George “Lefty” McCarthy Craig of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States died at age 27. He was a professional baseball player born in Philadelphia to George A. Craig and Mary Ellen Schultz.
Before marrying George, Schultz was married to John Schultz, who died in 1872 at age 23. George died in 1888 at age 37.
Lefty is Mary’s youngest child. By 1900, he was working as a laborer at a stone foundry in Philadelphia while sharing a residence in the city with his mother and other family members.
In 1906, Lefty pitched for the Camden Athletic Association in Camden, New Jersey, USA. On July 19, 1907, he was signed by Major League Baseball team Philadelphia Athletics and on July 20, 1907, he made his MLB debut in Detroit, Michigan, USA.
In 1910, Lefty joined the Minor League Baseball team Indianapolis Indians of Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. Among his teammates in 1911 were Orville Woodruff, then 34, and William “Robby” Robertson, then 28.
On the evening of April 22, 1911, Lefty and Robertson were in their room on the first floor of the Mt. Jackson Sanitarium in Indianapolis. At around 1:00 a.m. on April 23, 1911, Lefty woke up and saw a male burglar going through his trousers in the room.
The burglar ran from the room, fled down a hallway and was pursued by Lefty. The baseball player caught up to the burglar and grabbed him.
As Lefty and the burglar grappled, the latter drew out a handgun and shot the baseball player in the stomach. The burglar ran out the building via a side exit door while the baseball player staggered back to his room and sought the help of Robertson.
“Wake up, Robby,” Lefty told Robertson. “I’m shot.”
Before being rushed to the Indianapolis City Hospital, Lefty was able to tell Indianapolis Police Department captain George V. Coffin about the burglary and the shooting. According to Lefty, the burglar who shot him was “dressed in brown with a brown hat” and “about the size and age” of Woodruff, who was 5’9″ tall and weighed 160 pounds.
Although Lefty survived an operation at Indianapolis City Hospital, Dr. Thomas J. Dugan, the hospital’s lead physician, offered no hope of the baseball player’s recovery. Lefty’s teammates, his mother and his older brother William Craig went to the hospital that day.
At 7:15 p.m. on April 23, 1911, Lefty was pronounced dead. His body was brought home to Philadelphia.
The man who fatally shot Lefty is still unknown. According to detectives working on the case, the culprit left no trace of himself.
CONAN Daily 