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| Lave Cross | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Third baseman / Catcher | |
| Born: May 12, 1866 Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S. | |
| Died: September 6, 1927 (aged 61) Toledo, Ohio, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| April 23, 1887, for the Louisville Colonels | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| June 6, 1907, for the Washington Senators | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .292 |
| Hits | 2,651 |
| Home runs | 47 |
| Runs batted in | 1,371 |
| Teams | |
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| Career highlights and awards | |
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Lafayette Napoleon Cross (born Vratislav Kriz, May 12, 1866 – September 6, 1927) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a third baseman from 1887 to 1907. Cross played most of his 21-year career with Philadelphia-based teams in four different leagues. One of the sport's top all-around players in the years surrounding the turn of the 20th century, when he retired he ranked fifth in major league history in hits (2,644) and runs batted in (1,371), ninth in doubles (411) and total bases (3,466), and third in games played (2,275) and at bats (9,064).
Cross also excelled as a defensive player. After beginning his major league career as a catcher, he led third basemen in fielding percentage five times, and ended his career with nearly every fielding record at that position: games (1,721), putouts (2,306), assists (3,706), total chances (6,406), and fielding average (.938); his 212 double plays ranked third behind Billy Nash and Arlie Latham. He captained the Philadelphia Athletics teams which captured two of the first five American League pennants.