John Stone

Who was John Stone?

John Thomas Stone, nicknamed "Rocky," was an outfielder in Major League Baseball who played eleven seasons with the Detroit Tigers and Washington Senators. Stone hit over .300 seven times in his career and had a career batting average of .310.

Stone played baseball for the Maryville College Fighting Scots in his home state of Tennessee from 1925-1928. The Fighting Scots were 15-2 in Stone's senior year. Stone signed with the Detroit Tigers and after a short stint in the minor leagues at Evansville, he appeared in his first Major League game on August 31, 1928, just a few months after leaving college. In his first partial season, Stone hit an impressive .354 in 26 games with 15 extra base hits and a .549 slugging percentage.

In his second season, Stone's batting average dropped 94 points to .260, but he returned to solid hitting in 1930 with a .311 batting average and a .452 slugging percentage. During July and August 1930, Stone had a 27-game hitting streak. Only five Detroit Tigers have had longer hitting streaks.

Stone's fourth big league season in 1931 was his best. His .327 batting average was 10th best in the American League. He led the league in singles and was also among the league leaders in hits, triples, and stolen bases. Stone was also 16th in the American League's Most Valuable Player voting for 1931.