Infield: Woodie Held (1954-69) played for seven different American League teams, and he played all over the infield and the outfield – but his main team was the Indians, and his main position was shortstop. He was a career .240 hitter, but he drew enough walks to have a decent on-base percentage, and he hit 179 home runs, and he played an acceptable shortstop. Walter Holke (1914-25) was a slick-fielding first baseman who didn’t hit much. He holds a major-league record that seems unlikely to be broken anytime soon. When the Boston Braves and the Brooklyn Dodgers played their legendary 26-inning game in 1920, Holke (playing first base for Boston) recorded 46 putouts. Third baseman Wes Helms (1998-2011) was a better hitter than his uncle Tommy was. He hit 75 home runs in his career. On the other hand, he was successful on just 3 of his 15 stolen base attempts, so manager Whitey Herzog won't be starting him running too often. Second baseman Willie Harris (2001-12) hit about .250, drew a few walks, and stumbled into the occasional home run. He ran well enough. Not a great player, but he can hold down second base. He batted 1.000 in the World Series - in 2005 for the White Sox he went 1-for-1 with a stolen base and a run.
Outfield: Left fielder Willie Horton (1963-80), not to be confused with the Massachusetts convict who inexplicably became a major issue in the presidential election of 1988, was a slugger for the Detroit Tigers in the 1960s and ‘70s. He was a big fellow who hit 325 home runs, and he drove in 100 runs three times – in 1965 and ’66, at ages 22 and 23, and then improbably, in 1979 at age 36. No other hitter has ever gone 13 years between 100-RBI seasons. The man could hit. Right fielder Whitey Herzog (1956-63) was a hustling .250 hitter who drew walks, got on base and scrapped for everything he could get. Center fielder Wattie Holm (1924-32) was a role player on the great Cardinals teams of the 1920s. After his retirement Holm tried to go into business manufacturing baseball bats, but it never got off the ground. He bounced from job to job, never finding success, and eventually lapsed into depression that ended tragically at age 48 when he killed his wife and himself in their Iowa home.
Catcher: Willard Hershberger (1938-40) was a good hitter who had a career average of .316 as the backup to Hall of Famer Ernie Lombardi. Hershberger is one of baseball’s most tragic tales. He struggled with depression and other issues, and he constantly blamed himself anytime the Reds would lose a game. He committed suicide in the middle of the 1940 season at age 30. The Reds dedicated the rest of the season to him, winning the World Series and voting to give a full share of the championship bonus money to Hershberger’s grieving mother.
Rotation: Waite Hoyt (1918-38) was a fine pitcher best known as a member of the Ruth-Gehrig Yankees. He won 237 games and was inducted into the Hall of Fame. He was born in Brooklyn and grew up a Dodgers fan but was fortunate enough to land with the Yankees instead. He was an interesting dude, splitting his off-season time between working at a funeral parlor and performing on Vaudeville alongside the likes of Jack Benny and Jimmy Durante. Willis “Ace” Hudlin (1926-44) threw a sidearm sinker that hitters pounded into the ground. He won 158 games and spent most of his career with the Indians as a dependable mid-rotation guy behind people like Bob Feller, Mel Harder and Wes Ferrell. Weldon Henley (1903-07) had a couple of passable seasons for some good Philadelphia A’s teams. Warren Hacker (1948-61) was a solid postwar pitcher for the Cubs who went 15-9 in 1949 and finished second in the league in ERA. Wally Hebert (1931-43) was a lefty who got his butt kicked with the St. Louis Browns for three years, but during World War II he came back at age 35 to have a decent year with the Pirates.
Bullpen: Closer Willie Hernandez (1977-89) came out of nowhere to win the AL Cy Young Award and MVP for Detroit in 1984. That season - he worked 140 innings with a 1.92 ERA, winning nine and saving 32 - had a lightning-in-a-bottle quality to it, but he was a good reliever for a long time and had 147 career saves. Wynn Hawkins (1960-62) was a nondescript swingman for the Indians. Willard Hunter (1962-64) was a lefty on the expansion (“Can’t Anybody Here Play This Game?”) Mets. Walt Huntzinger (1923-26) was a reliever on John McGraw’s Giants. His nickname was “Shakes,” and in general, if a ballplayer is called “Shakes,” it’s probably best not to ask why. Wilson Heredia (1995-97) pitched very well in two brief stints with the Texas Rangers but never stuck in the bigs. His ERA in the majors was 3.40 (in 31 innings), but in the minors it was just below 5.00 (in 667 innings). Whitey Hilcher (1931-36) was largely ineffective for the Reds in four seasons. Wally Holborow (1944-46) had a good year for the Senators during World War II but couldn’t get the real hitters out when they came back from military service.
Bench: Wilbur Howard (1973-78) was a fleet outfielder for the Astros. Outfielder Willie Hogan (1911-12) played for the St. Louis Browns for a couple of years but wasn’t very good. Infielder Walter Hackett (1884-85) was a forgettable 19th-century shortstop. Warren Huston (1937-44) was a backup infielder who couldn’t hit. Backup catcher William Hoffman (1879) went 0-for-6 in his big-league career.
Manager: Whitey Herzog, our player-manager here, won three division titles with Kansas City and then moved across the state and won three pennants and a World Series with the Cardinals. He was one of the defining managers of a generation, and in both K.C. and St. Louis he adapted his teams to their big ballparks and artificial turf by filling his lineup with fast players. He loved switch-hitters, got the most out of young ballplayers and sometimes worked his pitching rotation like a jigsaw puzzle. Herzog was a no-nonsense kind of guy who was not afraid to jettison a star player if he thought the guy was becoming counterproductive to the team (see John Mayberry, Ted Simmons, Garry Templeton, Keith Hernandez ... ). Inducted into the Hall of Fame as a manager.
Outfield: Left fielder Willie Horton (1963-80), not to be confused with the Massachusetts convict who inexplicably became a major issue in the presidential election of 1988, was a slugger for the Detroit Tigers in the 1960s and ‘70s. He was a big fellow who hit 325 home runs, and he drove in 100 runs three times – in 1965 and ’66, at ages 22 and 23, and then improbably, in 1979 at age 36. No other hitter has ever gone 13 years between 100-RBI seasons. The man could hit. Right fielder Whitey Herzog (1956-63) was a hustling .250 hitter who drew walks, got on base and scrapped for everything he could get. Center fielder Wattie Holm (1924-32) was a role player on the great Cardinals teams of the 1920s. After his retirement Holm tried to go into business manufacturing baseball bats, but it never got off the ground. He bounced from job to job, never finding success, and eventually lapsed into depression that ended tragically at age 48 when he killed his wife and himself in their Iowa home.
Catcher: Willard Hershberger (1938-40) was a good hitter who had a career average of .316 as the backup to Hall of Famer Ernie Lombardi. Hershberger is one of baseball’s most tragic tales. He struggled with depression and other issues, and he constantly blamed himself anytime the Reds would lose a game. He committed suicide in the middle of the 1940 season at age 30. The Reds dedicated the rest of the season to him, winning the World Series and voting to give a full share of the championship bonus money to Hershberger’s grieving mother.
Rotation: Waite Hoyt (1918-38) was a fine pitcher best known as a member of the Ruth-Gehrig Yankees. He won 237 games and was inducted into the Hall of Fame. He was born in Brooklyn and grew up a Dodgers fan but was fortunate enough to land with the Yankees instead. He was an interesting dude, splitting his off-season time between working at a funeral parlor and performing on Vaudeville alongside the likes of Jack Benny and Jimmy Durante. Willis “Ace” Hudlin (1926-44) threw a sidearm sinker that hitters pounded into the ground. He won 158 games and spent most of his career with the Indians as a dependable mid-rotation guy behind people like Bob Feller, Mel Harder and Wes Ferrell. Weldon Henley (1903-07) had a couple of passable seasons for some good Philadelphia A’s teams. Warren Hacker (1948-61) was a solid postwar pitcher for the Cubs who went 15-9 in 1949 and finished second in the league in ERA. Wally Hebert (1931-43) was a lefty who got his butt kicked with the St. Louis Browns for three years, but during World War II he came back at age 35 to have a decent year with the Pirates.
Bullpen: Closer Willie Hernandez (1977-89) came out of nowhere to win the AL Cy Young Award and MVP for Detroit in 1984. That season - he worked 140 innings with a 1.92 ERA, winning nine and saving 32 - had a lightning-in-a-bottle quality to it, but he was a good reliever for a long time and had 147 career saves. Wynn Hawkins (1960-62) was a nondescript swingman for the Indians. Willard Hunter (1962-64) was a lefty on the expansion (“Can’t Anybody Here Play This Game?”) Mets. Walt Huntzinger (1923-26) was a reliever on John McGraw’s Giants. His nickname was “Shakes,” and in general, if a ballplayer is called “Shakes,” it’s probably best not to ask why. Wilson Heredia (1995-97) pitched very well in two brief stints with the Texas Rangers but never stuck in the bigs. His ERA in the majors was 3.40 (in 31 innings), but in the minors it was just below 5.00 (in 667 innings). Whitey Hilcher (1931-36) was largely ineffective for the Reds in four seasons. Wally Holborow (1944-46) had a good year for the Senators during World War II but couldn’t get the real hitters out when they came back from military service.
Bench: Wilbur Howard (1973-78) was a fleet outfielder for the Astros. Outfielder Willie Hogan (1911-12) played for the St. Louis Browns for a couple of years but wasn’t very good. Infielder Walter Hackett (1884-85) was a forgettable 19th-century shortstop. Warren Huston (1937-44) was a backup infielder who couldn’t hit. Backup catcher William Hoffman (1879) went 0-for-6 in his big-league career.
Manager: Whitey Herzog, our player-manager here, won three division titles with Kansas City and then moved across the state and won three pennants and a World Series with the Cardinals. He was one of the defining managers of a generation, and in both K.C. and St. Louis he adapted his teams to their big ballparks and artificial turf by filling his lineup with fast players. He loved switch-hitters, got the most out of young ballplayers and sometimes worked his pitching rotation like a jigsaw puzzle. Herzog was a no-nonsense kind of guy who was not afraid to jettison a star player if he thought the guy was becoming counterproductive to the team (see John Mayberry, Ted Simmons, Garry Templeton, Keith Hernandez ... ). Inducted into the Hall of Fame as a manager.
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