Sam Rice

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Sam Rice (February 20, 1890 – October 13, 1974) was an American Major League Baseball outfielder who played mainly for the Washington Senators from 1915 to 1933, finishing with the Cleveland Indians in 1934. He batted left-handed and threw right-handed. His career batting average was .322 with 2,987 hits, 34 home runs and 1,078 RBIs. He led the American League in stolen bases in 1920 (63) and in hits in 1924 (216), helping the Senators win the 1924 World Series. Rice was known for his speed and contact hitting, recording several 200-hit seasons.

Rice’s most famous moment came in the 1925 World Series when he seemingly made a spectacular catch over the wall; the play sparked long-standing debate about whether he possessed the ball. A letter opened after his death claimed he had kept possession all along.

His life included a devastating 1912 tornado that killed his wife and children. He served in the U.S. Navy in 1918 during World War I, then returned to baseball. After retiring, he became a poultry farmer in Maryland. Rice was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1963 by the Veterans Committee and is honored by the Washington Nationals’ Ring of Honor. He died of cancer in 1974 in Rossmoor, Maryland, at age 84 and is buried in Brinklow, Maryland.