| Hack Wilson | |
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| Outfielder | |
| Born: April 26, 1900 Ellwood City, Pennsylvania |
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| Died: November 23, 1948 (aged 48) Baltimore, Maryland |
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| Batted: Right | Threw: Right |
| MLB debut | |
| September 29, 1923 for the New York Giants | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| August 25, 1934 for the Philadelphia Phillies | |
| Career statistics | |
| Batting average | .307 |
| Home runs | 244 |
| Runs batted in | 1063 |
| Teams | |
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| Career highlights and awards | |
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| Member of the National | |
 Baseball Hall of Fame |
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| Induction | 1979 |
| Election Method | Veteran's Committee |
Lewis Robert "Hack" Wilson (April 26, 1900 – November 23, 1948) was an American center fielder in Major League Baseball from 1923 to 1934. He is best known for his record-setting 191-RBI season of 1930. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1979.
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Biography
Wilson grew up in the Pennsylvania steel mill town of Ellwood City. Although 5'6" tall, he weighed 195 pounds, and had an 18" neck and size-6 shoes. One sports writer wrote that he was built along the lines of a beer keg, and not wholly unfamiliar with its contents.
Before Wilson started in baseball he attended school for five years before dropping out in sixth grade. Once he gave up on school Wilson went on to live off of a weekly salary of $4 at a local print shop. These events led him to seek better employment thus landing him on a semiprofessional baseball team. Not long after this he was picked up by the Blue Sox, a minor league professional team in Martinsburg, West Virginia. In his first professional appearance he had the misfortune of breaking a leg. This would cause Wilson to go from playing everyday catcher to his common Major League fielding position of center field.[1]
During his career, Wilson played for the New York Giants (1923-25), Chicago Cubs (1926-31), Brooklyn Dodgers (1932-34) and Philadelphia Phillies (1934).[2] Wilson eclipsed the 100-RBI mark 6 times in his career.
Wilson's 1930 season is considered one of the finest in baseball history. Wilson stroked 56 home runs, drove in 191 runs, and walked 105 times, all while batting .356. The 191 RBIs he had in 1930 are a record that still stands today. (For years, record books gave the total as 190, until research in 1999 showed that an RBI credited by an official scorer to Charlie Grimm actually belonged to Wilson.)[3] He recorded that total without hitting a grand slam.
In one game, Wilson was at bat and Bill Klem was the plate umpire. A close pitch went by and Klem called, "Strike!" Wilson said, "Strike? Bill, you sure missed that one." Klem answered, "Perhaps I did, Lewis; but if I'd had your bat, I wouldn't have."
He finished his 12 year career having played 1,348 games with a lifetime batting average of .307, 244 home runs, and 1,063 RBI. He died in 1948, possibly due to alcoholism complications. He is buried in Rosedale Cemetery in Martinsburg, West Virginia. There is a street in Martinsburg called Hack Wilson Way, in honor of Wilson.
Notes
See also
- 50 home run club
- List of Major League Baseball Home Run Records
- Top 500 home run hitters of all time
- List of Major League Baseball players with 1000 RBIs
- Hitting for the cycle
- List of Major League Baseball RBI champions
- List of Major League Baseball home run champions
- Major League Baseball hitters with three home runs in one game
- Major League Baseball titles leaders
- Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, 1953
References
HACK WILSON, MAS Ultra, October 2001, http://proxy.lib.uiowa.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=ip,cookie,uid,url&db=f5h&AN=5392371&loginpage=Login.asp&site=ehost-live
Historical Player Stats, http://mlb.mlb.com/stats/historical/individual_stats_player.jsp?c_id=mlb&playerID=124412, retrieved 2009-03-24
Chalk up another RBI for Hack Wilson, MAS Ultra, October 1999, http://proxy.lib.uiowa.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=ip,cookie,uid,url&db=f5h&AN=2215660&loginpage=Login.asp&site=ehost-live
- Clifton Blue Parker, Fouled Away: The Baseball Tragedy of Hack Wilson (McFarland & Company, 2000) ISBN 0786408642
External links
- Baseball Hall of Fame – Member biography
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube
- The Deadball Era
| Preceded by Rogers Hornsby |
National League Home Run Champion 1926-1928 (1927 with Cy Williams 1928 with Jim Bottomley) |
Succeeded by Chuck Klein |
| Preceded by Jim Bottomley |
National League RBI Champion 1929-1930 |
Succeeded by Chuck Klein |
| Preceded by Chuck Klein |
National League Home Run Champion 1930 |
Succeeded by Chuck Klein |
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