Vintage Red Sox: Max Bishop

Today I am showing off a recent pickup, a 1934-1936 Diamond Stars card of infielder (mostly second base) Max Bishop:

Bishop had a 12-year career in the Majors, spent primarily with the Philadelphia Athletics.  He spent the last two seasons of his career with the Red Sox.  Bishop in many ways was well ahead of his time, he was a player who knew how to get on base.  Nicknamed "Camera Eye", Bishop drew 100 or more walks in eight straight seasons with the A's.  He was not a great hitter, as his .271 lifetime batting average and his .366 lifetime slugging average will attest.  But he was really good at getting on base.  His lifetime on-base percentage was an extremely impressive .423.  He was so good that he was typically the A's leadoff hitter, despite not being much of a base stealer (40 lifetime stolen bases).  That was strange for this time period.

Bishop was part of the package the Red Sox received when they acquired Lefty Grove from the A's in 1934.  He was coming off of a season in which he hit .294/.446/.399.  Unfortunately, Bishop did not have much left in the tank when he was acquired.  He played in just 157 games for Boston over the next two seasons.  His hitting declined, though he was still able to get on base, particularly in the first season.  Bishop hit .251/.424/.320 for the Red Sox and saw time at three infield positions.  His career was over after the 1935 season.

Max Bishop's skills were largely unnoticed due to the time period in which he played.  If he were playing today, he would be a much bigger name.