the Irish, but in general we're not a people who are full of ourselves to the point where we don't rag on each other or indulge in self- mockery...

A ferocious line drive hitter who was probably the best power hitter in the game in the late 1890's early 1900's. A better than average fielder he is more than a legitimate selection to the Hall, if falling short of the absolute elite category. The big Mick was also a brawling, irresponsible drunkard, who ended his life and career early under embarrassing circumstances. He was put off a train for being drunk and rowdy on the Canadian side of Niagara Falls. Summoning up all of his native wit (a process which doesn't appear to have required much effort) he decided to walk across a railroad bridge to the American side. The exact circumstances of his death are unknown, but his body was found below the falls some days later. There was a time when books that referred to the incident tried to make it seem that there was some mystery here, that perhaps Delahanty had met with foul play. That's laughable. To paraphrase baseball historian Bill James, there isn't a mugger in the world stupid enough to try and make a living hanging around railroad bridges in the dead of night waiting for a ball player to wander by. The truth of the matter is that Delahanty died like he lived. Like a damn fool, drunk and disorderly.