He ranked among the American League leaders in stolen bases ten times, and, during the decade from 1910 to 1919, the only players to score more runs than Bush were Ty Cobb, Eddie Collins, and Tris Speaker.

Bush also served as a manager in professional baseball for the Washington Senators (1923), Indianapolis Indians (1924–1926, 1943–1944), Pittsburgh Pirates (1927–1929), Chicago White Sox (1930–1931), Cincinnati Reds (1933), Minneapolis Millers (1932, 1934–1938), and Louisville Colonels (1939).

[11] Bush also collected 337 sacrifice hits in his career, ranking him fifth on the all-time Major League leader list (behind Hall of Famers Eddie Collins and Willie Keeler).

[16] Baseball Magazine noted that, while playing in South Bend, Bush earned "the reputation of being the fastest, best all-around shortstop the Central League had ever seen.

[2][15][23] Bush's performance in the final weeks of the season, during a tight pennant race, was credited with having "thrust the panting Tigers first over the line.

[19] At the end of the 1908 season, Baseball Magazine wrote: This diminutive and youthful shortstop came to the rescue of the Detroit club and made it possible for them to win the American League pennant.

He helped to win the American Association pennant for the Hoosiers by his wonderful all around work, and then came on to Detroit in time to save Jennings' team from defeat.

He is about as fast as Cobb on the bases, a great fielding shortstop and a good batsman, a man who hits right or left handed with equal efficiency.

He compiled a .273 batting average and a .380 on-base percentage in 1909 and led the American League with 676 plate appearances, 88 bases on balls, and 52 sacrifice hits.

With Detroit stars Ty Cobb and Sam Crawford slumping in the World Series (batting .231 and .250 respectively), Bush hit .318 with an on-base percentage of .483.

He also scored five runs, collected five bases on balls, was twice hit by a pitch, and compiled nine putouts, 18 assists, and three double plays (but also committed five errors).

He is so small that a pitcher has to have absolute control to get the ball over for him, and it makes him a most valuable lead-off man for a team, because there is hardly a day that he does not reach the bases one or more times.

[2] In 1915, Bush, along with Detroit's all-star outfield of Ty Cobb, Sam Crawford, and Bobby Veach, helped lead the Tigers to a 100–54 record and a second-place finish in the American League.

[35]In January 1916, The Sporting Life reported that "Bush has been driving his new car most of the time since he left Detroit and is said to be only a few laps behind (Barney) Oldfleld as a speed merchant.

Bush is simply unsurpassable as a fielding shortstop and while a weak hitter according to the records he is nevertheless a dangerous man on the offensive through his well-known ability to secure free passage to first base and his amazing swiftness of foot once he reaches that initial station on the homeward journey.

"[37] In 1917, Bush led the American League with 112 runs scored, stole 34 bases, and compiled a career-high batting average of .281 with a .370 on-base percentage.

After giving up the single to Bush, Ruth struck out the Tigers' Bobby Veach, Sam Crawford, and Ty Cobb in the ninth inning to secure a 1–0 complete game shutout.

Despite the drop in average, Bush continued to rank among the American League's leaders with 594 plate appearances (1st), 79 bases on balls (2nd), 280 putouts at shortstop (2nd), 74 runs scored (4th), and 48 errors (3rd).

Often Donie becomes so enraged that he pulls his cap off his head and throwing it off the door of the hotel lobby or in the turf of the ball field, stamps on it in his hysteria.

[45]In late August 1921, Bush was selected off waivers by the Washington Senators and became the team's starting shortstop for the final 33 games of the 1921 season.

By mid-May, he was averaging a run every three at bats, a rate on par with Babe Ruth, leading The Sporting News to write that Bush was playing the best baseball of his life.

[2] Despite having a line-up that included Baseball Hall of Famers Walter Johnson, Goose Goslin, Sam Rice, and Bucky Harris, the 1922 Senators finished the season with a 69–85 record and in sixth place in the American League.

Griffith initially declined comment on his release of Bush, but as criticism intensified, Griffith said in a written statement that he found Bush "incompetent as a manager, failing to maintain discipline among the players, utter disregard of the development or use of young players, favoritism and indifference when the ball game was over as to ways or means of improving conditions.

Bush reacted by benching Cuyler in August and not playing him again for the rest of the season (using him sparingly for pinch hitting), even keeping him out of the World Series.

[68] By July 1931, a public debate was under way as to whether Bush or team owner Charles Comiskey was to blame for the White Sox' poor showing.

During a July road trip to the East, the White Sox had only "five workable pitchers", a term The Sporting News defined as "those who could throw a ball.

"[75] The 1933 Reds finished in last place with a 58–94 record, compiled the lowest batting average (.246) in the National League, and lacked a pitcher who was able to muster more than 10 wins.

Bush and two partners, Indiana banker Frank E. McKinney and Tom Yawkey (owner of the Boston Red Sox), purchased the club reportedly for $175,000 -- $100,000 for the plant (including a 14,500-seat park built in 1923 for $400,000) and $75,000 for the franchise and players.

[92] In January 1956, Bush and McKinney led a successful effort to transform the Indianapolis club into a community-owned team through a public stock offering.

Bush, who was 81 years old, stated that he was quitting as the result of "a front-office squabble" with the club's chairman, Louis Hensley, and general manager, Max Schumacher.