Richard Joseph Harley (September 25, 1872 – April 3, 1952) was an American

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding ...

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to c ...

, manager, and coach. A native of

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. Sinc ...

, Harley played baseball and

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wit ...

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

. He then played professional baseball from 1895 to 1909, including seven years 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 (AL) ...

for the St. Louis Browns (1897–1898),

Cleveland Spiders The Cleveland Spiders were an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. The team competed at the major league level from 1887 to 1899, first for two seasons as a member of the now-defunct American Association (AA), followed ...

(1899),

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

(1900–1901),

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

(1902), and

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is locate ...

(1903). During his major league career, he appeared in 741 games and compiled a .262

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average i ...

with 96

extra-base hit In baseball, an extra-base hit (EB, EBH or XBH), also known as a long hit, is any base hit on which the batter is able to advance past first base without the benefit of a fielder either committing an error or opting to make a throw to retire anot ...

s, 236

RBI RBI most often refers to: *Reserve Bank of India *Run batted in RBI may also refer to: Organisations *Radio Berlin International *Raiffeisen Bank International *Reed Business Information *Restaurant Brands International *Ruđer Bošković In ...

s, and 78 times

hit by pitch In baseball, hit by pitch (HBP) is an event in which a batter or his clothing or equipment (other than his bat) is struck directly by a pitch from the pitcher; the batter is called a hit batsman (HB). A hit batsman is awarded first base, provided ...

. As an outfielder, he had a strong arm, led the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team ...

in assists in 1898, and totaled at least 20 assists in four of his seven major league seasons. He also led all National League outfielders in errors with 27 in 1899 and 30 in 1901. Harley later served as the player-manager of the

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Divi ...

of the Eastern League (1904–1905) and as a college baseball coach for Georgetown (1913),

Penn State #Redirect Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a public state-related land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvania. Founded in 1855 as the Farmers' High ...

(1915–1917), and

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

(1920–1924).

Early years

Harley was born in 1872 in

. He grew up on his family's land named Boxwood Farm located in Whitpain Township located in the Blue Bell/Gwynedd Valley area northwest of the city. He attended

, where he played both

and

. He played at the fullback position on the football team in 1893. Although contemporary newspaper sources have not been found referring to him as a coach, modern Georgetown football media guides list Harley as the head coach of the 1893 Georgetown football team. He played at the shortstop and left field on the baseball team in the spring of 1894.

Professional baseball

Minor leagues (1895-96)

Harley began playing professional baseball in 1895 for the Millville team in the South New Jersey League. He advanced to the

Springfield Ponies Springfield Ponies was the primary name of minor league baseball teams based in Springfield, Massachusetts that played between 1893 and 1943. The team competed as the Ponies through its history except for single seasons as the Maroons (1895), Ti ...

of the Eastern League in 1896.

St. Louis and Cleveland (1897-99)

On May 29, 1897, he was traded by the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has been Citize ...

with Bill Hallman to the St. Louis Browns in exchange for Tommy Dowd. At the time, ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' noted that, while Harley was drawing "a big salary for a young player", he was "worth every cent he draws. That boy is a comer, if there ever was one." Harley made his major league debut on June 2, 1897, with the Browns. On June 24, 1897, he collected six hits in a 12-inning game played at Pittsburgh. During the 1897 season, he hit .288 in 90 games for the Browns. The following year, he appeared in 142 games for the Browns, but his batting average dropped by more than 40 points to .246. He was hit by a pitch for a career high 22 times in 1898. He also led all National League outfielders in 1898 with 26 assists and ranked second with 27 errors. Prior to the start of the 1899 season, the St. Louis Browns baseball club was acquired by the owners of the

. On March 29, 1899, Harley was assigned by the St. Louis club to the Spiders. He appeared in 142 games for the 1899 Spiders and compiled a .250 batting average with a career-high 50 RBIs. He was the starting left fielder for the

1899 Cleveland Spiders The 1899 Cleveland Spiders season was the team's 13th and final season in Major League Baseball (MLB), and their 11th season in the National League (NL). The Spiders' team owners, the Robison family, also owned the St. Louis Perfectos. To st ...

, who some consider to be the worst team in baseball history. The Spiders went 20–134, scoring 529 runs and allowing 1,252 runs. Harley led all National League outfielders in 1899 with 27 errors.

Detroit and Cincinnati (1900-02)

On April 3, 1900, the

purchased four former Spiders: Harley, Sport McAllister, Harry Lochhead, and

Suter Sullivan Suter Grant Sullivan (October 14, 1872 in Baltimore, Maryland – April 19, 1925 in Baltimore, Maryland) was an infielder in Major League Baseball from 1898 to 1899. He played for the St. Louis Browns and Cleveland Spiders The Cleveland Spide ...

. (The Tigers were part of 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 ...

in 1900, but the league was not recognized as a major league until 1901.) Harley appeared in 123 games for the 1900 Tigers and led the team with a .325 batting average, 77 runs scored, and 47 stolen bases. In September 1900, after the Tigers had completed their season, Harley joined the

. He appeared in five games and hit .428. However, he remained the property of the Tigers. In October 1900, Detroit club owner

James D. Burns James Dennis Burns (July 28, 1865 – January 2, 1928) was an American businessman, hotel operator, politician, and baseball team owner. He was elected sheriff of Wayne County, Michigan, and served a four-year term. He also served three times as ...

announced that he had rejected an offer of $2,000 to sell Harley, but he would sell for $3,000. One week after Burns' statement, the Reds purchased Harley from Detroit, reportedly for the $3,000 demanded by Burns. Harley appeared in 133 games in the outfield for the 1901 Reds. He hit .273 during the 1901 season and led all National League outfielders with 30 errors. He also had 37 stolen bases in 1901, ranking fourth in the National League. Prior to the 1902 season, Harley left the Reds and rejoined the Detroit Tigers. He appeared in 125 games for the 1902 Tigers, compiling a .281 batting average with 44 RBIs. He also led the American League in 1902 having been hit by a pitch 12 times.

Chicago Cubs (1903)

In early October 1902, Harley signed with the

for the 1903 season, jumping back to the National League. Chicago manager

Frank Selee Frank Gibson Selee (October 26, 1859 – July 5, 1909) was an American Major League Baseball manager in the National League (NL). In his 16-year Major League career, he managed the Boston Beaneaters (1890–1901) and Chicago Orphans / Cubs (190 ...

moved Harley from left field to right field and said:

"Harley always appealed to me as a player of more than ordinary intelligence . . . Harley is a natural hitter, is fast on the bases, can throw well, and uses good judgment in everything he does. I feel certain that he will make a success of right field, and that the team will be stronger for having him there."

In 104 games for the 1903 Cubs, Harley hit .231. The 1903 season was Harley's last in the major leagues.

Major league overview

In his seven seasons in the major leagues, Harley appeared in 740

games A game is a structured form of play, usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or games) or art (su ...

, all but two as an outfielder, including 539 in

left field In baseball, a left fielder, abbreviated LF, is an outfielder who plays defense in left field. Left field is the area of the outfield to the left of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In the numbering syst ...

, 106 in

right field A right fielder, abbreviated RF, is the outfielder in baseball or softball who plays defense in right field. Right field is the area of the outfield to the right of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In t ...

, and 93 in

center field A center fielder, abbreviated CF, is the outfielder in baseball who plays defense in center field – the baseball and softball fielding position between left field and right field. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the ce ...

. He had a career batting average of .262 and an

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 ...

of .332 with 755

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * '' H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014 - a British compilation album s ...

, 389 runs scored, 236 RBIs, 106 extra-base hits, 229

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 ...

, 139 stolen bases, and 78 times

hit by a pitch In baseball, hit by pitch (HBP) is an event in which a batter or his clothing or equipment (other than his bat) is struck directly by a pitch from the pitcher; the batter is called a hit batsman (HB). A hit batsman is awarded first base, provided ...

Return to minors (1904-09)

During the 1904 and 1905 seasons, Harley was a player-manager for the Toronto Maple Leafs of the Eastern League. He also played in 1905 and 1906 for Providence in the Eastern League. He concluded his playing career playing for the Trenton Tigers (1907),

Louisville Colonels The Louisville Colonels were a Major League Baseball team that also played in the American Association (AA) throughout that league's ten-year existence from 1882 until 1891. They were known as the Louisville Eclipse from 1882 to 1884, and as ...

(1908), and Reading of the Atlantic League (1909).

Later years

After retiring as a player, Harley was a baseball coach at Georgetown (1913),

(1915–1917),

(1920–1924), and Villanova. He was also in the restaurant business. In 1952, Harley died at his home in Philadelphia. He was survived by two daughters. He was buried at Old Cathedral Cemetery in Philadelphia.

Head coaching record

Football

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harley, Dick 1872 births 1952 deaths 19th-century baseball players Major League Baseball left fielders Chicago Cubs players Cincinnati Reds players Cleveland Spiders players Detroit Tigers players St. Louis Browns (NL) players Detroit Tigers (Western League) players Louisville Colonels (minor league) players Millville (minor league baseball) players Philadelphia Athletics (minor league) players Providence Clamdiggers (baseball) players Providence Grays (minor league) players Springfield Ponies players Toronto Maple Leafs (International League) players Toronto Maple Leafs (International League) managers Trenton Tigers players Georgetown Hoyas baseball coaches Penn State Nittany Lions baseball coaches Pittsburgh Panthers baseball coaches Villanova Wildcats baseball coaches Baseball players from Philadelphia Burials in Pennsylvania