The New York Highlanders' Record 15 Stolen Bases

The 1911 New York Highlanders (soon to become the Yankees). Image credits: Wikipedia

On a Thursday afternoon a week before the 1911 season ended, the last-place St. Louis Browns were at Hilltop Park in New York to play the New York Highlanders. (Some newspapers referred to them as the Yankees, a name that would become official in 1913,)

A scant gathering of about 1,000 were present. What they witnessed would never be seen again as of 2025.

The home team won, 18-12, outhitting the Browns, 13-11. Both teams made six errors. But oddly, the home team's 18 runs were accounted for by only 10 runs batted in, thanks to Browns' errors and at least one steal of home.

The Highlanders ran up a total of 15 stolen bases, a merry-go-round unmatched to this day. Five players participated: Birdie Cree and Hal Chase had 4 each, Bert Daniels and Cozy Dolan had 3, and Roy Hartzell had one. 

Birdie Cree - a key player in the Highlanders’ record-breaking game. Image credits: Sports Studio Photos

The Browns were busy on the basepaths too. In addition to their 11 hits, they drew 7 walks and left 9 on base.

No play-by-play account of the game has been found, but the home team scored in every inning but one. Sportswriters described it as a comedy of errors: each team made six. The fiasco was a total team effort by the Browns.

Their pitchers gave up 13 walks and 13 hits. When catchers' throws were accurate, they were dropped by infielders or tags were late. 

In the early years of baseball, baserunning was a more important part of the game than power. Home runs were scarce. Stats were not compiled as meticulously in those days, but fragments indicate that steal attempts generally were successful far more often than not.

New York outfielder Birdie Cree's 48 for the year is still the eighth highest all-time for the Yankees.