George Whiteman
Before 1918, there wasn’t much to George Whiteman’s big-league baseball career. He was 35, long past his days as a baseball prospect. He had come up with the Red Sox in 1907 with 19-year-old outfielder Tris Speaker, but while Speaker stuck with the team and became a Hall of Famer, Whiteman appeared in just four games. He returned to Houston of the Texas League the following year. He moved from Houston to Montreal of the International League, and it was in the IL that he laid the groundwork for World Series fame.
From 1914-17, Whiteman was an IL star. He hit .313 and .312 in his first two years, slipped to .273 in 1916, but hit .342 for Toronto in 1917. 
The president of the International League in that span happened to be Ed Barrow, who quit the league and became manager of the Red Sox before the 1918 season. Badly in need of serviceable players, Barrow remembered Whiteman’s IL hitting prowess and signed him for a mere $750.
With Harry Hooper in right field, Amos Strunk in center and Babe Ruth settling into the outfield, Whiteman wasn’t the everyday left fielder in the 1918 season. But he played 71 games, batting .266.
In the World Series, though, Whiteman had his star turn. The Cubs’ top two pitchers were left-handers, and in an attempt to keep lefty slugger Ruth from dominating the series, manager Fred Mitchell decided to exclusively use his two lefty aces. With Ruth on the mound in Game 1, Whiteman played left, batted cleanup and went 2-for-4, handling himself well in the field. Barrow stuck with Whiteman in Game 2, and he went 1-for-3 with a walk. He was 1-for-3 in again in Game 3 and scored the winning run in Game 4. His dramatic catch in Game 6 helped seal the series for Boston, and Whiteman was roundly boosted for his performance.
“He was the active principal in all four of the Red Sox victories,” Hugh Fullerton wrote, “got on base more times and in more ways than any other player; made the decisive plays and [in Game 6] he capped the climax.”
It was quite a swan song for Whiteman. He returned to the International League in 1919, and played minor-league ball until he was 46. He finished with 3,388 hits in the minors over 24 seasons.
