career record of 348 assists by an outfielder. Ryan finished his career with 375 assists. He held the record until Tris Speaker broke it in 1924. Ryan ended his major league career with the Washington Senators of the American League in 1902–1903. He was a career .308 hitter with 118 home runs and 1,093 runs batted in in 2,014 games. As a pitcher, he compiled a 6–1 record with a 3.62 earned run average and 43 strikeouts in 117 innings pitched. On the tough side, Ryan was one of the few players to punch a reporter at least twice. After his first episode, in 1887, Charlie Seymour of the Chicago Herald wrote, "Ryan slugged the magnificent Chicago reporter in Pittsburg[h] the other day." In the other, in 1892, he took exception to George Beachel of the Chicago Daily News. In the clubhouse after a game, Ryan "picked a quarrel with [Beachel], and then attacked him, using him up pretty badly. No arrests have been made." In 1896, he punched a train conductor after losing his place and his teammates had gone to bed. A conductor who intervened was "called down by Mr. Ryan, who got in one upper cut before [his longtime-captain manager Cap] Anson stopped the fun," wrote Tim Murnane of the Boston Globe. Later life Ryan died in Chicago at age 60. He was married twice and left no children. In the 2001 book The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract, writer Bill James ranked Ryan as the 26th greatest center fielder of all time. He was buried in an unmarked grave until 2022 until the help of the SABR Grave Marker Project helped efforts to lend a proper gravestone. See also List of Major League Baseball career hits leaders List of Major League Baseball career triples leaders List of Major League Baseball career runs scored leaders List of Major League Baseball career runs batted in leaders List of Major League Baseball career stolen bases leaders List of Major League Baseball annual doubles leaders List of Major League Baseball annual home run leaders List of Major League Baseball players to hit for the cycle References External links , or Retrosheet 1863 births 1923 deaths Major League Baseball center fielders Chicago White Stockings players Chicago Colts players Chicago Orphans players Chicago Pirates players Washington Senators (1901–1960) players 19th-century baseball players National League home run champions Bridgeport Giants players Colorado