Harry Heilmann
One of the best right-handed hitters in baseball history, Harry Heilmann won four batting titles on his way to the Hall of Fame. Some attributed his batting improvement after 1920 to a “lively ball”, but the more plausible reasons were the tutelage of teammate Ty Cobb, and maturity. Heilmann played fifteen seasons with Detroit as part of one of the best hitting teams in history, and later served as a popular announcer for the franchise. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1952. |
Full bio ⇓Played For
Detroit Tigers (1914-1929)
Cincinnati Reds (1930-1932)
All-Time Rankings
Harry Heilmann ranks #14 among the Top 50 all-time at RF. Rankings ⇒
Best Season: 1923
At the time, his .403 batting average was the 19th highest of all-time. He won his second batting crown and slugged .632 with a .481 OBP (topped only by Babe Ruth). Other totals included 211 hits, 121 runs, 44 doubles, 11 triples, 18 homers, 115 RBI, 74 walks, 40 K's, and nine steals.
Full Bio
Heilmann was 25 years old before he hit .300 in a season, but he retired at the age of 38 with a .342 lifetime mark. He listened closely to the advice Cobb gave him and became a line-drive hitting menace who rarely struck out. Joining Cobb and Bobby Veach, he formed an impressive outfield from 1921 to 1923. In 1924 Heinie Manush (also a Hall of Famer) joined Cobb and Heilmann in the Detroit outfield.
In the 1920’s Heilmann led all AL batters with a .364 average. His .558 slugging percentage was topped only by Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, and Al Simmons. For that decade “Slug” averaged 220 hits, 110 runs, 45 doubles, 12 triples, 16 homers, and 130 RBI per 154 games. He won the batting title in 1921, 1923, 1925, and 1927. He was consistent - his average in his batting title seasons ranged from .393 to .403.
Heilmann’s batting titles all came over famous adversaries: in 1921 he beat out Cobb by five points; in 1923 Heilmann’s career-high .403 bested Ruth by ten points; in 1925 Heilmann used a September push to overtake Tris Speaker on the final day; and in 1927 he again won on the season’s last day, this time over Al Simmons. Thus, Heilmann topped four Hall of Famers for his batting crowns.
Despite arthritis in his hands, Heilmann drove in 120 runs for the 1929 Tigers in just 125 games, batting .344 with 41 doubles. In an astounding slap in the face, Detroit released him after the season and he finished his career with the Reds in 1932. He returned to the Tiger organization in 1933 to broadcast their games on radio, a post he held for 18 years. He died in Detroit in 1951, one year before his induction into the Hall of Fame. A few days after his death, Detroit hosted the All-Star Game, and they had a moment of silence in honor of Heilmann.
Born
Harry Edwin Heilmann was born on August 3, 1894, in San Francisco, CA.
Died
July 9, 1951, Southfield, MI
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
Primary Position: OF
Primary Team: DET
Major League Debut
May 16, 1914 ... Had it not been for the extremely talented Tiger outfield trio of Ty Cobb, Sam Crawford, and Bobby Veach, Heilmann would have been in the starting lineup much sooner than 1916.
Nine Other Players Who Debuted in 1914
Babe Ruth
Harry Heilmann
George Burns
Everett Scott
Red Faber
Sad Sam Jones
Dolf Luque
Jack Tobin
Braggo Roth
Nicknames
Slug
Uniform Numbers
#22 (1932)
Similar Players
Heinie Manush, but not for nearly as long. A more recent similar player would be Rico Carty.
Related Players
Ty Cobb, Heinie Manush, Babe Ruth, Tris Speaker
| Hall of Fame Voting |
| Year |
Election |
Votes |
Pct |
| 1937 |
BBWAA |
10 |
5.0% |
1938 |
BBWAA |
14 |
5.3% |
1939 |
BBWAA |
8 |
2.9% |
1942 |
BBWAA |
4 |
1.7% |
1945 |
BBWAA |
5 |
2.0% |
1946 |
Nominating Vote |
23 |
11.4% |
1947 |
BBWAA |
65 |
40.4% |
1948 |
BBWAA |
40 |
33.1% |
1949 |
BBWAA |
59 |
38.6% |
1949 |
Run Off |
52 |
27.8% |
1950 |
BBWAA |
87 |
51.8% |
1951 |
BBWAA |
153 |
67.7% |
1952 |
BBWAA |
203 |
86.8% |
|
Post-Season Notes
The closest Heilmann's teams ever came to first place was four games out in 1916, when Detroit finished in third place.
Milestones
The fact that Crawford stood in his way, his short-season in 1918 due to the war, and a few injuries late in his career, prevented Heilmann from reaching 3,000 hits. He came up 340 hits shy of the milestone.
Hitting Streaks
23 games (1921)
21 games (1926)
Transactions
On October 14, 1929, Heilmann was sold to the Cincinnati Reds.
Replaced
Sam Crawford
Replaced By
The Tigers replaced him with Roy Johnson in 1930. The Reds replaced Heilmann with Estel Crabtree.
Best Strength as a Player
Hitting
Largest Weakness as a Player
Heilmann was one of the slowest players of his era.
Learn More about Harry Heilmann
Search Amazon.com for Books about Harry Heilmann ⇒
Search for Harry Heilmann at Google ⇒
View a map of his hometown at Mapquest ⇒
