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Harry H. Davis (July 19, 1873 – August 11, 1947) was a
Davis was born in
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (A ...
first baseman
A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...
who played for the New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisio ...
(1895–96), Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...
(1896–98), Louisville Colonels (1898), Washington Senators (1898–99), Philadelphia Athletics
The Philadelphia Athletics were a Major League Baseball team that played in Philadelphia from 1901 to 1954, when they moved to Kansas City, Missouri, and became the Kansas City Athletics. Following another move in 1967, the team became the Oakla ...
(1901–11, 1913–17), and 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 , they have played at Progressive ...
(1912).
Early life
Davis was born in Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...
. He had no middle name, but he added the middle initial ''H'' to distinguish himself from others who shared his first and last names. He attended Girard College
Girard College is an independent college preparatory five-day boarding school located on a 43-acre campus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The school was founded and permanently endowed from the shipping and banking fortune of Stephen Girard upon ...
; the institution served as an elementary school and high school. Davis, who picked up the lifelong nickname of "Jasper" at Girard, graduated in 1891 and played amateur baseball until beginning his professional baseball career in 1894.
Career
After having played the 1900 season for the minor league Providence Grays, he decided to quit baseball, but Athletics managerConnie Mack
Cornelius McGillicuddy (December 22, 1862 – February 8, 1956), better known as Connie Mack, was an American professional baseball catcher, manager, and team owner. The longest-serving manager in Major League Baseball history, he holds untoucha ...
made him an offer too large to refuse to return to baseball in 1901 with the Athletics. He led the American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league b ...
in home run
In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...
s from 1904 to 1907, one of only five players to have ever led their league for four consecutive seasons. He also hit for the cycle
In baseball, hitting for the cycle is the accomplishment of one batter who hits a single, a double, a triple, and a home run in the same game. Collecting the hits in that order is known as a "natural cycle". Cycles are rare in Major League B ...
on July 10, 1901.
He led the AL in doubles three times and the NL in triples once.
Davis was the starting first baseman and first captain of manager Connie Mack
Cornelius McGillicuddy (December 22, 1862 – February 8, 1956), better known as Connie Mack, was an American professional baseball catcher, manager, and team owner. The longest-serving manager in Major League Baseball history, he holds untoucha ...
's Philadelphia Athletics from 1901 to 1910. In 1905 he led the American league in home runs, RBI, runs and doubles, and led the Athletics to the 1905 World Series
The 1905 World Series was the championship series in Major League Baseball for the 1905 season. It was the second edition of the World Series after the 1903 Series, since the 1904 season ended with no Series held. The 1905 Series matched the Nat ...
against the New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisio ...
. He was the starting first baseman for the 1910 World Champions and hit .353 in the 1910 World Series. In 1911, the 37-year-old Davis was replaced at first base by the younger Stuffy McInnis
John Phalen "Stuffy" McInnis (September 19, 1890 – February 16, 1960) was a first baseman and manager in Major League Baseball. McInnis gained his nickname as a youngster in the Boston suburban leagues, where his spectacular playing brought ...
, and Davis played a reserve role for the 1911 World Champions.
Davis managed the 1912 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 , they have played at Progressive ...
, but left with 28 games left in the season and a record of 54–71. He returned to the Athletics as a player, coach and assistant captain in 1913, amassing only 33 plate appearances over the next five seasons combined.
In 1755 games over 22 seasons, Davis posted a .277 batting average (1841-for-6653) with 1001 runs, 361 doubles
Men's doubles, Women's doubles or Mixed doubles are sports having two players per side, including;
* Beach volleyball
* Doubles badminton
* Doubles curling
* Footvolley
* Doubles pickleball
* Doubles squash
* Doubles table tennis
* Doubles te ...
, 145 triples, 75 home runs
In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...
, 951 RBI, 285 stolen bases
In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a runner advances to a base to which they are not entitled and the official scorer rules that the advance should be credited to the action of the runner. The umpires determine whether the runner is safe or ...
, 525 bases on balls
A base on balls (BB), also known as a walk, occurs in baseball when a batter receives four pitches that the umpire calls '' balls'', and is in turn awarded first base without the possibility of being called out. The base on balls is defined in Sec ...
, .335 on-base percentage
In baseball statistics, on-base percentage (OBP) measures how frequently a batter reaches base. An official Major League Baseball (MLB) statistic since 1984, it is sometimes referred to as on-base average (OBA), as it is rarely presented as a ...
and .408 slugging percentage
In baseball statistics, slugging percentage (SLG) is a measure of the batting productivity of a hitter. It is calculated as total bases divided by at bats, through the following formula, where ''AB'' is the number of at bats for a given player, ...
. He finished his career with an overall .978 fielding percentage
In baseball statistics, fielding percentage, also known as fielding average, is a measure that reflects the percentage of times a defensive player properly handles a batted or thrown ball. It is calculated by the sum of putouts and assists, di ...
primarily as a first baseman. In 16 World Series games (1905,'10,'11) he batted .246 (15-for-61) with 8 runs, 5 doubles, 7 RBI and 3 walks.
Later life
He continued as a coach and scout with Mack's Athletics until 1927 and also served as a Philadelphia City Councilman. Davis died in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, August 11, 1947, at the age of 74.See also
*List of Major League Baseball career triples leaders
In baseball, a triple is a hit in which the batter advances to third base in one play, with neither the benefit of a fielding error nor another runner being put out on a fielder's choice. Triples were more common in baseball's dead-ball era, whe ...
* List of Major League Baseball career runs scored leaders
* List of Major League Baseball career stolen bases leaders
* List of Major League Baseball players to hit for the cycle
* List of Major League Baseball annual runs batted in leaders
In baseball, a run batted in (RBI) is awarded to a batter for each runner who scores as a result of the batter's action, including a hit, fielder's choice, sacrifice fly, bases loaded walk, or hit by pitch. A batter is also awarded an RBI ...
* List of Major League Baseball home run records
This is a list of some of the records relating to home runs hit in baseball games played in the Major Leagues. Some Major League records are sufficiently notable to have their own page, for example the single-season home run record, the progress ...
* List of Major League Baseball annual home run leaders
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit so far that the batter is able to circle all the bases ending at home plate, scoring himself plus any runners already on base, with no errors by the defensive team on the play. An automati ...
* List of Major League Baseball annual runs scored leaders
* List of Major League Baseball annual doubles leaders
* List of Major League Baseball annual triples leaders
In baseball, a triple is recorded when the ball is hit so that the batter is able to advance all the way to third base, scoring any runners who were already on base, with no errors by the defensive team on the play. In Major League Baseball (M ...
* List of Major League Baseball player-managers
Major League Baseball (MLB) is the highest level of play in North American professional baseball. Founded in 1869, it is composed of 30 teams. Each team in the league has a manager, who is responsible for team strategy and leadership on and off ...
* Major League Baseball titles leaders
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Harry 1873 births 1947 deaths 19th-century baseball players Cleveland Naps players Cleveland Naps managers Louisville Colonels players Major League Baseball first basemen New York Giants (NL) players Philadelphia Athletics players Pittsburgh Pirates players Washington Senators (1891–1899) players Baseball players from Philadelphia American League home run champions American League RBI champions Minor league baseball managers Pawtucket Maroons players Providence Clamdiggers (baseball) players Pawtucket Phenoms players Providence Grays (minor league) players Major League Baseball player-managers Baseball coaches from Pennsylvania