Heinie Smith

Heinie Smith
Second baseman / Manager
Born: (1871-10-24)October 24, 1871
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Died: June 25, 1939(1939-06-25) (aged 67)
Buffalo, New York, U.S.
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
MLB debut
September 8, 1897, for the Louisville Colonels
Last MLB appearance
August 16, 1903, for the Detroit Tigers
MLB statistics
Batting average.238
Home runs1
Runs batted in92
Teams
As player

As manager

George Henry "Heinie" Smith (October 24, 1871 – June 25, 1939) was an American second baseman and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played for the Louisville Colonels (1897–1898), Pittsburgh Pirates (1899), New York Giants (1901–1902) and Detroit Tigers (1903).

Career

In his best season in 1902, Smith hit .252 and posted career-highs in games (138), runs batted in (RBIs) (33), hits (129), doubles (19), runs (46), and stolen bases (32). Also during that year, Smith took over as interim manager of the New York Giants and recorded a 5–27 record before being replaced by John McGraw. Smith then returned to being a full-time player.

In his career, Smith posted a .238 batting average with three home runs and 91 RBIs in 311 games played.

After Major League career

Following his majors career, Smith played and managed in the International League for the Buffalo Bisons and coached the University at Buffalo baseball team in 1915[1] and 1916.[2]

Smith died in Buffalo, New York at the age of 67.[3]

Major League Heinie's

"Heinie" was a common nickname for German baseball players in the early part of the 20th century.[citation needed] Smith was one of 22 Major League Heinie's in the first half of the 20th century. They include Heinie Manush, Heinie Groh, Heinie Zimmerman, Heinie Beckendorf and Heinie Schuble. In the 60-plus years since the end of World War II, there has not been a single Heinie in Major League Baseball.[citation needed]

See also

References

  1. ^ "1915 Buffalo Baseball Archived 2015-02-05 at the Wayback Machine", University at Buffalo Digital Collections – February 5, 2015.
  2. ^ "1916 Buffalo Baseball Archived 2014-02-21 at the Wayback Machine", University at Buffalo Digital Collections – July 11, 2013.
  3. ^ "G. H. (Heinie) Smith.", New York Post – June 26, 1939.