What was Major League Baseball player Ty Cobb’s lifetime batting average?

Ty Cobb, was nicknamed “The Georgia Peach”. His full name was Tyrus Raymond Cobb, born December 18, 1886 in Narrows, Georgia. Cobb spent 22 seasons (1905-1926) with the “Detroit Tigers” playing in an outfield position for 16 years; then he went on to play an additional 6 years as their player-manager.

He faced pitchers at bat from the left side of home plate and hurled the ball from his outfield position with his right hand. He finished up his baseball career with the “Philadelphia Athletics” (1926-28) making his last appearance on September 11, 1928. His life time batting average was .366.

Batting average is expressed as a ratio of a batter’s safe hits per offical times at bat. The number is reported to three decimal places and read or announced without the decimal. Cobb was at bat 11,434 official times and had 4,189 safe hits (4,189 divided by 11,434) = .366

In 1936 Cobb received the most votes of any player on the inaugural “Baseball Hall of Fame” ballot, receiving 222 out of a possible 226 votes (98.2%); no player received a higher percentage of votes until 1992. In 1999, editors at the “Sporting News” ranked Ty Cobb third on their list of “Baseball’s 100 Greatest Players.”

Cobb’s baseball career was briefly interrupted for one year in 1918 when he served in the United States Army, achieving the rank of Captain, serving in the Chemical Warfare Service, 1st Gas Regiment on the Western Front.

He died July 16, 1961, in Atlanta, Georgia at the age of 74.