to slash him out of their way. On May 1, 1908, Elberfeld was severely spiked in the foot by Bob Ganley‚ essentially ending his season. During Ty Cobb's rookie season, Cobb slid headfirst into second base, only to have Elberfeld dig his knee into the back of Cobb's neck, grinding his face in the dirt. According to a Cobb biographer, the incident marked the last time that Cobb would slide headfirst into a base. Shortly before his death, Elberfeld was quoted as saying "Ty found out my feet were harder than his head. Then he started coming in spikes first. I had to protect myself." Elberfeld's legs were badly scarred from years of high-flying spikes, and it was reported that he poured raw whiskey into spike wounds to cauterize them. Further showing his toughness, Elberfeld led the American League in times hit by a pitch in 1903 and 1911, and was among the league leaders in the category nine times. In 1911, he was hit by a pitch 25 times, setting an American League record that was not broken until 1986 when Don Baylor was hit 35 times. In his career, Elberfeld was hit 165 times, 13th on the all-time list. Despite 458 errors at the shortstop position, Elberfeld had great range in his early years. In 1901, he made 332 putouts and had a range factor rating of 6.14 – 87 points higher than the league average for shortstops. He also recorded a career-best 459 assists at shortstop the following season with the Tigers. Elberfeld collected 12 assists in a single game in 1901. As injuries and age slowed him down, Elberfeld's range was more limited later in his career. Minor league manager and retirement Elberfeld remained active in major and minor league baseball for 30 years. From 1915 to 1917, Elberfeld managed the Chattanooga Lookouts, then went on to the Little Rock Travelers, where he managed for several years, winning a pennant in 1920. While managing the Travelers, Elberfed met a 14-year-old Travis Jackson. Elberfeld observed Jackson in an impromtu workout, and later signed Jackson to his first professional contract. Early in his baseball career, Elberfeld bought an apple orchard on Signal Mountain, near Chattanooga. Elberfeld built his home and raised a family of five daughters and a son on Signal Mountain. His daughters formed a basketball team that played as "The Elberfeld Girls" and appeared on many