• Card series: Beginnings: 1880's
• City: Philadelphia
• Team: Quakers
• League: National League
• Hall: National Baseball Hall of Fame

Edward James Delahanty (1867-1903) died in the icy waters of the Niagara River while still in his baseball prime. He was hitting .333 for the Senators that July of 1903, well below his days with the Phillies, but still a force to be reckoned with after a 16-year career in left field. Through the 1890s no hitter dominated as did Big Ed. With Sam Thompson and Billy Hamilton he formed an outfield-for-the-ages, each hitting .400+ in 1894. He struggled during his early years until, driven to excel, Ed transformed himself at the plate. Personal achievement had not brought a pennant, however, and Delahanty experienced the frustrations of the reserve system in his pursuit of the pay he felt was his due. As with so many players of that day, Ed turned to the bottle and was given to outbursts such as the one that got him ejected from the train the night he died. His tragic end came amid one of the great careers in baseball history.

• Only player to win batting titles in both AL & NL
• First to hit .400 three times
• Fifth all-time in career batting average (.346)
• 2nd player to hit 4 HRs in a game
• Elected to Hall of Fame: 1945

• Ed’s uniform color on this card was changed in March, 2017 from black & red to blue & red to reflect recent reliable research by Craig Brown & friends at Threads of Our Game. Nine cards had been previously released featuring a black uniform.