Harry Frederick Abbott (born Harry Frederick Winbigler; October 22, 1874 – June 11, 1935) was an American
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
catcher
Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the catc ...
. He played three seasons of Major League baseball for the
Cleveland Naps
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. Since , the team has played its home gam ...
and the
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. The Phillies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has ...
.
He began his career as a teenager with Marion (Interstate League) in 1891. Abbot played with independent Ohio teams Springfield and Dayton in 1892 and 1893 respectively before joining the San Antonio Missionaries of the Texas-Southern League in 1895. In 1897 he was playing with the Cairo Egyptians in the
Central League
The or , also known as the for sponsorship reasons, is one of the two professional baseball leagues that constitute Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship plays against the winner of the Pacific League i ...
New Orleans Pelicans
The New Orleans Pelicans are an American professional basketball team based in New Orleans. The Pelicans compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Confere ...
, where he batted .265 in 15 games, while playing mostly in the outfield. Abbott joined Danville of the Indiana–Illinois League the following season, and remained with them when they joined the Central League the next year. Abbott batted a very respectable .318 with three home runs and stole 14 bases over 83 games. He rejoined the New Orleans Pelicans, batting .296 for them in 1901, and .289 in 1902, where he played catcher, shortstop, second, and first base, playing over 100 each season.
Abbott made his
major league baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
debut with the
Cleveland Naps
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. Since , the team has played its home gam ...
a week into the 1903 season, on April 29 against the
St. Louis Browns
The St. Louis Browns were a Major League Baseball team that originated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as the Milwaukee Brewers. A charter member of the American League (AL), the Brewers moved to St. Louis, Missouri, after the 1901 season, where they ...
. He would go on to play a total of 77 games as a backup catcher behind
Harry Bemis
Harry Parker Bemis (February 1, 1874 – May 23, 1947) was a catcher in Major League Baseball. Nicknamed "Handsome Harry,"Fritz Buelow and rookie Harry Ostdiek Abbott batted a meager .169 with no homers and only a dozen RBI before being sent down to the
Columbus Senators
The Columbus Senators Minor league baseball team was created in as a founding member of the Tri-State League. After that, the Senators played in the Western League (1897-1899), Interstate League (1900), Western Association (1901), and Ameri ...
of the American Association where he finished the season going .222 over 34 games. In January 1905 he was traded to the
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. The Phillies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has ...
for infielder Rudy Hulswitt.
In his final season in the major leagues Abbott was used primarily as backup for Phillies starter
Red Dooin
Charles Sebastian "Red" Dooin (June 12, 1879 – May 12, 1952) was an American professional baseball player and manager. A catcher in Major League Baseball during the first two decades of the 20th century, he played 1,219 of his 1,290 games as a ...
Abbott nearly duplicated his previous season with the Naps, hitting .195 to go with his dozen RBI in 42 games. Following the season his contract was purchased by the
Toledo Mud Hens
The Toledo Mud Hens are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Toledo, Ohio, and play their home games at Fifth Third Field. A baseball team nicknamed the ...
, a team who was popular and liked enough to have some of their players, including Abbot be featured on tobacco baseball cards. Abbott would spend the next five years with Toledo primarily as a starter. His most notable season was 1908, in which he batted .331. In his final season as a player Abbott was starting for the
Los Angeles Angels
The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, ...
of the
Pacific Coast League
The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...
where he played in 110 games hitting .215 with a home run.
His interment was located at
Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery
Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery is a cemetery located at 10621 Victory Boulevard, straddling the border between the Los Angeles neighborhood of North Hollywood and Burbank, California.
The cemetery's East entrance features the Portal of the Fo ...