A McCreachery Card Theory

[Joe_G.]

Matt, I thoroughly enjoyed your post, thank you!

CySeymour,
The problem resides largely in your delivery. Most of your theories were wild pitches yet you proclaimed from the onset that you had "The Real Story of McCreacherie (sic)". Your position on the name changed with nearly every post, yet each time it was/is presented in a "matter of fact" manner. A review of your own posts becomes comical. To keep this to a reasonable length, some of the quotes are paraphrased.

Originally Posted by cyseymour

Deacon played poorly . . . McCreacherie(sic) was the result of Irish slander mocking Deacon's religiosity . . . the McCreachery card is derogatory in nature, towards both the Irish and White himself. This is most certainly the reason for its very low print run.

It took several posts to convey that we (the authors of the Old Judge book) weren't trying to suggest Deacon had played poorly. Yet you clung to this for many posts.

Originally Posted by cyseymour

If "to creature" means to drink a lot, and the Irish were known to drink a lot, then the name "McCreachery" could have been a joke that meant "drinks so much that he's Irish".

You seem rather surprised to learn later in the thread that Deacon didn't drink (you actually knew very little about Deacon and the Wolverines). I would think some knowledge of Deacon and the way his peers perceived him would help decipher the cards true meaning but that wasn't going to stop you.

Originally Posted by cyseymour

So it seems that they were calling him Irish via blaming him for the downfall of the Detroit Wolverines. Wow.

Deacon was responsible for the downfall of the Wolverines?? Oh boy.

Originally Posted by cyseymour

Another interpretation:

McCrea in gaelic: "Son of Grace"
Chery in french: "Dear, Darling", aka "mon cherie"

So McCreachery could have meant something along the lines of "Dear Son of Grace". Which would make sense since he was a devout Christian.

I think we have a winner!

Originally Posted by cyseymour

"McCreachery" means "Sweet Son of God". It is a double-entendre with the word "creach" to describe the demise of the teams he's played for, because "Creach" means "fall from grace". Get it?

These OJ producers sure were smart!

Originally Posted by cyseymour

It was printed in 1888, per design of the card. White had a poor year in 1888 and the team disbanded.

Originally Posted by cyseymour

But the double-entendre of "Sweet Son of God/Fall from Grace" is very, very on target, not only with the life and times of Deacon White, his poor play, and his religiosity, and the demise of his team, but also consistent with the joke of calling him a manager of Indianapolis. The narrative makes perfect sense.

As far as whether Boston wanted him, I wouldn't know, but whether did they did or not, it doesn't change the story that he had fallen very hard from his championship days just a year earlier. He had gone from "preacher" to "creacher" very quickly. That is the reflection that the card is commenting on.

OK, problem with previous quotes is that very little of it is true. I tried clearing this up on my post stamped 12/10 @11:24pm. The card was issued when Deacon was playing well and one of the few bright spots on the Detroit team. His batting in 1888 was second to only Dan Brouthers!

Despite all this ribbing, I very much enjoy your contribution to the topic. Your knowledge of 19th century English, Latin, and French far exceeds my own so I appreciate what you bring to the table.

If we were to release a 2nd edition of the book, somewhere within its roughly 500 pages, there might be a sentence or two mentioning the possibility of McCreachery being a riddle of sorts. Question is, will you have your final answer ready before we go to press?

Originally Posted by cyseymour

One more thing:

Deacon White career OPS .740
Ed Delahanty career OPS .916

To each his own, my friend.

One more thing:

Deacon White = Best bare handed catcher to play the game. His play was legendary during the 1870s, a decade in which catching was deemed, by far, the most important position on the field. He then re-invented himself as one of the games better 3rd basemen to extend his career another 10 years. Led a long, clean, and virtuous life.

Delahanty = Great hitter but unfortunately drunk and disorderly. Jumped (or was thrown) into Niagra River just upstream the Falls, cutting his life and baseball career short.

To each his own, my friend