Honus Wagner

Pro team(s)

Louisville Colonels, Pittsburgh Pirates

Hall of Fame

⭐ National Baseball Hall of Fame

Honus Wagner was born in Chartiers (now Carnegie), Pennsylvania, in 1874 and grew up near Pittsburgh working in the coal mines with his family — leaving school at age 12. Despite no formal athletic training, Wagner developed into arguably the greatest shortstop in baseball history. He played from 1897 to 1917, spending most of his career with the Pittsburgh Pirates, where he won 8 NL batting titles, hit .328 lifetime, and led the NL in slugging 6 times. His T206 baseball card remains the most valuable in the hobby, routinely selling for millions. He was among the first five players elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1936, along with Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb, Christy Mathewson, and Walter Johnson.